Rachel awoke the next morning wrapped in Riley’s arms. She relaxed into their warmth and smiled as she began to drift back to sleep, but she suddenly felt her heart surge as she remembered it was Monday. She sprang out of bed and grabbed her phone, sighing as she saw it was only 6am. Thankfully, she still had time to get home and ready before 9am. Riley let out a groan and looked up at her with fluttering eyes. He yawned and looked at his own phone screen.
“When did Monday happen?” he asked sleepily.
Rachel rested her hands on her hips and shook her head at him.
“After brunch and art on Sunday.”
He sighed and nodded in agreement, then quirked a brow at her.
“I’m guessing you need to get home to get ready for work?”
She nodded. “Unfortunately.”
He sat up and stretched, then met her eyes again with a soft expression.
“If you’d like, you’re welcome to stay here and get ready, I have some clothes you can wear and that way you’d be able to eat some breakfast and not feel rushed.”
She bit her lip as she thought about it. “I would love to, but I really have to get Frankie walked. Sarah hung out over there last night, but she won’t have time this morning.”
“If you want to check on him, I completely understand. But if you give your permission, I can send someone over to bring him back here and take care of him for the day,” Riley offered yet another invitation.
Rachel gave him a puzzled look. She could see something was going on beneath the surface; it was like he didn’t want her to be alone. She thought of Melissa and felt her heart sink. She sat on the bed next to him and rested her hand on his thigh.
“This is about Melissa, isn’t it?” she asked softly.
He sighed. “Yeah, it’s about Melissa.”
Rachel paused and looked nervously around the room. She could understand his upset, but what could she say. He looked over at her and squeezed her hand.
“I just feel bad to have pulled you into this. I want to keep you safe,” he told her as he leaned in closer to her body.
“I understand. I’m just still trying to grasp the idea of someone being so obsessed with another. It freaks me out.”
She felt Riley grow tense and sighed as she realized it wasn’t quite the right thing to say.
“I’m sorry, that came off more bluntly than I wanted. You just have to realize this has never been in my reality, you know?”
He nodded. “I get it; it wasn’t for me either until recently. I’m hoping my security following you will scare her off, so I just want to ask that you let me and my crew take care of you for a couple days, just to be safe.”
Rachel looked to the window. The dark orange morning light was beginning to seep through, and she let her eyes linger there as she thought about it.
“Ok, let’s do this. Does this mean I’ll be staying with you for a few days?” She asked, her heart lightening at the thought of falling asleep next to him again.
He smiled in return. “If you wish to… absolutely.”
The rest of the morning was spent with Rachel giving Riley access to her apartment, getting ready for work, and sitting down once again to a homemade, fresh off the griddle breakfast. Rachel sipped her coffee and laughed as she listened to Riley talk about some of his clients and the crazy things he had seen in DC.
In the same pattern as the previous days, Riley had his driver take them into town. He pointed out more sites and scenes and told Rachel that he would love to take her to lunch this week. She felt her cheeks warm. While two dates in a row seemed like a lot to her, she thought that every day sounded amazing. But she also felt the pit of guilt sink in her stomach. Should she be seemingly taking all of this from him? Sure he was a billionaire, but was it right to let him be so close so soon.
She took a deep breath and pushed the thought away. Right now, he was looking out for her safety. She had to trust he was telling the truth about Melissa. In fact, she contemplated doing her own research and connecting the dots. Once her mind was at ease, she would let his security handle it. Then hopefully she could begin to start setting up her apartment and living a bit of her old life. Riley had stepped in and changed it so greatly in only two days.
The ride to work was filled with conversation, and Rachel realized they had arrived sooner than she had wished.
She gave Riley a pout. “Here already?”
“Afraid so.” He leaned in and gave her a warm, slow kiss. She felt her body tingle as she drank in his scent and was left feeling drunk from his touch.
“My security guy is on his way. He’ll be here in just a few minutes to keep lookout and bring you back to my place tonight. Frankie has been picked up and taken to the park already. I’m sure he’ll enjoy a great lunch with Leone.”
Rachel chuckled, reaching her hand up and stroking his face. “Thank you.”
With a final kiss, she left the car and Riley drove off into traffic. The streets were busy with people walking and biking to work, and Rachel only had a few doors to go until the entrance to her work building.
