****
A loud knock brought her out of sleep, and she forced her eyes open long enough to peer outside the window. The view of the street and buildings below was still shrouded in a heavy cloak of gray—it was barely dawn. Then what was that sound? There was no way Lexi was already up and banging around in the kitchen. Neither of the ladies of the house believed in starting the day before the sun.
It sounded again, even louder this time. Someone was knocking at the front door, but who on Earth would be showing up at her apartment before six in the morning?
She bounded out of bed and through the apartment as a sliver of apprehension prickled her skin. It had been almost a year and there had been no sign of anyone looking around for her, but all the while, she’d known there’d been no guarantee it would stay that way.
“Lexi,” she whispered vehemently a second before she stopped to shake the girl’s shoulder.
“What’s up, Hope?” she replied sleepily.
“Lexi, hide.” Lexi bolted upright as her head whipped back and forth, obviously looking for the threat. As another knock sounded at the door, she nodded in understanding and she bolted to Hope’s bedroom.
Hope waited another moment, listening to make sure Lexi had locked the bedroom door, and then she approached the front door slowly, smoothing her clothes and the wayward strands of silver in her wig. It was time to play it calm and cool.
She peeked out the peephole into the building’s hallway, but the sight that greeted her wasn’t what she’d expected. A tall, middle-aged man stood on the other side of the door, and although his features were kind, he wore an aggravated expression on his face. He was well-dressed, so perhaps he was a lawyer, but upon closer inspection, it was obvious his clothing was a uniform, not an upscale suit.
A private detective? No, they didn’t wear uniforms. An undercover police officer? It was technically possible, but she didn’t get the impression the man was involved in law enforcement or detective work. He seemed somehow familiar though.
She could keep silent and pretend no one was home, but then she’d never know who the man was or why he was there. The very thought of retreating irritated her; she wasn’t a coward. “Who is it?” she asked before she could change her mind.
“My name is Steven James, Ma’am. I’m looking for Miss Ava Winter,” he whispered loudly. Obviously, the man was aware that others would be sleeping at this hour—just like she’d been only a moment before.
“Why are you looking for Ava Winter at—” she glanced quickly at the clock on the wall, “—five-thirty in the morning?”
“I’m here on behalf of Mr. Cade Stryker.”
Cade Stryker? Why was he sending a man to her door practically in the middle of the night? If he thought she was going to be flattered over a late-night booty call, the man was clearly insane. With her ire rising quickly, she unlocked the door and flung it open.
“I’m Ava Winter. Can you please tell me why Mr. Stryker has someone pounding down my door this early in the morning, or…this late at night?”
“He just sent me to call on you, Ma’am. He was hoping you would join him for breakfast.” The pained look on his face told her he wasn’t any fonder of banging on a woman’s door before sunrise than she was.
“I’m sorry Mr. Stryker sent you here unnecessarily, but if you’d tell him Ava Winter isn’t interested in drinks or breakfast with him, I’d appreciate it.”
The man looked at her with a perplexed expression on his face. Apparently, he wasn’t any more accustomed to women turning down the ostentatious billionaire than the billionaire was himself. “Um, if you’d just come with me, Ma’am, I’m sure the two of you can sort this out.”
He’d begun to look at her—really look at her—like he was trying to see behind the mask she wore to the woman underneath it. Strange.
“I can’t do that, Mr. James. I understand you’re just doing your job, but I’m going back to bed now.” She smiled kindly at the man, feeling a little bit sorry for him despite his unwelcome intrusion and strange gaze. She had a feeling Cade Stryker didn’t take rejection well—mainly because he’d never been on the receiving end of it. “Hopefully, once you’ve told Mr. Stryker I’m not interested in joining him for breakfast, he’ll let you do the same. Good night.”
The man met her eyes for a moment more, but then he nodded once cordially, and turned to leave. “Fat chance,” she heard him whisper under his breath as he started back down the hallway.
She closed the door and breathed a sigh of relief—or maybe it was a sigh of frustration. She was relieved the man hadn’t been there for the reason she’d been dreading, but at the same time, the nerve of Cade Stryker to be sending a man to her home to fetch her left her so irritated, there was no way she was going back to sleep. She stomped across the living room and knocked on her bedroom door.
“It’s okay, Lexi. You can come out now.”
The door creaked open seconds later. “What was that about?” There were remnants of trepidation in her tone, but she wasn’t in a panic like she’d been moments ago.
“Just some rich prick who thinks a little too highly of himself, that’s all. Why don’t you go back to bed for a while. It’s still early.”
“I guess so. Are you alright?”
“Yeah, I’m fine. Good night, Kiddo.”
Lexi padded down the hall to her room then and Hope heard the squeak of the mattress springs as the girl flopped back on the twin-size bed. She smiled. When Lexi had first moved in, she’d slept with her door closed and locked every night. She couldn’t even remember precisely when that had changed, but she didn’t know the last time Lexi had bothered locking her door, or even closing it for that matter.
The irritation she’d felt gave way to something much more pleasant: the peace that came from knowing she’d provided Lexi a haven where she could heal and become whole again, something that no one had ever done for Hope.
She kept that feeling at the forefront of her mind as she dragged herself to the small kitchen and set a pot of coffee to brew. If she was going to be awake at such an ungodly hour, she might as well have a good amount of caffeine coursing through her veins so she could at least be productive.