The elevator released us into Finn’s apartment and a bittersweet wave of emotions washed over me. I moved out of the way so Curtis could step inside and lowered my bag to the floor.
Finn angled back, studying my face. “What’s that look for?”
“I’m ready to move in with you—I’m looking forward to it—but I am going to miss this place a little. Aren’t you?”
He took the time to consider this even though I could already see his answer. “I’m not attached to this place. I barely spent any time here before you came to Oasis.” He smiled. “But I am attached to you and I can guarantee I’ll enjoy our new place a lot more because you’re there with me.”
“You always have the right answer.”
“It’s the truth.” He kissed me and scooped my bag from the floor. “We don’t even need to unpack. I already checked and the apartment I had originally planned on you taking is still available.”
I followed him through the living room and down the hall to his bedroom. “That fancy one I said no to?”
He dropped the bags on the bed. “Yes, but now there will be two of us, so we can use the extra space. And I’d still like something with a good view.”
Of course, that would be important to him. He seemed to do his best thinking while he was pacing in front of the window.
“It’s a good start,” Finn said, stepping around the bed to take my hands. “We can look for something more permanent later—and it doesn’t have to be in Oasis.”
I smiled at him. “I think it’ll work.”
“Good. We can move down there this afternoon. Curtis will check the place first and we’re having new key cards made. We can get whatever you need from your apartment. Or if you don’t want to go back, I’ll have someone pack it up.”
“No, I want to go back. And I need to talk to Paige. I also wanted to stop in at work for a bit.”
“What for? We’re not expected back until next week.”
I smiled. “I know. But I want to check my messages to make sure I didn’t miss anything. I’ll feel better, less stressed.”
“All work and no play,” he started.
“Didn’t that used to be my line?”
“That was before you said you’d marry me. Now I want to spend all my time with you.” He studied my face. “Do you regret it?”
I blinked. “What?”
“Saying yes.”
“No.” I took his hand, my ring sparkling in the light from the windows. “No. Why would you think that?”
“You haven’t told anyone yet.”
I ducked my chin, not surprised he’d brought this up. “It’s not because I regret it.”
He lifted my chin. “Then why?”
“I want to be able to tell my mom and my sister first. Also, Leslie just got engaged and we’re supposed to celebrate next week. I don’t want to overshadow that.” When he only nodded, releasing my chin, I wrapped my arms around his neck. “I’m sorry. It doesn’t have anything to do with how happy I am.”
“I told Jake. He helped me pick the ring, actually. And my mom. She could barely stop herself from calling you but I told her she had to wait.”
Guilt stabbed at my heart. “Finn. God. I didn’t know. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry.” He sighed and then bent his head to give me a long, lingering kiss. “I’m ready to tell everyone. This means a lot to me. But I understand you have to do things in your own time.”
“This means a lot to me, too. I promise.” I pressed another kiss to his cheek and eased back. “Let me get some work done. That way we can enjoy the rest of the weekend.” I grinned. “Figure out when to call your mom.”
“You sure?”
“Absolutely.”
Finn turned to the door. “I’ll go with you.”
“To work? I thought you had things to do here.”
“It won’t take long, will it?”
I followed him down the hallway. Curtis paced the living room, his cell phone at his ear. “That’s good,” he said. He glanced at us when we walked in. “Let me know when you get back.”
“Charlotte needs to go into work for a while,” Finn said.
Curtis nodded, sliding his cell phone back into his pocket. “Dustin’s heading up to talk to you about the key cards.”
“It’ll have to wait.”
I squeezed his hand. “No, it won’t. I know you want to get this taken care of. Go ahead. I won’t be long.”
Finn’s jaw clenched. He checked the time on his watch.
“Really,” I assured him. I grabbed my purse off the table by the elevator. “We’ll get things done faster this way.”
“I’ll head over with you, Charlotte,” Curtis said. “Shane is going to meet me with an update.”
Finn pocketed his hands, looking unsure. Finally, he nodded. “I’ll give you a call when I’m through here.”
