Page 187 of The Stalker

He was silent for a few moments as he listened to whatever Harrison or Heather were saying on the other end of the line.

“I just need to talk to you guys about something before I talk to everyone else, that’s all. It’s best to talk face to face.” He paused for a second before continuing. “Can you come down now?”

He was silent for a longer time now, and he chewed his bottom lip as he listened to the call. He looked as though he was in pain, and Tatiana wished that he didn’t have to have the conversation he was about to have with his friends.

“Thanks. I’ll see you soon.” He ended the call and looked up at Tatiana. “I’d better get changed quickly. They’re on their way down. I don’t want to ask this of you, but…” he trailed off, looking uncomfortable.

“You’d rather that I wasn’t here with you when you told them?”

He shook his head. “No, I want you here, but I’m not sure if they would want it. It’s going to be hard for them and I want to make it as easy for them as possible.”

She hated the idea of him doing this alone, but she realized that he wouldn’t be. He would have Harrison and Heather here. Despite what he was going to tell them, they were also a part of his support system.

“Of course. Do you want me to wait outside? Otherwise, I could go upstairs and let the others know that you’re talking to Harrison and Heather first. I’d get Jesse to come down and wait outside, of course.”

Hayden didn’t answer immediately, just frowned and considered her words before he said, “Can you do that? Can you tell them as well? It just—it saves Harrison and Heather from having to go through it all again upstairs if they don’t want to talk about it.”

“I can do that.”

Tatiana nodded and walked over to him. She placed a hand on either side of his face and pressed her lips to his. He wound his arms around her neck as they kissed, and she tried to put every ounce of her love and support for him into this kiss.

“If you need me, just call, and I’ll come right back down. Otherwise, I’ll see you upstairs, okay?”

He nodded. “Okay. I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

She got dressed before she walked into the hallway as Hayden headed into the bathroom, and she called Jesse as she looked out for Harrison and Heather.

“Tatiana?” he answered her call.

“Could you come down to my room again? I’m going up to Gabriel’s suite because Hayden needs to talk to Harrison and Heather in private.”

“In private? What for?”

She saw the couple walking down the hallway toward her and said quietly, “I’ll tell you later. Can you come now, please?”

“Sure.”

She hung up just as Harrison and Heather arrived in front of her. They were holding hands, and Heather was gripping Harrison’s hand so tightly that her knuckles had turned white.

Harrison gave Tatiana a tight smile. “Hi, Tati. Thank you for getting him back.”

“Not a problem.” She swiped the room key and opened the door for them. “I’m going upstairs, but Jesse will be here to escort you guys up there when you’re ready.”

Harrison nodded silently and led Heather inside. Tatiana closed the door behind them and stood there until Jesse arrived a few minutes later.

“Is it bad?” he asked.

She considered what to say, but decided to go with a short version of the truth so he’d have some understanding of what the three people in her hotel room would be dealing with when they came out.

“I have to go upstairs and tell the rest of the band that the stalker was behind the drugging in Los Angeles.”

Jesse’s eyes widened, and he stared at her in silence for a few moments before he frowned. “I see. Well, thanks for letting me know.”

“I thought you should be prepared.”

She left him outside the room and headed upstairs, dreading the conversation that she herself was going to have to have when she got to Gabriel’s suite. When she arrived, she stood in the hallway for a moment, took a deep breath and let it out slowly before she swiped her keycard and opened the door.

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