Chase After Me (Wilde Ways Book 9), Page 2

“Possibly not good.” Chase’s other eyebrow rose. He lifted the top of the container to take a peek inside, then he asked, “So you brought me bad baked goods?” His attention shifted back to her. “Are you welcoming me or trying to scare me away?”

  Oh, no. She felt heat burn her cheeks.

  His eyes widened. “You’re doing it again.”

  “Doing what?”

  “Blushing.”

  “Of all the animals in the world, only humans blush.”

  “Huh.” Chase seemed to consider her statement. “Suppose it makes sense.”

  “It’s the nervous system doing it. The system sends a quick message to your facial muscles. The message tells them to relax, and when the facial muscles do relax, we have small veins that dilate in our skin. That dilation then makes your cheeks flush as the blood starts to—” Vivian stopped because he was frowning at her. She cleared her throat then plodded on, “People with fair skin have more apparent blushes. My mom was Scottish so…” She finally let her words trail away. Oh, no. She’d done her thing again. One of her coping mechanisms. When she was nervous, she fact-shared. She had all these random facts in her head—mostly because she loved to read everything—and when she was stressed, some of the facts…escaped.

  “You know a lot about blushing,” Chase noted.

  “Not really. I’m just good at memorizing random things.” She had to get this situation back on track. She pointed to her gift. “Those are brownies.”

  “I thought they might be.” His eyes gleamed.

  Was he teasing her? “I think they are passably tasty, but you might have a different opinion. I just wanted to warn you so that you wouldn’t be disappointed.”

  “I am not even a little disappointed.” He wasn’t looking at the brownies. He was looking at her. “So this is your way of welcoming me to the building?”

  “Yes. I, um, didn’t think I was being overly neighborly before, so I was trying again.” Her hands twisted in front of her. “Am I doing better?”

  His gaze seemed to soften on her. “You are doing a fantastic job.”

  Warmth bloomed inside of her even as a wide smile curled her lips. “Thank you.”

  Chase gave two fast blinks, then his gaze sharpened on her.

  “Well, I’m sure you need to get back to your unpacking, and I have to run to the grocery store so…” She backed up. Stopped. “I hope we can be friends.”

  A slow nod. “I’d like that.”

  “Me, too.” It would be nice having a friend in the building. She hadn’t exactly made a ton of friends since moving to Marietta. The new job kept her busy and talking to strangers had always been hard for her.

  Other people could strike up conversations so easily, but, not her. Probably because of that whole polite chitchat thing.

  Vivian turned and headed for the elevator.

  “I’ll have to repay you.”

  Her steps faltered.

  “Maybe you can tell me about a good restaurant, and I can take you there as a thank you.”

  She swung toward him. Had he just asked her out? Surely not.

  “It would be a neighborly thing to do, wouldn’t it?” Chase continued. “Taking you out for a thank you meal?”

  Oh. Her shoulders relaxed. He wasn’t talking about a date. He was just being nice. “There’s a really good Asian restaurant on the corner. Maybe we can go there when you’re settled in.”

  He smiled. “It’s a date.”

  Her heart lurched. Wait, was it a date? But she didn’t ask. That would have been way awkward, and she’d already been awkward enough, thank you very much. She hurried into the elevator. Hit the button for the ground floor. Turned around and watched as the doors began to close—

  She could see Chase through the space between the closing doors. He was still in the hallway. He was staring after her, and for just a moment, his handsome face looked tense and hard and—

  Then he smiled. In a flash, he went back to looking all charming. He even lifted a hand to wave good-bye to her.

  The doors closed.

  ***

  “These are freaking delicious.”

  “Stop eating my damn brownies,” Chase growled.

  Merik popped another chunk into his mouth. “Why? There are plenty here.”

  “Because she made them for me.” He hadn’t even gotten to taste one yet. Chase cut a big piece and popped it into his mouth just to see how they— “Fuck me.”

  “No, man, I’m good, but thanks.”