“At work,” I reminded him. “You’ll have to call me at work. I don’t have my cell phone anymore. Unless—”
“Probably safer to change your number,” Curtis said, “before you use it again.”
Finn nodded. “We’ll deal with it. In the meantime, you can use mine.”
The elevator door dinged and Dustin walked in, greeting everyone. It was nice to see him again and I was glad he was going to be here with Finn.
Finn placed his phone in my hand. “This way I can reach you if I need you. Or you can reach me. I put a GPS tracking app on there also.” He smiled. “I want to test it out.”
Laughing, I said, “I’ll still be in the same building—sort of.”
“Then it should work fine. An hour,” he said, kissing me on the mouth. “Be careful.”
I rode down the elevator with Curtis, almost afraid to ask him about Shane and if he’d gotten any new information.
Before I could say anything, he glanced at me. “I think that’s how he was able to track you down.”
“Excuse me?”
“Some sort of GPS app or program on your phone. He installed it, found the other information he needed—email address or whatever the app required—and tracked you that way. All the way to the cabin in fact, though we’re not ruling out the possibility of him having information on Mr. Moore’s family’s properties and such.”
My stomach twisted with unease. “How would he be able to get that on my phone without me knowing?”
The elevator released us to the lobby and we headed for the Commons.
“He had to have access to your phone,” Curtis said.
I drew a blank, trying to think back to the few times I’d ever been around him long enough for him to access my phone. “I don’t…” Then it hit me, making me feel sick all over again. “My apartment.”
Curtis nodded. “We know he’s been in your apartment. It could have started long before we even realized.”
“While I was sleeping,” I whispered.
Curtis didn’t respond but I knew I was right. He could have been in there at the same time I was. Sleeping or taking a shower. And I wouldn’t have expected anything. I thought I was safe.
The idea of him watching me while I slept or when Finn was in bed with me made my stomach twist.
Curtis’s phone rang and he answered it immediately, simultaneously holding the door for me so we could enter the Business Community. He told someone where we were going and walked us past the security desk.
“Shane,” he said when he hung up the phone. “We have another address for John. That might clue us in to where he’s been staying.”
We rode the elevator to the top floor. “That’s good, right?”
“If it helps us find him, yes. We’ll need to speak with the police again once you get settled in your new place as well. He broke into the Moore cabin—he’s escalating—and everything from here on out needs to be documented.”
In the lobby, it was quiet for a Friday. Finn must have let the rest of the staff go home early.
“I’ll give you some space,” Curtis said, waiting near Leslie’s desk for Shane to come up.
In my office, I sat heavily in my chair. There were half a dozen notes from Tucker and my phone blinked with messages. I picked up the receiver and listened while reading the notes. One phone and two written messages from Tracy, eager to get the lease settled. I set aside her number. I didn’t want to deal with her but it was business and it needed to be taken care of.
The next message was from the building manager of the Housing Community. I wrote his number down as well.
The following message made me freeze in my chair. It was unmistakably John’s voice, quiet but straightforward.
“I wish you hadn’t left.”
Nothing else. Just those five words.
I rolled in my chair a few inches to peer out the door. Curtis was there by the elevator, talking to Shane. My heartbeat picked up and I stood halfway from my seat.
An incoming call made me stop. Finn, I thought to myself, hoping it was him. Hoping it was anyone familiar. But the number wasn’t one I knew and Finn probably would have called the cell phone anyway. I answered with a tentative voice.
There was a sigh on the other end of the phone. “You answered,” he said.
My hand squeezed the receiver so tight, it ached. “John.”
“I’m glad you’re back.”
I stood fully, inching over so I could get Curtis in my line of sight. He was facing the other way but he’d turn around any moment. I’d throw something if I had to.
“Don’t do anything,” John said. “I’m not going to hurt you. But I know Curtis is there.”
My eyes lifted automatically, though I had no idea where the cameras were. I needed to reason with him, to make him understand the seriousness of the situation. To make him stop this.
“John,” I said calmly. “It makes me nervous that you’re calling here.”
“No one knows but you.”
