“You might not have a hacker that’s targeting your whole system. I think there is someone specifically targeting me.”
“Someone is after you?”
“Yes, there’s been a lot of strange things going on lately. Is there someone you can call to check if anyone else received a strange message? I suspect it was only you, and that it’s because you had contact with me.”
“Yeah, my co-worker Tom is going to be back on Monday. I could have him take a look at it.”
“I’d do that. There’s a lot I haven’t told you.”
“Like, a lot about you? What do you mean? Is the message true? Are you doing something illegal?”
I couldn’t stop asking him questions. They were coming to my mind faster than I could think through them. There was a secret Brandon had been keeping from me and I wanted to know what it was. My heart had already started to open up to him. I’d given in to all the things I said I would never give in to. This couldn’t all be some scam for him to cover up illegal activity; I knew it couldn’t be that. Or at least, I thought I knew.
“No, I’m not doing anything illegal. I’ll tell you everything I know, but I warn you I don’t know all that much. I’m just as confused as you are.
“My trading account had a red flag on it and there was a scary-looking guy who lied and pretended like he worked for the federal government. When I let him into the house, he threatened me and Josh and then left. My credit card was frozen, as well, but I thought that was unrelated, and now I just don’t know.”
“Who would want to do this to you?” I asked as I tried to process everything.
If someone was out to get me, I would think that I’d have some sort of idea who it was. Maybe I wouldn’t know the exact person, but I’d know if there were people I had made so angry they didn’t like me. Certainly, Brandon had to have some clue to who might put this much effort into ruining his life.
“I don’t know for sure.”
“What do you mean? How could you not know?” I yelled at him.
I hadn’t yelled in years and it scared me how emotional I had gotten all of a sudden. This guy had won my heart – I couldn’t deny it – and now he was telling me there was at least one person on earth who hated him so dearly that they wanted to cause this kind of chaos in his life. That was scary to me.
Hate and love were emotions that stayed tied together. It was hard for someone to hate strongly if they hadn’t loved the person previously, or loved someone involved in the situation. I remembered this tidbit from my psychology classes in college. Hate and love were connected, so it was a big deal that Brandon couldn’t tell me who he might have loved and hurt so badly that they would take this sort of revenge.
“I tried to be an honest businessman who did deals that were good for myself and other companies. I can’t think of someone in that area who would be this angry to personally attack me.”
“And, your private life? Have you hurt anyone recently?”
Brandon laughed and turned back toward the shower in the bathroom without answering me. I followed him and stood there while he ran his hands through his hair and contemplated what he wanted to tell me.
“I’ve hurt a lot of people. If I’m being honest with myself, I’m sure there are plenty of women who are angry with me. I honestly don’t know who would be this angry, though. I’m sorry, Delilah. I haven’t been the greatest of men over the last few years.”
His eyes looked gloomy and dark as the memories of his past filled them. I knew that feeling, though. As much as I wanted to judge him for his past, I couldn’t judge a man who had acted just as I had since losing my husband. There were probably plenty of men from the last year who were angry with me. Certainly, I didn’t think they would sabotage my life, but women were much different creatures. A scorned woman wasn’t someone you ever wanted to deal with blindly.
“I understand. Was there someone recently?”
“I can’t remember. I’m not a good guy, Del. I’ve tried to show you the true and honest side of me, but there’s a dark side. I have a side without emotion. I have a selfish, hurtful side that women have loved and I have ignored them.”
His emotions were surrounding him and I s
aw the panic growing in his eyes. He was a guy who liked to be in control and his life had slowly slipped away from him. Within only a few short years, he had gone from a happily married father with a booming business to a single man without a son and without a company to occupy his time.
“Let’s get in,” I said softly.
I slipped back out of my dress and climbed into the warm shower with Brandon. We didn’t talk, we didn’t have sex, we simply let the beat of the water wash away the sins of our pasts. We both had lived through things others could only think of as a nightmare. Yet Brandon and I survived the life we had. Whatever else was going on in his life, I wanted to be there for him, at least until I found out why this person was targeting him.
His hands moved over my wet curves as if they were gliding over melted butter. I hadn’t lied when I said I liked the feel of his hands on my body: I sure did. No matter what else was going on with him, I had him there with me at that moment, and I decided I wasn’t ready to let him go. I wasn’t willing to give up my time with him yet.
Water was meant to be erotic, I was convinced of it. What other substance could warm your entire body while making your skin shimmer and entice? I couldn’t think of anything else.
“If you stay here another moment, I’m not going to be able to control myself.”
“Then don’t,” I said boldly.