Page 49 of Callum
When the concern on Callum’s face deepened, she shook her head. “It’s fine. He also has days like today where he’s sickly nice. He’s harmless. Just a bipolar old man who’s been in his job for decades.”
She tugged her phone from her pocket and searched for the messages. Without letting herself focus on the latest text, she slid the cell across the desk.
Callum lifted the phone, and the second he looked at the screen, his eyes hardened. Not only that, but the muscles in his arms flexed and the veins in his neck stood out as he continued to scroll up the thread. This guy was definitely not someone you wanted on your bad side. He’d always been kind to her, but he was dangerous. She’d seen glimpses of it around Freddie, but she knew that was barely brushing the surface.
Without a word, he turned to his computer.
She fiddled with the edge of the chair as he typed. The energy in the room had shifted. Thickened. And she almost didn’t want to speak and feed into it.
As he worked, a phone rang from the desk, but it wasn’t hers. His cell sat closer to her, plus, the man seemed to be in his own little world, so she reached out and lifted it to hand to him. She absolutely was not trying to look at the name on the screen…it just kind of happened.
Kasey. Her belly soured. What did the beautiful bombshell of a neighbor want?
“Thanks.” He slipped the device from her fingers, glancing at the screen before setting it down and letting it go to voicemail.
“You can answer that,” she said quickly, trying to force a nonchalant tone to her voice. “You don’t need to ignore it on my behalf.”
“If she needs something, she’ll call back.”
For some reason, that made the sourness in her gut strengthen. It was stupid. She knew it was. Callum had never done anything to make her question him, but she had trust issues that his beautiful neighbor provoked. And honestly, whowouldn’twant Callum? The guy was gorgeous, and he was also kind and successful and protective. If she got into a relationship with him, she’d be fighting off competition the entire time.
Callum cursed, and her attention flew back to him.
“What?” A curse was bad, right? Was the number from someone she knew? God, was it someone she trusted?
He swiveled his chair around to face her. “They’re using a burner phone.”
She frowned. “A burner phone?”
“Yeah, meaning they don’t want to be traced.”
Crap.That was bad, and it made this so much creepier.
Callum’s jaw ticked. “This person bought a phone with the sole purpose of harassing you. It means they’ve put time and thought into it.”
Time and thought into harassing her. Scaring her. Great. “Guess there’s not much we can do.”
“We can be careful,” he said firmly. “Don’t go out at night alone. Watch your back. Call me if you suspect anything isn’t how it’s supposed to be. And make sure you keep everything locked up at home, even during the day.”
She gave a slow nod, trying to take in every piece of advice and not let it fly over her head.
“I’d also like to get a security system put into your place.”
Her brows shot up. “A security system?”
He rose and moved around the desk before lowering to his haunches in front of her, hands going to her knees. “I know it’s a lot. But even if you weren’t getting these texts, a security system isn’t the worst thing to have.”
“What if I forget the code? What if I trigger the alarm and can’t get it to turn off?”
“You call the company and they help you.”
She nibbled her bottom lip and his gaze followed, darkening.
“Whenever you do that, every part of me wants to kiss you,” he said, voice quieter than a moment ago.
Her lip slipped from between her teeth, the security system and burner phone suddenly the furthest things from her mind. Her heart raced in her chest to a new, faster rhythm, and she had to stop herself from inching to the edge of the seat.
“Maybe you should,” she said quietly. “Kiss me.”