“I know, and—and if you want to talk, we can talk.” Better than him sneaking into my apartment or Finn’s family’s cabin.
“It’s not safe there.”
“For talking?”
“No, not safe. They’re going to be watching.”
“I know. John—”
“It’s better if you stay here, Charlotte. Finn isn’t right for you. He’ll only hurt you.”
Oh my God, what was he talking about? Be nice to him, be understanding, I ordered myself. Draw him out.
“Yes, we should talk about this.” If I could get him to agree to talk, I could tell Curtis and—
“They’ll know, and then someone will get hurt.”
“No. No,” I said, trying to remove panic from my voice. I looked around. Shit, what was I supposed to do? I couldn’t write or leave a message—John would see if there were cameras in here. “No one has to get hurt. Let’s talk.”
“In person. Without your entourage.”
“I—I don’t know how—”
“I’ll make a distraction. In ten minutes. You get yourself downstairs and out the front of the building. The coffee shop two doors down. I’ll be on the patio in the back.”
Shit. Shit! How was I supposed to get out of here? And a coffee shop? Really?
“I’ll try, but—”
“Try hard,” he said. “I’m not your ex, I swear to you Charlotte. I don’t want people to get hurt but I need to see you.”
“Okay, please, just wait. I’m coming. I’ll try.”
“See you then.”
He hung up, and I glanced around the office. Did I call Finn first or would John know somehow?
I snagged my purse off the chair, my heart hammering loud enough I could hear blood rushing in my ears. I peered out the door. Curtis and Shane were still in conversation, facing the other way.
As quietly as possible, I inched down the hall, my shoulder sliding against the wall, and ducked into the dark breakroom. Hiding just around the corner, I waited. What kind of distraction? And what the hell was I going to do when I saw John? Convince him to stop stalking me?
Finn’s phone. I had Finn’s phone and it had a tracker. If I could stall John, they’d find me and they’d find him.
But not if I got caught first. Not if the phone rang and gave me away.
Being as discreet as possible, I reached into my purse. I couldn’t pull the phone out, not even in the dark. It would light up. John could see and someone could get hurt.
An image of Paige, frightened in her apartment as John came through her door flashed in my mind and I held back a whimper. No, he wouldn’t hurt her because I’d make it downstairs.
I found the button on the side of the phone and turned the volume down all the way so it wouldn’t ring if someone called.
When the fire alarm sounded, I jolted, bumping into the door.
A distraction.
I waited until both Shane and Curtis hurried past and then ran, around the corner and to the stairwell, hoping they hadn’t spotted me. Grateful I’d worn casual shoes today, I raced down the stairs, flight after flight, panting. Partly out of exertion and partly out of panic. I couldn’t let anyone see me. I had to get to the lobby. I had to get out of Oasis.
I ran faster.
Far above me, I heard a door. Curtis? Shane? Or maybe other people trying to leave the building. Ignoring it, I finished the last several flights of stairs and burst out the door. The lobby wasn’t as full as I expected, but I still had to push my way through, getting a few dirty looks.
I thought I might have heard my name but I didn’t turn. I burst through the doors into the sunshine and turned right. One block, just one street to cross. A horn honked when I darted across the road.
“Hurry, hurry,” I whispered to myself, glancing over my shoulder.
No one following me yet. I reached the coffee shop and turned down the alley beside it, stopping for a moment to catch my breath. I leaned against the brick wall, venturing a glance around the corner. Still no one.
I checked the impulse to look at my phone—especially when the patio came into view. Someone sat just at the edge, a dark ball cap on. I could tell by the hunch to his shoulders it was John.
Taking a shaky breath, I straightened and pulled the strap of my purse tight over my shoulder. If anything happened, I had to keep my purse close. It had Finn’s phone.
I moved back into the sunlight and went to talk to John.
He stood when I reached the table, eyes hidden beneath dark sunglasses. But he smiled slightly and gestured. “I got the most secluded table I could find.”
He looked around and there were only two other patrons minding their own business on the other side of the patio. A few cars were parked in the back and one was probably John’s. I found myself wondering where he’d come from and where he was going after this.
