Page 25 of Hayden's Stalker

I can’t help but wonder if the stalker will think she’s my new girlfriend or something. Will her being around me cause an issue?

I’m distracted from my train of thought when she smiles at me because it lights up her face. “Would you prefer it if I pulled out a black suit like Jesse’s?” She turns to grin at Jesse. “I mean, I dohavesuits like that. It’s just not my style. I only use them for more formal situations.”

I’m still amazed by her and fascinated by her work experience.

I wonder if she will give me hints about her life, so I tease her, “Like when you’re protecting a foreign dignitary from assassination?”

“Exactly,” she laughs. “Basically, I want to blend in. This dress will allow me to do that at Club Delirium, not so much at a summit of foreign leaders.”

I look her over again, comparing her outfit to those I’ve seen at the club. It’s understated, to say the least, and if she thinks wearing something like this will not make people want to look at her, she’s sorely mistaken.

“I’m not sure that dress is doing for you what you think it’s doing for you,” I tell her.

She blinks at me for a second, her bright blue eyes staring into mine before saying in her coolly professional tone, “I don’t quite understand.”

“Blending in, right?” I ask her. Tatiana nods at me, and I smile at her. “I’m not sure if you’ve been to Club Delirium, but you’d probably blend in more if you wore something sparkly.”

She raises an eyebrow at me. “Sparkly?”

“Yeah. I see lots of women with sequins and glitter, bright colors—” I try to explain my thinking but cut myself off because I realize that I sound like a fucking idiot. So, I quickly backtrack, “But you know what? That dress is very nice. I’m sure you’ll blend in fine.”

This is what I get for not thinking before I speak. Tatiana seems to have this effect on me. I just tell her whatever comes to my mind, and I need to stop.

I’m relieved when she laughs, though, so at least I haven’t offended her by criticizing her outfit choice.

“I think I’ll take my chances. I don't want to look out of place, but I don’t want to draw attention to myself, either. Sparkly tends to do the latter.”

“I suppose you’re right. There was something I was thinking about…”

I don’t exactly know how to ask her my question about the optics of her being so close to me all the time. Rumors startsoquickly with us. I’ve seen it with my friends, and even with Blake around, the stalker might think Tatiana is with me.

She looks over at Jesse before looking back at me. “What was that?”

“Well, you’re supposed to blend in with the people around me, right?”

“Correct.”

God, this is so fucking uncomfortable. Jesse is giving me a weird look now, but I’m committed to this conversation, and there’s no way to ask this without it being awkward. Tatiana is a professional, though, so surely she’ll have faced this kind of thing before.

“If you’re always around me, isn’t it going to look to my stalker like you’re my new girlfriend or something?” I ask as quickly as I can before I chicken out.

“I’ll be close to you, but notthatclose, Hayden,” she laughs. “I’ll generally look like a friend or hanger-on. It’s not like we’ll be making out in public or anything.”

Making out in—fucking hell.

I’ve always had an intensely good imagination. At her words, I can practically feel her body in my arms, her arms around myneck as I kiss her passionately in the middle of the dance floor at Club Delirium.

I’m not a cheater.

Is it cheating to think about something that someone suggested to you? It’s not like I conjured up this image of my own volition. It’s not like I don’t enjoy the idea, either, though. Guilt floods through me as I shut the thoughts away, and I’m grateful when Tatiana speaks to Jesse, breaking the awkward silence in the room.

“Are you familiar with Club Delirium?”

He looks between us several times, then nods at Tatiana. “Yes, we’ve been there quite a few times.”

Tatiana turns to look at me, and despite her coolly professional tone, her face has a pink flush to it as she asks, “What time are we leaving for Sebastian’s?”

“Now, if that’s okay?”

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