“Sure.” Sarah followed her and planted herself at one end of the leather couch.
“What did the FBI say?” Cami asked, sitting in the oversized chair next to Sarah and setting her drink on the table between them. “I mean, Jonathan must be pretty shaken if the FBI is involved.”
“They said it was a woman and that she’s been in the guesthouse before.” Sarah didn’t want to go into detail about how they knew the woman had been in the house. “It’s probably an ex or a hookup of Jon’s, though he said he hasn’t really had any hookups since he moved in here. It’s probably Mia Thompson. I’d like to catch her red-handed with one of the stalker notes.”
“You seem so cavalier about this whole thing. What’s wrong with you?”
“It bothers me. I bring a bodyguard with me when I go out, but other than that what can I do about it? Nothing I do is going to change anything.”
“I would be so pissed at Jonathan for not cancelling his plans and coming to rescue me. I don’t know why you’re not mad at him for putting you in this situation in the first place.” Cami stood up, visibly irked, and stormed to the counter to refill her glass.
Sarah pulled her hair back in a loose ponytail to get it off her neck. She didn’t really want any more drama right now. She was still so unsure of how she felt about the note on her car. She really wasn’t in the mood to be drinking and hashing out her horrible week. She just really wanted to go to bed.
“Are you ready for a refill?” Cami called from the kitchen. Then, within seconds, she was crouching down in front of Sarah, her eyes wide. “There’s someone at the back door,” she whispered.
Sarah instinctively ducked and then looked over her shoulder toward the kitchen door. “It’s just Raul. He always checks in before he sets the alarms for the night.” Sarah had been expecting him. Cami stood up and plopped back into her chair, her drink sloshing in her glass. The door closed, and Raul appeared. His perma-smile immediately put Sarah in a better mood.
“Are you feeling any better?” he asked, and Sarah nodded. “I’m just going to check upstairs, and I’ll be out of here.” He stood by the stairs in jeans and a button-down shirt with his sleeves rolled up.
“Thanks.” He didn’t usually check the rooms upstairs, but Craig must have told him how upset she had been last night.
“Does he live here?” asked Cami, and Sarah couldn’t tell if she was interested in dating him or what the expression on her face said.
“Yeah, pretty much. Both he and Craig, the guy I was hiding from at the studio, are staying here while Jon is gone. Why? Are you interested? He’s kind of cute, isn’t he? I think he has a girlfriend, though.”
“He is hot. There is no doubt there. I’m just surprised that even with Jonathan gone, you’re still stuck with his entourage.”
She shrugged. She wasn’t going to complain about her security detail anymore. Sarah changed the subject. “Are you dating anyone? You never mention your love life.”
“I am seeing someone, but he’s more of an acquaintance that I sleep with.”
Sarah laughed at Cami’s confession. “Do you think it will turn into more?”
“I don’t know. I’m so busy running the studio and he’s a computer genius, busy doing what computer geniuses do.”
“How did you two meet?”
“At the studio. He took one of my classes. He might be a nerd, but he keeps his body hard.”
A voice from the stairs interrupted the conversation. “Everything looks good up there. Let me know when your friend leaves,” said Raul as he hit the last step. He cleared his throat as if he was uncomfortable with what he was about to say. “If you want, I can stay at the guesthouse tonight.”
Cami burst out laughing. “I guess you don’t mind the security detail as much as you let on. Dark, gorgeous man keeps you warm while Jonathan’s away. You can’t beat that. It brings a whole new meaning to the title bodyguard. Don’t worry; I won’t tell Jonathan about your arrangement.”
Sarah looked at Raul, smiling as she rolled her eyes. “It’s not what it sounds like. I was a bit freaked out last night after finding the stalker’s note on my car. Jon’s folks are out of town and won’t be back until it’s almost time for Jon to return. This is the first time Jon and I have been apart this long since I moved in, and I was scared,” said Sarah, and then she explained how Craig had stayed downstairs at the house last night to calm her nerves.
