Unhinged Love

Chapter 7

Conrad's POV

I climbed off the ladder and pulled open my app to the cameras. She didn't know that I had access to them. I had connected them to a hot spot to make sure that they were angled in the right spot. I had four cameras set up. One on her front porch, one on each side of the house and one on the back of the house. Her fence also wasn't locked. This girl needs to take her safety a little more seriously.

Her car pulled into the driveway at five-fifty. I know I told her at six, but I got here early and just got to work. I knew if I knocked and waited for her to tell me it was OK, she would tell me no, but she made it easy when she wasn't even here.

"What the hell Conrad? You said six, and I have ten minutes left."

"I know and I'm done."

"You didn't need to do this."

"Actually, I did. You don't take your safety very seriously, and I learned that last night."

"I was perfectly safe last night."

"Let's see you were going to go on a date with a guy that you didn't know. You gave him your address and then when I took you out you got so drunk that you blacked out in my car. I had to carry your ass inside and put you to bed."

"Did you look at my goodies when you did that?"

"f**k Avery, can you take this seriously?"

She stormed up her front steps and pushed her door open. The damn thing wasn't even locked. I turned to follow her, and she slammed the door in my face. I went to open it up but, of course, she locked it this time.

"Damn it Avery, open the door. I will show you how to run the cameras, and then I will go OK." I wouldn't, but she didn't need to know that.

The door opened slowly and just a crack. I opened it up all the way, and she was nowhere to be seen, but I heard the cupboards being slammed in her kitchen. This woman was going to get on my last nerve, and, for some damn reason, I loved it.

"Give me your phone."

"NO." She snapped.

I took a deep breath, "I need to put the app for the camera on your phone, so you can access it." I said calmly, and she huffed but handed me her phone unlocked. I took it to the bar stool and sat down and started downloading the app and also a second one that I would hide. It would let me track her. It took me about fifteen minutes to get everything set up and hide the tracking app in her phone.

"OK, all done," I said, handing her phone again.

"About time and you better not have done anything else."

"Chill out."

"OK, well bye," she said.

"You're kicking me out?"

"No, you said you were leaving as soon as you were done."

"Maybe I changed my mind."

"Maybe I didn't."

"God, is everything a fight with you?"

"No."

"Are you sure because you have fought me on everything or set me up for a f*****g fight, and it's been twenty-four hours."

"You deserved both of those things. Don't stalk me and then refuse to dance with me when you take me out. As for these things, I don't need them, and I don't need a man doing things for me. I am a perfectly capable woman."

I stood up and took the four steps to her and grabbed her chin with my fingers, forcing her to continue to look at me. "I never said you weren't perfectly capable. I was trying to do something nice and make sure that you were staying safe. Most people would say thank you," I said, and leaned down and pressed my lips to hers for three seconds. I had to count them as slowly as I could because I didn't want to stop. I wanted to carry her to her bedroom and explore every inch of her.

When I pulled back, her eyes were still closed, and so I let go of her and stepped back. "Have a good night my little devil," I told her, and she smiled. It wasn't meant as an insult, it was just true. She was this beautiful angel, but her halo was definitely held up by devil horns placed by Satan himself.

I walked out of her house and went straight home. It was hard to walk out, but I knew if I stayed, I would be pushing things that I wasn't quite ready for. Trust me, I wanted to sleep with her more than anything. I'd been dreaming about it for months, but I didn't want to rush to that, and I didn't want her to think that was all I was after because it wasn't. I was going to marry that girl.

I walked into work on Monday morning, late but in a great mood. I knew I had a meeting in fifteen minutes and needed to make sure I had all the documents together for it. I should have been here an hour ago to do this, but I was too busy looking at pictures of Avery this morning and, well, things came up that had to be taken care of.

"Rachel, can you help me get the documents ready for today's meeting?" I asked my secretary as I walked by her desk.

"I've already done it, and they are on your desk."

"Thanks, you're a lifesaver."

"I'll remember that when I want an afternoon off," she said as I shut my door.

