Love in the Dark (LarssonSiblingsSeries#1)

CHAPTER EIGHT - EDWARD

EDWARD

It's three o'clock in the morning when I throw my work keys into the bowl at the entrance of the flat above my agency. I'm not a damn eighteen-year-old anymore. I can't do the heavy booze. It takes me at least a week to feel normal again after it.

It's my reasoning for coming back here, and not to my nice flat on the riverbank. All that I need is someplace to rest my head. I have meetings back to back that start at the crack of dawn, so instead of forcing myself to stay awake, it's easier to sleep here for a few hours to be only a staircase away for when my clients need me.

I stretch out of my jumper and throw on a T-shirt before ripping my jeans from my legs. The small bathroom light flickers when I switch it on and brush my teeth. My whole body almost filling the entire space, and I feel slightly claustrophobic.

I'm rinsing my mouth out with water when my mobile phone rings out from the bedroom. It isn't an unusual time to get a phone call in my world, but when I see Levi's name, I answer right away. "Everything okay, bro?"

"No, Poppy's a mess. Delilah isn't home yet," he rushes out.

A sick feeling pushes at my gut. "What do you mean Delilah isn't home yet? I thought she left at eleven."

Levi sighs. "She did leave at eleven. That's why we are so worried. You sleeping over at work tonight?"

I nod, knowing he can't see me. "Yeah, why?"

I'm reaching for my jumper and jeans ready to throw them on and look for her. The girl is annoying as hell, but I'd hate for anything to have happened to her. I'm not that much of a bastard.

"You didn't see any lights on at her dad's place, did you? Poppy knows she won't be staying at her father's house, but thought she could be working at the shop."

I shove my jeans on as I'm walking towards the window, lifting the blind to gaze down at the lit up window. "Yeah, the lights on. I'll go check on her."

Levi whispers something to someone, and then Poppy's relieved voice floats down the line. "Thanks, Ed. Let me know she's okay."

"Will do." I switch off my phone to go grab my shoes.

I take the stairs two at a time and march out of the door, feeling uncomfortable about her being there on her own at this time of night. Does she do this regularly? Silly woman.

Anyone could be roaming the streets. I don't bother to look for cars as I walk across the road to approach the shop door. Delilah rips a long piece of wallpaper from the wall and shoves it into a bin bag, wiping at her brow as she does. I knock on the glass and see her jump out of her skin.

"It's only me," I shout, feeling sorry for scaring her.

Delilah keeps her hand on her chest and strides up to the door, unlocking it with her eyes hard on mine. "I very nearly wet myself. Don't sneak up on me like that ever again."

I ignore her annoyance by glaring over the mess in here. "Do you do this regularly? And you should call your friend to let her know you're safe."

Delilah frowns and glances down at her watch. "It's past three. How did that happen?"

Looking at her, it's clear to see she's exhausted. I step forward. "You didn't answer my question. Do you do this a lot?"

"No." She bends down to pick up a piece of wallpaper that she missed. "I don't like making a habit of it, but it's a race against time at this point, and I'm trying to get a head start."

I have to let her know. "There's mould on your walls."

Delilah turns to look where I'm looking with sad eyes. "No shit, Sherlock."

It's hard to stop my lips from moving at the edges at her sarcastic tone. "Something bothered me all night."

On the defence, she crosses her arms over her chest. "And, what's that?"

"Why your friend stayed with us instead of going back with you." It's true. I felt it as soon as Poppy joined our table.

Delilah walks back to the wall to start tearing down the disgusting wallpaper. "Poppy is a grown woman. I'm not about to tell her what to do."

"I don't care. You chicks should always stick together." I reply, stopping in my tracks at her low chuckle. "What?"

The bag in her hand makes a noise when she pulls it closer to her body. "I don't know. The way you just said that made me smile."

I shake my head rather impatiently, stepping over to the other side of the room to poke the crumbling wall with my finger and see it fall right away. "I think the mould is in the fixtures too. That's probably why it stinks in here.

"Edward," she says, giving me a surprised look.

I prod at the wall some more to create dust. "Well, there's no getting away from it."

"It's old," she says, ripping more wallpaper with a harsh tug. "What do you expect?"

"Don't you have regular damp checks?" I reply.

Delilah shakes her head. "No, we don't have regular damp checks. We can't afford boiler tests. So, there's no chance of us getting the council to test the site out."

I can't believe what I'm hearing. "You don't get boiler checks? Are you insane?"

"I'm poor, Edward, not insane."

Anxiety hits me the longer I stand here. "How do you know it's the right pressure? It could blow up."

Delilah shoves the wallpaper into the almost full black bag and ties it up. "I watched a tutorial on YouTube and checked it myself."

I back up. "Oh, well that's okay then. Thank god for YouTube.

I don't feel safe stood here—It could be a live ticking time bomb.

"Oh, shut up" she says, walking away from me and out of the room.

My eyes connect with the piles of paperwork on the corner of the desk with the EcoMax branding label in the corner. Hell, yeah. I edge closer and see the address and contact information. David McCormmack CEO. This is it. My golden ticket. My fingers find my phone in my back pocket and fiddle with the screen until I see the camera. The picture is taken in seconds, information stored forever.

"Do you think bleach will fix the damp?" she calls from the other room, but I'm out of here quicker than my feet can take me.

"Probably. I've got to go," I say, not waiting for her reply.