Chapter Eight
Howard
It’s my business to know everyone that enters and leaves my goddamned town.
His name is Michael Bodley. Thirty-one. Never been married and used to work as an accountant until a few months ago when he resigned out of nowhere. What I’ve gathered so far from his social media is that he was a quiet man without much of a social life until he somehow crossed paths with Missy.
Up until a month ago, his social media was largely inactive until he started posting pictures of her. Photos that do not exist anywhere else on the internet. All this has gone unnoticed for weeks.
The man quit his job right around the time Missy’s name graced the tabloids. I couldn’t place her the first time we met, but I’d eventually made the connection when we were at the station. And as soon as I saw her red-carpet pictures, I realized why her name was so familiar. Heck, I’ve heard her music on the radio a couple of times and always thought it was a little overdone with the instrumentals. Maybe that’s what people are into these days, but the production didn’t appeal to me much.
Her singing voice is as sweet as her talking voice, but whoever is managing her music career is doing a shit job of it and doing no justice to this sweet girl.
It seems she blew up overnight after the rumors of her dating Sebastian Foster came to light. I turn to the girl asleep next to me and wonder if that is who she was coming to see in Valor Springs before I pulled her over. There haven’t been any new calls or messages to her phone, other than her manager, whose number I blocked after his fifth scathing voicemail. He’ll have to be dealt with eventually, but it can wait. I wonder why Sebastian hasn’t tried to reach out to Missy yet.
“He can’t help me now. I was going to meet up with him for advice, but I can’t do that now. I risk exposing him and his girlfriend to the stalker too.”
If I didn’t fully believe that she and Sebastian had never been together, it would send me into a jealous rage. I still don’t like that their names were connected by dating rumors, still whatever it is they shared is what brought her to Valor Springs—to me.
And now I’m learning that she has no connection whatsoever to this Michael guy either. Not that I can find at least.
Missy stirs, mumbling something in her sleep. I reach out and run a hand over her hair in a soothing motion until she settles. It’s only nine, but after everything that’s happened, she is way overdue for rest.
I turn back to my laptop, scrolling through this guy’s information. He doesn’t look a day over twenty with his baby face, bushy brows, and badly cropped hair. None of his features stand out, and if I ran into him on the streets, I would never have noticed him with his mousy frame. He just fades into the background, and I can see why it would be easy for him to follow Missy around with her none the wiser.
But he’s obsessed with the wrong woman.
My woman.
A dumbass too, or maybe just bold. Taking pictures of Missy in public places in clear view of the security cameras, thinking no one would catch him was a foolish move, or maybe he was banking on no one believing that she had a stalker.
If the manager and the other cops had done their fucking jobs, then Missy wouldn’t have been forced to run. All it took was a screenshot of his face from the security cameras facing the station’s parking lot to find him and run a background check on the man.
And for him to show up here?
Oh, he’s getting bold. Or desperate.
Perhaps he knows the most she can get out of this is a restraining order against him, and that’s not enough of a consequence to keep him away. But that’s why she has me now.
I will be the consequence he’ll have to deal with when I catch up with him.
I grab her phone, ready to scroll once more through the latest pictures he sent when it lights up with a call. I stare at the name flashing on the screen for a long time before finally deciding I might as well answer it. I glance at the sleeping girl as I slowly climb off the bed so as not to wake her before quietly leaving the room.
I answer the call once I have closed the door behind me, making my way down the hall and heading for the kitchen. “I was just thinking about you,” I say in greeting. There is silence at the other end of the line, and I smirk, joining Bear, who is waiting at door to the kitchen, wagging his tail excitedly at me.
“I’m sorry, I must have dialed the wrong number.”
“No, it’s the right number,” I say, patting the dog on the head before walking into the kitchen where he follows me, giving me that pitiful look that always earns him a treat. “You are looking for Missy, aren’t you?”
Another long silence before the voice at the end of the line speaks. “Who are you? Why do you have her phone?”
“I’ll cut to the chase, Sebastian. Did you know Missy was on her way to meet you here in Valor Springs?” I ask, heading for the pantry. I keep it locked, so Bear doesn’t cause havoc in there looking for a snack. I learned my mischievous dog can pull the handle down and open the door himself the hard way.
