Page 56 of The Stalker

“Much, actually. You give the best hugs, Tati,” he grinned at her.

She was pleased that she’d been able to cheer him up. Her anger at Blake simmered in the background, but the fire was dimmed by Hayden’s soothing touch.

“That’s me. Tatiana Swanson: Professional Hug-Giver. Did you not know about my side business giving hugs?”

“Whatever your rate is, you should double it.”

“Noted. What I’m hearing is that I get to drive your car for twice as long on the way home,” she teased him.

“A bargain, I assure you,” he laughed.

“Do you know how much you could charge someone to drive this for an hour?” She raised her eyebrows at him. “Many hundreds of dollars.”

“I think I need another hug,” he winked at her.

“Anytime you want one, my arms are open,” she assured him before she realized what she was saying and that this entire interaction was very much not professional.

Hayden looked at her, and she didn’t think she could breathe before he said softly, “Good to know.”

WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT, TATIANA SWANSON?!

She ignored the gnawing guilt from the knowledge that she had not just strayed out of the bounds of professionalism, but had practically thrown a parade with a marching band behind her as she crossed that line.

She couldn’t possibly have not done it, though. Hayden had confessed something deeply important, and she would’ve needed a hug if it had been her. She got out of the car, watching Hayden as he did the same. He had a slight frown on his face again, and she hated the worried look he often wore.

He seemed to care so much about everything, as though he was constantly concerned that he might say or do the wrong thing. She wondered how much of that was caused by being a rock star and constantly being under a microscope and how much of it was caused by his relationship with Blake. Either way, she wanted to wipe the look away.

“Ready to see your fancy bus?” she asked him.

He walked around the car to stand next to her and smiled down at her. “Yes. I can’t wait for you to see it, too.”

“Why?” She frowned in confusion at him.

“You’ll see.”

She did see. After they entered the office and were introduced to someone called Owen from the tour bus company, they were led to a bank of tour buses.

“This one is yours,” Owen said with a smile.

“I probably could’ve guessed,” Hayden chuckled. “Hey, Tati, we match!”

Tatiana laughed because the bus they were walking toward had the picture of Cruise Control from the cover of Games We Play splashed across the side of it, matching the one on their t-shirts. At the top of the bus, in large writing, stylized the same way as the album’s title was written:

GAMES WE PLAY TOUR 2021

“Is tripling a thing?” she asked Hayden.

He wrinkled his nose and shook his head. “Nah. Besides, I prefer to just be twinning with you.”

She ignored the flare of pleasure she got from his words as they reached the bus.

Owen opened the door and handed Hayden a tablet before saying, “I’ll let you look through. This will control most things on the bus, but if you have any questions, I’ll be happy to answer them.”

Hayden climbed onto the bus, and Tatiana followed him, then turned and asked, “Can we close this door, please?”

“Uh, sure.” Owen climbed onto the bus and closed the door behind them before sitting in the driver’s seat.

“Sorry, it’s a security thing,” Tatiana shrugged.

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