Page 51 of Mated To My Boss

The police instantly recognized the guy who attacked us; he didn't really give us any trouble, even though the man kept screaming about how Nate was a monster.

I might have handled things differently if I hadn’t been in so much shock, but it was satisfying to let Nate take control in that situation. Whoever that guy was, he was scared half to death.

“The guy's name is Tony; he's a serial stalker. Apparently, he's gotten numerous complaints from women in the city, but he's always been able to evade arrest.”

“I've never had a stalker before,” I admit. “I guess maybe I should confess something to you.

He looks at me with concern. “What?”

I extract myself from his embrace, quickly noticing his warmth. I walk to my room and return with an envelope. Nate sits up, taking it as I hand it to him.

He handles the envelope delicately and sniffs. “This smells like the guy.”

“I kept getting notes like this under my door, and I just assumed it was someone pranking me—like maybe a neighbor had a weird crush or something. This is the only one I kept because I wanted to show you, but I tossed the rest out.”

“What the hell is this, Madeline?” Nate asks, rising to his feet. I notice anger flash in his eyes. “You've been receiving threats?”

“They're not exactly threats,” I sigh, knowing that my defense is weak. “I just wrote them off as ridiculous.”

Nate's shock is on full display. “Are you fucking kidding me right now? This person knows where you live, Madeline. How could you keep this from me?”

I open my mouth, but no words come out. Every explanation feels too foolish to actually say aloud. “I'm sorry,” I finally say. “I should've told you.”

“Yes,” Nate emphasizes, “you should have.” I watch him take a deep breath. “I thought this was a smaller deal than it actuallyis, just some crazy guy, but he could have been worse—seriously dangerous. You should have come to me.”

“I will from now on,” I promise. “I'm sorry.”

My words soften his expression, and he returns to sit with me on the chair. “Do you want me to read this?” he asks.

I shake my head. “There's no need. It's not like we’ll hear from him again. He’s in custody now. I just want to move past it.”

Nate nods in agreement, respecting my decision. He hands me the envelope, and I quickly tear it up and toss it in the trash.

“I don't want to remember any part of this,” I confess, returning to his embrace and resting in his arms.

“I know,” he says reassuringly. “You're not the only one who hid something. I've noticed that car around a few times since it followed us to the hotel. I didn't want to say anything and scare you unnecessarily, especially with hunters around.”

“I understand,” I sigh. “I can't lie, I probably would've been worried. I don't even know if I should tell my aunt about all of this. She's going to panic and I don't want her to worry while she's in the hospital.”

“She doesn’t need to hear about this now,” Nate says. “It's best to make sure she feels better first.”

I nod. His hands weave through my hair, stroking it gently as I start to drift off to sleep in his embrace.

My eyes fly open the next morning. The sounds of birds chirping outside fill the living room.

I move a bit before feeling strong arms still holding me securely. Nate is fast asleep, holding me like he's still trying to protect me. I feel so warm watching him beside me.

“Nate?”

He doesn't respond, merely tightening his grip a little. I can’t help the smile spreading across my face as I nestle into his arms comfortably and try to drift off to sleep once more.

I just wish we could always be like this.

Chapter 19

NATE

“You can't keep being this fast," I say. “You're going to make the rest of us look incompetent.”

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