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ChapterOne
“You look like hell.”
“I feel like hell,” Reese said, reaching for her takeout cup. She didn’t care that the coffee was lukewarm. Caffeine was caffeine. “The people next door moved in a week ago, and it’s party central over there. The music starts around ten o’clock at night and doesn’t end until at least one or two in the morning. I’ve been letting it go because they’re new to the building, but if it starts again tonight, I plan to march over there and let them know how I feel about it.”
“Your building doesn’t have rules about noise?” Daria asked from the other side of Reese’s desk. The executive assistant was organizing paperwork for Reese to sign.
“We have rules, but my new neighbors don’t want to follow them,” she said, followed by what felt like her hundredth yawn of the day.
“Hopefully you can get this sorted.” Daria handed over some files. “You have a meeting with Jack from textiles later. He has samples he wants you to look at. But we can reschedule.”
“I do need to look over those samples even though I don’t think I can keep my eyes open.”
Daria smiled, her deep brown eyes full of sympathy. She and Reese had gone way back, right back to Reese’s skating years. It helped that they were relatively close in age. With the exception of Cam, Daria was Reese’s closest friend. “If you change your mind, I’m happy to reschedule. You know, we don’t have a lot going on this afternoon. Why don’t you head home early? I can handle things here. Jack can wait.”
Reese stifled another yawn. “I can’t do that.”
“Youcan. Go home, take a nap, and then talk to these new neighbors. We can tackle everything tomorrow.”
She did like the sound of that, but she had work to do. Reese did not take days off. In fact, she couldn’t remember the last time she’d even missed an afternoon. And a lack of sleep wasn’t going to stop her from seeing those textile samples for their new athletic-wear line. Reese gulped back some more cold coffee and set her attention on the files Daria had given her.
“I’m fine. I need to get this done.”
Daria gave a resigned shrug. “Sounds good. Holler if I can do anything else.”
Reese nodded, then dove into the files, financial reports she needed to sign off on. Reese’s head spun. Usually, she could get through reports like these in minutes, but the headache coming on had the numbers swimming in her vision. There wasn’t enough coffee in the world to get her through this day. For a moment, she considered Daria’s suggestion. A little afternoon nap wouldn’t hurt. Maybe an early evening walk to clear her head?
No. She had work to do.
She lumbered through the day, trying to keep her eyes open as she went through fabric samples with Jack. As the head of production, he kept Reese on schedule, and he also had an eye for cutting-edge materials that would set her athletic-wear creations apart. The second time he suggested they pause and pick up again the following morning, Reese insisted they work on it now. Of course, there was also that little voice in her head telling her that in her present state, she’d need to review her choices in the morning anyway. She told that voice to shut up. Reese Beresford was not a quitter.
As four o’clock rolled around, Reese found Daria across from her once more. Her slim, tall form loomed over Reese’s desk, and by the expression on Daria’s face, she meant business.
“All right, now I’m insisting. Go home! All this work will be waiting for you tomorrow and nothing is urgent. Get some rest. And I mean it!”
Normally, Reese would put up a fight, but Daria was right. Slowly, she gathered some paperwork and her laptop and packed it all into her messenger bag. She felt a little bad leaving early. She was usually in the office well after 6 p.m., but her sleepy brain needed a break.
“You will call me right away if something comes up?”
Daria was clearly fighting not to roll her eyes. “We can take care of things here.”
“I know, but—”
“Reese!”
Reese cast one look back, but by the scowl on Daria’s face, she knew it was time to go. She took the short drive to her downtown condo. The place had cost her a fortune, but it was a sound investment, and the location was worth it…well, until the noisy neighbors had moved in. But she’d take care of that another day. She walked through her door, set her bag down, and headed straight for the sofa. She normally had no time for television, but she switched it on to half listen to the news, and before she knew it, her eyes closed and she was fast asleep.
* * *
She’d been dreaming about a cabin on the lake. Whose cabin, she didn’t know, but it had been peaceful. She was sitting on a dock with a book—how long had it been since she’d read a good book?—when the music started. It confused her at first. She was alone at this cabin by the lake. The only sounds should have been loon calls, so who was playing the loud music? She tried to block it out, but it became louder and louder, and worst of all, she felt herself being pulled away from her sense of tranquility.
No, I need more sleep!
Her eyes shot open. The music wasn’t from her dream. It was the new neighbors.
She shoved herself up and stared at the television screen for a moment, trying to get her bearings. The six o’clock news was ending, and she realized she’d slept for a few hours. But she didn’t feel rested. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and pulled herself to her feet. The music was thudding in her ears, and she groaned at the prospect of listening to it all night. But no, she wasn’t going to listen to it all night. She deserved a good night’s sleep, and that was what she was going to get. And if the new neighbors didn’t want to cooperate, she’d take it to the condo board. The rules were clear: no loud music that would disrupt other tenants.
She stormed out of her condo and marched over to her neighbor’s door. She knocked on it as loudly as possible and waited. Twenty long seconds went by with no answer, so she waited for the current song to end. Long minutes ticked past, and her anger ratcheted up. When the song finally faded out, she rapped on the door as hard as she could again, and kept on rapping until, a moment later, she heard the lock unlatch.
