Page 67 of Guarding Over You
“We’re thrilled. So far I feel great, so I hope that continues too.”
“I breezed through my pregnancy, so I hope the same for you.”
Arden turned back to her notes because once she was done she could get out of here early. She’d put some extra time in this week as it was, coming in before her scheduled time and having to stay late a couple of days.
Five minutes later, she was swinging her purse over her shoulder, grabbing her lunch bag and walking out of the building.
The closer she got to her car, the harder her heart pounded.
Even from a distance, something looked wrong. The back end was tilted, slumped low like it had given up after a long fight.
And there it was again. The folded note pinned beneath the wiper, a painful echo of the last one.
Before she reached for it, she scanned the lot, her gaze flicking from car to car. People moved everywhere. Employees heading home, a couple laughing near the far row. But that didn’t stop the crawling at the back of her neck. The sense of beingwatched.
Like it was a cloud over her head for the past several weeks.
She circled around to the rear bumper and froze. Her stomach dropped. Her lunch from hours ago was ready to end up at her feet.
The tire wasn’t just flat—it wasslashed.A clean, deliberate, vicious stab.
She shut her eyes, drew in a long breath, then another, forcing the panic down.
It wasn’t working. Her hands were sweating, her breath coming out in pants.
But she squared her shoulders, marched to the front and yanked the paper free just in case anyone was watching. She’d be damned if they could see what was really happening inside of her.
If they could feed on her fear.
The words were thick, pressed into the page:I TOLD YOU TO WATCH YOUR NEXT MOVE. YOU DIDN’T LISTEN. MAYBE NOW YOU WILL.
“Fuck me,” she muttered under her breath, though what she really wanted to do was scream. To stomp her foot. To throw a tantrum to rival one of a child when things didn’t go their way.
She spun around again. There were too many faces and too many unknowns. Her father was more than half an hour away. She didn’t even knowhowto change a tire. Security could help, sure, but that would mean reports, questions, and another reminder that someone was out there trying to scare her.
Her hands were shaking before she even realized she’d pulled out her phone.
There was only one name. One call. Only one person who’d been there for her recently.
“Arden,” Blaze answered on the first ring, his voice steady and alert. “What’s wrong?”
She swallowed hard. “I got another note on my car. And this time, my tire is slashed. I’m… I’m just standing here trying to figure out what to do.”
“Go back inside,” he said, his voice laced with authority. “Now. I’m on my way.”
There was no point arguing. That was exactly what she’d wanted to hear.
She turned and strode back toward the building, forcing herself not to look over her shoulder and not to run to draw more attention. The glass doors reflected the movement behind her, enough to keep her nerves on edge as she stepped inside and out of the way.
She waited by the entrance, watching every car that turned in. People came and went, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that someone out there was still watching forher.
Five minutes later, she spotted Blaze’s SUV flying into the lot. Her chest loosened a fraction. Her bunched nerves let go slightly. He was here. He’d calm her like he’d been doing.
The second he parked, she stepped outside to meet him.
“I told you to stay inside,” he said, his eyes scanning her, the car, the lot and everything he always did when he walked into the room to treat a patient.
“You’re here,” she said quietly. “I’ll be fine now.”
