Chapter 24

Wictor strutted into my apartment around lunch the next day carrying bags. It was nice to see him after what felt like the longest and most confusing week of my life.

“What is in there?” I asked.

“Everything we will need for us to brainstorm and spill all your secrets.” He walked into the kitchen and started unloading things onto my counters. There was a box of fruit salad, hot wings, brownies, containers with mac’n’cheese, orange juice and prosecco.

“Really?” I asked him.

“It’s all our favourite things,” he told me.

“And it will go straight on my ass,” I said. He sighed.

“Don’t say things like that, baby. Don’t let him live in that brilliant brain of yours,” Wictor told me and kissed my forehead. I nodded. I wished it was that easy. I remembered the first time Wictor had told me to break up with Simon. We had been together for a couple of months and I was still head over heels for Simon.

“Baby, you need to dump his ass,” Wictor had told me over coffee in the student cafeteria.

“No! Why?” I objected.

“Come on, Hana. He ignored you almost the entire time we were out with him and his friends. And not to hurt you, but did you see how he flirted with those girls?” he had told me. I shuffled around a little.

“He just wanted to spend time with his friends. And he is good looking. I get why women try to flirt with him. Simon wasn’t flirting back. He’s just too kind to refuse them. He doesn't want to upset them,” I had defended Simon. Wictor looked at me with sad eyes.

“He isn’t worth the heartache he will cause you, Hana.”

“Simon isn’t like that. And who are you to talk. I saw how you behaved with your last boyfriend.” Wictor shook his head.

“Anthony wasn’t my boyfriend, Hana. He didn’t want people to know he liked boy parts better than girl parts and I don’t want to be someone's dirty secret. But he was hot and he did things in the bedroom that took me places I had never been. But we both agreed it was just a bit of fun. We were both free to see other people. And when he met a nice girl he could bring home to his parents we ended things,” he told me. But I could see in his eyes that he had really liked Anthony.

“I’m sorry,” I said.

“Don’t be, baby. It is what it is. But he was a good guy. I hope he will get to the point where he can be honest about who he is. Preferably before he marries that nice girl and ruins both of their lives.”

“I hope so too.”

“So I can’t convince you to end things with Simon?” Wictor had asked me. I shook my head. “Fine. You know I will be here when you need me, right?” I had told him I knew. And he had been true to his word. He had been the only one that had been there for me through everything. And he was still here.

“I will start with the mimosas and you can plate the food,” he said, bringing me back to the present.

“Sure,” I agreed. As we prepared everything we talked. Wictor told me about the latest gossip from his office and the latest news regarding the office romance that had been ongoing for the last months. It was better than a telenovela and I lived for it. We sat down on the floor next to the coffee table and pulled out our surf pads. This was how we always did it. I started looking up regulations regarding food preparation. Wictor was throwing ideas my way regarding names, branding and marketing. He was a graphic designer and it was second nature to him. It has always been like this with us.

“I don’t know,” I said after a while. “I would need a separate kitchen. I can’t use the same as I use to cook my food,” I told him.

“Can’t you like rent something, or make a deal with someplace that will let you use their kitchen when you need to?” he asked.

“Maybe,” I said and started making a list of places to call and check. When most of the food was eaten and Wictor was filling up our glasses with the third round of mimosas, we had a good plan in place.

“Is this when you tell me why we have made this plan instead of a plan to renovate that amazing bakery you have dreamt of for so long?” Wictor asked. I looked at him, it had been killing me not to tell him. It was as close to lying to him as I have ever come. I sighed and nodded. The danger should be over. I told him everything, from the visitors at my door, to Hunter and the Russian mob. “Are you insane? Why haven’t you told me this before now?” he asked me when I was done. It was clear to see how upset and worried he was.

“I’m sorry. But you would have insisted that I come and stay with you,” I told him.

“Of course I would! I live in an apartment with a door man, with an actual working elevator. I have said you should come and live with me from the day you left that idiot. My guest room is yours,” he almost shouted.

“And I love you for it. But then you would have been in danger. You are always protecting me, it was my turn. And Hunter made sure I was safe.” Wictor looked out into the hallway and looked at the safety lock Hunter had installed.

