“On the corner of Lafayette and White Street.” I kept my voice low as I acted interested in the shoes. “I think I’m being followed, and I don’t think they’re paparazzi.”
“Stay there. Look for my car in five minutes.”
“Okay. Thanks, Kell.”
I hung up and shifted my weight from one foot to the other, throwing anxious glances around the street. The shoe store window wasn’t very reflective, so I moved a few stores down, trying to find a better vantage point to wait for Kell. As I passed a bank, a shiny sign in the window acted like a mirror, reflecting the image of the first guy—the gaunt one from the bookstore—just about three steps behind me.
As soon as I sucked in a breath, our eyes met in the reflective window sign. He froze. I did, too. He knew I’d seen him again. Then, the larger man materialized out of the crowd crossing at the next light, headed our way.
“Shit,” I cursed.
I crossed the street when the light changed, thinking that I would still be able to see Kell’s car when he came to get me. The two men followed, though they hung back several paces. I was reassuring myself that there was no way two men would kidnap a girl in the middle of New York in broad daylight when a silver car suddenly screeched to the side of the road, and the rear door flew open.
Another man in sunglasses got out, looking fixedly at me. The two men following me picked up the pace.
They’re going to shove me in the car!
My feet figured out their plan a second before my brain did. I booked it the rest of the way across the street as a motorcycle swerved to avoid me. The men cursed and started running after me. I charged through the crowds on the sidewalks, weaving between slow-moving people. My only saving grace was that I was a lot smaller and maneuvered better through a crowd than my pursuers did. They got caught in the thick clots of slow-moving tourists who clung together, pack-like.
I swerved at the corner, racing down Broadway.
How was I supposed to find Kell now? I pulled out my phone but was running too fast to be able to scroll through the contacts to find his. One glance over my shoulder told me that the men weren’t that far behind. I glanced at the street signs and realized I was only a few blocks from Wilde Tower.
The phone rang. I answered as I turned down the next block, weaving my way between parked cars.
“Willow?” It was Kell.
“They were going to grab me,” I managed to get out through heaving breaths. “I ran.”
“Where are you now?”
“Broadway, not far from Wilde Tower. I can make it.”
Kell paused only long enough to, I assumed, mentally map out my location. Then he grunted, “Yes. Go.”
I slammed the phone into my pocket and started jogging again, getting annoyed looks from the office workers who I almost ran into. I finally managed to get to Fulton Street, throwing glances behind me.
I hadn’t seen any sign of the men following me in blocks. Had they given up? I paced anxiously at a street corner as I waited for the light to turn green, my heart giving rapid-fire heartbeats. It finally changed, and I spurted across the street, weaving amid the others at the crosswalk.
At last, I caught sight of the gilded Art Deco outline of Wilde Tower. Relief flooded me—I was so close. I let myself slow to a walk, throwing anxious glances at everyone on the street. Soon, I could see the guards manning the turnstiles just across the street. I almost cried with relief.
As I was crossing the final street, a car suddenly slammed on the brakes, nearly hitting me. My already skittish nerves jumped into double time as my heart shot to my throat.
A silver car.One glimpse inside showed three men wearing sunglasses.
I sprinted into a blind run. Was it the same car? The same men? They hadn’t looked like the same ones following me, but in my panic, it had been close enough. I charged toward Wilde Tower as my vision began to blur with fright. As I was hustling up the stairs toward the entrance, a figure suddenly strode out of the building.
Tall, commanding, instantly capturing the attention of anyone within eyesight. Severn Wilde, glamoured to all but me in his business suit, took one look at me charging up the stairs and swiftly came to meet me. I slammed into his chest as his strong arms surrounded my shoulders, drawing me into the safety of his embrace.
ChapterNineteen
“Willow.” His voice was hard and on edge, but his temper wasn’t aimed at me. “Kell called me. Are you all right? Are they still after you?”
Face buried in his shoulder, I shook my head. “I…I don’t know.”
I pulled back, looking around the nearby blocks, but it was so busy, so full of silver cars and people wearing sunglasses.
Severn must have sensed my fear. Without saying a word, he bent down and swept me up into his arms. I squealed in surprise as I was suddenly weightless and clutched tightly against his chest. The onlookers who were already gaping to see Manhattan’s most eligible bachelor out in public now started taking out their phones to snap pictures. But Severn immediately turned and carried me back into Wilde Tower as the security guards shooed everyone out of the way for us.
