AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I waited for her response because she generally took seconds to reply, and that was one thing I liked about her. She was quick.
When five minutes passed with no response from her, I assumed that she was busy today and would get back to me when she could.
I got up and waved my hand; Brady immediately ran toward me, and I scratched behind his ear, informing him that he did such a good job.
“Here you go,” I stuck out a treat, and he sat down, nibbling on the meaty treat as I clipped his leash on him. I didn’t really need to put a leash on Brady’s pink collar that Anne had chosen for him, but I did that because some people were afraid of the mean-looking dog and thought he would jump them.
But he wouldn’t do that. He didn’t like people that much to bother them.
“Are you ready to go home?” I asked him, and he barked his confirmation. We started on our walk back home, and when we arrived back to our apartment building, we bumped into Matthew, the guy Brooke used to have a crush on but who had liked her best friend. What an odd situation for her.
“Hey!” he called as he walked over to me. “Long time no see. How’s Brady doing?”
Seeing Matthew, Brady wagged his tail, and I could see that he was one of the few people Brady trusted.
What did Brooke see in this guy? He wasn’t a douche or anything, but he kind of was weird. His beach blonde hair was messy as if he had run his fingers through his hair the entire morning.
It was a few minutes shy of noon, and he already looked incredibly stressed.
“He’s good,” I nodded, and Matthew smiled as he looked at Brady and pointed to him, asking for permission to pet him, and I agreed.
“Have you been a good boy, Brady?” he asked as he scratched Brady’s ears, and Brady responded by licking his face. Oh, Brady really liked Matthew.
Matthews blue eyes were extremely light and hinted at no traumatic backstory for him. He probably grew up with both his parents and had about two siblings, both sisters because of his carefree nature. He was the favorite child, and that was why he decided to work for a K9 center. There wasn’t anything wrong with that, but it was clear that he had never had to fight for his parents’ approval.
Perhaps that was why he was attracted to Marie; she was also some kind of free spirit and Brooke was the only one between them who carried trauma, one that she hid incredibly well.
“Uhm, have you seen Brooke today?” he hesitated in asking me as he glanced around the lobby.
I frowned as I gripped Brady’s leash. She wasn’t at work?
“Not since yesterday. Why?”
He shifted uncomfortably as he scratched his neck. “She didn’t show up for work. No call, no explanation. She’s not answering her phone,” he explained, and I clenched my jaw.
“Did you check with Marie?”
“I actually talked to her before coming here. Marie said that Brooke disappears around this time every year, but she hoped that it would be different this year because you were distracting Brooke.”
“Distracting her from what?” My concern deepened. Brooke was reliable, almost to a fault. If she hadn’t told her manager about taking a day off, something was definitely wrong.
“No clue; Marie didn’t say anything beyond that. If you see her, please tell her to call us so that we know she’s all right.”
“Okay,” I clenched my jaw as he walked away, and I opted for the stairs instead of waiting for the elevator. When I got there, I saw someone messing around with her door. “What are you doing?”
He seemed frightened as I towered over him, and Brady was already growling as we both watched the man gulp, pointing to her door.
“Brooke asked me to water her plants for her while she was at work.” He lied straight through his teeth. He was the guy I had seen from the nail salon.
I frowned as I stepped closer to him, and he took a step back.
“I’ll water her plants.” I stuck my hand out; so, he had been the one who was trying to stick a key that didn’t fit in her door.
“No, Brooke entrusted me with the task. I’ll come back later,” he said as he gripped the key close to his chest. I looked him up and down, my hands itching to smash his head through the wall.
He was stalking Brooke.
“If you do, I’ll break your wrists,” I told him, and his eyes widened. “Come anywhere close to her again, and I will break all your bones. Do you understand me?”
