Chapter 46

Jamie Siegel smiled wickedly. She leaned forward and said, “There’s a guy eyeballing you like you wouldn’t believe.”

Jamie was Joplin’s best friend at work. The J&J twins, as their supervisor liked to call them, on that day had decided to walk to a bistro four blocks from the office. The place had a golden beet salad to die for, and Joplin had been jonesing for it all morning.

“Is he worth a look?” Joplin asked.

She was still thinking about Rosalyn. The idea of having a fling with the pretty and petite woman from the gym was both exciting and off-putting. There was definitely an attraction, and she hadn’t closed the door on the possibility, but she hadn’t decided yet to open that door all the way either so she could step through it. If there was a hot guy showing heavy interest, why not consider it?

“He might be,” Jamie said. “Thirties, blond, preppy. Looks like he’s in shape.” She giggled. “He could give you a good cardio workout.”

A sickening feeling overwhelmed Joplin. Was it possible the creep had followed her to work and now to the bistro?

Jamie gave her a concerned look. She reached across the table and touched her hand. “It’s just some dude licking his chops. Come on, Joplin, what’s there to get so upset about?”

She sat paralyzed, as if any movement, especially looking behind her, would be impossible. Then a hot white anger flashed within her, directed equally at herself and at the man who might be the creep. It pissed her off that she’d give anyone that kind of power over her.

She was barely aware of looking over her shoulder and seeing that it was in fact the creep from this morning. The next thing she knew, she was on her feet and storming over to where the creep named Dale was sitting.

“Oh, hi,” he said, a grin breaking over his face as if they were actually friends. “So it is you.”

“You’re stalking me,” she accused.

He made a face, as if he couldn’t understand why she’d say that. “What? No, of course not.” The bastard winked at her. “I was minding my own business when I quite innocently spotted you, or at least someone who I thought might be the same infuriatingly rude but foxy-as-hell babe from the gym. Sweetheart, that’s all that happened.”

“I know what you did,” she said, her voice sounding strange to her own ears, as if it were coming from someone else. “I know you followed me here so you could spy on me. I know you’re nothing more than a creep who gets his jollies trying to frighten women like me.”

“You’re so wrong,” he said. “I was looking your way only because I was trying to figure out if you were really the same person from before. I thought if you were it would be kismet, like maybe we were meant to be.” He frowned at that. “It turns out I couldn’t have been more wrong.”

Her eyes narrowed as she stared at him. The bastard was actually trying to act as if he were the aggrieved party. Without realizing it, her hands had clenched into tight fists, her knuckles bone white.

“You leave here now or I’ll scream,” she said.

“Sweetheart, you need help.”

“Don’t test me.”

He looked away from her, trying to act as if she wasn’t there.

“Leave me alone, you creep!” she screamed as loudly as she could.

That surprised the creep named Dale, and he appeared startled, as if that was the last thing he expected her to do. She felt immense satisfaction from his reaction. Then his expression changed, becoming something savage. His true self showing through. It only lasted a heartbeat, if even that long, but it caused Joplin to stumble several steps back from the table.

He was quickly on his feet, his wallet out. He flung a couple of twenties onto the table, then he was moving fast toward Joplin. She would’ve screamed again, except she was too frightened. He didn’t come at her to strike her, but so he could lean in and whisper something into her ear. After that he was rushing past her and out of the restaurant.

Oh my God. Did that really just happen?

The waitress and Jamie hurried over to Joplin. Her friend took hold of her hand.

“Sweetie, you’re as cold as ice. Are you okay?”

She struggled to fight back tears. What the creep had whispered left her shaking.