Page 38 of Break: Vol. 2

I shook my head at him, unable to resist the smile that came to my lips as he released me to take my hand and pull me into the white brick-faced building with a light-gray awning over the entrance and a sign that readThe Balden Suites.

We bypassed a doorman, who must have recognized Dare because he said nothing as we strode by him, and instead merely inclined his head respectfully. Darren pulled me along behind him towards the first set of steel doors in a row of elevators. There were four elevators in total. Two on one side and two on the other. I glanced around as he pressed the up button.

"How long have you guys been here?" I asked suspiciously. He seemed to know his way around far too easily.

Dare scratched his chin thoughtfully. "I just got here about twenty minutes ago," he said.

"And the others?" I prompted.

He shrugged.

"Why do I have the feeling that you guys have been holding out on me? What am I about to walk into?"

Dare cast me a dopey grin.

"Don't look at me like that," I commanded, tugging my hand against his vise-like grip.

"It's not bad, I promise," he said, refusing to release me.

"Uh huh." I folded my free arm around my stomach as the elevator doors opened and we got inside. He pressed another button and I turned my face away as we began our ascent.

"Jamie." He reached around for my other hand and pivoted, pulling me completely against him, chest to chest. I propped my chin on his sternum and glared up at him. "Do you trust me?" he asked.

"What kind of question is that?" Of course, I trusted them.

"Do you trust all of us?" he pressed.

I rolled my eyes. "Of course, I do."

"If you trust us, then know that you'll love it."

I narrowed my eyes at him as the elevator dinged, letting us know that we'd arrived. "Whatexactly will I love, Darren?"

The elevator doors slid open and he stepped out, dragging me with both hands on my wrists. Before I could say anything else, my eyes lit on the room and my mouth dropped open. I turned as Dare released me, and then turned again, trying to take it all in.

"This is..." I couldn't believe it. "It's..."

The floors were white marble, the walls a beautiful soft lavender. There were tables by the front with freshly picked tulips in glass vases.

"Dare..."

"Do you like it?" I pivoted as Dex's voice came from an archway to my right.

"Do I like it?" I repeated. "It's amazing. It's gorgeous." I stepped through another archway into what looked to be a living room area. Two giant sectional couches with lovely purple throw pillows. A glass coffee table. An 82-inch television screen. I quirked a brow and smirked at that. Of course, they would. I stopped spinning like Annie in Daddy Warbucks's mansion and turned back to find that Dex had joined Dare and they both hovered nearby, eyeballing me.

"It's impossible," I finally said. "How the hell can we afford this? I thought we were just getting a cheap apartment."

"There's no such thing as cheap in New York City," Cody said, coming in from another entrance with Taylor and a tall, unfamiliar woman not far behind.

I frowned at the woman, but noting her black pantsuit and severe haircut, I figured she must be the realtor. "Hello there," she said with a bright smile, coming forward with a hand outstretched. "I'm Maude Thompson, from Hallvorn Real Estate."

I nodded, taking her hand and shaking it lightly before stepping away. "It's nice to meet you," I replied, "but I think there's been a mix up."

"Oh, there's no mix up, sweetcheeks," Taylor said as he swaggered towards me. "And we're not renting this place; Dex is buying it. It's practically a done deal."

I turned and glared at the man in question. "He wouldn't do something like that without asking his fiancée first, now, would you, Dexter?"

"Uh oh." Cody's eyes widened. "She said your full name, man. You know that means she's mad."

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