Page 31 of Recklessly Yours

Wow. Clearly Dylan couldn’t sugarcoat a thing, even if he tried. Though I guess I couldn’t blame him for going with the rip-the-Band-Aid off approach.

“How?” I blinked, trying to find better words, but they escaped me.

He shrugged. “That’s what I was trying to find out. My guess is that Aiden had someone driving by, but not actively checking the apartment.”

I balled my hands into fists at my side, hating all of it. Not only the fear of someone watching me, but everyone else who had to watch me too. Having police circling my apartment, needing a babysitter. It was like, in one fell swoop, this stalker had taken away all my privacy. But the only way to stop it was to let Dylan and Aiden do their jobs.

I nodded. “Okay.” This wasn’t going to end until this psycho was caught.

“Hattie…” Dylan started.

I raised a hand. “I’m fine.” Or I was going to make myself be.

He scoffed. “Fine never means fine.”

With a shrug, I turned and made my way upstairs without looking back. Fine was all I could give him right now. Though if I was being honest, none of this was fine.

He knew it too.

I wish I could say that the moment my head hit the pillow, I was passed out, but for a long time after I crawled into bed, my thoughts continued to whirl. I cycled between the fear of how easily this guy was getting around the police and to my apartment and the frustration that because he could do that, I wasn’t even allowed to be home.

I closed my eyes, praying sleep would come.

I stood in an open field without a single familiar landmark. Was I dreaming?

A figure cloaked in black approached me, calling out my name, beckoning me to him. No. He wouldn’t get me. I would fight. Turning, I sprinted into the dark woods, running as fastas I could but feeling like the ground under me was moving in the opposite direction.

Feeling as though I was getting nowhere, I glanced over my shoulder to find that the faceless man was closing in quickly. As I turned, determined to pick up my pace, he grabbed my arm.

I pushed and pushed against him, flinging my arms to loosen his grasp and screaming out for help.

Finally, Dylan’s voice broke through the darkness.

Relief washed over me. Dylan was here. He’d save me.

“Hattie, wake up. Need you to wake up.”

Startling, I opened my eyes. With shaky breaths, I blinked the scene in front of me into focus. Dylan. He was hovering above me, his lips turned down in a concerned frown.

“If I let go, will you promise not to punch me again?”

Only then did I realize that he had my arms pinned to the mattress on either side of me.

I nodded. Had I actually hit him?

The small lamp on the nightstand was on, but the room was still cast in shadows. With a sigh, he let go of my wrists and sat on the edge of the bed.

“I punched you?” I raised up on one elbow, scanning his face to make sure I hadn’t really hurt him. The guy had enough to deal with already. He didn’t need a fat lip or a black eye too.

He smirked, his face looking unscathed and perfect as always. “Yeah, and I’m pretty sure you enjoyed it.”

“Youcanbe a bossy ass.” Although I had to admit, his assertiveness was comforting at times.

“Remind me to thank Kyle or Rhett the next time I see them.”

I tilted my head. “Why?”

“For teaching you how to throw a mean right hook.” He rubbed the left side of his jaw. Drama king. It didn’t even look red. “Want a cup of tea or warm milk?”

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