Rachel began to walk toward her destination, when a familiar blonde figure materialized from the crowd in front of her. Rachel felt her heart thud with fear. Could it be? Her chest tightened and she felt her breath escape her. Would that woman really follow her to work and happen to catch her right before the security guard showed up?
Rachel dipped her head down and brushed the thought away. There were lots of blonde women; it could have been anyone. She realized this whole situation may have caused more stress than she realized. Maybe now she was being hyper-vigilant about things?
But there it was again, a blonde cascade of waves on a tall lean figure. Rachel hurried her steps, but out of the corner of her eye, she saw the form of that person move in on her. She ran now, trying not to trip in her heels as she neared the building door, but the sudden movement of someone cutting her off stopped her short.
Melissa stood in front of her, bulging, brown eyes looking down at her with contempt and rage. Her skin was pale and tight, her lips were pursed, and her tall, lean frame seemed to loom over Rachel.
“Look, I just want to talk,” the woman practically growled.
“Really? Because you’re doing a terrible job of conveying that. It’s more like an ‘I want to kill you’ vibe.”
Melissa let out a shriek of a laugh. “Oh honey, trust me. If I wanted you dead, you’d already be in the ground.”
Rachel felt her anger flare and her fear sound alarm bells in her head, not quite the response she was looking for.
“That’s not a convincing line,” she deadpanned.
“All I want is for you to stay away from Riley. Is that too much to ask?” Melissa crossed her arms and looked at Rachel in all seriousness.
Rachel scoffed, “Who the hell are you, Melissa? What are you doing stalking someone who clearly doesn’t want to be with you? Antagonizing them when they’re going to work? Do you realize how irrational your actions are?!”
She felt herself flush with heat and anger. The fear had been eaten away by the audacity this woman had to talk down to her in such a way. She felt her fists clench and her jaw tighten, and she really hoped that security guard would be there soon.
Melissa curled her lip. “The real question, Rachel, is who the hell do you think you are?”
Melissa stepped closer but Rachel held her ground. She hardly knew this woman, but she was done letting her intimidate her.
“How did you find out where I worked?” Rachel growled, still trying to keep her distracted until help arrived.
“Oh, I made my way into the Dreams Come True event. Riley’s security isn’t so good at finding me under disguises.” She chuckled and twirled her hair. “It was easy. I kept watch on you two all evening, saw your friend, and made light conversation with her. That was all I needed.”
Damn it, Rachel thought as she realized Sarah had no idea she had been talking to a psycho. It was just her luck that this mess had managed to entangle her best friend. She gasped as she realized that Melissa must have been following them longer than she realized.
“Wait, does that mean you’ve been following us since the dinner?”
Melissa rolled her eyes. “It wasn’t hard to figure out that you two went back to his place, but the next morning I was sure to keep watch on my Riley.”
Rachel’s heart pounded so loudly in her ears it was all she heard. Her blood rushed and the color drained from her face. She felt her hands grow cold as reality set in. This woman was so delusional she had actually followed them from his house to the city and everywhere they went. She couldn’t understand how someone could invade her privacy like that, be so careless as to treat her like an obstacle in her way to a man she only wanted for the money.
There was a sudden rush of excitement as two men in black swooped in on Melissa. Rachel recoiled back as they grabbed her.
“Damn it! You guys need to stop thinking you can just grab me like that!” Melissa screamed. Passersby glanced over and some watched as the two security guards pulled her away from Rachel.
The taller, broader one spoke firmly, “Melissa, you’ve been warned multiple times now, and this is considered a breach of the restraining order. We’re going to have to take you in.”
She screamed nonsense and pulled at their grip, but the men kept a stronghold on her as an MPD patrol car pulled up with the lights flashing. They walked her over and she fought the entire way, refusing to give her wrists or duck her head as they arrested her.
Another man in black approached Rachel and reached out a hand. “You must be Rachel. I’m Tom Harold, part of Riley’s security team. I’m sorry about the delay this morning. We got caught in traffic, but once we saw her by you we contacted a patrol car. She’s breached the order more than once this week.”
