You Belong With Me: Book One in the Dangerous Beginnings Trilogy by Arianna Pryor

Author:Arianna Pryor [Pryor, Arianna]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Independent
Published: 2023-12-31T16:00:00+00:00

29

Chapter Twenty Nine

Alana

The buzzing of my phone in my pocket distracts me as we leave. There’s an incoming text from an unknown number, and a chill creeps up my spine.

UNKNOWN:

You really shouldn’t be out with other men, Alana. Being a slut doesn’t suit you.

I bristle at the insult, and the hair on the back of my neck stands at attention. How would anyone know I’m with Andreas? The only people I told were Ashley and Ricole, and they wouldn’t ever write something so cruel, not even as a joke. With all the strange things happening lately, I immediately feel nauseous. My vision swims with the tears I’m now trying to hold back. A firm grip around my waist brings me back to the moment.

“Alana, are you okay? You look like you’re about to faint.” I can hear the concern in Andreas’ voice as he questions me. I look up at him, still holding back tears, and turn my phone screen toward him so that he can read the text message.

Andreas’ eyes squint, and his brow furrows. “Is this the first text message you’ve received, or have there been others?”

“This isn’t the first. I think I’ve gotten one before. It wasn’t rude, though. Just weird.”

We walk along the sidewalk outside the restaurant, and my eyes shift around to see if anyone looks suspicious. Nothing is out of the ordinary, and I don’t recognize anyone. When I look over, I see Andreas is also surveying our surroundings.

He hooks his elbow through mine as we walk.

“Relax,” he orders. My shoulders sink. All the tension we had built up flirting with each other over drinks has dissipated. My weird secret admirer ruined the moment, and no amount of teasing is going to heighten it to those levels again, at least not this evening.

“I wish I knew who was messing with me. I feel like I have to be on high alert constantly. It’s stressing me out. I haven’t even mentioned we were meeting to anyone other than my best friends from back home, so there’s no way anyone could say I was with another man unless they saw us.” Sighing, I say, “I’m sorry my weird life put a damper on our evening. I feel like shit now.”

Andreas stops and steps off into an alleyway to the right of us. The tall buildings give us a semblance of privacy to the hustle and bustle of Monday evening shoppers.

“Don’t do that. Do not blame yourself. You have done nothing to warrant this type of behavior, and I don’t want to hear you apologize on behalf of someone else. Do you understand me? And trust me, nothing could extinguish the way you taking your panties off for me makes me feel.”

His clipped tone showcases how serious he is. Listening to him say none of this is my fault makes me feel better. I wonder if I should mention my door being open last night. I don’t know if anyone went into my apartment, but with everything else going on, it seems possible.

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