CHAPTER 52

It had been three days, and I hadn’t heard any information from Antonio concerning Dan. Probably the information he gave was fake, and he just used it to get a job.

I had tried to keep my distance from him ever since then. I didn’t know why he wanted from me, and for all I knew, he could be crazy dangerous.

I had gotten into work early—earlier than usual because I still had a lot of work to do and I wanted to finish it as soon as possible.

When I got to my office, there was a sticky note on my door that read:

He’s Dangerous

That was it. Who was dangerous? Who even wrote it? There were a few people already at work, so it was hard to tell who left the note.

I peeled the note off my door and entered my office.

I was met with another sticky note on my desk that read:

He’s not for you! Leave him.

The second note gave me a hint as to who this person was referring to: it was Antonio. My mind went to Anabeth. She had been awful quiet ever since Antonio and I got together, and this was something I knew she could do.

This was a poor attempt to try and break us up. I mean, what the hell did she know about Antonio?

I peeled the note off my desk and put it in a drawer with the first one. Whatever game Anabeth was trying to play, I was going to catch her on the spot.

What was with all the drama that everyone kept involving me in? First, it was Mr. Blue, then it was Anabeth, then Dan, and now Anabeth again! Was it something I did or said? Who did I offend? At that point, I was getting fed up with the whole thing. I mean, what was their issue with me? There wasn't a day I could go to work and things would happen the way I wanted them to. There was always one drama or the other. I shook my head and started on my work. Whatever this person was trying to do, I was going to rise above them—by ignoring them. Surely they’d get tired and let me be, right?

After the long day at work, I finally got to go home and be with my only source of happiness, Antonio.

Antonio had ordered a box of pizza and some other junk food, arranging them in the living room with cozy blankets and what not.

“It’s movie night! Go wash up and come down here quickly” Antonio slapped my butt. I laughed and did as he said. I wondered why I didn’t tell him how I felt about him a lot sooner. He was too sweet and cute, and most times, he was too good to be true.

I took a quick cold shower to relieve me of all the stress I brought home with me, and I felt better afterward. Nothing beats a cold or warm shower after a long day at work.

I got dressed in a pair of red shorts and a matching tank top and headed for the living room.

“Come here,” Antonio ordered. He was on the couch with his arms wide open. I ran to him immediately.

“You smell so fucking good, I could eat you,” he said and I laughed.

“What’s with all these junks anyway?” I asked him, looking at the center table, which was covered in so much junk you’d think five-year-olds were having a slumber party.

“I didn’t know what to get, so I got everything,” he laughed, and I nodded, snuggling into him.

Antonio played the first movie, The Ugly Truth. It was a nice movie that I had watched more than three times, but Antonio didn’t know that. He put a lot of effort into the whole movie night thing, and I didn’t want him to feel like he was doing too much or anything.

On cue, the anonymous messages I received earlier crossed my mind, and I looked up at Antonio.

“Have you heard back from the detective?” I asked him. His attention was solely on the movie and not on what I was saying.

“Huh?” He replied,

“I asked if you have heard from the detective concerning the guy,” I said. This time he looked at me, then nodded his head and continued watching the movie.

“Babe!”

“Okay fine! I have, and he said that the information was fake. The guy doesn’t exist,” Antonio said. I fucking knew it.

“So what do we do now?” I asked him.

“Well, you could start by taking a few days off work,” he replied immediately.

“No, I can’t do that. I’ve missed quite a lot of work, so I don’t think that will fly. What good will skipping work do anyway? He’s still going to be there when I return,” I asked him and he let out a sigh.

“It will reduce the tension. Do you want me to talk to Frank? You could work from home,” he suggested.

As tempting as that sounded, I couldn’t agree to that.

“No! A big, fat no. That would be unfair to others,” I told him.

“And I don’t need you talking to Frank for anything concerning me, okay?” I asked him and he nodded.

“I was just trying to help,” he said, disappointment laced in every word.

“I know, but I don’t want it. I can get by just fine. And as for Dan, I guess I’ll have to follow him around,” I said.

“NO!” Antonio yelled immediately, pushing me off him.

“What was that for?” I asked,

He ran his fingers through his hair and let out a frustrated sigh.

“He’s dangerous! Why would you want to follow him around? What if you get hurt?” He asked and I nodded.

“You should chill a little, you know,” I told him. He was only concerned for me, which was cute, but I could handle Dan on my own. I opened my arms, and he laid his head on my chest.

“Promise me you won’t go after him in any way,” he said.

“I promise,” I said, but in my head, I added, "...to find out what this was about, no matter what."