me like this. In fact, no one ever approached me.
Unsure of what to do, and figuring Alex would freak if he saw me talking to someone, I set the magazine down on the rack and started to walk away.
“So are you just visiting someone then?” he asked, halting my getaway.
How should I answer his question?
“Yeah…I’m just visiting.” He paused, seeming like he was choosing his next words carefully. “My name is Nicholas. And you are?”
“Gemma,” I replied automatically, and then realized I probably shouldn’t have told a complete stranger my real name. I mean, who knew who this guy really was? Yeah, he could be just some guy from Mountain View, Colorado. But he could be something else.
“Gemma. That’s a pretty name.” He brushed a strand of his sandy blonde hair out of his eyes, and the sleeve of his navy blue 562/695
shirt slipped up just enough for me to catch a glimpse of a tattoo on his wrist; a black S
wrapped by a small circle.
Just a tattoo?
I wasn’t sure.
My instincts told me to get away from him, so I forced a smile and started to walk away again. “I gotta go.” He stepped in front of me and nodded in the direction of where Alex stood, still chatting it up with Check Out Girl. “Is that your boyfriend over there?”
My pulse sped up. I was starting to get nervous. “No.”
His mouth curled into a smile that sent a shiver down my spine. And not the good kind of shiver either. “Well, if that’s not your boyfriend then maybe you and I could go out sometime.”
Yeah, like he really wanted to go out with me. I’d have laughed if I hadn’t been so freaking terrified. Something wasn’t right 563/695
here. The guy was showing way too much interest in me. And that questionable tattoo on his wrist….I needed to go. Now.
I moved to go around him. “Look, I really have to—”
Alex suddenly appeared by my side, and I felt a rush of relief sweep across my rattled nerves. “Ready to go.”
“Yes,” I said, wanting to get the heck out of here and away from this guy. “Let’s go.” As Alex pulled me toward the exit doors, I thought I heard Nicholas muttered, “Not your boyfriend, huh?”
For most of the drive back to the cabin, Alex and I stayed quiet. I was beginning to think this was how things would always be between us. Either we were biting each other’s heads off, or ignoring one another. I wasn’t sure which one I preferred. Neither really. I wished things could just be normal.
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Finally, after what seemed like forever, Alex spoke.
“Can you please explain to me why you thought it was okay to talk to a complete stranger like that?” he asked, his voice sharp with anger.
“Excuse me,” I said incredulously. “It wasn’t my fault. I was just standing there, minding my own business, when he came up and started talking to me.”
“It was your fault.” He paused as he turned the Jeep around a sharp, slippery corner. “You should have just walked away.” I forced my anger down the best I could.
“I tried to leave, but he wouldn’t stop talking.”
“I don’t care if he wouldn’t stop talking.
You should have walked off. Do you not understand how dangerous that could’ve ended up being if that guy wasn’t just some guy? ” 565/695
“Yeah, I understand that,” I grinded through my teeth. “But like I said, I tried to walk off, but he—”
He cut me off. “There are no buts. You should have left.”
He was being so irrational and difficult that, I swear, I could have slapped him. I clenched my hands into fist, telling myself to stay calm.
“And I thought I told you to put on some sunglasses.” He was practically yelling at me now.
“What the heck is your problem?” I snapped angrily.
“What the heck is your problem?” He bit back.
I glared at him. It was one thing for him to lecture me over something that was my fault. It was another thing for him to sit here and chew me out over a situation I’d had no control over. “Well, if you wouldn’t have been so busy flirting it up with that stupid 566/695
cashier girl, then maybe you would have notice a little bit earlier what was going on.” Yeah, I regretted that one right after I said it.
I sounded like a jealous girlfriend. But there was nothing I could do about it now, was there?
He gave me a funny look. “I wasn’t flirting with her. I was being polite. When a person talks to you, it’s rude not to talk back.”
“Whatever. It doesn’t matter to me whether you were flirting with her or not.” I folded my arms and turned my head toward the window. “I was just pointing out that if you’d been paying more attention, then you would have noticed a lot sooner that the guy had cornered me.”
“So it doesn’t matter to you at all whether I was flirting with that girl or not?”
“Nope.” I said, which was a huge lie since his flirting with her was what had caused me to wander off in the first place. But he didn’t 567/695
need to know that. “You can flirt with whomever you want.”
“Yeah…I’m buying it. You don’t sound very convincing. In fact, you can’t even look at me when you say it.”
I squirmed uncomfortably in my seat.
Then pulled myself together and look over at him. “I don’t care whether you were flirting with her or not.”
He locked eyes with me. “You don’t?”
“I don’t,” I said, unable to break my gaze away from his.
He raised his eyebrows. “Whatever you say.”
“I don’t.” My voice sounded strangely high. “I really don’t.”
He suppressed a smile as he pulled the Jeep into the driveway. His cocky attitude was really starting to get under my skin. He was so sure of himself; so convinced I had some big crush on him. Which I didn’t. I swear.
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Oh, whatever.
As soon as he parked the Jeep inside the garage, I jumped out, preparing to storm inside but ended up slipping on a patch of ice. I had to grab onto the door handle to catch myself from falling on my butt. Regaining my balance, I slowly made my way into the house, not bothering to help Alex carrying in the groceries. I was too irked to care.
The moment I stepped into the living room, I knew something was off. The air felt heavy, putting my senses on high alert. I glanced around the room. Everything looked fine. The sliding back door was closed. The lights were off. I shook my head. Strange.
This whole Death-Walker-trying-to-kill-me thing was making me paranoid.
I flipped the light on and started for the room where my bag of clothes was. I figured I’d go back there and take a nap. Some sleep might help me relax.
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As I passed the kitchen, the hairs on the back of my neck stood straight up.
“Hello Gemma,” said a soft and melodious voice.
I didn’t have to turn around to know who that voice belonged to. Nicholas—the creepy guy from the grocery store.
Before I could even attempt to run away, an arm caught me by the waist and jerked me backward. I opened my mouth to scream, but a hand came down over it, silencing me.
“Shhh.” Nicholas purred in my ear. “You don’t need to be afraid. I’m not going to hurt you.”
Yeah, he couldn’t have sounded less convincing if he’d tried.
Chapter 27
So maybe Alex was right. I shouldn’t have been talking to anyone in the grocery store. I still stood by what I said, though—it wasn’t my fault. He’d come up and talked to me. But it was too late to do anything about it now.
Nicholas had me trapped and was holding me against him like a hostage.
I didn’t think he had a weapon on him or anything. Well, aside from his strength, which felt inhumanly strong. And the speed he’d been able to get up to the cabin at seemed way too quick for any human to pull off. Even if he’d driven, I still don’t think he’d have been able to beat Alex and me up here. And besides, I hadn’t noticed a car parked anywhere, so I was guessing that he might have another way of traveling, like say, 571/695