“I can stay with you if you want. We can do another slumber party like we did at the hotel.” She pointed to Raul. “And he is welcome to join us as far as I’m concerned.”
Sarah smiled. “I’m sure he has better things to do than to babysit us. Are you sure you don’t mind staying with me, Cami?”
“No, it will be fun. Besides, I think I’ve drunk too much to drive anyway.”
“Thanks for the offer, Raul. Cami can keep me company, and I can set the alarms in here when we go to bed.”
“I’ll be in the security office if you need me.” He gave Sarah a nod and left through the front door, locking it behind him.
“It’s too bad he was so busy.” Cami guzzled her drink and got up to refill her glass. “You’re not keeping up, Sarah. I feel like I’m the only one committed here.”
Sarah started to wonder if she was serious about a three-way with Raul. She hoped she wasn’t. “I’m trying not to waste the calories on nutrient-hollow foods. I have to fit into a wedding dress. I can’t afford empty calories.”
“Vodka and diet Sprite, you can’t get lower calorie than that. No excuses, Sarah.” Cami took Sarah’s glass from the table next to her and filled it to the rim. Handing it back to Sarah, she said, “You need to finish this just to catch up.”
Sarah took it, knowing she wouldn’t finish it. It wasn’t just the calories. She just wasn’t in the mood to drink. She took a sip and set it on the table.
“I can stay with you this week if you want. My geek is out of town anyway, so my nights are free.”
“That would be great. My bridesmaids are coming in from Minnesota to get their final fittings for their dresses over the weekend. If you would stay with me until they come in, I would really appreciate it. I can’t drink every night though, OK?”
“Sure. We can find something else to do. When is the wedding anyway?”
Sarah cringed at her question. Should she tell her? Should she not? “It’s next month.” She decided to be vague. Technically it was next month, but it was more than a month away.
“You must be insane. Days ago, you were leaving Jonathan because he cheated on you. You make up with him and then hours later he leaves to travel Europe. Someone threatens your life, and he doesn’t even seem to care. Are you sure you want to marry this guy?”
Sarah took another sip of her drink. “Yes. I want to marry him.”
“You know, I read this article once about how Jonathan didn’t even feel bad about killing his brother. It said he was jealous of all the roles Jack was getting and it was a relief for him not to have to compete with his brother anymore. There were pictures. They look so much alike, and Hollywood is only so big.”
“You can’t believe everything you read.”
“The article had a ton of examples. It was obvious the information was from an insider, probably someone in his family sick of how smug Jonathan was. He started back to work right away like he didn’t even care that he killed his brother.”
“He didn’t kill Jack. It was just an accident. A paparazzo spilled his motorcycle right in front of him. What was he supposed to do?”
“Sarah, he was driving the car. He could have swerved the other direction and hit a parked car, but instead he pulls into oncoming traffic in front of a giant SUV. It couldn’t have been an accident. Nobody is that stupid.”
Really? Sarah couldn’t believe her ears. “He was nineteen years old. Jack’s death destroyed him. You don’t know what you are talking about. Just because you read some misguided tabloid doesn’t make you an expert on his life.”
/>
“You’re right. I just don’t understand how someone could do what he did and still live with himself.”
“He struggles with it every day.” Sarah hoped it was just the alcohol talking and Cami didn’t really believe what she was saying. She couldn’t deal with this kind of discussion for the rest of the week. “You really should at least meet Jon before you pass judgment on him. We can do lunch sometime, or better yet, he makes this awesome chicken curry, and he’s not bad at Italian either. He could cook for us.”
“OK. That would be great.” Cami looked around the room and then asked, “How secure is this place? I mean your stalker’s not going to be able to get in here while we sleep, is she?”
“There are camera’s everywhere outside and alarms on the doors and windows. I can’t imagine how she would get in.”