I looked through each file real fast, making sure it was all there. It was for a purchase of another company, and I had to draw the contract up. They weren't going to like it because my boss was planning to pay them five million less than what they wanted, but he also knew that they were desperate to sell. We would go in and sell parts off and make money doing that. We could sit on it for as long as we needed to get the price it was worth, whereas the owner couldn't even make payroll, so he didn't have a choice.

I opened my top drawer and pulled out the red tie I usually wore with my suit. This was the part I hated. My boss didn't care if I didn't wear a suit unless we had a meeting then I had to, and I hated every second of it. I quickly put the tie on and grabbed my folders and headed to the meeting room.

"Conrad, you're late."

"I know, but they aren't here yet, and I have everything ready," I said, and I managed to get a not impressed look from him. I usually get that at least twice a week. This job is easy and it kind of fell into my lap. The guy that used to have it dropped dead of a heart attack at fifty, and I had just finished my internship and started a position with the firm and worked there for a while, but I hated it. I wanted more freedom. I was sitting in a bar one night just hanging by myself and the owner of this company came in, and we got to talking and one thing led to another and here I am. Literally fell in my lap, and it's been the best change I've ever made.

"You know, you're damn lucky that I like you, because if this was anyone else, they would fire me."

"Paul, you wouldn't fire me. I've made you to much money you wouldn't get rid of me."

The door opened and Paul's secretary led the clients in and the other people from our company inside. I walked over and poured myself a cup of coffee and went to my spot at the table next to Paul. I really was only in here for a formality and usually didn't need to speak, but occasionally I would have to answer questions regarding the contracts.

The next two hours were an absolute bore, but I stayed and acted engaged like I was supposed to and, as soon as they signed, but not happy about the five million less, they knew the corner they were in. I gathered all the paperwork, so I could take it down to accounting to be filed or do whatever they do with it.

By the time I left for the day, I was bored, and I wanted to go see my girl. I pulled the app up to see where she was, and it showed she was at home. I smiled to myself and headed to her house. She lived about twenty minutes away from my job but only about ten minutes from my apartment. I lived in the center of town, and she lived in a subdivision. Not somewhere I would want to live. Either give me an apartment in the city or give me a place like Everrette and Barrette's. Gated, fancy, protected and all on just a little bit of land, so the next person wasn't sitting on top of you.

I pulled into her driveway and didn't see her car, which was weird because when I double-checked the tracking app it still said she was here. I got out and went to her door and knocked, but she never answered. I tried to open it and at least this time it was locked. I left her house and drove about three blocks, cleared my photo from her camera and called her and got no answer.

I was starting to get worried. I decided to go to the bakery, but she was never there this late. I pulled in up front, and she wasn't here either. The lights were off. Where the hell did this girl go? I tried calling her again and still no answer. I was starting to worry, and the crappy part was I couldn't call anyone because they didn't know anything.

I drove back to her house and her car was still gone, but I went up to the door and knocked and nothing and then I looked in the windows and I saw her on the couch sound asleep. My heart rate slowed back down to a normal rate. Where the hell is her car? I tried to push the window up and, of course, it was unlocked.

"Hey, I'm calling the cops," someone yelled from across the street.

"It's fine, I'm her boyfriend." I yelled back.

"They are on their way." She yelled again. I groaned; this was the last thing I needed.

"I promise it's fine." I yelled back, and then I heard the sirens. They must have been close. I closed the windows and turned back around and there was a woman in her forties whose haircut screamed I'm a Karen and can't mind my own damn business. "Happy now."

"No, not until you are in the back of that cop car," she said, and I had to laugh. They wouldn't arrest me, but she didn't know that. I started walking towards her, and she was fast to point her phone at me.

"I will record everything you do," she yelled, like I was going to hurt her. "You had better stop right there," she yelled.

"First you want me to leave, and now you tell me to stay right there."

"Ya so the police can arrest your hoodlum ass. I know your type, and you don't scare me," she yelled, but I could practically see her shaking in her leggings.

The cop pulled up as I stood there rolling up my sleeves. I had to smile because I knew this wasn't going to be a problem. I knew him.