Stealing the Heart of Mr. Steele

Chapter 23 [Cordelia]

Tilly looks up and drops her keys, her mouth open slightly. Blinking she closes her mouth. "Oh, I'm sorry! didn't realize that you were..." She looks at his hand on my thigh. "Having an examination..."

"Oh, yeah, um..." I reach down to pull up my pants, wincing. "I think we are done."

Tilly shakes her head, amused by my embarrassment. "No need to rush, but if you could call the repairman that would be great." She picks up her keys and heads out the door.

As I wave goodbye, I grab my phone and dial the number. When I finally get through to make an appointment, the earliest the repair man can get here is next Thursday after 3 pm.

"Agh, that's not going to work," I set my phone down after writing the appointment on the wall calendar, Jude looks concerned so I explain. "I need to get these clothes cleaned and pressed so that they'll be ready

for the show "I point to the pile of clothing lying in a heap in a corner of the room. "I guess I'll have to take it all to the laundromat."

"You are in no fit shape to be washing laundry," Jude insists.

When I don't back down, he concedes on the condition that I let him drive and do all the heavy lifting. He has laundry of his own to do, he insists, and that it won't be a bother for him to take me along as well. Reluctantly I agree.

In the end, I was grateful I took him up on his offer for companionship on my trip to do such a mundane task. Talking with him about our projects made the time go much more quickly.

"I'm working on something really exciting." Jude's eyes light up as he describes his latest experiments. Why don't you come over later today and we can eat a meal after. I'd love to show you my work."

"I just need to get a little bit of work done first," I promise. "But then I'll stop by."

As soon as I get home, I try to get to work, but I'm so exhausted from my day that I fall asleep at my desk instead. When I snap awake to the sound of my phone receiving a new message, the room is dark. The message reads: "Do not go into his lab."

completely

The picture underneath is of the inside of a washer machine. It is full of men's clothing, the water is a dirty reddish brown.

The next picture shows Jude loading the same laundry into the machine a few minutes before. And each garment is covered in blood.

Whoever is sending these messages is following me closely. Very closely. Maybe this has never been about Atlas and Sydney. So far all of the messages have been to keep me informed or to warn me of trouble. But is the trouble real, or just the imaginings of an obsessed Stalker or not, washing a pile of bloody laundry is suspicious. Why is Jude washing bloody clothing in the Jaundromat? It can't be clothing from working at the hospital, all their bloody clothes are washed on site for safety and sanitation reasons.

The only way he'd have that much bloody clothing at home is if something happened at home for them to

[Chapter 23

get that way. But what?

There is a knock on the door snapping me out of my dark thoughts.

Flipping on a couple of lights, I open the door to see Jude standing there. He has a plate of food in one hand and a small medical bag in the other.

1 figured the reason you never made it down to see my lab was that you probably hurt yourself again," he nods at the bag in his hand. "I made lasagna for lunch and it is way more than I can eat it all by myself, so I also brought you a plate." I stand there, stunned. He made me lunch, and when I didn't show up, he didn't assume the worst of me, he just came over and brought me what he thought I might need.

Jude continues to surprise me with his kindness. I am so lucky to have a friend like him. How could I ever think he was up to something strange?

I must have been standing there for a bit too long staring because he asks. "Can I come

"Of course," I move aside. He must have just come from the shower because he smells clean, I conditioner and soap.

"I was wondering." Jude looks away, "Since you aren't able to run with me right now, if you'd like to get together and do something fun tonight? That is if you'd be open to hanging out." "That depends," I ask cautiously. "Are you asking me out? On a date?"Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDrâ/ma.O(r)g!

He pauses. Avoiding eye contact he murmurs, "Maybe. That is if you'd be open to going out with me sometime."

I open my mouth to say something like "I'm not ready to date yet," but the memory of Sydney and Atlas kissing in the restaurant, and the fight that resulted, makes me reconsider.

There is a kind, considerate, and breathtakingly handsome man standing before me and all he is asking for is the opportunity to spend more time with me.

It's time I put Atlas behind me.

"Yes," I smile back at him. "I'd like that."

And then I lean forward and kiss him.