Page 64 of Stormswept Colorado

She shuddered. The last thing I wanted was to add to her fear, yet I also had to stress how serious this was. She couldn’t just ignore it and hope it went away.

We didn’t have a ton of stalking incidents in Silver Ridge, but it happened. I knew the progression. An obsession could start slow. Develop gradually inside the stalker’s head. But once things escalated, it could get very bad, very fast.

“Was this photo taken recently?” River asked.

“Two days ago in Silver Ridge. I was in a store on Main. There was a crowd outside, watching me. Maybe someone from the crowd posted it online, and this creep downloaded it?” She shrugged. “I have no idea.”

“Unless your stalker himself was in Silver Ridge that day,” Aiden said.

“I considered that too,” she whispered.

She seemed to fold into me, her head dropping to my shoulder. As if she wanted to disappear. The vulnerability of that gesture plucked every last one of my heart strings. I kissed her temple, knowing Aiden and River were right there, but at thecurrent moment? I didn’t care. They could think what they wanted.

Maybe she wasn’t mine to keep. But right now, I was going to take care of her.

“I’ll start with a reverse image search,” River said. “If that photo was already posted online, I’ll find it. See whether or not I can trace it back to the stalker.” He held up Ayla’s phone. “Mind if I keep this a few hours? I want to pull what I can from your email account. I’ll return the phone later and go from there.”

Ayla nodded, and her hair brushed my neck. “You really think you can trace the message to who sent it?”

“That’s complicated. If this is the same guy who sent you the flowers in Toronto, he’s got some idea of how to cover his tracks. But I’m pretty good at what I do.” River winked. Which seemed unnecessarily flirty to me, but Ayla relaxed. “We’ll help you through this. I’ll go get started.”

River stood up, and he left the office.

“I’m sure it wasn’t easy to tell us that, so thank you,” Aiden said to Ayla. “Take as long in here as you need. See you at the ceremony.” He stepped out and shut the door.

“How you doing?” I asked.

“I’m trying not to smush my face against you, because my makeup will ruin your shirt.”

Chuckling, I kissed her head again. “I can find another shirt.”

She snuggled in closer, mouth curving. “I already said this. But I’mreallyglad you’re here. Thanks for making me do that.”

My arms closed around her. “We need to take this seriously, but you’re not dealing with it alone. You arenotalone.”

Ayla lifted her head. “I didn’t know they made men like you in real life.”

“I’m just me.”

“You’re notjustanything.”

At this moment, I’m just yours, I thought.

“Kiss me?” she asked.

I dipped to press my lips to hers. My tongue slicked inside her mouth, and she answered with a moan, somehow fitting herself even tighter against me.

And my heart kept spinning in my chest, wondering when I was going to come to my senses.

TWENTY-TWO

Ayla

It was almosttime for the ceremony. Guests were streaming into the event space, and the bridal party was waiting nearby for their cue. I’d just left Emma, Grace, and Maisie. All of them in great spirits, with no clue about the turmoil raging inside me.

The meeting with Aiden and River had taken a lot out of me. I still didn’t want to believe I had a stalker, especially someone who might know things about my past. Thank goodness Teller had been there. So strong and gentle the entire time.

Sexy too. He acted like he didn’t know how handsome he was. The way he’d looked in that Henley earlier, the soft fabric stretched over his chest?Yikes. He probably wasn’t super lean or cut like a gym bunny. The type of guy who flexed in front of a mirror.

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