Page 25 of An Unexpected Encounter

“No. But you weren’t exactly quiet, and the walls aren’t that thick. Like I said, she may have a boyfriend now, but something’s off.” Yeah, they were good with each other and I could tell they were close. But there wasn’t any spark between them.

“Okay, before we can even think about pursuing a relationship with her, we need to get her to listen to us. That everything at the wedding wasn’t as it seemed. We were in shock. Any thoughts on how we do that?” I ask.

We all just look at each other, no one saying a word, and drink our beers, lost in thought.

It’s not until five minutes later that Jay speaks up. “I think we should approach her one at a time. That way, it doesn’t look like we’re ganging up on her.” “That’s a good idea,” I agree with him. It will feel less confrontational.

“Then what?” Eli asks.

“We woo her. Make her see we’d make better boyfriends than the one she has.”

“And if she doesn’t want to let him go?” It’s my turn to question Jay’s plan now.

“Then I guess she’s going to have four boyfriends, because I’m not losing her. I also think we need to talk to Dad without Julia around. I don’t like this man he’s become since being with her.”

We all nod.

Dad has definitely changed.

After a lot of back and forth, a round of rock-paper-scissors, and finally pulling straws, I won.

I’m the first to attempt to explain to Selena our grand fuck up.

I’m not sure if she likes coffee, but I make a pit stop at the coffee shop around the corner from her and get two cups, along with an assortment of muffins, some doughnuts, and a bear claw. I mean, who doesn’t love a bear claw?

I just hope he’s not there. Sam. Ugh, I hate his name as much as I do his face. It should be me with her, not him.

I pull to a stop in front of her apartment building. It’s older looking and could use some repairs from what I can see on the outside. It’s four floors high and has limited parking on the street.

I’m beginning to wonder how safe this area is and plan to do a check when I get home.

Taking hold of the to-go tray and the bag of sweets, I get out of the truck and click the fob, locking the doors.

As I walk up to the building, the door opens and an elderly woman steps out with a metal grocery cart.

“Let me hold the door open for you,” I tell her and she smiles and nods her head in thanks.

I know she’s on the top floor, so I head to the elevator, only to see it’s out of order.

When was the last time the fire inspector was here? She shouldn’t have to trudge up and down four flights of stairs, not to mention the poor elderly woman who just left.

I contain my anger and head up the stairs, going over what I’m going to say to her all the way up. There may have also been a prayer or two in there that she doesn’t slam the door in my face.

I take the last step and turn right, heading down the hallway to her apartment. My nerves cause the hair on my skin to stand on end and my stomach to turn into knots. I’ve never had a woman make me feel like this before. Not even when I was a horny teenager.

Taking a deep breath in and slowly blowing it out, I lift my hand and knock on the door. I wait but nothing, so I knock again.

This time, I can hear movement. Her footsteps get louder the closer to the door she gets.

“Sam, why didn’t you—”

“Hey Selena, I hope it’s okay if I stop by.” “Ezekiel, what are you doing here? How do you know where I live?” Her hair is a mess, and she's in an oversized shirt and a pair of shorts. Her skin is pale and blotchy and her eyes are red. Has she been crying?

“I wanted to talk to you and asked Julia for your address.” Not the entire truth, but she doesn’t need to know I used my resources to find out where she lived. “But how did you know it was me? No one but Eli has been able to tell us apart.”

“Stalker much?” she asks. “What do you want? Sam is on his way over.” She doesn’t gesture for me to come inside, just stands in the doorframe so I can’t move past her. Not that I would try.

“You didn’t answer my question.”

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