I couldn’t wrap my head around what he was saying. The situation was too surreal.
“Yes, about that. I’m sorry I had to knock you out, but it made things easier.” Apology entered his voice. “I would untie you too, but I can’t do that until we fix you.”
The scene was growing more surreal by the second. “What are you talking about?”
“Christian Harper.” The name dripped with so much acid it burned in the back of my throat. “You think you’re still in love with him. I can see it in your eyes.”
Oh God. Christian.
The full import of what was happening hit me.
Julian was clearly off his rocker, and he had me tied up in the middle of God knows where. I could try to escape, but I had no car, and I was still woozy from being hit over the head.
There was a strong possibility I would never see Christian, my friends, or my family again.
Panic climbed higher in my chest, but I forced it back down.
I’ll figure out a plan. I had to.
Until then, I needed to keep Julian talking instead of doing…whatever else he had planned for me.
My stomach lurched. “I’m not dating Christian anymore.”
God, I wish I were.
I wished I was in his apartment right now, making tacos while he teased me about putting too much cheese on mine and grumbled when I answered my social media messages instead of paying attention to him.
Hot tears pooled on my lower lids.
“I didn’t say you were still dating him,” Julian snapped. “I said you’re still under the delusion that you love him!”
His voice escalated before he took a deep breath and smoothed a hand over his shirt again.
“It’s okay. It’s not your fault,” he said soothingly. “He deceived you. Tricked you into falling for the looks and money. But we’re the ones who are supposed to be together. I’ve known that since I first saw you. I dreamed about you after that first day of class, you know.”
Another smile took over his face. “I dreamed we were married and living in a little cabin in the woods. We had two kids. I worked all day, and when I came home, you were waiting for me. It was beautiful. I’d never dreamed about a girl before. If that’s not a sign from God, what is?”
A dream? I’d gone through hell because of a freaking dream?
Breathe.
Stale air scraped against my lungs.
“There’s no one more beautiful than you are, Stella. You were always so quiet and nice to me, even when everyone else ignored or made fun of me. You have the qualities I’m looking for in a wife. You’re perfect for me.”
I wasn’t the same person I’d been in college, but it was clear he didn’t see me as my own person. He only saw me as a trophy, something he could own.
“How did you get all those pictures of me?” I moved my hands behind me as much as I dared, searching for something, anything, I could use to break the rope. “How did you break into my apartment?”
My breath hiked when I hit what felt a hard, sharp protrusion on the back of the chair. It felt like a nail.
The chair was so old I wouldn’t be surprised. Honestly, I didn’t care what it was. I only cared whether it could fray the ropes enough for me to free myself.
I kept my eyes on Julian as I worked my binding over the nail as discreetly as possible.
“I’ve always been good at digging into people. Journalism major, you know. Plus, I blend in with the crowd. Makes it easy to follow someone without them knowing. As for your apartment…” Julian grinned. “That’s the best part! I have an apartment in the Mirage as well. My grandmother passed it on to me after she died. I don’t live there full time, but I have the keys. We’re practically neighbors. I was so upset when you didn’t notice me the one time we shared an elevator, but you were too busy looking at your phone.” He let out a snort.
I kept quiet. I was too focused on my task.
Luckily, Julian liked to make a production of his story, pacing and gesticulating as he told me what he did.
Every time he turned his back, I worked faster, then slowed when he faced me again.
Sweat beaded from my efforts, but the rope had loosened enough that it no longer dug into my skin.
Just a little more…
“It was harder to hack into the surveillance system, but I had help for that. I hired Sentinel Security. They’re Harper’s biggest competitor, and I figured they’d take any opportunity to take him down a peg. I was right. They gave me some fancy device I could use, and the rest is history.”
He stopped in front of me.
I froze, praying he didn’t look over my head and behind my back.
“I did all that for you, Stella. Because I love you. I only wish I hadn’t left you for two years. Unfortunately, I had to go back home and take care of my grandmother.” He sounded annoyed. “She was the one who left me the apartment and all the money we could need. She was big on real estate, and since my parents died, I got everything.”
“You started dating Harper while I was gone, which wasn’t very nice.” Disapproval formed a deep crease in his brow. “But I’m back, and you’re out of that asshole’s house. I had to lay low for a while after I returned, you know. Couldn’t risk Harper tracking me down. The good part is, I had time to plan all this out.”
Julian knelt and smoothed my hair out of my face. “We can finally be together after we fix you. I don’t think it’ll take long, though. A few weeks with me and you’ll see. We’re meant to be together.”
He beamed.