Sebastian is quiet for a long time, and I almost think he’s hung up before his voice breaks through the speaker again. “Howard? Is that you? God, I thought I recognized your voice,” he says before hurriedly adding, “What are you doing with Missy’s phone, and what do you mean she was on her way to Valor Springs? Is she with you? Did something happen to her?”
“Something happened alright, but I don’t have time to explain it over the phone. Are you not the one who invited her to Valor Springs?”
“I did, but I mean, it was more of an open invitation. The media had been hounding her for weeks after the rumor we were dating, so I told her she was welcome to hide out in Valor Springs. That Lizzy and I would be happy to host her for as long as she needed.” There is another slight pause as he connects the dots. “Wait, is that why she tried calling? Lizzy and I were out of town, and we both had our phones switched off.” I catch worry and guilt in his voice when he speaks next. “Is she okay?”
“She’s with me,” I respond as I walk into the pantry with Bear on my heels, his tail wagging fiercely when I reach up to grab his snack box. “So, you two were never in a relationship, right?”
“Of course not, it was just something the label concocted to get her more publicity. She wasn’t fond of the idea either, but her manager is a real piece of work, so she didn’t really have a say in any of it.”
And it’s because of that meathead Missy still has a stalker. There is no way in hell I am letting her go back to someone who risks her life the way her manager did. I don’t care what it takes, I am staying by her side and vetting the people that come into her life. I am not going to let anyone use her again. I take a treat from the box, and Bear grabs it out of my hand, nearly biting off my fingers.
“Missy is safe with me now,” I say into the phone. “She’ll be fine, I’ll make sure of it.”
“Do you mean with you or with you? ” His voice has a mischievous note, and I can already see the smirk on the singer’s face. However, I also catch the relief in his tone.
“Both.”
“Well, I guess I don’t have to be worried then. I panicked when I saw how many times she’d tried to reach me. I figured something happened with her manager or the media, and I was worried, but I’m glad you found her.”
Well, she found me, but I don’t correct him on that. Instead, I focus on feeding Bear another snack before tucking the box back in its place. “I’ll take care of her.”
“I’m sure you will.”
I hang up, and I have no doubt he’s laughing at my expense. Valor Springs is a very small town, and I have no doubt he’ll take immense joy in spreading the news about Missy and me to the other residents. All he needs to do is tell his girlfriend, who’ll tell her friends, and soon, we will be the topic of the town.
Shaking my head, I walk out of the pantry with Bear, but he quickly loses interest in me when I lock the door to the pantry. I lean back against it and scroll through the pictures from the stalker, trying to get a sense of what he likes. All the photos were taken to highlight the features of her body. I grit my teeth when I notice a cropped photo of her cleavage, questioning when the fuck he got close enough to take a shot of her fucking chest, but nothing drives me to near insanity like when I see the silhouetted image of her in the shower, which was clearly taken from inside the bathroom.
He got so close.
So fucking close, it makes me see red.
“Who were you talking to? You look furious.”
My gaze lifts from the screen to the girl taking a seat at the kitchen counter and playing with a half-empty water bottle. Fuck, she looks so damn sexy dressed in another one of my t-shirts, her tits poking at the fabric and sending all blood rushing south to my groin. “I was on a call with your ex-boyfriend,” I say, switching off the phone and walking over to her.
“I don’t have an ex,” she says, her brows furrowing adorably in confusion.
“Sebastian Foster?”
“Oh.” She chuckles as her expression clears. “He’s a friend. More like a mentor in an industry full of creeps. Did he finally return my calls?”
“Yes,” I say, stepping between her thighs. I wrap an arm around her waist and yank her hard against me. I bite back a guttural groan when she presses her pussy against my erection, rolling her hips and nearly distracting me from what we are talking about. “Sebastian is very worried about you,” I manage.
“Oh, I’ll have to apologize to him for calling as much as I did. I panicked, and I didn’t know who else to call—”
“Hey,” I cut her off, dropping my forehead to hers. “He’s not angry at you. He knows you wouldn’t call unless you had to, but he was out of town.”
“Do you guys know each other?”
