Page 109 of Fallen Princess: Shadow Stalker

No!

Not again!

Hefound me.

“Please,” I cry, laying still as if my limbs are paralyzed. “Please,” I beg, tears falling down my face. “I never told anyone about you. Please don’t hurt me again.”

A sob escapes me.

Arms wrap around me, and my mouth opens, but my scream doesn’t come out.

“Eden! Babe?” He says, encasing me in his embrace.

“I promised I wouldn’t tell. Please take me home.” I thrash around, trying to loosen the tight hold over me, and I realize I can move my arms and legs.

“Eddie! It’s me, Jagger. Baby, it’s Jagger…”

His voice trails off as I gaze at the blue-eyed man hovering over me. His messy chestnut hair flops over his chiseled jawlined face. Slowly, my awareness returns, and I find myself suspended between the realms of the subconscious and wakefulness.

“It’s not him. He had deep brown, almost black eyes,” I relax into Jagger’s arms.

“Who Eddie? Someone in your dream?”

I flick my eyes up at him.

“Have I spoken out loud?”

He gazes at me, concerned. “You alright, Eddie? Did you dream of your stalker?”

“Not sure what I dreamed of,” I explain. “How long was I asleep?”

“Since yesterday afternoon,” he says, seemingly troubled.

I already noticed it’s dark outside so I calculate I’ve been sleeping over twenty-four hours.

“Hmm,” is all I’m prepared to say, and then the pain comes flooding back.

Storm.

“Any word on the kidnappers?” I ask; the ache is more than I can take.

“Everyone is working on it,” he frowns and I know he wishes he could have been the bearer of better news.

“I need to get out of bed and do something. Anything. God, I don’t know where to start. But I wasted a whole day sleeping instead of out looking for him. Damn, my sleep patterns!”

I break away from his embrace and sit up in bed. He yanks me straight back onto the pillow.

“Eden, they are doing everything they can. I need to ask you something, babe. Do you remember the last thing you were doing before you fell asleep?”

I gaze at him, wondering why he would ask such a question. It’s not like I haven’t wondered it myself. It’s not something I want to make a big discussion of, so I shrug my shoulders and pull off the cover only to discover I’m stark naked.

Glancing over at Jagger, he’s lying on top of the covers in a T-shirt and boxer briefs, and I can’t ignore the hotness emancipating from him.

“Were we fucking, and I passed out?” I chuckle, but the amusement remains on my side of the bed.

“No, Eden,” he says firmly, and I know that tone of voice.

“After finding out about Storm, you had a panic attack, and upon recovering, you said you wanted to be alone. Catalina prepped a cup of herbal tea and Asher brought it up to you.”

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