As Brody collapsed beside her and pulled her into his arms, she realized she'd made a terrible mistake.
One time wouldn't be enough with him. She wanted more. She wanted forever.
But she had to remember this was Brody, the man who could never give her what she needed from him.
He was the one man she couldn't afford to love.
But she also couldn't leave him either. Not now. Not until she was safe.
Last time, after she'd fallen for him, she'd left.
But this time, she couldn’t run.
This time, she had to stay.
Brody felt Tatum tense immediately, and he swore silently as fear ripped through him. She wanted to leave again. He could feel it in the tension in her body, in the way she held her breath, in the way she kept her gaze focused on the ceiling instead of him.
He couldn’t screw this up again. He had to keep her steady until he could find a way to untangle the past that had tripped them up so badly.
He wanted to tell her how much he'd missed her. How she still shook his world. And a thousand other things.
But he didn't.
He knew he had to play it cool. Distract her. "Did you call anyone to let them know you haven't been kidnapped?"
She shook her head, still tense. "No. I don't know anyone's number. They're all in my phone. Listen, Brody—"
"Isn't there anyone that will alert the police that you're missing? The police will find you if they want."
For a moment, she didn't respond, then he saw her forehead furrow in thought. "Victoria and Ace will worry. But I don't have their numbers. They're in my phone."
"Social media?"
She looked over at him. "I don't have my login info. I literally have nothing with me." She frowned. "That's so weird to be completely cut off from my life." She paused. "It actually feels kind of good. I've been accountable to others every second of my life since I was eighteen."
He grinned. "I hate accountability. I get that. So, let's call someone so the police don't hunt you down."
She bit her lip, then brightened. "My bass player's husband has an advertising agency. I can look that up."
"Great." He unlocked his phone and handed it to her.
Her fingers brushed against his, and she shot a look at him as she took the phone. She pulled the covers over her chest and turned away as she looked up the company online.
Brody took the opportunity to grab his pants. It went against every part of him to pretend they hadn't just made love, but he could tell how tense she was, and he knew he had to back off. There would be a right time, but it wasn't now.
She glanced over at him as he got dressed. "Hi, Jackson O'Hare please. This is Tatum Crosby. I know he's out of town. Please connect me. Thanks." She put the phone on speaker and set it on the bed as she grabbed his shirt.
Brody handed her Bella's sweatshirt. "This might fit you better. It's all I could find. We'll get you clothes today."
"This is fine." She continued to button his shirt, not noticing his relief that she'd chosen his shirt instead of Bella's. She was halfway through the buttons when a man's voice came on the phone.
"Tatum! Where the hell are you? We're so worried! What happened?"
Brody could hear the panic in the man's voice, and it made him smile. As scared and solo as Tatum was, she had at least one person who legitimately cared about her.
Tatum finished buttoning the bottom button. "I'm fine. I'm with a friend."
"What friend? How do you know it's a friend? We're your friends!"
"I know you are." Tatum glanced at Brody. "But I don't want anyone to know where I am."
"Fine, we won't tell. Where are you?"
"Jackson," she said as she looked around the bed. "I think my stalker has been hired, or at least given help, by someone inside our team. He almost got me after the show."
There was silence for a moment. "Holy shit, Tatum. You're serious? You think it's Donny?"
"I don't know. But I'm not coming back until I figure it out." She paused. "It was close, Jackson. He broke my arm when I was fighting him." Her voice became tense again, and she hugged her cast to her chest.
Brody ground his jaw as he found the sweatpants she'd been wearing and handed them to her. He didn't like her scared. He didn't like her in danger.
"Holy shit, Tatum," Jackson said. "You need to call the police."
"I will." She rolled out of bed, and the shirt slid up just enough to reveal a long expanse of thigh that made Brody suck in his breath. "Tell people I'm fine, but that I'm taking a break. Tell them not to look for me. Don't tell them why."
"Where are you staying? I need to know how to reach you."
She looked at Brody and raised her brows.
Brody found her underwear and handed it to her, grinning when her cheeks turned pink. "I'm Tatum's friend she's staying with," he said, leaning over the phone.
There was a pause. "A man? You're with a man? What male friend do you have? Are you safe? Who are you? Tatum, give me the secret code to tell me you're safe."
"We don't have a secret code," she said as she slid her foot through the scrap of silk. "Relax. It's fine. I've known him for almost fifteen years."
"Fifteen years? Who have you known for fifteen years?"
"Jackson, you're a good friend to Tatum," Brody interrupted. "I appreciate that you're looking out for her, but I promise I'll keep her safe. I'll give you a phone number. Call it, leave a message for Tatum, and she'll get it. Got a pen?"
"Oh, holy shit, Tatum! You said last night at the show that you hadn't seen Brody Hart for fifteen years. Are you with him?"
Tatum's eyes widened as she finished pulling her underwear on, and she looked at Brody.
He swore under his breath. They'd screwed up.
Tatum bit her lip. "Jackson. Listen to me. I don't know how much danger I'm in, or who on my team is responsible for it. You can't tell anyone. You can't trust anyone." She sat back on the bed and hugged her knees to her chest. "Not even Ace."
There was silence. "He's my husband, Tatum."
"I know, but he works with them. If he sees Victoria freaking out, he'll want to reassure her. And if he tells her, then she might tell someone, and—"
"No. You knew when you called me that I would tell Ace anything you said. You know he's not the one responsible. If you think someone on the team is responsible, then we can keep an eye out. Help. He won't tell Victoria if you don't want him to." He paused. "I'm going to call him and tell him the minute we get off the phone, so you can either be on board or not."
Tatum looked up at Brody, questions on her face.
He hit mute on the phone. "Do you trust him and Ace?"
She nodded. "I do, but what if I'm wrong?"
"Then we'll know it's them. We'll put out a trail of breadcrumbs and see who follows." Brody unmuted the phone. "Jackson?"
"Yeah."
"This is Brody Hart."