Chapter Nineteen
Gemma
Two finds me in Alexander’s office and it’s like we’ve been apart a lifetime. With a barely stifled squeal, I rush over to him and throw my arms around his neck. He grabs my ass and lifts me, encouraging me to wrap my legs around him too. His pleased grin warms me from head to toe.
“Missed me, huh?”
“Kinda.” I run my fingers through his messy hair. “Did you miss me?”
“Who are you again?”
I roll my eyes and huff, but he chases away my annoyance with a starved kiss that has me forgetting my own name. When we finally pull back for air, he gives me a dopey smile that makes my heart melt.
“Yeah, I missed you, Golden.”
Paula’s voice can be heard nearby, which is the only reason we pry ourselves apart. I doubt she’d be too thrilled to have us making out on her watch. That’s not what we’re here for.
“What are we doing today aside from stealing kisses whenever we can?” I point toward the bookcase. “We can look for more hidden artifacts if you want.”
Two seems eager to do just that because he starts tapping on book spines, clearly hoping to get lucky finding a hollow one. As he does his thing, I stand back and inspect the massive bookcase that takes up the entire wall.
There’s just something about this bookcase that keeps stealing my focus.
I know there’s something here.
More artifacts or letters hidden away in empty books?
While Two continues his search, I step out of Alexander’s office to explore the space next door. It’s a simple, narrow room that’s currently being used as a catch-all for boxes and Christmas decor.
The room on the other side of that one is a sitting room with furniture hidden beneath sheets. This room is larger and more like Alexander’s office in size.
But something feels off.
Hemingford Hall is full of secrets, so I’m learning to let my gut lead the way. Right now, it’s telling me to go back to the second room. I inspect the walls and ceiling before checking both the third room and Alexander’s office.
There’s at least a six-foot thickness between the office and the catch-all room.
A hidden room?
I walk back into Alexander’s office and begin inspecting each bookshelf for a hidden latch or knob, starting with the far end by the windows. Two, equally engrossed in his task, ignores me as he pulls books and reshelves them with efficient speed. I skip past him to check the other shelves. When I reach the last one and find nothing, I let out a sigh.
Maybe I’m imagining it.
“What’s wrong?” Two asks as he saunters over to me, eyes narrowed. “What did you see?”
“It’s what I didn’t see.” I blow a strand of hair away from my face. “There’s a space between this room and the next one. I think it’s a hidden area.”
His eyes light up. “Seriously?”
As though he has to confirm it himself, he leaves me to inspect the other room. Then he strides back in, a huge grin on his face.
“You’re brilliant,” he murmurs, capturing my face in his hands. “So fucking brilliant.”
Our hunt is soon forgotten as he crashes his lips to mine once more. I climb my Two tree again, happy to hang onto him like a koala. As our kiss heats up, he leans my back on the bookshelves.
That are collapsing under our weight.
I suck in a sharp gasp of air as I fall backward, him on top of me. The bookshelves didn’t collapse. I think we just found the door to the room.
We both scramble to our feet, aware that we’ve uncovered a dark, dusty hidden space. Two pushes on the bookshelves that seem to pivot on some sort of rolling mechanism. It clicks softly into place, bathing us in complete darkness.
“What if there’s a dead body in here?” I hiss, shivering at the prospect.
Dim light from Two’s phone shines on his face. “That’d be unfortunate but also quite an interesting find.”
I snort because he’d find that interesting. He mashes the flashlight button on his phone while I pull mine out of my pocket.
“Holy shit,” he mutters.
By the time I get my own flashlight on, he’s stepped ahead of me into the narrow passage. The area can’t be any bigger than six feet wide and twelve feet long. The ceiling is the same height as the other rooms.
It’s what this room contains that makes it so interesting.
“There’s a bed,” Two states, shining his light on the small, ancient, rumpled bed. “Were prisoners kept here?”
I push past him to discover a small table beside the single bed with an oil lamp on top. When I try the drawer, I discover it’s locked.
“Need a key?”
I turn to catch Two’s delighted grin as he wiggles the key he’s been carrying around with him ever since he found it in one of the false books on the bookshelves. He’s tried every lock in this building. Every lock except this one.
He hands me the key and I make quick work of opening the drawer. Inside, I find a stack of letters, written on brittle paper from another time period.
E,
You are everything to me.
A
Oh my God.
“I knew it,” I shriek, turning to show Two the top letter. “They were lovers!”
He studies the letter, eyes widening. “This was their…”
“Love nest.”
Finding this hidden room where the two men kept their biggest secret feels surreal. My heart aches at the thought of them hiding their love from everyone around them.
“We can’t put this in our project,” Two mutters under his breath.
“Why not?”
“Some secrets are meant to stay hidden.”
Though I disagree, I don’t argue. I like the idea of just the two of us knowing it exists. Maybe Paula and Gregory do too, but they never mentioned it before.
We continue to inspect the small space until footsteps can be heard approaching.
“Dinner’s ready! Where’d you two go?” Paula calls out from close by. “Attic?”
My eyes meet Two’s and he covers his lips with a finger, signaling me to be quiet. I give him a nod and remain still as we wait.
As soon as she’s been gone for a few moments, we scramble to find our way out of the room. It’s as simple as pushing on the right side and the bookshelf unhooks from its latch in the middle, swinging like one of those rotating doors you see at the airport. Once we’re back in Alexander’s room with the shelf pushed into place, we share a knowing grin.
We just made an awesome discovery.
Together.
It’s late by the time Paula kicks us out. Neither me nor Two is eager to leave after what we found earlier, but it’s not like we have a choice. Once outside in the chilly night air, Two takes my hand in his, squeezing it.
This whirlwind between us keeps growing in intensity. It makes me wonder if this is how Willa felt when she started seeing Callum. Or if Dempsey felt consumed by Sloane like I do Two.