Rachel was speechless. She mindlessly took his hand to shake it but could barely perform the action as she watched the officer close the car door and the crowd begin to carry on past the scene.
“Rachel?” He broke into her thoughts as he looked at her with concern. The entire experience was surreal to her.
“I’m sorry, yes. This is just… a lot.”
Tom nodded. “I understand. Unfortunately for people like Riley, this is a real threat they have to deal with. People are willing to do anything for money.”
Rachel nodded and looked to the officer. She needed answers.
“Tom, just how dangerous do you think she is?”
Tom sighed and looked down at his boots then back at the police car. He held his gaze there for a moment before he returned it to Rachel.
“Honestly, she’s extremely dangerous. She has been arrested for assault three times, and each time she did some pretty serious damage. She’s a wild card, and we need to make sure you stay safe with her around.”
Rachel felt a cold chill go up her spine as she watched the patrol car pull away. Tom looked at her and gestured toward the door.
“You can head in now. We’ll keep her at the station overnight. You go try and get some work done. I’ll be around the building all day keeping watch, but she shouldn’t be going anywhere for a while.”
Rachel nodded and continued on without another word; she knew it might be rude, but she couldn’t handle all this right now. It was so much to take in. Between her emotions for Riley and this woman who was obsessed with him, she had never imagined she could be mentally pushed like this.
Once in the building, Rachel headed for a private conference room on the top floor. It was usually open on Mondays, and she needed to call Riley. While she was sure he had already been informed, she needed to know more about what was going on. She stepped into the bright white elevator, breathing hard and feeling the damp, cold sweat at the base of her neck. She was spooked—there was no doubt about that.
The elevator dinged and she stepped out, not bothering to acknowledge anyone as she marched down the hall to the room that overlooked the city. The long light wood table stretched for sixteen feet, but no one was in sight. The screen at the end glowed blue and the dimmed windows kept the light soft. Rachel reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone, then she slid it open and hit Riley’s name.
It rang once and he picked up, “Rachel, are you ok?”
Rachel’s voice shook, “No.”
Riley paused and she heard him turn in a chair as he took a breath.
“I’m so sorry, Rachel.”
“Riley, I don’t know if I can do this.” Rachel felt the tears well in her eyes, but she refused to let that bitch have the gratification of making her cry.
Riley paused for a moment; she could almost see him biting his lip as he thought.
“I understand, but you have to trust me that I’ll keep you safe. I promise.”
Rachel sighed and leaned her head back as she slid against the wall.
“I know, but this is just all so crazy, Riley. She is obsessed—delusional—and she will do anything to get to you. Do you realize what that’s like for me?” Rachel was whispering even though no one could hear her, but the tone was panicked.
“Rachel, I can only see it from my perspective, and being witness to someone waiting at the gates of your home almost a hundred times really drives it home. But I can’t see it from your view; someone new walks into your life with some serious baggage. It’s not how I ever envisioned sharing my life with someone I would quickly find so important.”
Rachel took a deep breath. “Ok, so what do we do?”
She heard Riley take a sip of a drink before continuing, “We stick to the plan. Today you work at the office, tonight you come back to my place, and tomorrow I send security with you the whole time. I can’t risk any moments without it.”
Rachel nodded. “Alright, I can do this. I just needed to talk to you. I really don’t want to get used to this, but it looks like I might have to.
Riley chuckled at that. “Unfortunately if you’re going to be hanging out with me, you’ll have to get used to wild and crazy shit. It comes with the territory.”
The two finished their conversation, and Rachel felt herself relax as she began to head back toward her office in somewhat of a daze. When Sarah came over, she could immediately tell something was off.
“Oh man, did the billionaire bad boy already woo you and leave you?” Sarah frowned at Rachel.
“Girl, you wouldn’t believe me if I told you everything that happened this weekend.” Rachel looked at her with wide eyes as she shook her head.
Sarah cocked a brow and smiled. “Try me.”
Rachel cocked her brow back and immediately started telling the tale. She told Sarah of all the glamour Riley had to offer and then laid out details of the confrontation she’d had with the woman stalking him. Sarah gasped and held her hand over her mouth for most of the story, grabbing Rachel’s arm as she discussed what had happened this morning.
“Damn girl! What a bitch!” Sarah stared at Rachel waiting for more of a reaction.
