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“The bathroom is across the hall… but I guess you already know that,” I say, utterly embarrassed that I’m showing him around my house like he didn’t spend hours going through it with a fine-tooth comb this afternoon.
“Relax, sweetheart,” he says gently.
I take a deep breath and try to do as he says, but I fail miserably. “Sorry. I guess I’m just a little freaked out.”
“That’s understandable,” he replies. I practically melt at the sincerity in both his tone and the look he’s giving me.
What I don’t tell him is that the reason I’m freaked out isn’t because of my stalker; it’s having him under my roof and the idea of pretending to be his girlfriend and all that could entail.
Will we have to kiss? Hold hands? More? Less?
I’m a jumble of emotions and confusion. When I first met Jasper and he was cold and standoffish, I wrote him off as potential boyfriend material. I want a daddy who will look at me the way Colt looks at Darlene. I want him to be so over the moon in love with me that he dotes on me night and day. I want to be his babygirl in every way. I want to worship him and be worshiped by him. And now Jasper is playing that role, and I just can’t wrap my mind around it. Maybe if he were still acting standoffish and a little jerkish, I could get over all these feelings. With him being concerned and almost sweet… I’m a goner and I know it.
“Well,” I say awkwardly. “I guess I’m going to turn in. Early morning.”
It’s barely nine. What twenty-something goes to bed so early? The truth of the matter is I just want to escape his presence, and hiding in my bedroom is the only option I have.
God, I’m lame.
“Night, sweetheart. I’ll see you in the morning.”
I give him a shy nod and rush into my bedroom. I close and lock the door before falling against it, breathing heavily.
“Lord, what have I done?” I mutter into the empty room. I’ve got a bad feeling that I’ve bitten off way more than I can chew.
* * *
I wakeup groggy and still exhausted. It was a restless night of tossing and turning. I had dreams of being chased down dark alleys and cornered by wild beasts. Maybe being stalked has freaked me out more than I realized.
I force myself out of bed and into the shower. I’ve got an hour to wake my ass up and get to the school for cheer camp. The girls deserve better than a coach who has the weight of the world on her shoulders. They need me to be a leader, even though right now I just want to curl up in bed and hide away from the world.
I shake myself out of those thoughts. What is wrong with me? I never have a defeatist attitude, and I won’t start now. So I’m being stalked. It’s not the first time. I survived it once. I will survive it again. Jasper took care of my Dima problem… even though now I have a Jasper problem. One that I’m not one hundred percent convinced is a problem at all… which is why there is a problem.
After my shower, I dress in a pair of yoga pants and a tank. It’s going to be a million degrees out today, and the last thing I want to do is melt before my students’ eyes. At least, that’s what I’m trying to convince myself. I put way too much time into my appearance this morning, including swiping on mascara and lip gloss, two things I don’t do before a good workout.
Yep. I’m in huge trouble here.
Fifteen minutes before I need to leave, I finally get up the courage to leave my bedroom. I find Jasper in the kitchen drinking a cup of coffee.
“Morning, sweetheart. Did you sleep okay?”
I shrug and reach for my own coffee cup. I quickly put in the pod for my very own cup and wait impatiently as it drips. The smell of French vanilla fills the room, and I’m practically salivating over the scent.
“Not a morning person?” he asks.
I take a sip of sweet caffeine and consider playing things off like this is a normal morning for me but lying to Jasper feels wrong. Instead, I go for honesty.
“Not really, plus, I didn’t sleep well last night.”
He frowns and gives me a concerned look that I shrug off as a simple client-bodyguard thing, not the boyfriend-girlfriend level of concern I wish it was.
“Are you ready for a run?” I ask, looking him up and down. He’s wearing a pair of dark wash jeans and a white button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up. I think I drool a little at the sight. I don’t know what it is about a man with his sleeves rolled up like that, but it just does it for me. So sexy.
He rolls his eyes and gives me a slow smile. “I thought it would be best if we drove together today. Just in case.”
“Oh. I usually run to and from practice.”
Jasper reaches up and tucks a stray strand of hair behind my ear. “I know you do, sweetheart. Today I’d rather play it safe. We took away your stalkers ability to watch you in your house. I just think it’s better to play it safe and not test him any further than we already have.”
