Come Back to Me

Chapter 19: Present Day

"Jesus Christ, Noah!"

My heart was racing, my breath coming in short gasps as I threw the comforter aside and leaped up.

"I thought you heard me. I called your name when I came in." He glanced around before flipping the switch on the wall. "Why are you in the dark?"

"I wasn't when I fell asleep. What time is it?"

"A little before seven, I think." He looked at me, then his bed, and then back at me. "You were sleeping in my bed?"

"Yeah. So?" I huffed and crossed my arms over my chest, wanting to smack the grin off his beautiful face. "Where have you been?"

"Working." His hazel eyes trailed over my face and narrowed. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. It was nothing."

"It's not nothing. How'd that asshole get your cell number?"

My irritation was obvious, wanting to talk about anything else. "How am I supposed to know? I asked him the same thing."

"What did he say?"

"A bunch of creepy shit that made me wish he was dead."

"Did he give anything away about where he might be? Did he know you were in Boston?"

I sank back onto the bed, shaking my head and rubbing my temples. "No. Nothing."

"Greg has been notified and is currently filling in the Boston police department with everything he knows."

"Greg hasn't been returning my phone calls, so please fill me in on what he's sharing because the last I heard, he knew nothing."

"Which is why I hired a private detective to look into Stephen."

"You have? When?" I jumped back up. "Has he found anything?"

He crossed his arms and leaned on the door frame. "Nothing interesting. Other than the fact that no one named Stephen Laughlin was ever employed by any school in Houston or the surrounding areas."

"What?"

Noah opened his mouth to repeat himself and I shoved a hand out to stop him. "I heard you. I just can't believe it. He said he was a geometry teacher."

"Not in the state of Texas."

Defeated and feeling freaked out again, I covered my face with my hands. "I really am a moron."

"No, Reggie, don't even start thinking any of this is your fault. It's not. It's Stephen's."

"If that's even his real name!"

Straightening, he picked up on my new level of panic. "Then we'll find out what his name is and track him down."

Sick of feeling helpless and afraid, I fell back on my default emotion when Noah was around.

"And where were you?" I shouted.

"Careful," he chided, stepping further into his room. He tossed his coat casually on the chair. "You're starting to sound a little like a jealous girlfriend. I think there's a few things we need to talk about before we take our relationship to that level."

"You're not funny," I mumbled, recognizing he was attempting to distract me.

He stepped even closer to me. "You used to think I was hilarious."

"Well, a lot has changed. I've changed."

Noah said nothing. Just stared down at me, eyes raking over my tangled hair and my flushed face. "Yes, you have."