Christy Barritt - Keeping Guard

“It’s decaf.”

She wrapped her fingers around the warmth of the mug. “Thanks.” She normally used cream and sweetener, but tonight she’d drink it black. She sipped the bitter liquid.

“So, Kylie, I need you to tell me what’s going on. I don’t mind you staying here—I’m more than happy to help out you and your brother—but I need to know more about the circumstances bringing you here.”

How did she tell him without causing him to overreact? Of course, with everything that had already happened since she arrived, him overreacting could be a forgone conclusion.

“How much did Bruce tell you?”

“Just that he was fearful for your safety. He told me you would fill in the rest of the blanks.”

She’d have to give her brother credit for that. It must have killed him not to go into detail, but that’s what Kylie had requested. She wanted to handle this mess on her terms, as much as possible, at least.

She sucked in a breath. “The rest of the story would be that a man has been following me—stalking me, I suppose—for the last several months. Recently, he’s become more aggressive. It’s become more and more apparent that this man has no intention of backing off. The police finally collected enough evidence to press charges, but first they have to figure out whom to press charges against. My brother is working with the police to set up a sting and make that happen. I just need to lie low until everything settles.” She looked away and took a sip of coffee.

“Are you sure he didn’t follow you here?”

The thought caused fear to grip her heart as the emotion had done several times already this evening. “I’m not sure of anything, Nate. My brother is the only one who knew I was coming here. I didn’t even tell my best friend or boss. I took back roads on my way here. I didn’t see any signs of anyone following me. But this man always seems to be a step ahead of me.”

“And you have no idea who he is?”

She shook her head. “No idea. I’ve never seen his face.”

“Which is why you freaked out when you saw me approaching you with my sweatshirt hood up…”

She nodded and glanced at the knot already forming at his temple. “I’m sorry about that. Is your head okay?”

His eyes darkened. “I’ll be fine.” He leaned back in his chair and took a breath. “You know anything about working in a restaurant, Kylie?”

“A restaurant? No, not terribly much. But I have experience as a cook.”

He cocked an eyebrow and waited for her to explain.

Was this the time to tell Nate about her cooking show back in Kentucky? Or about the successful catering business that she and her friend had started? No, she decided. She’d have time to share that later. Right now, her head pounded and she needed some time alone.

She stood. “I’ll explain tomorrow. I promise you have nothing to worry about. I may not have restaurant expertise, but I’ve got plenty of experience. But before I get into that, I could really use some sleep.”

In her room, Kylie pulled the covers up tight around her neck. Despite adding another layer of clothing, shivers still racked her body. Was the weather causing her chills? Or could it be everything that had happened?

She pushed her face into her pillow, remembering what a fiasco tonight had been. The fact that someone had intimidated her enough for her to go running sent a flare of anger up her spine—at herself and her stalker. She fought against anyone dictating what would happen with her, preferring to make her own decisions. But now she found herself in this situation.

Thunder rolled outside. She pulled the covers up to her eyes.

Soon enough, all this would be over. Her brother had promised her. She expected a call sometime this week saying that her stalker had been arrested and she could go back home and resume her normal life.

She sighed and turned over in bed. Would her life ever be normal again? Or would she always jump at every shadow, tense at every unknown sound? She bit her bottom lip, hoping that wouldn’t be the case. She’d overcome other obstacles in her life—big obstacles. She could overcome this also.

As thunder grumbled again outside, Kylie realized she shouldn’t have drunk that coffee, even if the brew was decaf. Despite how tired she’d felt downstairs, her mind felt fully alert right now. She glanced at the clock beside her bed. 3:23 a.m.

She pressed her head back into the pillow, wishing sleep would find her. Instead, her thoughts raced, replaying her drive here.

Could she really be certain that no one had followed her? She’d continuously checked her rearview mirror for headlights. At times on the road, no one was behind her. That meant no one could be trailing her, right? She had no reason not to feel safe here.

Her heart slowed some.

She sat up and flicked the light on. She had to distract her self from these thoughts before she went crazy. From the floor, she grabbed her oversized purse, reached into it and pulled out a paperback novel.

Reading always relaxed her. This particular book was a romance novel. Just the thing to distract her from her troubles.

She leaned back into her pillows and opened the first page.

She gasped.

Written across the inside cover, in fat red marker, were the words “Kylie, I’ll always be watching you.”

Nate’s eyes drooped with sleepiness as he rapped on Kylie’s door at seven the next morning. He’d downed two cups of decaf and three cups of full-strength coffee last night to make himself stay awake. Good for his possible concussion but bad for his mental health.

He hadn’t been able to get Kylie Summers’s porcelain face and delicate figure out of his mind throughout his sleepless hours. He didn’t know what he’d expected of his best friend’s sister, but not the beautiful woman who’d shown up three hours late with rain plastering her chestnut hair to her face and wide, imploring eyes.

He rapped at her door again, harder this time.

“Coming.” The word couldn’t have been said with much less enthusiasm.

Nate shifted his weight until Kylie finally pulled open the door. The circles under her eyes showed him that she clearly hadn’t gotten much more sleep than he had. But she still looked beautiful, even in khaki pants and a long-sleeved red T-shirt.

“Morning.” She barely smiled as she reached over to grab her coat from the couch.

Nate stuffed his hands into his pockets, unsure of exactly what to say to his new boarder. “Morning, Kylie. Rough night?”

“You could say that.”

“Too much on your mind?”

She reached back inside the apartment and fumbled with something before finally revealing a book. She shoved the paperback toward him and frowned. “Open it.”

He did as she said. His eyes widened at the roughly written words on the inside cover. “You just found this?”

“No, I found the message last night as I tried to relax before going to bed.”

“Hence your sleepless night.” He stared at the words, personalized to Kylie so she could make no mistake they were written for her. “When did you get this book?”

She answered immediately, probably because she’d been replaying all those events during her sleepless night. “Right before I left for this trip. I bought it at the grocery store and stuck it in my purse.”

“Did you go anywhere after that?”

She shrugged. “I stopped by work for a few minutes to pick up some papers and then I had dinner with my brother.”

“Any opportunities for someone to access your purse?”

“Apparently.” She shrugged, sounding defeated. “It makes no sense.”

“I’m sorry, Kylie. I know this guy has got you shaken up.”