“Yes. Why? Are there others?”
He stared at me instead of answering.
“Ryder?”
“Sorry. I just…I’m usually really good at reading people. And I’m having a hard time knowing if you’re telling the truth.”
I laughed. “It’s because you’re making me nervous.”
The corner of his mouth ticked up. “I make you nervous?” He started running his fingers through my hair again.
God that felt good. It had been a really long time since I’d been touched. And I’d let this man touch me anywhere.Anywhere.I tried to dare him to do it with my eyes. And then I realized I probably just looked like a crazy person, so I put my head back on his chest to hide. “So nervous.” The sound of his heartbeat was so soothing. “Tell me more about yourself so I know you won’t cut me up in little pieces tonight.”
He chuckled. “Well, I promise not to do that. As long as you promise not to do it to me.”
I laughed.
“You didn’t promise.”
Was he seriously scared I was the murderer in this situation? I wasn’t stalking him! “I swear I’m not going to hurt you or harm you in any way.”
I heard his sigh of relief. “Okay then.”
“Now, tell me everything,” I said.
“Where to even begin? I didn’t grow up in the states…”
We kept talking for hours, but the time passed in a flash. He was full of insane stories from all over the world. He had lived such a rich, exciting life. And yet he seemed most interested in hearingmystories. Especially about high school. Apparently he’d grown up overseas and never really had a classic high school experience. I wanted the night to last forever, but before I knew it, the warmth of his body and the steady pound of his heartbeat put me right to sleep.
Stalker Problems - Chapter 21 - The Elevator Incident
Wednesday – April 12, 2023
What. A. Night.
I didn’t want to get out of bed. Or couch. Or wherever I had fallen asleep in Ryder’s arms. I was afraid that opening my eyes would take me out of whatever fairy tale I had been a part of last night. And my dreams? They’d been oh so naughty. I’d dreamt of him walking up to me and asking in that sexy voice of his, “Are you stalking me?” And then ravishing me on the bench outside One57. Because he liked that I was a kinky stalker like that.
I reached out to try to find Ryder, but my hands came up empty. I reached a little further and fell straight off the couch.
Ow.
I opened my eyes. The morning sun pouring through the two-story window of the great room was blinding.
“Ryder?”
No answer.
“Ryder?” I called a little louder.
Still nothing.
Where did he go?I got up to look around the apartment. He was probably just being a jerk and trying to make himself lookall pretty so he could make fun of me for having sloppy hair and morning breath. I put my hand up to my mouth and breathed into it.Rank. Shoot.
There was no sign of him in the kitchen. And the fridge was completely empty, which was weird. Who keeps nothing in their fridge? There was no sign of him in the bedroom either. Or the other bedroom. Or the next one.How many bedrooms does this place have?And he wasn’t in the bathroom either.
Oh well.I could wait for him to get back from wherever he went. Maybe he’d gone to get me breakfast! How romantic! Or maybe he was at work…
SHIT!
