so … sane. The kitchen lights make his pale skin glow. His dark hair is trendy. He’s so average-looking that meeting him on the street wouldn’t make me think twice.
But he’s in my house. He has to be a few cards short of a full deck.
My phone is still in my hand, but I’m scared if I dial 911, he’ll hear it and get to me before the cops can.
He runs a finger over my knife block which is one of those novelty things where it’s in the shape of a man and the knives sit through different parts of his body. “Thought it was funny.”
I swallow hard. “Ah, Evah actually bought that for me as a joke.”
He frowns. “I don’t know how I feel about that or how this is gonna work with her.”
This keeping calm thing is hard, but I try. “How what is going to work with her?”
My hands shake. I want to put them in my pockets to cover the trembling, but I need my phone to get me out of this. I need to alert someone without actually making a phone call or being obvious that I’m texting.
My finger hovers over the home button, and that’s when I remember the emergency function Gideon set up for me. If I tap the button three times fast, it’ll send Gideon a recording, my location, and photos.
I don’t do it yet. It only records a ten-second snippet, and I need to get this guy’s name or somehow record why he’s here so when Gideon gets the message, he understands I’m in danger. I don’t think I’ll be able to aim the camera part properly without him realizing what I’m doing, so the photo part won’t help me.
I itch to press the button—to get help—but I tell myself to breathe and calm down. I need to wait for the perfect moment for it to actually help.
“Well, when you told me tonight that Evah’s out of town, I thought that maybe … you were doing it to let us all know you were available. Then on your way out when you nodded to me to follow you, I almost told myself not to do it. You’re engaged, you know? It’s wrong for us to hook up.”
Okay, he’s not only psycho but goddamn delusional.
I do it—I hit the button on my phone three times and say, “So you followed me home from the concert.”
“Yeah.”
“How’d you get in here?”
His eyes widen, and I watch as his hand taps along the kitchen counter closer to the knives.
“Only because I was planning to come out and get you,” I say to appease him. “After my shower. Sorry I didn’t make that part clear.” I hope if this is still recording that Gideon can hear the edge in my voice.
Mr. Psycho lets out a loud breath. “I thought for a second I might have read this whole situation wrong.”
You think?
The phone vibrates in my hand, and it’s Gideon. He got the SOS message and is probably checking up on me instead of doing what I wanted him to do, which is call the LAPD.
I wonder if I can answer it without tipping this guy off. I move to put my phone in my pocket as casually as I can and hit the Answer button as I do.
“So, Evah’s away, I gestured for you to follow me, and when you got here, you …”
He chuckles. “I didn’t quite know what to do when you didn’t leave the gate unlocked for me. I looked for a side entrance or something and then saw the gate between your yard and the neighbor’s. It led me to the side of the house where the fence is lower, so I jumped it and went to your front door which was unlocked. It was easy.”
Fucking app.
The fact he finds nothing wrong with what he’s saying scares me most of all.
“Oh. Right.”
“What’s the deal with you and Evah, anyway? You’re allowed to hook up when you’re not together?”
I begin to think this is all a huge misunderstanding by a fan who thinks he knows me and is under the delusion we have a connection. It’s definitely not the first time that’s happened, though this is the first with a guy.
My heart pounds so hard my body must think I’m working out. I break into a sweat, and I worry he can see it running down my face.
I blink and try to remember what he asked. “Umm, no, Evah and I don’t have