Page 167 of Hayden's Stalker

Sarah ends her kiss and pulls her head back to look at me. “God, you’re amazing. I love you so much, and you’re so beautiful.”

I can taste her. I hate it. I’m about to vomit all over her disgusting face. She doesn’t seem to notice or care about my distress as she presses her lips to mine again. Once again, she thrusts her fucking foul tongue into my mouth. As she kisses me, she moans and throws her leg over mine while she presses her breasts against my chest. It’s gross. I can’t handle it. I want to peel off my skin and walk away from it because everything is infected with her now. I will never be clean again.

When it’s over, she rests her head on my chest again. “I wish we could do more.” She rubs my side with her hand, re-infecting that area. “I thought you were in love with me, but I don’t thinkyou are now.” She gives a deep sigh. “It’s okay. I know you’ll get there, baby. I’ll wait for you to be ready.”

I try to talk, but I can’t. My mouth refuses to work, and I think I might puke if I try.

“Do you think you’ll be ready someday?” she asks, but her expression scares me.

She looks perfectly pleasant, except that it once again seems like a veneer over something sinister. The monster lurking beneath her pleasant exterior shines through, and my sense of self-preservation kicks in.

Stay alive until Tati can get you.

“This has been really hard for me,” I manage to say through the desire to puke. “It’s definitely something I think we could have in the future.” I force myself to look down at her body the way I’ve done to Tati a thousand more enjoyable times than this one. “You’re very beautiful, and our relationship will have an unconventional start, but that doesn’t mean it won’t be just as wonderful. Please just give me time to adjust to our new life together, okay?”

She seems pleased with my response, and her nipples are stiff against my chest. It feels like they’re cutting into me. Creating open wounds for the infection to seep in deeper.

“Of course I’m happy to do that, Hayden.” She smiles at me. “I’ve waited so,solong just to get to us being together. I would wait forever if I needed to for you to fall in love with me.”

“Thank you,” I say because it seems like the right response.

She would need to wait longer than forever because I know that willneverhappen. I don’t say this because my one goal is to stay alive, even if I’ll never be clean again.

“You’re welcome.” I can feel her mouth curve into a smile against my chest as she says it. “God, I can’t believe we’re really together. I’ve tried so many times and failed. I wasn’t even sure this would work, but it has, and we’re together now.”

Something about her words strikes me, and I realize that I should try and get as much information out of her as I can. Tatiwillfind me, and Sarahwillbe arrested. If there’s anything I can use to ensure she’s locked up for life, I should do it.

I frown but keep my voice as neutral as I can when I ask, “What do you mean you tried so many times?”

“Oh my god. There were a few events you were at that I tried to get into but couldn’t. I knew our first night had to beperfect, so I waited for the right opportunity. Then I heard you were going to a charity function at a hotel in LA right near where I was living at the time.”

My blood runs cold because I immediately know exactly which charity event she’s talking about. The screaming in my brain gets louder, and I want her to stop talking. I don’t want to know whatever she’s going to say, but at the same time, Ineedto know.

“The one where we were drugged.”

My voice comes out sounding strange, and Sarah must have noticed because she kisses my chest, her lips carving out a line in my diseased skin.

“Yes, that one. I’m so sorry, baby. It was meant to be our beautiful first night together, but after all the work I put in, I couldn’t be with you.”

None of this makes sense. The police told us why we were drugged by the hotel staff, and Sarah was never mentioned in any way.

“I don’t understand. What work did you put in? The hotel manager and a group of staff members did it to get pictures of us.” My stomach churns as I think about that night and everything that came in the months following it.

She gives a sickening laugh. “Have you got any idea how hard it was for me to convince them to do that and make them think it was their idea?” She snorts. “Ugh. Getting a job at the hotelwas easy enough with the right paperwork and supposed work experience.”

I’m astounded by the way she so casually mentions faking paperwork to get herself a job. All so that she could try and force some magical night together with me. It’s disgusting, and I can barely keep the nausea at bay.

“Convincing Vincent that he should drug your table with GHB for the scandal. That was alotharder. Everybody has pain points. You just have to find them and press them, so I found out more about him. His mother was in a home, and he told me he was struggling to pay for it.” She shrugs her shoulders. “Most people have some kind of monetary issues, so it was a safe bet, but if he hadn’t had those, there would’ve been some other way to do it. After that, it was just a matter of sowing the seeds. You leave enough of them and provide the water. Sure enough, they’ll grow. I could tell when he was starting to feel me out, and I played it off like a joke as if I’d never do something like that.”

It’s bizarre the way she so casually talks about manipulating people into drugging us. The way she did it without a single fucking care in the world for what it might do. All so that we could be together. It’s disgusting.

“Surely, they had some idea you were involved,” I tell her incredulously.

“Not a single one. I knew I’d been successful when they started having secret meetings without me,” she says, sounding proud. “Unfortunately, what I didn’t account for, was them actively shutting me out on the night to stop anyone from figuring it out. Fucking assholes. It’stheirfault we couldn’t be together that night, baby,” she snarls.

I think about all of the shit that Harrison and Heather went through because of her, and my blood boils in my veins. I thought I hated this woman before, but my hatred of her intensifies as the memories of the nights I spent worrying aboutmy friend who had once again gotten blackout drunk come to my mind.

“Wait. You drugged us all so you could sleep with me?” I growl.

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