Page 78 of Hunt Me

Well, I don’t know what comes next. I need to handle this stalker problem because I refuse to live the rest of my life in fear, and then I can figure out the rest.

Taking a breath, I reach for the door handle and pull it open, unsurprised to find Archie with his shoulder pressed against the opposite wall. His leg is moving, and I glance down to see him tapping a pattern on the floor, which is probably where the vibrations came from.

It’s a stim. I can tell. He seems stressed, and I know it’s my fault.

‘Sorry,’ I sign quickly.

His brows furrow. ‘Sorry, why?’

I don’t really know what to say to that. Sorry for being me. Sorry for being complicated. For bringing nonsense into your life? It all sounds so pathetic and self-deprecating, even if it’s honest.

Archie doesn’t wait for me to answer. He closes the distance between us, pulling me out of the doorway and pressing me against the wall, and then he leans in to nose along my neck and jaw. A groan escapes me. I feel it rumble against my throat, and it barely has any time to escape on my breath before he’s catching the sound on his tongue.

As he kisses me, my toes curl, and I’m only just aware of him pressing a small, hard box against my palm. When he breaks away, I’m a little dazed and look down to find my CI case in my hand.

‘Why?’

‘Work,’ he answers back. ‘You wear them at work.’

I…do. I usually take them off during class, but it’s odd to me that he noticed. Then again, it shouldn’t be. He notices more than I do, even with my Deaf eyes.

‘I need to get dressed, then we can go to your class,’ he signs, and that snaps me out of it.

My gaze meets his. ‘We?’

He lifts a brow at me and gives me a look. ‘Yes. I drive. You still have concussion.’

‘No, but…’ My hands hover in the air when I realize what he’s implying. ‘You can’t come in with me.’ I knew he was going to keep me safe on campus, but I didn’t think that was going to involve him coming to class with me.

His lips part on what I assume is a scoff, and he folds his arms over his chest. He doesn’t answer, but he is unmoved by my protests.

‘Archie,’ I plead, using his sign name. ‘People are going to ask questions if they see you. And it’s not like my classes will be fun for you.’

‘I won’t get bored.’

I almost laugh, but I can tell he actually thinks that’s what I’m worried about. I pass a hand down my face, then let out a slow breath. He seems to catch on that I’m not worried about him, and his face goes blank.

‘You can’t be on campus alone. I can’t trust Percy to find you in time.’

He’s not wrong, but that’s also beside the point. ‘I have morning and afternoon classes today. I won’t be there at night.’

‘Stalkers don’t care about the time of day,’ he insists. His signs are stiff, and he’s starting to look actually distressed, which is making my heart hurt. ‘You can’t be alone. We go. You teach. I watch.’

‘How do I explain that?’

He shrugs. ‘Whatever you want.’ And then he turns away like somehow that’s enough of an answer for me. And as much as I want to chase him down and insist he can’t do this—that he can wait in his car in the parking lot—the fear of being attacked again is too strong.

If anyone asks, I’m still not sure what I’ll say, but I know all the fight has drained out of me.

Besides, it’s only two weeks.

I can get by for two weeks.

I’m not going to last a day.

On the way to the campus, I figured maybe I could have Archie pretend to be a student and sit in the corridor with a laptop and guard the classroom, but he didn’t even give me a chance to suggest it. I was running late, so I didn’t have time to go to my office before class started, and he marched after me, right on my heels, as soon as I opened the door.

There were already several students in the corridor waiting for me, and they were all openly staring at him as they made their way to their seats.