Chapter 20 Sebastian
SEBASTIAN
I have no idea what I’m doing.
But I’m doing it anyway.
After spending the entire day being distracted by Ivy, I left work and headed to the nearest sporting goods store. I purchased a black hoodie, a pair of sweatpants, boots, and a pair of binoculars.
And now, here I am, crouched along the row of hedges near Ivy’s back patio, watching her move through the house through my binoculars.
Maybe this is a bit much, but I can’t help it.
Not after seeing her sitting with Aaron, laughing in a way I’d never seen her do with me.
Not after watching her leave the café without a backward glance.
The irony that I’m stalking my stalker isn’t lost on me.
But as they say, it is what it is.
Besides, she forced me into this. She should be at my house, fixing dinner.
But when I texted Drew and he asked whether my stalker was coming over to make dinner or if he should order pizza, I knew the game had changed.
I tense as she opens the patio door and comes outside. My chest tightens when I see her wearing my sweatshirt over a pair of leggings.
She hasn’t gotten me out of her system.
My pulse races, and my dick grows hard. I don’t know why I like seeing her in my clothing, but it makes me hot.
She heads to the trash can and tosses the bag inside. Something flies out and lands on the ground. She bends over to retrieve it, and I nearly groan aloud.
Down, boy. I wince, shifting slightly to adjust my junk, the other hand still holding the binoculars… Get them off her ass.
She closes the lid and heads back inside, closing the door behind her. She doesn’t linger to turn the lock.
Of course she doesn’t.
Part of me is glad, while the other part wants to give her hell. What if that jackass, Silas, came after her again? Hell, the guy didn’t even have a drink at the bar before trying to drag her out to his car. Imagine if he were drunk—
My hands are curled so tightly around the binoculars, I’m surprised I haven’t snapped them in half.
Blowing out a breath, I crack my neck, waiting for the tension to leave.
The light goes on in an upstairs bedroom, and I see her through the window. She moves around the room, hanging up clothing in her closet and drawers.
The urge to move closer hits me hard.
Under the cover of darkness, I stealthily move to the other side of the house, watching her. She’s oblivious to me staring at her through the window.
I see some photos hanging from a bulletin board hanging on the wall. I lift my binoculars, catching my own face staring back at me as I put an envelope in the mailbox. When the hell did she take that?
I’m not surprised. It’s Ivy, after all.
The light goes off, and she goes back downstairs. I move toward the patio door, listening as she hums and begins making herself some tea. She yawns as she grabs a mug from the cabinet.
Poor girl. Sneaking into my room at night has made her tired.
I’m aware I’m crazy for having sympathy that my stalker is tired. But she’s a harmless one. Mostly.
Just that one incident where she misunderstood the woman in my house, and Ivy became possessive.
I’ve never told anyone, but I liked the way she claimed me.
I still do, or else I wouldn’t be creeping around her patio in the dark, pissed off that another man was showing her attention.
Fucker. Aaron seems like a nice guy, but I don’t trust him.
Not with her.
Ivy’s too… innocent.
She takes her mug of tea and moves to the living room.
I follow, staying on the backside of the house toward the woods, watching as she sits down and turns on the TV.
She flips through the streaming services until she finds something she wants to watch, then leans back and sips her tea, pulling the blanket from the back of the couch onto her lap.
She sets her mug on the table beside her, eyes growing heavy. I watch her nod off, then wake up from the noise of the television.
She does it two more times before she stretches out, her head on the pillow.
Within minutes, she’s asleep.
I wait a few more beats, trying to talk myself out of what I’m about to do.
My hand is on the doorknob, turning it. It opens, and I’m inside, the warmth of the kitchen blanketing me.
I silently move to the living room. Her lips are slightly parted, cheeks pink, breathing steady. She looks so damn cute curled up on the couch in my sweatshirt.
Moments pass. I’m not sure how much time goes by while I stand there, staring down at my beautiful stalker.
I should leave. But I don’t.
Instead, I make sure the flash is off and snap a few pictures of her.
Pocketing my phone, I creep up the stairs, moving to her bedroom.
Once inside, I use my phone’s flashlight to guide me to the bulletin board. It’s covered in photos of me.
I smirk, shaking my head slightly, as I examine the images she’s captured. At home, at work, during my lunch breaks, stretching after a run, and asleep in my bed. All of it laid out like a collage of my boring life.
Something twists in my chest. I look… lonely.
No wonder she started watching me.
I push the thought away, irritated with myself.
I don’t get lonely. It’s self-imposed.
I hear movement downstairs, and my heart pounds. I use the flashlight to exit her room, then turn it off. Staying in the shadows, I move down the hallway to the top of the stairs.
I peer down. She’s still asleep, but she’s shifted so that she’s curled into a ball on her side.
The silence of the house surrounds me as I soundlessly slip down the stairs.
As I get closer to her, the movie on the TV mixes with her heavy breathing.
Sympathy rolls through me again. She’s alone in this huge house.
She could be over at my house, but she’s not.
And for the first time, a real sense of worry goes through me. What if she were to get involved with Aaron? She’d spend all her time with him—and none with me.
I lean over her, my fingers lightly grazing her cheek. She whimpers, leaning into my touch.
I can’t lose you, Ivy. I just… can’t.
“See you soon,” I whisper, before withdrawing my hand.
As I head through the kitchen, my fingers are still tingling from touching her. Her vanilla and sugar scent is embedded in my nostrils.
I glance back at her before opening the door, twisting the lock, and stepping outside into the cold air.
I head through the garden toward the woods. It’s a long way to where I parked my car, but I couldn’t risk my brother seeing it and questioning where I was.
Once inside my garage, I quickly change back into my work clothes and head into my house.
The game has changed, Ivy. Now I’m watching you.
And I’m not letting you go that easily.