“Please, sit,” he said, polite invitation in his tone. “I’m glad you made it. I thought it might be difficult. Did anyone see you?”
I shook my head. “I don’t think so.”
“Sit,” he said again, more insistent this time.
I slid into the chair, my back to the alleyway. I didn’t want to sit; it made me feel trapped. But I also didn’t want to anger John.
“I ordered you a chai latte.” He slid the mug on the table closer to me.
My favorite. How did he know? I wrapped my hands around it but I was afraid to drink. What if he put something in there?
His gaze caught on something. He pulled off his glasses, staring at my hand.
“What is that?” he asked quietly.
I looked down, uncertain. “What?”
“What is that?” His voice rose. He pointed to my hand—no, to my ring—eyes blazing with anger. “He asked you to marry him?”
“I—it—” I automatically tucked my hands beneath the table, itching to pull out Finn’s phone. Or to yell for the waitress. Or run.
“I told you he was no good for you, Charlotte. Don’t you understand?”
“Please. I’m trying. It—”
“I told you,” John said again, returning his glasses to his face. “I don’t want to be like your ex. He’s crazy, you know? Had me following you everywhere and that’s not how I would treat you. And Finn, he’s exactly the same. Always needing to know where you are. But he doesn’t know where you are now, does he? You don’t even have your phone. I can tell. I checked.”
I blew out a quiet breath. The longer he sat there ranting, the better. Either someone was going to notice or someone was going to come.
“You can’t marry him,” John said. “Take off the ring.”
My lips parted in protest. “Listen, John—”
“This is a dangerous game. If I can’t trust you, then what?”
“You can trust me.”
“Take off the ring.”
I bit back the response I wanted to give him and ordered myself to do what he wanted. Play along. It was better this way. Just for now.
Slowly, I pulled off the ring, reaching for my purse to tuck it inside.
“No.” John held out his hand. “Give it to me.”
“But—”
His jaw hardened. I’d never seen him look so dangerous. He was always this young geeky computer guy who was supposed to be protecting the residents of Oasis, not spying on them.
Holding in a sob, I dropped the ring in his hand. He slipped it into his jacket pocket and then said, “We don’t have any time to waste. We should be on our way.”
“What?”
“You want to keep your friends safe. And Finn.” He clenched his hand into a fist. “You want him safe, right? After today, we don’t have to talk about him anymore. I promise. You can leave them behind. You don’t have to stay here, where you feel scared hiding from Mark. I have somewhere safe you can go. We can go. And we can start over.”
“I can’t go anywhere. I—I—my job, and people will know—”
“I’ve got it figured out. Don’t worry. I’ve thought of everything. I have enough money to take care of us.” He glanced to the alley and then the inside of the coffee shop. “But we need to go now.”
He stood, extending his hand to me again. “Charlotte?”
I squeezed my fingers on the arms of the chair. “Can’t we just stay here and talk? I think—”
“You need to get out of the chair. I don’t want to be angry with you, but we don’t have a lot of time.” He opened his jacket just slightly, revealing the butt of a gun. “I don’t want to hurt you, I don’t—I won’t—but if we don’t go, someone else might get hurt.”
Oh, God. Who? Someone at the coffee shop? Or would he go back into Oasis and find someone I care about?
When I heard sirens in the distance, I tensed in my seat.
“Someone is going to get hurt,” John murmured.
“No.” I stood slowly. “No one is going to get hurt because we’re going, right? Somewhere safe.”
His face relaxed just slightly. “Right. Somewhere safe.”
He continued to hold out his hand. I swallowed down a wave nausea and set my hand in his. It was cool—not warm like Finn’s. Smaller, too, not the hands of someone who could hurt people. But that didn’t fool me. He’d been crazy enough to stalk me and follow our group to the cabin in the mountains.
You still have Finn’s phone, you still have the phone. With that mantra repeating over and over in my head and the hope they were somehow tracking me right now, I walked with John to a nondescript sedan and climbed inside.