Page 10 of Fractured

“Don’t sit with me,” I seethe as I pass by.

five

The steaming cup of coffee does little to calm me down, and the frustrating lack of results further my sour mood. How hard is it to figure out how someone hacked your phone? Suddenly it feels like I’m inept when it comes to technology. I push my laptop back on the table and grab my coffee to take a breather.

Vander is sitting at his own table by the front door, keeping watch with a broody tilt to his eyebrows. A few others have made themselves comfortable, ready to spend some time working at the tables set up. My eye keeps flitting back to the same man in the corner. He was already here when I arrived and has been busy tapping away at his laptop the whole time. Every so often, he gets up and walks past me to get a refill of coffee.

With each pass, I catch a stronger whiff of coffee mixed with vanilla, and somehow, I know it’s his scent. The sharp slacks and button-up shirt rolled up to his elbows aren’t what caught my eye. It was the chiseled jaw, feathered brown hair, and piercing green eyes set behind black-rimmed glasses. He has short trimmed facial hair and the complete package has me envisioning being bent over the tabletop with him behind me. It helps too that after Vander’s comment, I’m sure such a thing would piss him off.

He glances up and our eyes lock. I give him a smile that he is quick to return. There’s so much heat in his stare that I’m sure he’s already fucked me in his mind too. Brilliance dances in his gaze and my attraction skyrockets. Just as I’m about to push from my seat and approach him, my phone chirps with a notification.

Glancing down, the device unlocks on its own, just like it did the first time I got a text from my stalker. A shiver of desire runs up my spine and my hot nerd is forgotten. I don’t even know what my stalker looks like, but I know he’ll be mine. Now what I do with him once I have him, I don’t know…

A message pops up on the screen.

The second rule of killing: Don’t keep any evidence connecting you to the crime.

Moments after the message pops up, a picture flashes on the screen. It’s the polaroids he left for me, my open drawer in the background where I left them. I have just enough time to take in the details before another picture pops up. This one is of me holding the Rolex as I walk up to Vander. I immediately know what he’s telling me to do, but that fucker has another thing coming if he thinks I’ll just follow his directions like some kind of obedient puppy.

Shit. I know he’s right. I just can’t bear to part with my reminders of last night. My hand instinctively reaches for the watch where I placed it in my purse, rubbing my thumb over the glass without taking it out into the open.

The picture disappears and again the text flashes on the screen. Like he knows what I’m thinking… Maybe he does if he’s watching me right now. I can feel my mask has slipped with how chaotic my thoughts are right now. He’s already proved he’s watching me. I assumed he left my gift and got the hell out of there before getting caught. But with how many guests were in the house, I’m sure he could’ve blended right in with everyone else. Waiting for his moment to watch me leave when he took that last photo. Then sneaking back into my room to take the polaroids.

At least I assume he’s taking them. I’ll find out for sure when I get back, I suppose. Which leaves the question, why did he leave them in the first place? I bet he wanted me to know the lengths he’s willing to go to stalk me. To let me know it wasn’t just an off chance he found the video of me killing Scott. He was there the whole time.

He was there the whole time… That bastard sat back and watched while I was almost raped. What kind of stalker would let someone else try to take his obsession?

Just as I mull over the possibility I’m reading the situation wrong, the chair in front of me is pulled out, and someone sits in it. Thinking it’s the nerdy eye candy, I paste on my flirtatious smile, and glance up through my eyelashes. To my surprise, I find Grayson sitting there. He’s still wearing his suit from the funeral, probably having stopped in after leaving my estate.

“Grayson,” I start, before I’m cut off with him reaching out to grab my hand.

“I noticed you left, and your father told me I might find you here. He said this is one of your favorite spots to hang out,” Grayson tells me as he rubs his thumb over my knuckles. Normally it’s a gesture I find annoying and repetitive, but for some reason, I don’t have the instant desire to rip my hand from his hold. This, combined with all the other abnormalities of late, puts me on edge.

My silence encourages Grayson to fill the awkwardness. “I know losing a loved one can be difficult, and I understand if you’d prefer to be left alone, but I wanted to make sure you had someone here if you wanted it.” His eyes—which I now realize are actually hazel—scream sincerity, and I can’t help but remember pleasuring myself to his image. Perhaps this is the perfect time to kill a few birds with the same stone. I can test drive Grayson’s dick prior to marriage negotiations, it will piss off Vander after the conversation we just had, and I’ll get to see what kind of reaction it gets from my stalker.

I give a half smile and say, “I thought I wanted to be alone, but it seems I really just needed to be away from all the pity stares everyone was giving me. Maybe we could watch a movie or something as a distraction?” I don’t add in the ‘chill’ part of my plan, we’ll get to that soon enough.

His smile widens at my proposal. “My place isn’t too far from here. I’d be more than happy to give you a distraction-filled evening. It would be great to get to know you some too. I’m sure you’re just as aware of our family’s meeting to negotiate a marriage uniting our companies.” For some reason, his blasé mention of marriage based on benefiting his family business bothers me. Which is odd, seeing as how it’s exactly how I look at it. I assumed I would want the man I’m marrying to be indifferent to it all, just like me. But his purposeful appearance and mention of getting to know me seem to be at odds with the lack of interest in marriage.

While his sincerity is all over the place, it doesn’t change the facts. We will be discussing an arranged marriage, and I want to ride his dick. “So you thought you would come comfort me in my moment of weakness huh, hubby?” I tease with a wink.

His smirk is immediate, and he dips his head to peek up through his eyelashes. Such a flirt. “I’d never make the mistake of thinking you’re weak. I know better than that.” My newfound darkness preens at the compliment. She appreciates him not underestimating us, especially after Scott made the fatal mistake. “Shall we get out of here?” he says with a squeeze of the hand I never pulled from his hold.

“Depends. Who gets to pick the movie?” I question with a smile of my own.

“Hmm… I’d offer you the courtesy, but I think giving up the option too easily would be a mistake. How about we flip for it?” he says, pulling a coin from his pocket. “Tails,” he calls as he flicks it into the air.

I snatch the coin out of mid-air and check both sides. Just as I suspected, there’s a head on each one. Nobody carries change these days, much less someone of our class. He gives me a blinding smile as he shrugs and snatches the coin back. “Looks like you win. Think I could get a ride with you? My driver went back for my father.”

Rolling my eyes, I pull him after me and catch Vander’s narrowed gaze. I flash him my smile, pleased to have annoyed him when I’m already pissed. He gets up and opens the door to the coffee shop for us, then quickly passes us to open the car door as well.

Before I reach the car, I glance through the window into the coffee shop. My handsome nerd is still in the corner, framed by the brick wall behind him, and to my surprise, he’s staring right at me with a frown marring his perfect features. I don’t have time to analyze why he’d be looking at me so upset since I’ve reached the car. Just as I’m getting in, Vander breaks the hold I have on Grayson’s hand and pushes me the rest of the way in before following me into the backseat and slamming the door shut behind him.

“What the hell, Vander,” I get out before his hand is gripping my jaw and he’s in my face. He’s so close his breath feathers against my lips.

“I could ask you the same thing.” There’s a surprising amount of anger in his voice. I search his eyes, but they are just as dark and void of answers as always.

“I’m going home with Grayson. We’re going to watch a movie and get to know each other before we negotiate the marriage contract,” I finally answer. When I try to pull my head from his grip, his fingers tighten, pulling on my bruised cheek. “You’re hurting me, Vander,” I tell him with cold calmness.

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