Page 142 of The Stalker

“He didn’t seem to be a big fan,” Heather cringed. “So, I can’t quite understand why he’s not on your bus? Something about the bunks?”

Tatiana scrutinized Heather’s body language and her tone of voice. She could tell that Heather knew the answer to this question, but wanted Hayden to repeat it because she was trying to see if she could get anything more out of him.

He looked unfazed by Heather’s question, however, and sounded calm when he replied. “Yeah, I wanted to give Tatiana a room because I felt it might be a hostile work environment if she was forced to change, etc. in a non-private area. Unfortunately, I didn’t spot the bunk removal on the plans the tour bus company sent.”

“That’s really nice of you,” April said with a beautiful smile at Hayden.

She was relaxed back against the sofa, with one leg crossed over the other, looking at ease with the situation. Tatiana scanned her body language instinctively and she seemed friendly with Hayden, but wasn’t showing any signs of flirting with him.

Are you really going to turn into a jealous girlfriend right now?

She couldn’t believe that she was sitting here trying to ascertain if April Conway was interested in Hayden. She watched him as he turned to smile at her favorite singer, and Tatiana wished she could be the one sitting next to him.

“Thanks. I don’t regret giving Tati a room, but I do feel bad that I screwed up the bus like that. Tati was so cranky at me; weren’t you, Tati?”

It could just be that she had been so tuned in to everyone’s body language over the last few minutes, but as Hayden turned to look at her, it was as though his entire being lit up. When they made eye contact, the tension in his body eased, his smile got brighter, and it felt as though his love for her was being broadcast at ten-thousand megawatts. As much as she wished they could be together publicly, she hoped that the others couldn’t see what she saw.

She forced herself to keep a professional tone, even though she desperately wanted to launch herself into Hayden’s arms. “I wouldn’t say I was cranky, just frustrated that I didn’t think to check over the tour bus plans to be sure everything was covered.”

“Not something you would’ve missed?” Harrison asked.

Tatiana shook her head. “No, I’d have noticed that straight away. Hayden should consider himself lucky that he didn’t have to tell Jesse he’d be sleeping on the sofa, either. I took that bullet.”

“Like any good bodyguard, she stepped in the line of fire for me.” Hayden winked at her, and the others laughed.

He kept her gaze, and arousal flooded through her. She quickly turned her face away from his because she was worried his friends might notice something. She found herself facing Harrison, and he was smiling at her.

She was reminded of something Hayden said to her, and she turned back to him. “Oh, hey, didn’t you say I should ask Harrison and Heather about hotel walls being paper-thin?”

The three friends burst into laughter, while April wore a look of curiosity on her face as she looked between Heather and Harrison.

Heather groaned and shook her head. “I can’t believe you told Tati about that.”

“I didn’t. I just told her what question to ask,” Hayden told her with a mischievous grin on his face.

“So tell us about hotel walls being paper-thin, Heather,” April teased her.

“I’ll let you do the honors, honey.” Heather looked at Harrison, and he laughed again before looking back at Tatiana.

“The day before Heather’s first fashion show, we had a suite next to Sebastian’s, and Hayden was with him in that suite when Heather and I were, uh, reuniting in ours.”

The entire group laughed at Harrison’s statement, and April said, “Okay, yeah, I would’ve died of embarrassment.”

“I basically did,” Heather told her with another shake of her head. “Anyway, we were thinking that maybe we could have some drinks in your tour bus after the show, Hayden?”

He raised his eyebrows at her, mimicking Tatiana’s own internal surprise at the suggestion. “What? Why?”

“Well, we haven’t hung out in ages, and doesn’t your bus have some special door to keep your fragile ass safe?” she grinned cheekily at him as she said it.

He quickly glanced at Tatiana, who smiled at him, not wanting to get in the way of his fun with his friends, even though it meant she would be on edge that evening.

He looked back at Heather. “My bus does indeed have a special door for fragile asses. Sure. Sounds like fun.”

The group talked for about ten more minutes, and by the time Harrison, Heather, and April left, Tatiana was starting to get used to her idol’s presence. At the very least, she managed not to make a fool of herself or act like a jealous girlfriend during that time. Tatiana nodded at Jesse, who was stationed outside the door when she let Hayden’s friends out, and as soon as they were alone, he smiled at her.

“Come sit with me,” he said in a low tone.

She walked over and dropped onto the sofa next to him, ensuring she sat a respectable distance from him even though she had done a thorough sweep of the room to check for recording equipment.

---