Page 32 of Runaway Hearts: Seduced by Danger

Not wanting him to dig any deeper, I added, “I’m at the Willy Motel for now. I’ll check ads for a place this weekend.”

“If you need an apartment, I know a guy—“ Victor began before I cut him off with a snort.

“You always ‘know a guy,’pop-pop,” I teased.

“It’s a good place,” he told me with a lopsided smile, his eyes twinkling with that peculiar light I liked. “Somewhere you’ll be safe…” He trailed off, scanning my features, analyzing them with the sharpness of someone who has seen it all.

But Victor didn’t know. Not a single soul knew who Eric truly was in private.

“And?” I prompted with a raised eyebrow. “Because there’s always an ‘and’ with you.”

Victor let out a hearty chuckle, allowing me to see the red-and-white mint on his tongue. “It’s one street over from my place. Just in case.”

I frowned. “In case what?”

“In case you need to borrow some mints,” Victor said with a soft smile. But something dark behind his teasing tone made me realize he wasn’t joking. “Or a baseball bat,” he added, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper.

I choked on my saliva and sputtered a reply. “Already have one, old man.”

Alumina Bang Bang, I called her.

I scoffed and whipped out my phone to check my messages, but Victor put his frippy hand on mine with the softest stare I’d seen from him.

“Don’t read them,” he said. “Don’t answer them, either. It’s best when you cut all ties. It takes three days for the brain to register it’s over. Three weeks to learn the new normal and three months to replace memories with new, better ones.” He squeezed my hand and, in that gesture, offered a lifeline I hadn’t known I was drowning without. “Block him, delete the messages, move on.”

I swallowed the lump in my throat and nodded, knowing he was right but still feeling that addictive pull, that dangerous longing for a man who’d brought nothing but hurt into my life.

“Start small, Care Bear. If you can’t delete him completely, try blocking him or just ignoring the messages.” Victor’s hand tightened ever so slightly on mine, a subtle show of support. “You’re stronger than you think. Remember that.”

I nodded, more to myself than to him, absorbing the truth in his words.

I couldn’t erase Eric yet or block him. But I could ignore his texts.

“Could you check in with me… I mean…” My lips shook, and my eyes watered. I couldn’t finish the sentence.

I needed a hug.

He flashed a grin that wrinkled the corners of his eyes and got a chip from his pants pocket. “Consider me your breakup sponsor,” he said, giving me a white plastic coin. “That’s for day one.”

My finger traced the rims of the piece, and it quieted my worries for an instant. “Thank you, Pop-Pop.”

I wanted a hug so bad, but the words wouldn’t get out.

“Good. Now, you wanna cup of coffee, Care Bear?”

“Hum, am I breathing?” I replied with a teasing smile, grateful for his support.

“An old friend” doesn’t do justice to my tight-knit relationship with the old security guard, but the newly named stranger doesn’t have to know everything about me.

But then, Kai’s eyes cloud, and his jaw contracts. “Do we need to talk about my picture in your phone?”

I gasp at the audacity. “You went through my phone?” Heat crawls up my neck, painting my cheeks a deep tomato shade.

“To check if we were safe,” he replies, crossing his arms over his chest. His eyes hold a fierce yet protective gaze.

Fear and attraction dance an intricate ballet in the pit of my stomach. “Safe from what?”

He runs his hand through his hair, looking serious. “From anyone who might be searching for me.”

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