Page 13 of The Stalker

She stood where she was as she began to scan the list. She didn’t see anyone who couldn’t wait in the foyer downstairs for someone to come and get them.

“Do you want to sit down?” Hayden asked her.

She looked up from the list to see that he was indicating the space on the sofa next to him. Her heart rate increased at his suggestion, and she swallowed quickly before she nodded.

“Yes, of course. Thank you.”

She sat at the other end of the sofa, with plenty of space between them, but she was incredibly aware of his presence. She turned her body so she was sideways and had the entrance to the room in her peripheral vision.

She looked back down at the list, then asked, “Is there any reason that these people can’t wait downstairs?”

Hayden frowned at her. “I guess not, but I’d rather my friends not have to wait.”

She looked at Hayden. His jaw was tense, and he was still frowning at her, but he looked beautiful with his full lips and eyes that were molten pools of chocolate. She had the strange urge to kiss him, but she pushed the thought away.

Holy shit, Tati. Get a fucking grip.

He had a boyfriend. He was a client.

“I understand, but this is only until the tour starts in a few weeks. Will they even visit that often in that timeframe?”

Hayden laughed, “Umm, yeah. Rehearsal room, remember? We do official rehearsals, but we spend a lot of time here in the lead-up to a tour.”

“I’m very uncomfortable with so many people having access, Hayden. You must understand that the more people that have a piece of information, the more chance for it to be uncovered. Your lobby downstairs is a secure area for them to wait, and they all have bodyguards of their own. I’m going to have to say no.”

There was tension in the air between them, and Tatiana could sense that Hayden was annoyed. Most clients usually were in the beginning. It didn’t matter, annoyed or not, unless he broke the contract with her, she was going to enforce the things she knew would keep him the safest.

Finally, Hayden said, “Okay. I don’t think they’ll like it, but sure. What about Blake?”

“Unless I have a reason to think he’s unsafe, we can give your partner the code. I dislike restricting access to anyone you’re in a relationship with. If I find a reason to cut off his access, I will tell you in advance.”

“Agreed,” Hayden nodded. “This really is intense, as I said before.”

“I know that it’s a lot to take in, especially in the beginning, but I promise it’ll get easier. I’ve already organized the locksmith to come around tonight. What hours does Jesse work?”

“He comes when I need him to go out with me. Normally, if I’m staying home, I don’t have him come over.”

“Okay, we’ll need to work out some sort of schedule with him. I’ll need him here if I have any tasks to do, or you’ll need to come with me. As much as possible, I don’t want to expose you to any risks. If you want to go out, I’ll escort you, but I dislike making my clients come with me on my errands,” she admitted.

Hayden looked curiously at her for a few seconds and then asked, “What sort of errands do you need to do? If you don’t mind me asking.”

Tatiana actually didn’t mind. She found it was useful to be something of an open book with clients. The more they understood about her processes, the more willing they usually were to follow her directions.

“Well, sometimes I need supplies to keep you safe. Occasionally, I need to get outfits to wear to events. Most things can be ordered online and delivered, but some things need to be purchased in person. I also need to have discussions with building staff about security here, things like that.”

“That makes sense.” Hayden grinned at her. “You look at the door a lot.”

Tatiana raised her eyebrows, and she laughed as she told him. “I hadn’t even noticed. I do it automatically. I get very on edge, sometimes.”

“Tell me what you would do if someone came into the room right now,” Hayden said.

She pursed her lips as she thought about it. She envisaged them sitting there as they were and imagined someone bursting through the door.

“Are they armed?” she asked him.

“Does it make a big difference?” he asked, raising his eyebrows at her.

She pictured someone coming in unarmed and told him, “Huge difference. If they’re unarmed, I push you to the ground and take cover while I assess the situation, then once I ascertain they don’t have a weapon, I’ll go and subdue them. Assuming it’s one person.”

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