The minutes stretched like an hour after I hung up. I paced in my room, the silence of the house pressing against me with every single ticking of the clock hands.
Every creak of the floorboards and every rustle of wind outside made me flinch.
Then I heard it, the low hum of an engine.
I froze, clutching the curtain before daring to peek outside. A dark car had pulled up across the street, headlights cutting briefly through the night before flicking off.
My stomach dropped. "It wasn't Tristan's," I confirmed.
I stepped back, pulse racing, and my phone slick in my palm. I walked downstairs to check on my Mom.
I saw a figure stepped out of the driver's side from the living room window, looking tall and shadowed. He didn't approach, but he leaned against the car as if waiting.
"But waiting for what?" my heart screamed.
My every instinct pushing me to run to my Mom in the kitchen, but for goodness sake, I didn't want to drag her into this matter.
My hand shook as I dialled Tristan phone again.
Before he could answer, I heard the sound of knuckles rapping sharply against my front door echoed loudly through the house.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
I pressed a hand to my mouth, breath shallow. I heard my Mom calling from the kitchen asking, "Ellie? Are we expecting someone today?"
Panic surged through my hold body. "Don't open it!" I shouted to my Mom. My Mom startled with her wide eyes but stood frozen at the urgency in my voice.
The knocks grew harder, sounding impatient.
I reached for the lock, not to open it but to check. "It's secure," I confirmed.
My heart thundered as silence followed. Then, I heard the footsteps retreating, gravel crunching under tires, and the car pulled away into the night.
I barely had time to breathe before another set of headlights swept across my living room.
This time, I could recognize the sleek black SUV.
It's Tristan.
The moment he stepped inside my house, he closed the door hard behind him and his gaze sweeping through the room with sharp calculation.
Then his eyes landed on me. I was pale, shaking, and still trying to catch my breath.
His jaw clenched. "Did they touch the door?"
I shook my head, unable to speak.
He crossed the space in three strides, gripping my shoulders, his voice low and fierce.
"Ellie, I'm sorry for being late. Thank God, you are safe or..." He cut himself off, but the emotion in his eyes said the rest.
I swallowed hard. The fear felt raw to me, but beneath it, a dangerous warmth unfurled.
His presence didn't just steady me. It consumed me at the same time.
"Tristan..." I whispered, and for a moment, the world shrank to the space between us.
Before either of us could say more, I heard his phone buzz sharply in his pocket.
He glanced at the screen with his expression darkening.
"They know who you are," he muttered. "And this isn't over yet."