Page 293 of No Need to Run

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I stop, pointing a finger at her. “Don’t.”

She blinks, unimpressed.

I start pacing again, trying to shake the feeling crawling under my skin. “I did the right thing.”

Why did that sound more like a question than a statement?

I look at Luna. “Right?”

She flicks her tail.

“Not helpful. How does that tell me anything?”

I stop, pressing my hands to the back of my neck.

“She’s my stalker.”

That should settle it.

But it doesn’t.

“She broke into my house. She watched me sleep. She?—”

I cut myself off.

Because the images that come up next aren’t the ones I expect.

It’s not the creepy feeling when I stood by the window.

Or her emerging from the bushes.

It’s her in my kitchen, wearing my shirt and laughing. Looking at me like I’m the only thing that matters.

I swallow hard.

“Who falls for their stalker?” I mutter.

Luna meows.

“Don’t say Sebastian,” I warn.

She meows again.

“Yeah,” I sigh. “Sebastian.”

I drag a hand down my face.

“But I’m not like him.”

I stare at her a beat.

“…Right?”

Silence.

The house settles around me, creaking softly.

I freeze, listening for her footsteps.

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