They talked security for a few more minutes and then turned on the TV and caught a rerun of Liam’s show. By the time it ended, Sarah just wanted to go to bed. She lent Cami one of Jon’s T-shirts to sleep in, and while Cami fell asleep quickly on the other side of the large bed, Sarah wrote a couple of pages in her journal. It always helped her sleep if she dumped her thoughts onto the paper before bed. Though it was comforting having a live person within screaming distance, she missed Jon.
***
Sarah opened her eyes as the buzzing began a second round. She reached out and seized the offender off the bedside table, unplugging it as she swiped her finger across the bottom of the screen. She didn’t even look to see who was making the call. She just wanted the noise to stop. She sat up and whispered, “Hello.”
“Hey, beautiful. Did I wake you?”
She glanced at the unmoving mound on the other side of the bed and stood up, trudging into the hallway before answering.
“Maybe.” She didn’t want to wake Cami.
“I’m sorry. I’ve completely lost track of time. I think we’re in Zurich. The street signs have lots of umlauts on them anyway and it’s not Berlin. What time is it at home?” Jon’s voice exuded energy.
She pulled the phone away from her ear to check the time. It had to be early; the sun wasn’t even up. “Eight minutes after four.”
“I didn’t mean to wake you. I could let you go back to sleep.”
“No, I’m already awake. Let’s talk. How did last night’s premiere go?” She rubbed her face as she stood up and walked down the hall to the music room. She may as well utilize the soundproof walls. She closed the door before settling on the mustard-colored sofa and snuggling into the throw blanket off its back.
“I’m right at that tipping point where I can no longer sit through the movie. I’ve seen it so many times. I know I’m supposed to pretend that each premiere is the first showing, but I think the subject matter of this movie just hits too close to home for me with Jack’s death that I can’t stomach it anymore. I’m going to try to sneak out after the screening starts tonight so I don’t have to watch it again.”
“You could put your earbuds in and listen to music.”
“That’s a good idea. I may have to use that. How are you doing? Are the boys taking good care of you?” He called them boys, though they were older than him.
“Yeah. They’ve been great. Cami is going to stay with me until the girls come on the weekend. It’s nice having someone else here.”
“That’s great. When I get home, we’ll have to take her out to dinner to thank her.”
“I told her you would cook for her.”
“I could do that. Hey, what did your e-mail mean?”
“What e-mail?”
“The one you sent last night. Who is she? And what was her choice?”
“I don’t know what you are talking about. I didn’t send you an e-mail.”
“It says it was from you. It has your e-mail address on it.”
“What does it say exactly?” Sarah sat up as an icy chill ran through her body.
“It says, ‘She made her choice.’ That was all that was written. You didn’t send it?”
“Cami was here last night. We had a couple of drinks, we watched some TV, and we went to bed. I didn’t even have my computer on, and I didn’t send anything from my phone.”
“Could your friend, Cami, have gotten a hold of your phone?”
“Why would she? Besides, I was with her the whole night. She fell asleep before I did and she’s still sleeping. Do you think the stalker hacked into my e-mail? And what does that mean, she made her choice?”
“I don’t know. Are you sure Cami fell asleep before you?”
“Yes. Also, all my stuff is password-protected. How would she have logged on? She doesn’t know my passwords.”
“I’m going to talk to Sam and see what he thinks. I’ll call you later, after the premiere. I love you, Sarah. Don’t think about it too much. Maybe it was just a glitch in the e-mail delivery system.”
“OK. I love you, too.”
The call ended, and of course Sarah couldn’t stop thinking about the e-mail. She snuck back into her bedroom, grabbed her journal, and made her way to the kitchen table. There was no way she could go back to sleep at this point.
Sarah had just finished starting the coffee when Craig opened the kitchen door, punching in the code for the alarm as he stepped inside. She glanced up at the clock, not saying a word. 4:47. She hadn’t even opened her journal yet. Jon must have been more worried about the e-mail than he wanted her to know.
“Good morning,” Craig said, as he shifted the computer monitor and laptop in his hand. She smiled as he added, “I’m going to be working from the guesthouse today. I’ll set this up in the office and then I’m supposed to look at your phone.”