I nod. “Valor Springs is such a small town, princess. It would be surprising if we didn’t. He and I went to high school together, ran in the same crowds and everything.”
“I bet it was the popular crowd,” she says, trailing a finger down my naked chest and tracing the tattoos, leaving a fiery wake everywhere she touches. “All the pretty girls probably followed you everywhere.”
I chuckle, the sound pained as she tortures me with her curious fingers. “I look nothing like I did back in high school. I wasn’t popular one bit.”
“Liar,” she whispers, raking her nails down my shoulders as she leans in to kiss me, planting kisses all over my jaw and throat. The press of her mouth is gentle against my skin, quickly fueling my desire and waking the beast in me. “I would have fallen on my ass back in high school trying to get you to notice me.” She slides her hands slowly down my body to my firm stomach, fingering the ridges of my abs before she clasps the waistband of my gray sweats. “I wouldn’t have had to wait this long to have you if I’d met you earlier.”
“Baby, there’s a whole fucking decade between us, this is when it was meant to happen.”
“You’re right,” she hums, sliding her fingers into my sweats, and I groan when she fists my cock, taking me out and using my precum to stroke me. Her eyes stay firmly on my cock, and I can practically read the desire in her eyes. “We should make up for lost time then.”
Fuck! She was a blushing virgin a mere day ago, and now she’s transformed into this siren. Christ, something tells me there is going to be a lot of making up to do, and just thinking about it sends a thrill through me. “I can’t fucking wait.”
I snap, dropping my hands to her ass and pulling her to the very edge of her stool. My eyes stay locked on hers as I guide my shaft to her drenched pussy, rubbing my cock over the valley of her sex until she’s writhing and moaning for my cock, and only then do I give her what we both want.
I slam my mouth hard on hers as I drive my cock into her pussy, muffling her cry with my mouth. Her channel ripples hard around me, and I am helpless, a man taken body and soul by this girl. My body, mind, and soul belong to only her.
“Mine,” I breathe against her mouth as I slam forward, rutting her hard, her back pressed to the kitchen counter. I’m an animal, feral in the way I take her, seeking her pleasure as desperately as I crave my own. She rakes my shoulders with her nails, sobbing with pleasure as she lets me take her in brutal thrusts in my kitchen, a place that will hold more of our memories for years to come. “I will only ever see you, princess. Popular or not, you’re the only girl I will ever see.”
Mine!
Our lovemaking turns brutal, and she’s like a damn wild cat as she scratches a trail down my shoulders, her pussy growing slicker with every violent thrust. Her sobs mingle with my groans as I piston in and out of her hot pussy, feeling her move closer and closer to the edge, and when she orgasms, it’s a breathtaking sight. She screams into my shoulder, her back arching as her inner walls lock hard around my cock, triggering my orgasm.
I come with a roar, one that tears out of my throat and leaves me hoarse. My muscles tense and release as I shoot my seed into her womb, black spots blooming behind my eyes and blurring my vision for long seconds. Her tight pussy pulses hotly around my cock, milking me to my last drop as I punch my hips forward, burying my seed deeper into her.
She’s still shaking in my arms when the storm calms, her breathing as labored as mine. Neither of us says a word for long moments as her head remains on my shoulder, and it’s not until my heart has ceased hammering in my chest that I push back to look at her, those beautiful blue eyes drowsy when they lock with mine.
“I’ve never felt anything remotely close to how I feel about you,” I confess. “I burn with the need to be around you, claim you in front of everyone so the entire world can see that you belong to me, and Christ, the jealousy. I hate every man that has ever looked your way. Anyone that has ever desired you.”
“Am I allowed to feel the same about all the girls that have done the same with you?”
“Yes,” I rasp, pushing a strand behind her ear. “But my attention, my focus will only ever belong to you. I will, without fail, get rid of anyone who gets in the way of that.” It isn’t a love confession, but it’s the closest I can come to one while so much remains uncertain. She’s in my arms now, but once the danger of her stalker is dealt with, will she want to leave me to return to her life in the city? A life that doubtless has little room for a man like me?
There’s only one way to know. First, I’ll have to deal with her stalker. Then we can talk about the future. But whatever happens, I know one thing beyond a doubt: I’m not letting her go.