Filed to story: Crushing on My Enemy Stepbrother
She nods against my chest, ‘did you catch them?’ she whispers, ‘who broke in?’
I growl angrily, that fury over some bastard scaring my woman like this resurfacing.
‘No one was here’ I sigh, ‘someone threw a rock through the living room window.’
Tessa pulls back, her eyes red rimmed as she looks up at me in shock, ‘but the gate . . ‘ she murmurs.
I nod grimly, ‘yeah, we need to check the security cameras, the gate is fine, I had to open it to let the police through so whoever gained access to my dad’s grounds came in somewhere else.’
Gently, I push her back a step so I can look at her properly, ‘you need to get dressed sweetheart’ I encourage her, ‘and we need to go back downstairs to finish talking to the police.’
Numbly, Tessa nods, turning slowly and walking toward her closet, disappearing inside where I hear her moving hangers, looking for clothes.
Minutes later she steps out again, a pair of black leggings hugging her hips, an oversized sweater above and the fluffiest socks I’ve ever seen, that are neon yellow on her feet.
Following my gaze she gives me a small smile, ‘my mum bought them for me years ago’ she admits, ‘I wouldn’t wear them as they are awful, so I hid them in my closet. But right now? I think I just need to feel a small part of my mum with me.’
I nod, understanding that as she can’t have her mother, this is the next closest thing.
I watch as she quickly brushes her hair, pulling it up into a ponytail before I hold out my hand. I wait for her to take it before drawing her out of the room and down the stairs.
Stepping into the kitchen, I introduce Tessa to the two men who nod toward her, Benson asking her if she’s OK and would she be able to tell him what happened as I focus on his partner who is frowning, the crumpled paper that was wrapped around the rock in his hand.
Stepping closer, he looks up, feeling me approaching and his solemn look puts me on edge.
‘Mr Hawthorne’ he says, watching me closely, ‘do you or the young lady have any enemies?’
I start to shake my head before stopping, in fact, I do, ‘I do’ I reply, ‘I highly doubt Tessa does though, she’s only been in Maine for a few weeks.’ I frown at him, trying to see the paper that he’s tilting away from me, ‘why?’
With a huff, Officer Alvarez turns the paper toward me so I can read the typed letter.
‘You took from me, I’ll take from you, keep an eye out behind you as your time is coming.’
Tessa’s POV
I sit at the counter, hands curled around a cup of coffee that Caleb made me before returning back to the other officer who I now know is Officer Alveraz. Officer Benson is next to me, a notepad in front of him as he asks me questions about what happened.
‘Did you see or hear anything?’ he asks.
I shake my head, ‘we were asleep’ I mutter, ‘then the alarm started and Caleb made me go in the bathroom and lock the door.’
The officer nods, ‘that’s good Tessa, but try to think back, underneath the noise of the alarm, or after it was switched off, did you maybe hear anything outside? Anything at all?’
I drop my gaze to the dark liquid in my cup, feeling useless, ‘no’ I whisper dejectedly, ‘I couldn’t hear anything at all, I was listening for Caleb, I was worried . . . I’m sorry . . I should . .’
The officer’s hand pats my arm, ‘don’t be sorry, your boyfriend?’ he questions gently, ‘he was in danger as far as you were aware, it’s understandable that you would focus on the inside of the house.’
I nod mutely, my concentration moving to Caleb who is now on the phone across the room, his cell pressed to his ear as he talks quietly to whoever is on the other end of the line. I want him to look up, come over, hold me, make me feel safe, but the worried look on his face stops me trying to attract his attention.
I focus back on the police officer next to me, taking a sip of my drink more because I need something to do rather than thirst.
Officer Benson closes his notepad and stands up, giving me a comforting smile. ‘Thank you for your help’ he says softly, ‘if you think of anything else, Mr Hawthorne has my email so please drop me a message and I’ll get straight back to you.’
I nod dumbly, my gaze moving back to Caleb who is rubbing the back of his neck, something he always seems to do when he’s stressed.
Both officers pack up the collection of evidence bags that they’ve accumulated, though I can’t see what they will gain from a rock and a piece of paper. A fingerprint maybe? But is a rock through a window really important enough for the police to waste resources on?
Caleb hangs up as the two men approach, shaking each of their hands before gesturing to the bags with his head.
Officer Alvarez holds out the one that has the paper in it and I watch curiously as my stepbrother snaps a photo before nodding and seeing the two me out of the house.
Returning to me, he blows out a deep breath, moving to the coffee machine and pouring himself a cup before leaning his hip against the unit.
‘What did you take a photo of?’ I ask curiously, watching him intently as the man taps the ceramic mug with his nail.