  Chase shot a dirty look at his partner. Then he took another brownie. It melted on his tongue. Passably tasty, his ass. It was like having heaven in his mouth.

  Vivian Wayne was dangerous. Far more dangerous than he’d expected. He’d thought that he could waltz into her life, charm her, and seduce her into telling him what he needed, but…no. “I see what she’s doing.” He ate another brownie. Resisted the urge to moan.

  Merik reached for more, too.

  Chase bared his teeth at him and snatched the brownies away. “Go make your own.”

  “That shit is not cool. Friends share with friends.”

  No, they didn’t. Chase put the brownies in his kitchen.

  Merik followed him. “Uh, want to catch me up to speed? Because I feel behind. What—exactly—is your prey doing?”

  “She is trying to seduce me.”

  Merik laughed.

  “I wasn’t making a damn joke. Isn’t it obvious? First she plays hard to get…”

  “I didn’t see her playing hard to get. I saw her ignoring you when you were stripped down in the hallway.”

  “Then she comes sashaying over here, being all charming and cute with her brownies. Tousled hair, casual clothes, sexy eyes.”

  “Sashaying? Sexy eyes?” Merik peered longingly at the brownies. “I missed that part because I was inside moving around your boxes.”

  “The brownies were her genius move. She was trying to act all modest about them when she knew they were awesome. She knew I’d take a bite and want more.” He could still see her in his mind. Standing in his doorway. Blushing. Telling him about the nervous system and facial muscles as she rocked onto the balls of her feet and her vanilla scent wrapped around him.

  “So she’s seducing you with brownies. Check.”

  “She’s diabolical.” Chase took one more bite. A small one. “But she’s not going to fool me.”

  “Of course not. We both know you’re the most diabolical bastard in the world.” A pause, then, “So…are you ready to break into her place? Because I thought that was our step two. You know, seeing as how we were going over the details until your diabolical neighbor knocked on the door.”

  Chase stepped away from the brownies. “I’m not breaking in. That’s illegal.”

  “Uh, huh. Right.”

  “I’m just going to make it look as if someone broke in.”

  “Like that’s not illegal, too?” When Chase cut him a glare, Merik laughed. “I’m messing with you. I know there’s a Boy Scout buried deep inside of you, and I like to see how far I can push before he gets all twitchy.”

  “You are not funny.” He exhaled. “Look, just go outside the building and make sure she doesn’t return before I’m done.” Her trip to the store was perfect timing for him. “I’ll set the stage with the fake break-in.” Such an asshole move. But one that was unavoidable. “When I’m done, you can vanish, and then…”

  “Then you’ll play hero. I know how this goes. You’ll be there when she runs to you for help, and you’ll be one step closer to getting her to trust you.”

  Yeah, that was the idea.

  Merik turned and headed for the door. “She seems nice.”

  Chase stiffened. “I’ve met plenty of nice criminals. Some guys still had smiles on their faces right before they tried to put bullets in me.”

  Merik glanced back. “Guess I’m not as jaded as you yet.”

  “Give it time. You’ll get there.”

  “Yeah, that’s what worries me.�
�� Merik tossed him a wave. “Keep your phone on you. When she comes back, I’ll text you.”

  “Will do.”

  Merik left, and Chase got his tools ready. It was a simple matter to reach Vivian’s door and pry open the lock. If he’d really wanted to break in, he could have done so without leaving a trace behind. But the point wasn’t to get inside without her knowing. The point was for her to realize that someone had broken into her place.

  And for her to run to me for help.

  He got the door open, and an alarm didn’t so much as beep. He frowned into the darkness of her apartment. Seriously? No alarm? What was she thinking?

  Even the villain could get robbed.

  Shaking his head, he stepped back. He made sure to leave her door slightly ajar. Then he glanced down the hallway. There was a very, very small—almost miniscule—camera positioned to the upper left of the elevator. A camera that had arrived courtesy of his boss at Wilde. When it came to tech, Eric Wilde was the best. He’d had the camera installed there—and one on the bottom floor—so that Chase would be able to keep track of everyone who came to visit Vivian. Basically, the better for him to keep track of all the players in the game.

