With a determined nod, she turned to face the building. Seth was in there. After being apart for so long, being this close to him made her heart sing with joy … before terror knocked it aside. A single look or a word from Seth could crush her heart. But she had to remember … taking this risk gave her a chance at a real life. If he sends her away, then she would only be back to where she was. It couldn’t hurt more than sending him away the way she had.

She looked for his name on the intercom. Even when she found it, she couldn’t get herself to press it right away.

“Oh, for goose’s sake.” She closed her eyes and pressed the button, long and loud.

When there was no response, she peeked from one eye to make sure she hadn’t pressed the wrong button. Her finger still hovered right by Seth’s name. She had pressed the right one. Did he know she was out here? Was there a camera? Of course, he must’ve seen her through the intercom with her face scrunched and her eyes squeezed shut, and ignored it.

Her stubbornness kicked in and gave her some much-needed energy. She’d come too far to be sent away at the gate. She pressed the button again with her eyes wide open this time.

“Dammit, Seth.” At least answer the intercom.

She buzzed him in three rapid successions. She wanted to hit the damn thing, but someone was coming out of the building, and she didn’t want to get arrested for destruction of property.

“You come in?” asked the young woman when she opened the gate to come out.

“Really? May I?” Tara asked with her hand on her chest. She was ever so grateful. The other woman must’ve seen how desperate she had been to reach Seth on the intercom.

“Mais oui.” She stepped out of the building and held the gate wide open for Tara to get through with her rolling bag.

“Merci. Vous êtes très gentile.” Tara waved as the nice woman smiled and walked off to her destination.

He might not want her near him, but she was inside, one step closer to him. Ha. He lived on the sixth floor, so when she spotted what appeared to be an elevator, she walked toward it. It was the size of a small pantry and had iron railings as the door. She slid it open and got inside. She and her bag filled it to maximum capacity.

When the door didn’t automatically close, she fiddled with the handle and closed it by hand. She pressed the button for the sixth floor, but it didn’t light up, and nothing was happening to the elevator. Too nervous to trust the old-fashioned contraption anymore, Tara got off the teeny elevator and headed for the open stairway in the lobby.

The stairs were narrow and steep, and difficult to maneuver carrying a bag, which got heavier by the minute. By the time she reached the sixth floor, Tara was out of breath and had a sheen of sweat on her forehead. She stood at the top of the stairs taking a moment to catch her breath, so she wouldn’t be a panting, sweaty mess when Seth saw her through the peephole. Maybe that was better than pale and petrified. The exertion had probably put some color in her cheeks and now might actually be the best time to knock on his door.