My thoughts are on Two’s ravenous kisses making the cold much more bearable. But also, because of it, I completely forgot about my stalker.
Until now.
A bone-chilling shudder ripples through me when I see a yellow flower quivering in the wind, barely pinned by my wiper blade. Beneath it, sits a small, torn off piece of paper with a note for me written in neat, black scrawl. Two snatches it up and holds it where we can both read it.
I hope it’s not too late. From what I’ve gathered, you’re still very much an innocent. However, with each second that passes, you’re getting closer to losing that precious innocence because of that boy. I wasn’t ready to have you as my beloved guest yet, but perhaps I need to move up my timeline.
Whoever wrote this must be privy to me and Two’s budding romance. Are they watching our every move? Is it someone I know or a complete stranger?
It’s not until Two gathers me in a fierce hug that I realize I’m trembling. He murmurs sweet assurances against my hair as he rubs my back. I melt in his embrace, thankful to have him on my side.
“We’re going to find out who this fucker is,” Two tells me vehemently. “He’s not taking you anywhere. Ever.”
I wasn’t ready to have you as my beloved guest yet, but perhaps I need to move up my timeline.
Bile creeps up my throat. This person is unhinged. Do they mean they’re preparing a place for me? Some hidden room like the one behind Alexander’s office for them to have me whenever they want?
“I’m scared,” I admit, blinking back tears.
“Me too, Golden. Me too.”
I’ve been on edge all week. Aside from the threatening note my stalker left on my car Monday night, it’s been crickets ever since. Two, true to his word, has stuck by my side whenever I’m not at home. I’ve been tempted to let my guard down a few times, but then the thought of being someone’s prisoner always finds a way to creep its way back into my head. Even my job is suffering as I’ve been apprehensive about freely putting myself out there for the world to see—for my stalker to see.
“What the hell, Gem!”
Dempsey bursts into my bedroom, huffing with fury. I shrink into my covers, my heart clawing its way up my throat with the jump scare he just gave me.
“I was almost asleep,” I bite out, squinting against the lamplight when he turns it on. “Why are you here? It’s late.”
Two went out with Dax this evening, so I was left to be bored out of my skull all night, hence my going to bed early.
“I’m here,” he grits out as he sits on the edge of my bed, “because Sloane told me you have a goddamn stalker.”
I knew it was only a matter of time before she let that one slip.
“I’m handling it,” I hiss. “Keep your voice down or our parents will want to know what’s going on.”
Dempsey’s nostrils flare. “Oh, they know something’s going on because I just bust through the front door looking for you.”
I scramble to sit upright and smack his shoulder. “You can’t tell them!”
“Why the hell not?” he demands.
“Because you know how Dad gets. He won’t ever let me out of the house.”
“Maybe you need to be locked away where it’s safe!”
Gaping at him, I sputter, “Seriously? You’re going to take his side? Since when?”
“Since the threat of you getting kidnapped. For fuck’s sake, Gem!”
“No one is kidnapping me.” I dart my gaze to my doorway to make sure my parents aren’t there. “Plus, your fiancée is investigating.”
“It’s probably that freak at your school,” Dempsey says, eyes narrowing on me. “What’s his name again?”
“It’s not him.”
“Your problems started when he came into the picture!”
“Demps, it’s not Two.”
“Two. That’s right. Who the fuck is this guy anyway?” He pulls out his phone. “I’m going to look him up. What’s his last name?”
I knock his phone out of his hand and onto my bed. “It’s not Two.”
“How the hell do you know for sure?”
“Because he’s my…he’s my…” I bite on my bottom lip and then cringe. “Boyfriend?”
Dempsey stills, cocking his head to the side. “Since when do you have a boyfriend? And why do you say it like it’s a question?”
“It’s…we’re…” I sigh heavily. “Complicated.”
“Because he’s hiding something?”
Yes.
“No,” I rush out. “It just is. Can you leave it be?”
He gapes at me like I’ve lost my mind. “There’s someone leaving notes for you, threatening to take you, and then you drop a boyfriend bomb on me when you’ve legit never dated anyone before. I’m supposed to just let all this be? Fuck that. I want to meet this guy so I can vet him myself.”
How did this go from the stalker being the problem to Two being the problem?
“Fine,” I rush out. “You can meet him. As far as the stalker, I’m handling it. Just don’t involve our parents. Please, Dempsey. I’m begging you. I’ll never get to leave the house and I…” I trail off. “I really like Two. If I don’t get to see him, I’ll be miserable.”
Dempsey scowls. “Did you have sex with him?”
“What? No! Why do you even care?”
“Because we don’t know anything about this guy,” he growls. “He could be using you.”
“Get out,” I snap, thrusting a finger at my door. “I’m done talking about this. If you breathe a word of it to our parents, you’re dead to me.”
He flinches at my words, clearly stung by them. Well, I’m stung too. I don’t appreciate being woken up getting the third degree.
“Promise me you’ll be careful. I’ll back away as long as you promise me that.”
I relax and give him a nod. “I promise. Now what’s our cover story for you bursting in here so late?”
Dempsey flashes me a devious grin. “I’ll just tell them I didn’t know where pregnancy tests are sold and thought you might know.”
“You’re a dick on so many levels.”
“It’d be kind of funny to see Mom’s face twist into one of horror imagining me already knocking her best friend up.”
“You haven’t really knocked her up, though, right?”
“Fuck no. A puppy is hard as hell. A baby? That sounds like torture.”
He ruffles my hair, making it all go in my face and earning an agitated sigh from me before he saunters out of the room.
I wasn’t lying when I told him I’d be careful.
If it means spending all my time with Two or Dempsey or my parents to keep me safe, I will. I just want to have options. If Dad finds out, I’ll have none.