It bothers me that she won’t open up to me. And isn’t it odd? That I would be the one to let down my guard first when I was sure no woman would do that to me. But Arianna strips off my walls, knocks them all to the ground, and grinds them to dust until there isn’t a barrier between us.
Now, I just have to figure out how to knock down hers.
When I return from the shower, I’m surprised that Arianna is not seated outside the van with a cup of hot chocolate and some of the cookies her sister packed for her, enjoying the sunset. That has become something of a tradition, and it doesn’t sit right with me to break it.
I find her in the van, seated on the bed with her phone in her hand, her face pale. All alarm bells ring in my head as I immediately shift into bodyguard mode. I look around the van to make sure we’re alone before turning to the clearly terrified girl.
“Baby—”
The words trail off when she lifts those eyes to me, and I see tears swimming in them, which scares the hell out of me. Who the fuck did this to her? Who do I fucking need to kill for putting that sad look on her face?
“I’m scared, Conor,” she says before I can ask, sniffing back the tears. “I…I can’t take it anymore!”
I drop to a crouch in front of her, taking her trembling hand in mine as I search her face. “Talk to me, baby. What’s wrong?”
Arianna turns her phone for me to see the screen, and my brows knit as I stare at the picture of us, taken at the Grand Canyon. It takes me a second to realize what’s wrong with the picture. It’s not a selfie. No, it’s a picture that seems to have been taken by a third party, except I don’t remember Arianna asking anyone to take a picture of us. In the picture, I’m standing several paces back, holding Arianna’s phone and recording her. All the while, someone was photographing us.
And I didn’t notice it.
Fuck!
I take the phone from her hand and realize that it’s part of a message thread. Quietly, I scroll upward and through the messages and other photos taken before. There is a picture for every stop we’ve made on this trip, and not once did I notice anyone taking them. They were all tourist centers, and everyone had their goddamned cameras out, but I shouldn’t have missed it.
I should not have fucking missed this asshole—a stalker.
I was careless. I believed that everyone who’d been bothering the Marino women had been dealt with. Hell, I didn’teven believe there was a real threat when I agreed to accompany Arianna on this trip. I only did it to ease her family’s worries. And in my ignorance, I was careless.
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you,” Arianna’s voice pulls me back from my own guilt. “I thought it was just a fan, and I didn’t want it to ruin the trip, but…I can’t take it anymore. Knowing someone’s watching our every freaking move—”
“Sshhhh,” I murmur, wrapping my arms around her and pulling her into an embrace. “It’s okay, baby. It’s fine. You’ve told me now, and I’ll take care of it.”
“You’re not mad?” she sniffs into my shoulder.
“No, baby,” I say, running my palm over her head. “I wish you’d told me sooner, but I’m not mad. The only person I’m angry with is the person who’s been tormenting you. Now, relax, and let me deal with them.”
I hold her close until she’s calmed down before grabbing my phone to call my sister. I tell Fiona everything that’s happened, and she promises to look into the account messaging Arianna. After sending her several photos from Arianna’s phone, Fiona informs me she’ll start work immediately and hangs up. There is no one I trust more than my sister to work on cases, and with tech skills like hers, it’s a wonder she is content with just working for the firm.
I start work on securing the van and locking up before returning to Arianna. She hasn’t moved from her spot and seems lost, staring off into space. I wrap my arms around her and pull her down on the bed with me, holding her tight as I vow to punish the person who put that look on her face. Seeing her this way, my stubborn little secret, all helpless, breaks my heart. It makes me want to put a smile on her face. Anything.
“Nothing is going to happen to you,” I say firmly, my grip tightening around her. “You know my family’s reputation. We’ve never lost a client. Not one. And you’re not just a client anymore, Arianna—you’re mine. Whoever this coward is, hiding behind a screen and anonymous messages... they picked the wrong woman to stalk.
“You really think Fiona can find them?”
“My sister can find anyone,” I tell her. “And once she does, they’ll wish they’d never heard your name.”
I lean in and brush my lips over her nose, cheeks, and lips—softly and to soothe— before pulling back.
“Do you trust me,a rún mo chroí?”
The secret of my heart.
My love.
The endearment rolls off my tongue so perfectly that it feels right. Words I’ve never spoken to another woman before. A language I’ve never used outside my family’s home.
My heart.
I am in love with Arianna Marino. I don’t know when it happened, but it has, and now, my heart seems to beat only for her.