But Rachel was already exhausted. She wasn’t sure how she was going to get any work done today. She shook her head and rested her chin on her hand.
“Sarah, what the hell did I get myself into?” she asked, looking up at her friend as she sat on her desk.
Sarah shrugged. “Rach, you’ve got me asking the same thing.”
…
The rest of Rachel’s day went by without any more stalker moments. She tried to focus on her work, but it was tough when her mind kept replaying the events from the weekend and this morning. All she really wanted to do was go home, to her home back in Pittsburgh, and let this all disappear. She sighed at the thought and shook her head. She was a grown woman, and she knew she would just have to deal with this.
Rachel waited for security this time. Tom walked her out and got in the car with her to drive home. The two made light conversation about the weather, the local sports teams, and different suburbs they passed through. By the time they got home, Riley was waiting on the steps in the early evening sun. The early April day had been warm, and the place seemed even greener than this morning.
Rachel stepped out of the car, and Riley watched her with soft eyes. She could feel him from where he stood. She wanted to wrap her arms around him and push him away all at the same time. It had been an overwhelming day, to say the least, and she wasn’t sure how she would process all this.
“How was work?” he asked lightly.
“Tough,” she replied. She knew she was being somewhat cold, but she couldn’t help it. The emotions were pulling her in all directions.
He nodded and held the door open for her. “Were you able to start on your new project?”
Her lips pursed, and she turned around to look at him.
“Look, I know what you’re doing. You want all this to be normal, but right now, for me, it’s not. I’m trying to get to that point, but you need to give me some time. I’m not mad at you, but I also need some space right now. I’m willing to stay here because I don’t want me or Frankie to get hurt, but this is more than any first week of meeting should have packed into it.”
Riley took a step back and bowed his head, as if to physically show he wanted to abide by her wishes.
“Ok, would you like to eat alone? I have plenty of bedrooms for you to sleep in,” he offered.
Rachel sighed and dropped her work bag. “Right now, I just need a good long hot shower.”
Riley led her to another bedroom, not quite as large as his but still the size of her entire apartment. Frankie lay on the bed waiting. He gave an excited whine as she walked through, and she brightened at the sight of her beloved dog.
“Frankie! Oh, how I’ve missed you!” She fell to the bed and grabbed him, pulling him close, while he covered her in kisses with little whines. She gave him a smooch on the head and held him for a moment.
“Frank, it has been a hell of a few days.”
He wagged his tail in response, and she set him down. He lay back on the bed and watched her as she paced the room for a moment before heading into the bathroom.
She flicked on the heater, started the hot water, and began to remove her clothes. As articles fell away and the steam rolled out from the curtains, she could already feel her tension beginning to fade.
She stepped in the shower and took slow, deliberate deep breaths as she let the hot liquid wash over her. She felt the memories begin to fade into the back of her mind as the sensation of the warm water rushed around her and comforted her.She brushed her hair back and stared at the showerhead, the fixture had multiple settings, and she let out a huff of a laugh. He really did have it all.
Her mind returned to Riley, and she felt the deep sensation of guilt in her gut. She knew none of this was really his fault. He couldn’t help the actions of others, and this was truly out of his control. He was doing his best to control it and keep all of those involved safe. She had to give him that—no matter how much her emotional side wanted to strike out and place the blame on him for throwing her life into such chaos.
She thought of that handsome face, and a smile spread across her lips. Tonight she had the opportunity to sit across from the man she was quickly falling for. He had brought her into his home to keep her safe—even if she had outright told him to fuck off, he had still been willing to open his doors to protect her. She thought about that for a moment. Maybe he just chased girls, but why do all this if Rachel meant nothing to him? She clearly already meant something.
She nodded as she realized she needed to step back and let their relationship grow at the pace in which it naturally did. Right now, was this incredibly fast? Yes, but it’s just how it was going. She wasn’t going to force it to go another way. If she wanted to keep the chaos down, it would be easier to let him take care of the Melissa issue, and she could focus on building her new life in DC. This was simply a hiccup. She decided that by making this just a small thing, it would be easier to move on with her life.
Rachel turned the water off, looked in the steamy mirror, and smiled at the woman who looked back at her.