Page 22 of Hayden's Stalker

She chews her bottom lip for a few seconds and turns back to me. “Do you want him to know about it or not?”

I don’t like the idea of Jesse coming into the library, so I shake my head. “Not if you don’t think he needs to know. I don’t normally tell anyone about it.”

“Is there a reason you keep it a secret?”

It’s fun teasing Seb and having my friends try to guess where it is, but that’s not why I keep it a secret. I can’t look at her, so I stare out the window again. Our lives are crazy and intense, but the library always makes me feel safe. I’m secluded. Cut off from the world somewhere that no one can get to me.

“It’s like my sanctuary,” I tell her, trying to explain why its location is a secret. “I can go there and escape whatever’s going on. If I told anyone about it, they would want to come in there with me, and it wouldn’t be just mine anymore.”

“Okay,” she smiles at me. “We won’t tell him about it unless I see a need to do so.”

I’m grateful she won’t make me tell him, but I’m surprised that she isn’t. “You’re very accommodating.”

Tatiana laughs. “I’m here for security. I’m not here to take over your life and dictate everything you do. Don’t get me wrong, Iwilldo that when I need to, but I don’t want to do it unnecessarily.”

When Jesse arrives, I’m actually grateful for the buffer he provides between Tatiana and me. I know that I definitely need a chaperone because my brain has all wonderful kinds of thoughts whenever I’m alone with her.

“Tatiana, good to see you again,” he says while looking at her like she’s some kind of mythical being, and I remember that he knew her reputation before we even met her. “I’m very excited to be working with you.”

“I’m glad,” she says, leading the way to the dining table.

Jesse sits across from her, and his eyebrows raise when I take the seat next to her. Tatiana smiles at him as he looks at us.

“I’ve told Hayden that he’s to sit next to me at all times.”

Jesse nods. “That makes sense.”

“I understand that you’re normally only with Hayden when he needs you,” Tatiana says, and Jesse nods again. “Okay, well, when I’m here, I think it’ll be the same. I definitely prefer the extra help when we’re in public, but also when I need to do anything such as going to see about the building’s security today.”

“Or getting gun licenses,” I joke.

I’m pleased when Tatiana turns her face to me and laughs in response before she looks back at Jesse. “Hayden is hung up on the fact that I’m armed. I assume you are, as well?”

“Of course,” he says.

My mouth drops open, and I blink at him, completely astounded by this information. “How did I not know this?”

“It didn’t come up, Mr. Vega.” Jesse grins at me as he shrugs.

I’m still wrapping my head around this as Tati asks him, “When we’re on tour, will you be okay to work a ‘night shift?’ I’ll need someone in the hotel suite while I sleep, but occasionally I’ll need someone during the day as well. If it gets too tiring for you, we can get another person to help us.”

“Doing nights is fine by me,” Jesse says.

“Excellent. Well, I need to go talk to building security, then Hayden wants to go and see Sebastian. Another point is that I will drive instead of you. Never Hayden, of course.”

“If you prefer that. I do hope you don’t consider the crash as a slight on my defensive driving skills.”

Jesse looks at the table as he says it, and I know he still feels guilty about the crash. He’s repeatedly apologized for it even though I know it wasn’t his fault.

“Of course not,” she assures him. “Even if a crash wasn’t the catalyst for my being here, I would still have insisted on that point. From your description, I think you did as well as you could in that situation.”

When wrap up their conversation, Tati goes to talk to the security for my building. I watch her walk toward the elevator, then turn back to Jesse.

“Wow. She’s something, huh?” He has a stunned look on his face.

A tiny spark of jealousy hits me as I realize that Jesse probably has a whole hell of a lot more in common with Tati than I do.

I ignore it and ask, “What do you mean?”

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