Page 85 of Negotiating Tactics

I knew exactly what to do, knew exactly who to go to for the answers I needed.

I grabbed my keys and bag and was out of the door before I could think.

Twenty-Two

Alex

“Open the door, Noah!” I screamed, banging on the heavy wood.

I banged again but didn’t wait for Noah to open.

Through some miracle, the code came back to me, and I keyed it in and waited for the click.

Wanted to fucking scream when instead of opening, the door beeped and the light flashed red.

I hadn’t been back here for months.

Even though Noah complained about my couch, said my bed was too small, and that my place was a wreck, he still said he liked being there.

At the time, I’d thought it was sweet, but now I didn’t know what to think.

The Alex who had run from Noah hadn’t known him like I did, but now I wondered if that was a good thing.

One thing I did know with complete certitude was that if Noah didn’t open the door soon, I was going to kick the fucking thing down.

“Alex! What’s wrong?” Noah said as he yanked the door open and pulled me inside, his face covered with worry.

He was standing there in sweatpants and a long-sleeved shirt.

Barefoot, and so devastatingly handsome that I wanted to throw myself into his arms.

But then I remembered why I was here.

I walked deeper into the house, and Noah closed the door, still looking concerned.

“What did you do?” I asked, as I spun to face him, my voice low, lethal.

“What is this about?” he asked, though the cool, smoothness of his voice told me he had an idea.

“What did you do, Noah?” I repeated.

If I were feeling charitable, I would give him credit for dropping the pretense. But the very last thing I felt in this moment was charitable. “I take it you spoke to your father,” Noah said.

“I did. And what is this about twenty-one thousand dollars?” I asked.

I tossed the words like an accusation, but Noah didn’t even flinch.

“That’s the money I gave him, plus a little back rent as a show of good faith,” he said.

“The money you gave him for what?” I asked, shifting my weight from one foot to the other as I glared at him.

He was completely unbothered. “Well, fifteen of it was to stay away from you forever. I threw in the extra six because I knew the fucking deadbeat wouldn’t pay you back. I was hoping he’d give it to you before the deadline, but you jumped the gun. I suppose you didn’t trust him as much as I thought you did. Which makes sense because you’re smart,” he said.

He shrugged nonchalantly, and I felt like I was in a nightmare.

“What?” I said, gaping at him.

“You heard what I said, Alex,” he said, the calmness in his voice only making me that much more enraged.

---