Page 77 of Keep Me Close

Her breathing is too fast, too shallow.

My hand remains on her face as I rest my forehead against hers. “I mean it. I won’t let anything happen to you.”

For a second, she just stares before squeezing her eyes shut and nodding.

I pull her against me, holding her tighter than before, one hand spread over the back of her head, the other rubbing slow circles between her shoulder blades while my gaze catches on the box over her shoulder.

This guy is more obsessed with Cheyenne than I realized. What he’s not going to do is reach into my space and scare the hell out of her.

I press a kiss to the top of her head, then lean away just enough to meet her eyes. “Come on.”

She swipes at the wetness on her cheeks. “Where are we going?”

“To the bathroom.”

Her brows knit. “Why?”

“I’m going to run you a bath.”

“Now?”

“Yeah, I think you need to relax.” I take her hand again, threading my fingers through hers. “Warm water. Quiet. No phones. No thinking about him or the show or anything else for a while.”

Her lips part, surprise breaking through the fear. “You don’t have to⁠—”

“I know,” I cut in gently. “But I want to.”

Her gaze drops to our joined hands before lifting to mine again, and some of the strain in her expression drains away.

“Okay. That sounds nice.”

I squeeze her hand and lead her down the hall. Behind us, the box sits where it was left, black and glossy and taunting. I’ll deal with it later.

Just like I’ll deal with him.

But first, I’m going to take care of Cheyenne the way she needs me to. After this stunt, I’m done underestimating how far Dakota is willing to go to get to her.

No matter what it takes, I’ll keep Chey safe.

27

Cheyenne

My hands are still shaking when Knox turns on the water. The bathroom fills with the rush of it as steam curls toward the ceiling. The muted light from the sconces makes everything feel hazy, as if the world outside this room no longer exists.

Except… all I can see is the box.

The shattered glass inside it.

The note.

You broke my heart.

Now I’m going to break yours.

My stomach twists again, and I press my lips together, trying to keep the emotion buried deep down inside so it won’t break loose.

Nowhere feels safe anymore.