Page 68 of The Stalker

She cut herself off when she realized her poor choice of words, and Hayden chuckled, “Do you imagine things about me often, Tati?”

“No,” she said defensively. “I just mean that I’m sure you’re good at plenty of things. Drumming. Singing. Cross-stitch, or something.”

“Cross-stitch,” he said as he burst into laughter. “I can’t say I’ve done much of it. I am good with my hands, though, so maybe I should give it a try.”

You leave that bait right there, Tatiana. Don’t touch it.

She ignored his comment and said, “Jesse said he swept the room, but do you mind if I look around?”

He smirked at her, then said, “Go ahead. If you need me, you know where I am.”

He walked back to the sofa and picked up his book. Tatiana looked through the room and the attached bathroom. There wasn’t much to see and nothing looked out of place. She took longer in the bathroom than necessary, trying to collect her thoughts as she did.

When she entered the room he was in again, she walked around it while he watched her. Finally, she sat on the sofa next to him. It was only a two-seater, so she was far closer to him than she should be.

“Douchebag or not, you have a boyfriend. So, flirting with me isn’t okay, you know,” she told him while looking at the wall across from them.

“I’m breaking up with Blake tonight,” he shrugged.

“You are?” Tatiana gasped and whipped her head around to look at him.

“I spoke to Brendan about it yesterday in my therapy session. I do deserve better. It’s not because of you—well, it kind of is. Yeah, I’ve been flirting with you, but it also just reminded me of what relationships should be like. When you get to a point where you’re relieved when your partner doesn’t come to an event, something is very wrong.”

“I’m proud of you, Hayden,” she told him truthfully. “You know that this doesn’t change our situation, though, right?”

“Doesn’t it?” He raised an eyebrow at her, then smiled, “Okay, I suppose not, but I will be able to flirt with you guilt-free.”

“Have you considered not breaking up with Blake,” she quipped.

“You’re that scared of me being single, huh?”

Tatiana ignored his comment because there was too much truth in it. She had no idea how she would resist him if she didn’t have the knowledge of his relationship with Blake as an added reason to keep him away.

Please. As if that’s been stopping you from flirting with him. You don’t need any reason to stay away from him other than the fact that HE’S YOUR CLIENT!

Tatiana made a thoughtful face and asked, “Maybe we can find you a nice boyfriend tonight? Someone might come to the show who’s a really lovely guy and perfect boyfriend material. What do you think?”

Hayden shook his head and said in a seductive voice, “I don’t want him.”

“A nice girlfriend, then? There are probably plenty of wonderful women who would make amazing partners for you on their way to this concert right now. So many options, really,” Tatiana nodded.

“I don’t want her, either. I’m going to stay single, and you’re going to wish I wasn’t for more than one reason,” he grinned at her.

Tatiana wrinkled her nose and said, “I’m not touching that with a ten-foot pole.”

Smart thinking.

Hayden laughed and said, “Fair enough. Truth hurts, I guess. I’m going to read some more of my book before the soundcheck.”

He picked it up and shook it at her before opening it. She sat next to him, mentally preparing for the show tonight while running through procedures and scenarios that came to her mind. Every now and then, she would look over at Hayden to watch him read, but she tried not to let herself get distracted.

When he went to the soundcheck, she and Jesse followed. None of the other band members’ bodyguards were there, which was annoying for Tatiana. She understood they were in a secure enough location, but she would never stand for Hayden being somewhere like this without him in either her or Jesse’s line of sight.

She watched Hayden drumming and enjoyed the show, knowing she wouldn’t be able to watch him much tonight. He threw himself into the performance, and when they came to the point when Hayden sang a solo, she watched the entire song, unable to take her eyes off him.

It was a breakup song from the band’s second album, and Hayden’s voice was smooth and velvety as he sang about letting someone go.

As he neared the end of it, Jesse said quietly, “I hope you’re planning on watching more than just Hayden tonight.”

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