Page 82 of Breaking Free

“They didn’t think so, but when you said anyone who gave me a weird feeling...”

“Has he asked you out again?”

“To lunch the day of my audition, but he got called away. He hasn’t asked me since and has never suggested I do any favors for him. Which made me think I was paranoid and overreacting.”

“He’s a friend of yours, Tristan,” Axyl pressed. “Is he so envious of another man or thin-skinned enough that being shot down by a woman he just met would set him off?”

“Yesterday, I would have said no.” His gaze was laser-focused on Piper, his only concern. “Tonight, I’m not so sure.”

He pulled out his phone when it buzzed. “The videos just came through.” Axyl reached for the TV remote. After Tristan downloaded the three files, he cast them onto his big screen so they could watch them together.

The first two files were of the gate and Piper’s front door.

“There’s nothing,” she concluded after the second one ended. “Is he a ghost who can just appear out of nowhere?”

The third video revealed everything David had described but nothing that would help determine who he was.

“I’d put him at six feet. The weight is hard to say because of the baggy sweats, but it could be Hunter,” Axyl mused.

“Could be isn’t good enough, but we’ll find out. In the meantime, I’m adding more cameras.” Tristan pulled out his phone and dialed once more. “And we’re putting a man on her 24/7.”

“I can’t afford 24/7,” Piper exclaimed.

“You can’t afford not to have it,” Axyl warned.

“It’s too much—”

“Don’t.” Tristan held up his hand, stopping what he knew would come next. “I have you covered.”

She sniffled, closed her eyes against the tears that threatened. Showing both the strength he knew she possessed and the vulnerability, when she opened them again, and met his gaze, she’d regained control. “Thank you, Tristan.”

He nodded once, although he didn’t want her gratitude. He wanted her safe and, for that to happen, they needed to find this fucker.

Chapter 21

PIPER LIFTED HER FACEinto the breeze. It held a welcome hint of coolness from the shade of the trees and the dampness of the forest. Sunlight filtered in through the branches heavy with leaves above her head, enough to reflect off the water of the gently flowing creek she strolled next to. The gentle burbling was so relaxing compared to the constant city noises, she stopped, closed her eyes, and just listened.

A beeping like a truck backing up interrupted the tranquil moment. It also confused her. What was a truck doing in the middle of the forest? But, wait. The burble was more like water spraying. She opened her eyes, seeing a white ceiling instead of trees above her as the shade and the breeze vanished, the babbling brook nothing more than the shower running.

Filled with disappointment, Piper rolled over, hopeful of catching a few more minutes of sleep and returning to her dream. Except her nightgown tangled around her body. She rolled again, tugging at the hem twisted around her waist then rolled back only to feel a lump of bunched-up fabric beneath her ribs. With a grunt of annoyance, she sat up to set her nightgown and the tangled covers to rights.

A fresh wave of confusion washed over her. Something was way off because a nightgown wasn’t her usual choice of sleepwear. She preferred shorts and a fitted tank, both less apt to tangle. Looking down, she saw it wasn’t a nightgown at all,but an oversized T-shirt at least three sizes too big. A terrible thought occurred to her, and she frantically pulled up the hem, relaxing when she confirmed she wore panties underneath it.

Groggy and heavy-headed, like she’d drunk too much wine, she rubbed her temples as she tried to piece together how she ended up here and where exactly “here” was. The shower, clearly the source of the water, and the smell of masculine body wash, the same as on the sheets, brought it all back.

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