“OK. The coffee should be ready in a couple of minutes.”
“And, Sarah, let me know if you’re planning on going anywhere. I have to go with you when you leave the house.”
“Always,” she said, opening her journal and grabbing her pen.
The rest of the week progressed without another e-mail. Cami left for the studio every morning and came back to the house every evening. They hung out and watched movies together, and Cami showed her some really effective exercises for her thighs and butt. Sarah wondered if Megan did them and deliberately never shared them with her friends just so she could keep her “best ass” title.
Feeling really comfortable with the way she and Cami were getting along, Sarah asked, “I know the acquaintance you sleep with is coming back into town today and you’re going to be busy over the weekend, but you wouldn’t be interested in coming back here for a couple of days after my friends leave, would you? I’ve gotten used to having you keeping me company.” Sarah looked at her with her best puppy dog eyes.
“How could I say no when you are so good at making salad from a bag?”
Sarah chuckled. “I promise I will go to the grocery store and get some more food before you come back.”
With Raul and Craig both eating their meals at the house, and the fact that groceries hadn’t been bought since before lunch with Mia, the refrigerator was looking a little barren. She needed to buy groceries before the weekend or she and her friends wouldn’t have anything to eat. The thought occurred to her that she could send the girls out for groceries. They wouldn’t mind. Was she really that scared to leave the house? She needed to get over it. Besides, she wouldn’t want anything to happen to them. What if the stalker hurt them? The FBI had been notified about the e-mail, but nothing had come of it yet.
That afternoon, Sarah fabricated enough courage to get groceries with Raul, and she even went to Pilates. It felt good to get back into her normal routine and by the time the girls arrived, she had stopped some of her obsessing over the stalker.
During the weekend, she shared all that had happened with Mia and the stalker. She didn’t care at this point that everyone but Megan believed Megan was back together with Chase. It just felt good to be able to vent to her friends. Being with the girls helped her truly relax for the first time since the restaurant debacle
. They hung out at the pool, and it felt like old times. The girls even convinced her to go out to lunch after the dress fitting, and she started to almost feel prestalker normal.
But as Sarah watched the driver load each of the girls’ bags into the car’s trunk to take them back to the airport, she could feel the comfort her friends had brought her stripping away. They hugged their good-byes and her friends got into the car. Sarah waved toward their fleeing Town Car, just as a white Audi pulled up to replace it. She didn’t recognize the vehicle, but it had to be someone they knew because Craig had opened the gate. The door opened and a woman stepped out. For a heartbeat Sarah feared the worst. The stalker was a woman after all. But when she spotted Remi’s black, razor-cut hair sticking out in all directions, she didn’t know what to think.
“I’m not the stalker, Sarah. Jon said you were handling this, but your face says otherwise.” Remi started walking toward the house as Sarah followed.
“I’m fine.” She scowled. “Did Jon send you to check on me?”
“No, but he knows I’m here. I have something to show you. Are you sure you’re all right?”
“My bridesmaids just left for Minnesota and I already miss them. That must be what you see.” Sarah tried to brighten her expression as she trailed her through the door.
“Maybe.” Remi glanced around the living room shaking her head. “I can’t believe that you put up with this tiny guesthouse. Tell Jon to buy you a decent place to live.”
Sarah laughed. “I like the guesthouse. It’s cozy. Besides, Jon bought me a huge house in Minnesota.”
“You’re not planning to live in that house, are you? Jon said you were staying here.”
“You just want us to buy a big house here to keep us close by.”
“That’s partially true. But this place, it’s embarrassing. My house is five times this size,” declared Remi as she walked into the kitchen and sat down at the table.
“I guess it’s the soundproof master bedroom. I just can’t part with it.”
Remi looked at her in confusion and patted the chair next to her. “Come sit.”
Sarah wondered what brought Remi all the way here when Jon wasn’t home. Remi pulled a large manila envelope from her bag and set it in front of her.
Between the Lies (Between the Raindrops #2) Page 31