  Chase strode back to his new apartment. He locked the door and booted up his laptop. In moments, he’d pulled up the security feeds from those two cameras. Now, it would all be just a matter of waiting until Vivian came racing to his door.

  He was so ready to play hero.

  And within thirty minutes, he got the text from Merik…

  Evil Queen is heading back.

  Chase frowned. Evil Queen? Since when were they going with that codename?

  He glanced back at the security footage and saw Vivian heading through the building’s lobby. She had a shopping bag cradled in her hands as she disappeared into the elevator.

  He counted silently as he waited for the elevator to rise up to the fourth floor.

  And then…

  She was picked up on the second camera when she walked out of the elevator.

  There you are. Chase smiled as he leaned forward. Yes, sure, he felt like a dick for staging the scene, but the woman was a criminal. She had to be stopped. He wouldn’t fall for her tricks.

  She’d fall for his. She’d see that open door and come running. She would—

  She’d stopped at her apartment door. He saw the grocery bag drop from her hands. Then her fingers fluttered around the broken lock.

  Yep, intruder alert. She turned her head, looking back down the hallway.

  Chase tensed. Come to me. That’s what you’re supposed to do. Remember, I said I was here if you need me. You can come to me anytime and you can—

  She pushed open her apartment door. Walked inside.

  What. The. Hell?

  Well, shit. As far as she knew, an intruder could have been in her place, and she’d just waltzed right inside to confront him.

  So much for Chase’s big, save-the-day scene. Time for him to improvise. He quickly locked his laptop in a desk drawer. Chase grabbed the empty container from beside him—the brownies had truly been awesome, so awesome that he’d eaten them all while he waited for her to return—and he bounded out of the apartment. He rushed down the hallway, frowning when he saw that two apples had rolled out of Vivian’s abandoned grocery bag.

  Evil Queen…Okay, fine, maybe the codename would fit her.

  Her door was still open. He had to play this scene just right. “Vivian?” He raised his voice and pushed against the door. “Vivian, I was bringing back your brownie container and—” Chase let surprise ring in his voice. “Oh, no, did someone break your lock? Vivian?” He charged inside, very hero-like.

  And then he immediately had to duck as Vivian came swinging at him with a baseball bat.

  Chapter Two

  The bat thudded into the wall over Chase’s head. Vivian’s jaw dropped as she realized how close she’d come to hitting her new neighbor. “I’m so sorry!” She yanked the bat back. “I didn’t mean to—”

  His left hand flew up and closed around the upper part of the bat. “Easy, slugger.”

  Her breath heaved in and out. Her grip on the bat tightened. “Someone broke my lock.”

  “I saw that.”

  Chase held her brownie dish in one hand and his other was still gripping the bat.

  “I thought the intruder might still be here, so I came inside,” Vivian rushed to add.

  “You did what?” He yanked on the bat, and, since she didn’t let go of her weapon, his move had the effect of hauling her closer to him. So close that their faces wound up only inches apart.

  “I thought he might still be here,” she said even though Vivian was sure she’d been clear before. “So I—”

  “Grabbed a baseball bat and went after him?”

  Yes. Exactly. She nodded.

  His eyes widened. “You should have come to me!”

  That made no sense. “Why would I have done that?”

  “Why? Why?” A muscle jerked along his jaw. “Because he could’ve had a gun!”

  “Then I would have been putting you in danger. I couldn’t do that to my new neighbor.”

  His eyes closed. Vivian thought he whispered, “Fuck me,” but she couldn’t be sure.

  He tugged on the bat again. This time, she let it go, and Chase propped it up against the nearby wall. Then he placed the brownie dish on the floor before he glanced around her apartment.

  She followed his stare. “I don’t think he’s here. I searched through the rooms, but I didn’t see—ah!” Her words ended in a startled cry because he’d just picked her up—scooped her into his arms as if that were a normal thing. It wasn’t. “What are you doing?”

