Page 64 of Claimed By my Frenemy

“I…”

“Mia!” Aurora scolds, and I know what she’s going to say before she says it. “You can’t get upset at someone without giving them the chance to explain themselves. I know you like Theo. That much was clear from the way you kissed him at the tiki bar.”

“I didn’t like him then!”

“I don’t think you’ve stopped liking him since high school. You’ve always had a soft spot for him. Don’t let that soft spot trip you up now.”

I grab my glass and stare at the ice bobbing at the top. Aurora is right. I’ve never been able to shut Theo out completely. He was my first boyfriend, and if it weren’t for this whole property/resort business, our relationship would be perfect now.

“Mia, you need to be careful. I know you want to trust him, but people don’t change overnight. If he’s feeling pressure from his partner, he might do something desperate,” Aurora warns.

I frown, not wanting to believe it but knowing there’s truth in her words. “I just don’t want to jump to conclusions. Maybe he’s just stressed. Maybe his partner was talking to him about a different problem altogether. I didn’t actually hear my name.”

Aurora sounds doubtful as she says, “Maybe. Just keep your eyes open. And if he’s not being completely honest with you, you need to confront him. It may be the only way you get the truth.”

Her words echo in my mind long after she leaves. I try to focus on my tasks, but the seed of doubt has been planted, and it’s growing rapidly. By the time evening rolls around, I’m more determined than ever to talk to Theo.

I have to confront him, but I just don’t know how.

Then, I see him in the middle of the resort. He’s talking to someone, and I can’t hear their words, but it’s clear from the supplies being laid all around that they’re putting in the pool.

I stand up from the back porch and make my way down the steps. The words I’m going to use to confront Theo pound through my mind. I’ll ask him about the phone conversation. I’ll look into his eyes when I’m asking so he can’t hide anything from me.

And then?

What if I still have doubts?

I won’t know until I try it. I won’t know if I still have doubts until I give Theo the chance to explain himself. I decide to go through the house, across the front porch, and down the sidewalk to his resort, instead of through the grass. It will give me a couple of extra minutes to plan what I want to say.

When I step out onto the front porch, I notice a small envelope on the top step. I pick it up; my name is scrawled across the front in messy handwriting. I look up and down the street, but there’s just the regular activity. A pallet of supplies is being delivered to Theo’s resort. Carolina, my neighbor across the street, is out playing with Isabel in the yard.

She gives me a friendly wave when she sees me out. I wave back before turning my attention to the note again.

I open the envelope and pull out a single sheet of paper. The words are typed, the message short but chilling:

Theo is planning to double-cross you and the community. Be careful who you trust.

I stare at the note, my heart pounding. Who could have sent this? And why now?

I walk back inside, clutching the note in my hand. I pace around my living room for a moment or two. My mind is going crazy as I panic. I have no idea what to do or how to deal with this.

Suddenly, an idea hits me. My doorbell camera. I need to check and see if it was triggered by the letter’s delivery.

I hurry to my phone and open the app. It has no notifications since the one of me stepping out on the porch. I watch myself appear, backside toward the camera, then walk forward and pick up the note from the top step. I stand there for a moment, and then I disappear back inside.

I scroll back in the camera’s history, but it didn’t pick up anything else. It’s like the note just flew there.

Or maybe the person could see that I had a doorbell camera and wanted to avoid being detected.

Feeling sick, I tuck the note into my pocket. Caroline and Isabel are outside. Maybe they saw something. Hoping I don’t sound completely crazy, I head across the street to speak with my neighbor.

Isabel is busy pushing a little car around with a doll inside it. Her mom sits in a lawn chair, half-watching her daughter and half-reading a book. She puts her book down when she sees me approaching.

“How are you today?”

“I’m okay.” I squint against the sun as I watch Isabel giggle when her baby doll falls off the car. “Isabel looks like she’s having fun.”

“Oh, yes. She could spend the whole day outside, but when it hits ninety, I have to head inside. Too hot.”

---