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My throat tightens at that, and I swallow down the emotion clawing its way out. Cupping the back of his neck, I press a kiss to his forehead. “Me neither, baby. Now, grab your shoes. I’m not wasting another second without cameras surrounding every inch of this place.”

Ryder stares at me for a second, then nods. “Guess it’s time, huh?”

“Yes.” My voice is firm. “If he’s still out there watching us, I want to catch him. I want fucking concrete proof so we can end this and send his ass to jail.”

“Alright,” he agrees. “Let’s go. Fuck this guy.”

Hundreds of dollars later,we have everything we think we’ll need—or at least everything we can reasonably set up in my apartment. A doorbell camera for the front door, one to cover the balcony area, and a couple of indoor cameras to monitor the living room and the hallway leading to the bedrooms.

We also grabbed four additional cameras for Ryder’s house. Two motion-activated cameras with floodlights for the front and backyard, plus two indoor cameras to cover the entryway and the back door. I want every angle covered. If Kyle even thinks about lurking or breaking in again, we’ll catch him.

I felt a little better as we loaded up the cart, until we reached the checkout counter and the guy opened his mouth. He made some stupid jokes about us trying to set the world record for most paranoid couple, laughing like this was an over-the-top precaution instead of a desperate attempt to feel safe again.

I hate when strangers try to crack jokes, especially when they don’t realize they’re hitting a nerve. I’m sure he wasn’t trying to be an asshole, but the comments still made me irrationally angry all over again—and then I felt like I was the asshole. I must’ve shot him a look that screamed shut up, because after that, he cleared his throat, continued scanning, and told us to have a nice day.

All I’ve been today is angry, even now, as we’re unboxing the cameras, I’m furious at the situation. At Kyle. But mostly, at myself for not making sure the blinds were fully drawn.

Last night, I couldn’t think. It’s like naked Ryder makes it impossible to focus on anything but him. But knowing what I know now, I’d give anything to go back and rewind and make sure the night stayed ours.

I can’t even absorb the instructions I’m staring at, as I feel the weight of Ryder’s gaze on me. I don’t look up until I feel his hand on my chin, tilting my face to meet his.

“Logan, you’re blaming yourself, and I need you to stop.” His eyes search mine, and I swear he sees everything I’m feeling. “You think this is your fault, but it’s not. I promise you, it’s not.”

I swallow hard, my chest tightening, and I shake my head. “Ryder, I?—”

“No, babe. No.” His thumb brushes against my lips. “You’re carrying this weight, and you don’t have to. It’s not yours to carry. You did nothing wrong.”

“But—” I start, my voice breaking, but Ryder cuts me off again.

“You didn’t do this,” he says, more firmly now. “And yeah, maybe we should’ve checked the blinds, but we didn’t because we were in the moment, Lo. We wanted each other that badly, and I refuse to feel guilty about that. I won’tapologize for that. No part of me blames you, please believe that.”

I stare at him, wanting to believe him, and before I can say anything else, his lips are on mine. The kiss is soft, but it’s like he’s trying to help me understand how serious he is.

When we break apart, his beautiful brown eyes land on mine. “We’re going to get through this,” he promises. “But not if you keep tearing yourself apart over something you couldn’t control.”

I nod, the lump in my throat is making it impossible to speak.

20

RYDER

“What? For how long?” I try to keep the panic out of my voice.

Logan just got an email reminder for their company’s mandatory HR meeting tomorrow, and I somehow hate email even more now. It’s not a surprise—they do this every quarter—but with everything going on, we completely forgot it was coming up until the reminder hit his inbox.

We’ve been grateful they’ve let him work from home this whole time without complaint, but what meeting needs to happen in person at this point? They’re a creative agency for fucks sake, they all know how to do virtual meetings. There’s no reason Logan needs to sit in a meeting room and leave me here all alone.

This is the first time I’ll be alone since this whole nightmare with Kyle started, and I’m trying not to show how much that’s affecting me. As promised, Logan hasn’t left my side at all, and the thought of being separated from him makes my stomach churn, especially after the last email. It left me feeling so powerless, exposed, and utterly violated. That wasone of the most intimate moments of my life, and the fact that Kyle saw it makes my skin crawl.

That video was proof that no matter how safe we thought we were by locking ourselves in the apartment, he’s still steps ahead, and he’s not giving up. And his idea that I need saving from Logan, of all people, is laughable. All I need is for him to excuse himself from our lives forever.

But if there’s one thing I’m sure of, it’s that he’snevergoing to come between Logan and me. Ever. All he’s managed to do is push us closer, and I don’t think he even realizes it. After everything that’s happened lately, I’m positive Logan is my future. There’s no world where we don’t end up together.

“Usually, they’re about two or so hours, so I’ll probably be gone three-ish hours,” Logan says, breaking through my thoughts. “I won’t stick around any longer than I need to. I’ll do what I need to do and come back home to you as fast as I can, I promise.”

Being apart from Logan was something I knew I’d have to face eventually, but now that it’s happening, I’m not ready for it. It’s probably irrational and unhealthy to need him this much, but the moment he said he had to leave, I felt panic start to set in. I’m not ready to be without him.

“I don’t like leaving you here alone,” he adds, like he can sense what’s going through my head.