  “Carrying you to safety.”

  “I am safe!”

  “No, but you will be very soon.” He’d taken her out of her apartment and was double-timing it down the hallway. Chase cradled her against his chest and moved wicked fast.

  In the next instant—or so it seemed to her—they were inside his apartment. He put her onto her feet, nodded briskly, and said, “I’ll check out your place. Stay here.”

  “Absolutely not.” Why was he ordering her about? What was up with that? “Unless you’re a cop or something, you’re not supposed to be racing into danger. And I don’t know why you’re telling me what to do, but that needs to stop and—is that a gun?”

  “Yes, it is. And I am an ‘or something.’”

  She frowned at him. “What?” He’d taken the gun out of a desk drawer, and he looked all dangerous and rough standing there as he held the weapon with a casualness that sent a shiver skating down her spine.

  “I fall into your ‘or something’ category. Former SEAL, at your service. Though don’t go telling that to the world because I really like to keep that particular part of my past on the down low.”

  She kept frowning.

  “Real SEALs don’t have to shout it to the world, and I normally don’t, but I’m trying to reassure you that I can handle this situation so…” He shrugged. “Just so you get the full disclosure bit from me, protection is my business. I work for a security company. Please consider this your lucky day. I’ll check out your place—free of charge—and be back in a flash.” His golden eyes pinned her. “While I’m gone, please, stay here. I want you to be safe, and I also need to make sure no one is inside your home. Lock the door behind me, and I’ll be back before you know it.”

  She wasn’t used to someone helping her this way. Or…any way. “Thank you.”

  He gave her a quick smile, then was gone. She fumbled and locked the door and stood there with her heart drumming entirely too fast in her chest.

  Someone broke in. When she’d peered around her home, Vivian hadn’t seen anything out of place. But…

  She was scared. The fact that someone had gotten into her apartment unnerved her. The minutes seemed to tick past ever so slowly as she stood there. Her whole body was tight and nerves had her stomach twisting into knots. Maybe she should go af
ter Chase. What if he was hurt? Even SEALs could be hurt. Anyone could be hurt.

  When she heard the scrape of a key in the lock, her body jolted. The door swung open, and Chase filled the doorway.

  “Your place was clear. No one was inside. I didn’t see anything disturbed. Everything seemed perfectly in order. Like, seriously in order.”

  So, ah, maybe she liked for things to be organized. Was that a crime?

  Chase shut the door and stalked back toward his desk. He put the gun inside. Seemed to consider the situation before he mused, “Maybe he didn’t go in. Hell, maybe he just picked the lock, and then something scared him off.” He glanced over at her. “I could have scared him off. While you were at the store, I went down to my car, and then headed back up here with one more box. I came via the elevator. Maybe he heard me and rushed out by taking the stairs—”

  “Or maybe you did it.”

  His amazing eyes widened. Then narrowed. “Say again?” He shut the desk drawer. Headed toward her with slow, almost predatory steps.

  Vivian lifted her chin, straightened her spine, and refused to be intimidated. “I said that maybe you broke into my place. You’re the variable.”

  Chase’s head tilted to the right. “Explain.”

  “A variable is an element that can change or—”

  “I know what a variable is,” he growled. “Why am I your variable?”

  Oh, right. “Because you’re new. The only new person in the building. Because I’ve been here for over three months and nothing like this has happened before, but on the day you move in, right after I clearly tell you that I am leaving so my home will be empty…” Her mistake. She wouldn’t be doing that again. “Right after that, someone broke into my apartment.”

  “You’re right. Guilty.” Chase nodded. “You got me. I broke into your place.”

  Now she squinted at him. “Are you being funny? Or are you confessing to the crime?”

  “Why would I break into your place?”

  He hadn’t answered her. But she’d answer him. “Maybe you’re crazy. Maybe you like terrorizing women. Maybe you collect underwear.”

  “What?” His jaw kind of hung open.

  “Could be any number of reasons. You had the opportunity. You had the proximity. Like I said, you are my—”