Page 152 of The Stalker

It was almost unfathomable. She couldn’t imagine a life where she could be around this man and not fall hopelessly in love with him.

“A job like any other job with a ridiculously hot client,” she joked.

He laughed, and it felt as though it was soothing something deep inside of her; some hurt that she didn’t know was there. It was as though she’d found her perfect other half, and a puzzle within herself had finally been completed.

The day they’d driven to check out the tour bus and she’d slipped up and called him ‘ridiculously hot’ seemed like forever ago. So much had happened since then, but she still had that lingering concern about his stalker. She couldn’t allow herself to truly be happy with him, and she hated that.

“We should head to lunch,” Tatiana said, and Hayden nodded.

“I don’t want to. I want to stay with you every second until I go on a date with another woman.” He wrapped both arms around her and squeezed her tightly.

“I’ll be with you the whole time,” she laughed.

“But I won’t be able to do this.”

He kissed her, and a heady sense of arousal overcame her. She parted her lips, and their tongues intertwined as he deepened their kiss. He gently stroked her back, and Tatiana wrapped her arms around his neck.

Hayden ended their kiss and said, “I should tell them I’ve come down with a terrible illness.”

“I thought you didn’t like to lie?” she asked him with a smile.

He didn’t say anything for a few moments, looking into her eyes with a frown on his face before he finally said in a solemn tone, “For you, I’d do anything.”

Tatiana’s heart pounded in her chest as she looked back at him. He could be so intense sometimes, but she wouldn’t have him any other way.

“Well, you’ve already told them you’re coming. Do you really think they’d buy your excuse?”

Hayden laughed and shook his head. “No. Heather would be beating down the door of this suite before we had time to get back to the bedroom.” He kissed Tatiana again, taking his time and softly stroking her side while he did. “At least I have something to look forward to this evening. Let’s go. The faster we go, the faster we can come back.”

Tatiana led the way out of their suite toward Harrison and Heather’s suite, a short way down the hotel corridor. They were greeted at the door by a smiling Harrison.

“Hey, guys. Come on in.”

He stood aside as they said hello, and he allowed them to walk past him into the suite. They were apparently some of the last people to arrive, with only Sebastian and Lita missing from the group.

She glanced at Hayden before heading to the side of the room and watched as he dropped into an armchair, ignoring the empty space next to April on one of the sofas. He was sitting at an angle to Tatiana, and she could see his face in profile. He looked as beautiful as ever while he greeted his friends with a smile on his face.

Heather looked from Hayden over to her and asked, “Are you going to join us, Tati?”

She frowned and assessed the situation. Heather was still trying to get information about them, but she also needed to consider what she would do with any other client. The sofa that April was sitting on was resting against a wall, there were bodyguards outside, and she tried to slot into her clients’ lives where possible.

On the other hand…the only current seat available was next to April Conway unless she brought a chair over, which would look weird. Heather was still looking at Tatiana and waiting for a response.

“Yeah, sure.”

Her pulse raced as she walked over to sit next to April on a two-seater sofa across from the two-seater that Gabriel and Ariana were sitting on. Heather was sitting on Harrison’s lap in an armchair to her left, while Hayden’s chair was now to her right.

“It’s good to see you again, Tati.” April smiled at her.

“Yeah, you too. Did you have a good trip here?”

“I did. Sleeping in one of the bunks is definitely a downgrade from my tour bus, though,” she said with a smile back at Tatiana.

“What’s your tour bus like?” Tatiana asked, desperately curious because she’d only seen a few pictures online of April hanging out on a sofa near the driver’s door.

“Basically, the same as Harrison’s, but I get to sleep in the good room,” April laughed.

“I bet. I got to see you on the Mystical Sunrise tour and your performance was amazing,” Tatiana gushed, remembering the excitement she’d felt the first time she got to see April performing live in concert.

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