“Um, yeah. About Hunter. Are you sure you can trust him?” he asked me.

“You mean because he is Simon’s father?” I asked.

“Yes. Apple and tree and all of that, you know.”

“I know. I thought like that at first as well. But I don’t know. He just feels safe,” I said. Wictor gave me one of his looks.

“I love you to death, little sister. But your intuition regarding men is a little bit wonky,” he said. I couldn’t exactly object to that.

“I know I have a blind spot for red flags. But this is different,” I insisted.

“I have to trust you on that for now.”

“Don’t worry. He will help me with the police and then he will walk out of my life,” I said, trying to keep the sadness out of my voice. By the look Wictor gave me, I don’t think I did a good job with it.

“A fucking pimp and drug dealer. I never liked the man, but I never would have guessed it.” He sighed. “So, now that the danger is over, will you move in with me?” he asked.

“No. I need to prove to myself I can stand on my own two feet,” I told him. “Besides, I would cramp your dating style.” He snorted.

“Hana, we are both grown ass people. I think you could handle me bringing home my dates,” he teased me.

“I think I would. I hear the noise cancelling headphones are amazing nowadays. I’m more worried over the morning after when your little date walks out in the kitchen and finds me there.”

“It wouldn’t be a terrible idea. It might make the goodbye process quicker,” he told me. I rolled my eyes. Wictor was sweet as sugar, but he didn’t do long-term relationships. My theory was it was because of Anthony. Wictor could say that it had just been a bit of fun, but I think he had fallen hard for the man and when Anthony had started dating that woman, Wictor’s heart had broken. But I didn’t tell him that, he would already know. I just hoped he would find someone with whom he could find that feeling again. He deserved it.

“You are bad, Wictor,” I said and kept the conversation light.

“Me? I’m not the one that has the cops after me, setting up meetings with mafia bosses in seedy restaurants and having personal bodyguards and security teams. Your life is like a soap opera, baby,” he said. I laughed. When he put it like that, he did have a point. When Wictor called an Uber and went home, I was tipsy. It had been a good day and I decided to end it in the bathtub. The warm water relaxed me and my mind drifted to Hunter. It seemed to do that when I didn’t have other things to think about. I remembered the fantasy I had about him the last time in the tub. My phone buzzed with a message from the man in question. I smiled.

H: Have you had a good day?

Me: I have. Wictor was here and we planned and talked and he knows everything now and was a little mad, but I think he has forgiven me by now.

H: Did you drink?

Me: Alcohol?

H: Yes, sweetness. Did you drink alcohol?

Me: Yes, we had mimiosas, mimoasas, mimosas? You know the one with orange juice.

H: I guessed as much, you sound tipsy.

Me: You guessed we had mamiosas? You are a good investigator! I am tipsy, and a little horny.

The dots on the bottom of my screen moved. Then they disappeared and then they were back. My mind was trying to tell me I had done a whoopsie. I might be a little bit drunker than I thought.

H: Fuck, sweetness you can’t just tell me things like that.

I frowned. I apparently had messed up.

Me: Tell you what?

H: That you are horny.

I sighed. Oh, nothing worse than that.

Me: But I am. I’m in the tub and the warm water is making me relax and in combination with the drinks, it makes me horny.

H: Fucking hell, Hana. Now that image is in my mind. If I don’t say goodnight now this will get out of hand.

Me: Did I make you uncomfortable? I’m sorry.

H: No, sweetness. You don’t make me uncomfortable, well, you make my pants uncomfortable. But I do need to keep my cool and you are making it very difficult.

I scrunched my face. I had no clue what he was talking about. What was wrong with his pants?

H: Don’t stay too long in the bath, Hana. I don’t want you to fall asleep there. Have a goodnight. I need to get this pants issue sorted.

Me: Night Hunter. I hope you figure out what’s wrong with them.

He just sent me a laughing emoji. I felt like I should get the joke, I would probably get it tomorrow and something told me I would be mortified. But that was tomorrows me’s problem.