Chapter Fourteen

Gabriel's Pov.

An hour earlier...

I shut the door of my office behind me and immediately started to make my way toward the parking lot.

Tonight’s agenda was clear—pick up Antonia and head out for another of our meticulously planned dates. On the surface, it was business as usual, but for some reason, there was always some sort of tension between Antonia and me, and it was a tension that I had found myself getting quite used to.

As I walked through the hallways, my mind drifted to Antonia, and I was excited about the idea of getting on another date with her. Despite the transactional nature of our arrangement, there was something about her that intrigued me—something I couldn't quite put my finger on.

"Mr. Wilson!"

The voice startled me, pulling me from my thoughts. I turned, searching for the source, and spotted a man with a somewhat familiar face approaching me. I struggled to place the face until the pieces clicked into place, and it dawned on me that he was someone I had seen with Antonia.

Even though I wasn't certain, I assumed he was her assistant.

"Can I help you?" I asked, my confusion evident in my tone as I wondered what he was doing here.

The man stopped a few feet from me, bowing curtly. "I'm sorry to bother you, Mr. Wilson. To introduce myself, my name is Kyle Martins, and I’m Antonia's assistant," he blurted out in a rush, much to my disbelief.

I raised an eyebrow, intrigued by his sudden appearance and how worked up he also seemed. "Kyle Martins... Yes, I’ve seen you around. So what brings you here?"

Kyle glanced around nervously before speaking. "I’m sure you’re surprised to see me here, sir, but there’s something I desperately need to tell you. And I had to come here secretly because Antonia can’t know I’m here."

My curiosity piqued, and I motioned for him to continue. "Why would you need to see me behind your boss’s back? Is there something wrong? Is Antonia okay?"

Kyle hesitated, gathering his thoughts. "Well, I definitely came here to talk about her because there's something serious going on with her. Antonia's currently in a difficult situation, and because she can't seem to tell you about it, I'm here to do it on her behalf because I'm worried about her."

I frowned, my confusion deepening. "What do you mean? What's going on? Please speak more clearly so I can understand."

Kyle let out a heavy sigh, clearly troubled. “Mr. Wilson, I'm not sure if you know this or not, but Antonia has been receiving bouquets of flowers every day for the past few days. At first, she thought they were from you, since the notes left behind only had a single initial—‘G’...”

I felt my stomach tighten at the mention of the initial on the note. “G?” I echoed, frowning. “I remember that she did ask me a few times if I’d sent her flowers, and I dismissed it as a joke because I thought she was just trying to be a little funny. So she actually thought all of that was from me?”

Kyle nodded. “Yes, but when you said you hadn’t sent any flowers, she realized it wasn’t you. The notes that were sent with the flowers were very cryptic, sometimes even a bit scary. She’s been trying to brush it off, pretend like she's okay, and act unbothered, but it’s clear she’s disturbed.”

My frown deepened, and I found myself feeling quite guilty, especially since I knew that she had tried to talk to me, but I had simply dismissed her. “I should have taken her more seriously,” I muttered, more to myself than to Kyle.

Then, focusing on the matter at hand, I asked, “Do you have any idea who could be sending these flowers? Any suspects that come to mind?”

Kyle shook his head. “We’ve talked about it, and we have some suspicions, but no concrete evidence that can point us to him in any way. It just feels like someone’s stalking her and trying to send a message that he's watching her by using the flowers.”

I sighed, unable to contain my annoyance. "Kyle, who do you and Antonia suspect is responsible for this?" I asked, my tone serious.

Kyle hesitated, shifting uncomfortably. "Mr. Wilson, I can't exactly say who it is because I promised Antonia that I would never spill. I'm already breaking her trust by talking to you, so I don't want to make things worse than they already are."

I clenched my jaw, fighting back the urge to snap. "Kyle, if you want me to help her, I need to know everything. This isn't just about keeping promises anymore; it's about her safety. So tell me, Kyle, who is this person that's potentially stalking her?" I asked.

He sighed deeply, looking torn. "I can't exactly tell you the entire truth, but all you need to know is that this person isn't someone who's new to both Antonia and me. He has stalked Antonia in the past, and unfortunately...," he was saying until he suddenly stopped and started to choke on his tears.

Seeing how emotional he was made me realize that whatever was happening was more serious than I was thinking, and I found myself becoming more concerned by the second.

"Talk to me, Kyle," I pleaded.

"The person we suspect is responsible for the flowers is someone who was recently released from jail, and the reason he was put in jail in the first place was because he stalked, physically assaulted, and sexually harassed Antonia. The assault was so bad, it left Antonia in the hospital for weeks," Kyle explained, and my heart completely dropped.

"I already said what wasn't in my place to say, but please, Mr. Wilson, talk to Antonia. She’s been looking for a place to stay because she no longer feels safe at home, but for obvious reasons, she doesn't want to discuss it with you. I just can't watch her panic and do nothing, which is why I thought to let you know," Kyle added.

I honestly still could not believe what I just heard, but instead of letting the disbelief cloud my thoughts, I was more concerned about Antonia's current wellbeing. "Thank you for telling me, Kyle. I promise she won’t find out you spoke to me about this. I'll handle it," I assured him.

Kyle nodded, relief evident on his face. "Please, Mr. Wilson, help her. Don't leave her alone, I beg you."

"I won't do that," I assured him. With that, Kyle walked away, leaving me standing in the parking lot with a million and one thoughts running through my mind.