Page 24 of Swerve (Boosted Hearts 1)

A shiver slid down my spine and I quickly shook off the memory. I’d held on to the fantasy of us for far too long. Now I was putting it behind me and going after something that was actually attainable.

I was still reading my book and onto my second beer when Scott stumbled through the door. Jesus. He looked more strung out than I’d ever seen him.

A cheesy grin spread across his face. “You miss me?”

He’d been gone a couple days, something he did often, and another reason I could put up with him as a roommate. He dumped his laptop bag on the small table by the window and plonked down beside me on the couch, slinging an arm around my shoulders.

I gave him a shove. “You need to go sleep it off, Scott, seriously.”

“You wanna sleep it off with me?”

“No.”

“Instead of falling asleep, and this . . .” He tapped the book in my hand. “Dropping on your face again, you could fall asleep with my face between your thighs.”

“You’re disgusting.” I gave him another shove and he almost rolled off the couch.

He stumbled to his feet and shrugged. “If you’re gonna be like that . . .” Then he swayed up the hall to his room.

I opened my book again, and was halfway through my page when Scott’s words drifted through my mind.

Last night, I’d fallen asleep reading and my book had dropped, hitting my nose, startling me back awake. An unsettling feeling curled in my belly.

Maybe he meant another time?

He was wasted, he probably didn’t even know what he was saying. But why would he even say that?

Could he be . . . ?

Was he somehow . . . watching me?

No.

No, of course he wasn’t. I was being ridiculous, wasn’t I?

Several hours later, the book was finished and I was struggling to keep my eyes open. I stood with a yawn, and headed to my room.

I was in the middle of my room, about to take off my shirt, when I glanced up. There was a smoke detector in the far corner. I never really thought about it that much. The cover was crooked, like it hadn’t been put back on correctly.

The unease from earlier came rushing back.

I grabbed a chair from the living room to get a closer look.

I twisted it open . . . and found a tiny black camera inside. I’d seem them before, of course, many times, so there was no way I could mistake it for anything else.

Holy fuck.

I was going to throw up.

Other things Scott had said to me jumped forward from my memory, little things that on their own hadn’t really clicked, but now made sense.

He’d been watching me.

I found two more: one attached to my lamp, another by my mirror. I stood there frozen for several minutes, not sure what the hell to do next. So many things rushing through my mind at once.

His laptop. That’s where the cameras had to be streaming to. He took it everywhere with him.

I raced out to the living room. Scott’s door was still closed, so I grabbed his bag and pulled out his laptop. I fired it up, but it was password protected. I tried a few different options, denied access each time.