Page 92 of He Sees You When You’re Sleeping

Sloane looks away, unable to meet my gaze. “I don’t know if he believed me. He didn’t seem convinced, but he has no proof it’s you.”

I close my eyes, trying to steady my breathing. My mind races through all the possible outcomes, each one worse than the last. My career, my reputation, everything I’ve worked for—it could all come crashing down because of one stupid mistake.

I take a deep, shaky breath, trying to calm the panic rising in my chest. “Okay,” I say, more to myself than to Sloane. “Okay. We need to think this through. What exactly did Tyler say?”

Sloane fidgets with her glass, her voice low. “He said he was surprised to see your profile. He made some comments about... about your photos. And he said he never would have guessed you were into that kind of thing.”

My cheeks burn with humiliation. The idea of Tyler—awkward, leering Tyler—looking at my private photos and videos makes me want to crawl out of my skin.

Ugh, is he a subscriber of mine now? The idea makes me want to puke.

“I told him I gave the necklace to another friend of mine, the person whose profile it was. I tried. I swear. I never admitted it was you.”

I sigh. “But he knows.” I sigh again to try to steady my breathing. “Did he say anything about telling anyone else?” I ask, dreading the answer.

Sloane shakes her head. “He never made a threat, but... you know Tyler. You’re right in your thinking. He likes to have leverage over people.”

I nod, my mind racing. “We need to get ahead of this. Maybe... maybe I should talk to HR first? Come clean before Tyler has a chance to spread rumors?”

“I don’t know,” Sloane says, biting her lip. “That could backfire. What if they decide to fire you on the spot?”

I run my hands through my hair, feeling trapped. “You’re right. God, this is such a mess. I can’t believe this is happening.”

Sloane reaches out and squeezes my hand. “I’m so sorry. This is all my fault.”

I want to be angry with her, but I can see the genuine remorse in her eyes. Besides, I need an ally right now. “We’ll figure this out,” I say, trying to sound more confident than I feel.

Sloane nods slowly. “He seemed... almost gleeful when he told me. Like he enjoyed having this secret. We need to convince him that it’s not worth the risk of raising it to Jasmine.”

“And if he threatens me?” I ask, voicing the fear that’s been gnawing at me.

Sloane’s expression hardens. “We’ll stick to the story that it’s someone else. Other than the necklace you were wearing, he can’t prove anything.”

I nod, trying to quell the nausea in my stomach.

“I’m sorry,” she repeats. “I got sloppy and didn’t think.”

I take a deep breath, steeling myself. “It’s not all your fault. I got sloppy too. I can’t believe I kept on jewelry that didn’t belong to me and... what was I thinking? That’s not how Moth to the Flame wants me to influence people to buy their jewelry. It’s my fault that you and Tyler were even able to make the connection between my profiles.”

Sloane nods, her eyes still filled with guilt. “Maybe, but I’m the one who accessed the site from work. I should have known better. I’m so fucking sorry.”

We sit in silence for a moment, both lost in our own thoughts. The weight of the situation hangs heavy between us.

“He may drop it,” she says as she takes a sip of her drink. “Trust what I said.”

“Maybe.” But I don’t believe it. Something tells me that Tyler knows the gold mine he’s sitting on and is going to use this information to his gain. “Let’s think this through. What’s the worst-case scenario?”

Sloane grimaces. “Tyler tells HR, and we both lose our jobs. The news spreads through the office grapevine, and suddenly everyone knows about your... extracurricular activities.”

I wince at the thought. “And the best-case scenario?”

“Tyler does nothing, and this all blows over,” Sloane says, but her tone suggests she doesn’t believe it either. “At least Tyler didn’t get to see you having sex or anything. It was just a little showing off.”

Picturing Tyler watching me at all makes me want to puke. “Ugh that doesn’t make me feel better. And umm... that’s not exactly true,” I admit, remembering my most recent video with Jack. “I may have done something...” I trail off, unable to finish the sentence. Sloane’s eyes widen.

“What?” she whispers. “What did you do?”

I take a deep breath. “I... I made a video. With Jack. On Christmas Eve.”

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