“It started two years ago,” she said in a low voice. “I came home one day and found the first letter in my mailbox. It was mostly about how beautiful they thought I was and how they’d like to take me on a date. I was freaked out that they knew where I lived, but the content wasn’t particularly alarming. It sounded like something a high schooler would write to his secret crush.
But the letters kept coming, and he started including candid pictures of me along with them.
That was when I really freaked out. I installed a new security system and bought a taser, but I still didn’t feel like it was enough. Every time I left or entered my house, I…” A small bob disrupted the delicate lines of her throat. “I was living with Jules at the time, which helped a bit.
But I was also worried about her getting caught in the crossfire if anything happened. I told her about the notes and she insisted we go to the police, but they were dismissive of the whole thing. They basically told me to stop posting so much about my life and whereabouts on social media if I didn’t want creeps reaching out to me.” Her voice grew smaller with each word, as did her posture until she was curled up in a sitting fetal position. I didn’t have to be a mind reader to read the subtext. A part of her thought those bastards had a point. “Did they?” My soft response belied the cold burn of anger invading my veins. It was time I paid the Chief Superintendent a call. “The stalker stopped soon after, so I guess it doesn’t matter.” Stella twisted her necklace tighter around her finger. “It does matter. The police had a job, and they didn’t do it.” My muscles tightened at the uncertainty in her eyes. “What they said was bullshit.
It’s not your fault. Millions of people post every fucking thing they do on social media every day.
It doesn’t mean they’re inviting people to harass them. Would you blame a woman for being assaulted if she was wearing a short skirt?” She flinched. “Of course not.” “Exactly. People make their own choices. You have the right to live your life how you want without worrying about creeps who can’t curb their worst impulses.” “I know. I just…” Stella faltered, then shook her head. “I know.” She was quiet for a moment before she gave me a tentative smile that thawed some of the ice in my blood. “That was the most I’ve heard you curse since we met.” A short laugh wound past the dimming rage in my chest and into the air. “Sometimes, the situation calls for it.”
I held out my arm. “Come here, Butterfly.” I disliked comforting people almost as much as I disliked having them in my personal space, but considering everything she’d gone through, I could bend my rules this one time. And all the previous times you’ve bent the rules for her, a voice inside my head taunted. What happened to staying away from her? Hmm? I shoved the voice into a metal box in the darkest recesses of my mind and slammed the lid shut. Smug bastard. After a brief hesitation, Stella scooted closer until I could pull her into my lap. She didn’t resist, and warmth glided across my skin as I ran a thumb over the elegant line of her jaw. “Do you still have the letters from two years ago?” I asked. The more physical evidence I had, the better. She nodded. “They’re in my bedroom. I can get them.” “Good. I’ll get them later.” I wasn’t quite ready to let her go yet. I couldn’t remember the last time someone sat in my lap, but the sensation was oddly soothing. “I hate this.” Stella’s voice dropped to a whisper. “I hate feeling helpless. I wish I knew what he wanted. He’s always talking about what he…what he’d like to do to me, but as far as I know, he’s never approached me. None of the guys who’ve hit on me seem like they’re capable of stalking and harassment, but I guess we never know.” A small tremble rippled down her spine. “He was gone for years, and now he’s back. Why?” That, I had an answer to. “Because of me. Look at the timing,” I said in response to her visible confusion.
“You posted a photo of us on social media—your first time officially announcing a boyfriend. A few days later, he sends you a note saying you should’ve waited for him. I don’t know where he went these past two years, but it’s obvious our relationship triggered him.” The simplest explanation was usually the correct one, and the sequence of events lined up too perfectly to be a coincidence. “Oh, God.” Stella’s face drained of color. “Does that mean I should stop posting
about us? What if he escalates things next time?” “No,” I said firmly. “We’ll ramp up your security, but we need new posts to draw him out. The sooner we find him, the sooner we can put the bastard behind bars.” Or six feet in the ground. “Trust me.” I rested a reassuring hand on her back even as my muscles coiled at the thought of anyone threatening her. “I won’t let anything happen to you.”
Not even if I had to take a bullet myself. “Right. That makes sense.” Stella drew in a deep breath before another frown touched her face. “What if…” I waited, curiosity brewing at the rising color on her cheeks. “What if he comes after you and you get hurt?” A fire sparked in my chest, so suddenly and unexpectedly it would’ve brought me to my knees had I been standing.
My pulse drummed at the unfamiliar warmth sluicing through my veins, but I kept my face impassive as I curled a hand around the back of her neck. “I can take care of myself, but your concern is duly noted.” My words lengthened into a drawl. “I didn’t realize you cared that much about my safety.” “I don’t care. I mean, I do, but I…you know what I mean.” “I’m not sure I do.” I held back a laugh at her adorable growl of frustration. “You’re insufferable.” “I’ve been called worse.” Stella sat sideways on my lap, so close I could count every lash framing those beautiful green eyes and spot the tiny mole behind her right shoulder. Warmth, light, and grace, all wrapped up in a perfect package and sitting right there for me to take. Desire coursed through my veins, but I forced it at bay. Despite our banter, Stella’s muscles remained tense, and her lips were raw from how hard she was biting them. She wasn’t as calm as she pretended to be.
Our moral compasses pointed in different directions, but we both wore masks to shield our true natures from the world. The only difference was our motives behind the deception and the lies we told ourselves. Stella lifted her chin. “I’m sure you’ve been called all sorts of things, but you’re not as scary as you want people to think you are, Christian Harper.” My eyes narrowed.
“No?”“You lowered my rent, agreed to be my fake boyfriend, and you’re helping me find the stalker for free. Those aren’t the actions of someone heartless.” If she only knew.
“I didn’t do them out of pure selflessness.” “Maybe not the first two, but what are you getting out of helping me with the stalker?” she challenged. “The world thinks you’re my girlfriend. Can’t have anything happen to you or it’d look bad for me.” The lie slipped as easily from my tongue as my own name. “I’m the CEO of a security company, after all.” That, and a world without Stella in it was one that didn’t deserve to exist. My hunger to piece together her puzzle tethered me to sanity and fed the tiny part of me that still believed in goodness and humanity. It was the order to my chaos, the flame to my ice. Without it, I would be unmoored, and that would be the ultimate danger—both to myself and the people around me. Doubt crept into Stella’s eyes. “Is that the only reason why?” She sounded less sure than she had a minute ago. My hand stilled on the back of her neck. The air between us stretched so taut it vibrated against my skin, and the sudden change in atmosphere dragged us into a place where there was no threatening note, no stalker, and no fake arrangement. There was just the weight of her on my lap, the scent of her in my lungs, and the warmth of her in my soul. It was raw, real, and so fucking addicting.