Page 24 of Playing with Forever (Players Club Sinners #1)

Most people would have responded to that with something like, oh, that’s nice .

Not Chase. His gaze narrowed as he stared after Brandon as he walked to his own car, sizing up the other man, watching him the entire time—as if he was silently letting Brandon know that he was staking a claim on me, which I found secretly hot.

Once Brandon was in his vehicle and pulling out of the parking lot, Chase finally returned his attention back to me.

His concerned gaze searched my face. “You okay?”

I tipped my head. “Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?”

He gently tucked a strand of hair behind my ear, and I wondered if he realized how sweet and intimate that gesture was to me. “It’s annoying as hell, getting a flat.”

“It is,” I agreed with a sigh. “I’d probably be more upset if I was late to something I couldn’t change, like a concert. Thank you for being flexible.”

“Of course. We have all night.” Chase walked up to the back of my car, with me following behind. “Okay, let’s get this tire switched out for you.”

I popped the trunk so he could retrieve the jack, tire iron, and spare. He brought all the items to the front of my car, then squatted down to inspect my tire as he prepared to pull it off. I saw the moment his entire body froze, his jaw clenching tight as he grit out, “ fuck .”

“What?” I asked, confused by his response and peering closer from over his shoulder. “What’s wrong?”

Chase glanced up at me, something sharp in his gaze, and then he rotated the tire a bit so I could see what had captured his attention. “Someone sliced the tire with a knife,” he said quietly.

Shock rippled through me as I saw the long, thin gash. There was no way that had happened from me driving over something like a nail.

“You couldn’t have been driving the car when this happened. It’s too deep and the tire would’ve deflated immediately. Someone did it while your vehicle was parked here.”

Chase stood back up and looked around, inspecting the parking lot, then the building in front of us, his gaze locking on the security camera aimed our way. “Where’s the security office? I want to inspect the video feed from today to see who the fuck did this.”

The knowledge that someone had intentionally slashed my tire made me feel as though I was going to throw up. “I-I’ll show you.”

Chase accompanied me there, anger vibrating off of him as he asked to view the surveillance video, only to be told, sheepishly, by the security officer on duty that the security cameras trained on the parking lot had crapped out about a month ago and hadn’t been replaced.

The rage that burned in Chase’s eyes when he realized there was no recorded evidence of who might have damaged my tire immediately wiped that stupid look off the other man’s face.

“Your boss is going to be hearing from me,” Chase said to him, his voice cold and cutting and furious. “This security system is going to get a major upgrade soon or I will personally make the lives of everyone in charge here a living hell.”

Normally I would have pulled Chase aside to calm him down, but honestly, I was too busy trying not to cry. Someone had slashed my tire, but why? Who would want to strand me like that? Who would dislike me that much?

I wrapped my arms around my mid-section, remembering that feeling of being watched a few weeks ago and felt even more nauseous. Was someone really after me?

Obviously we weren’t going to the club that night. Chase reported the incident to the cops and an officer came by to take our statements and took pictures of the deliberately damaged tire.

“They can’t do anything right now,” Chase said, his tone scathing. “But a paper trail is vital when the time comes to press charges.”

He sounded so confident that he’d find whoever did this.

I was less sure. I didn’t have any enemies that I knew of—and it was even scarier to think that it could even be someone I didn’t know, just some random person who’d selected me as their next victim.

I’d watched enough crime documentaries with Violet to know these things occurred…

but you always thought they happened to someone else.

I had forgotten that we’re all ‘someone else’ to someone else.

I stood off to the side as Chase changed the tire once the police officer left. I wasn’t sure what to do now. Just go home, I supposed, but when I thought about doing that, I remembered that feeling I’d had of being watched outside of our place.

A horrible shiver crept down my spine. I didn’t know what to do with this emotion—this feeling that I wasn’t safe.

“We’re heading to your place to pack a bag,” Chase said once he’d swapped out the tire and put everything else away in the trunk.

I stared at him in confusion. “Pack a bag? For what?”

He jammed his hands on his hips. “First you tell me that you think you’re being watched and followed, and now this. You’re staying with me until we figure out what the fuck is going on, and that is not up for debate.”

His tone brook no argument, and for once I had no desire to disagree.

Relief swept over me because I realized I wasn’t alone in this situation.

I had someone who wanted to protect me, and who had the skills to do so.

I had no doubt that Violet would beat the shit out of someone in a heartbeat for me but she wasn’t used to dealing with this kind of unknown threat.

Chase was an expert. This was literally his job.

And I trusted him with my life.