“I’m not letting go of you. I just need to see what happened.”

Numbly, I nod, but I look at my feet, not wanting him to see my worry.

Cooper lifts my chin and waits until I look at him to speak. “I won’t let anything happen to you, Emily. Trust me.”

I nod again.

Holding on to him, I let him lead me back into the bus. His fingers tighten when he takes in the scene. “What the fuck?” Cooper’s eyes are wide and anger vibrates off him. “How the hell did anyone get on your bus? How long have you been getting these letters, Emily?”

“I…it was…I don’t k-know. It just started.” I believed it was trivial, but it clearly wasn’t. What if he had been in the bus when I got here? What if he had a weapon? So many things could’ve happened, and I thought it was just a stupid prank.

“Show me the other letters,” he says through gritted teeth.

I walk back to the bedroom area, careful not to touch anything, and tears fall when I see my drawers open. My clothing is all over the bed, and I struggle to keep upright. I feel violated, and I want to go home.

Cooper’s arms wrap around me, and he holds me as I lose it. My tears soak his shirt as I clutch him tight. I was so stupid thinking it was nothing. This…is not nothing. This is crazy.

“It’ll be okay, baby,” Cooper reassures me as he rubs my back. “Don’t cry. You’re going to be okay.”

I look up through my wet lashes and see the promise in his eyes. “I’m scared.”

“I know.”

“I was so stupid,” I admit.

Cooper shakes his head and sighs. “Did you think this was going to happen?”

“No.”

I didn’t think this was real. My dumb ass thought it was maybe some new girl joke or just part of the gig.

“The letters, darlin’,” Cooper reminds me.

I walk over to the stack of letters, which is one of the only things not thrown around, and hand them to him.

He reads them each several times, not saying a word. I’m not sure what to do, but being on this bus is the last place I want to be. Who does this? Who thinks it’s okay to terrorize someone’s home? Even though this isn’t my home per se, it’s where I’ve been living. And where the hell was our security team when this was going on? No one should’ve been able to get to my bus. Luke doesn’t allow anyone near the tour buses.

Eventually, Cooper puts the letters on the bed and runs his hand down his face. “This is disturbing, Em. When were you plannin’ on telling me ’bout this?”

“I wasn’t. I didn’t think it was a big deal. Who the hell would come after me? I’m just some C-list country music singer.”

He takes my hand in his. “You’re not some C-list singer. You’re gorgeous, talented, and clearly makin’ a name for yourself. If this asshole was able to get these to you and then get on your bus, what the hell else can he do?”

A shiver runs down my spine. Now that it’s clearly some whacko, there are things I need to do. “I’m going to let security know, and I know Luke won’t be okay with this.”

“Luke?” Cooper scoffs. “No.”

“No?”

Cooper shakes his head. “No, Luke has done a shit job so far. How the hell did anyone get on your bus in the first place? How did this piece of shit go unnoticed when you are supposed to have security? He isn’t going to be in charge of your safety. I will.”

Here we go. I knew that Cooper would make this his fight.

“I’m not helpless. I know now that this isn’t a joke. I can take care of this myself. I refused security because I can’t afford it. Yes, the tour has security, but I don’t. You can’t come here and demand things.”

He releases my hand and groans. “Have you ever taken a self-defense class? Do you own pepper spray? Are you carryin’ a gun that I don’t know about? Unless all of those things are a yes, then this conversation is moot.”

The hell it is. I get that I may not have any of those things, but I’m not weak. There are, however, things that can be done—things that should be done—like telling Luke. Cooper is clearly upset, which is understandable, but I’ve been doing just fine on my own for thirty-eight years. I can handle this.

“I don’t want to fight, but you have to understand none of this would’ve happened if I thought this was serious from the beginning.”

Cooper cups my cheeks, and the look in his eyes stuns me. There’s a mix of fear, confliction, and defiance swimming in his gorgeous gaze. “Let me do this,” he requests softly. “I can’t get on that plane if I think you’re in danger.”

My chest tightens at the tone of his plea. Am I being silly by not letting him do something to ease his fears? I look around at the devastation left by the intruder and realize how freaked out I’d be if the roles were reversed. Cooper and I may be a new thing, but there’s no denying how much I care for him. If he feels an ounce of what I am, then I should give a little.

I grip his wrist and sigh. “What do you have in mind?”

Chapter Nine

Cooper

Emily is passed out on the bed in the hotel room I got. There was no way she was staying on that bus. Fuck that. I’ve never seen anything like the scene there, and no matter what she thought, I was going to have someone guarding her.

My phone pings with a text.

Wade: I’m here.

Me: I’ll be right out.

I check on Emily before heading out the door with the letters and photos of the bus. I believe that everything happens for a reason, and there’s a damn good one that I ran into Wade Rycroft last night.

As soon as Emily agreed, I called him.

“Hey,” I say, gripping his hand. “Thanks for doing this.”

“I’m glad I was between jobs. Tell me more about what happened.”

Wade and I talk for a few minutes as I fill him in on the letters and the bus. He looks over everything and shakes his head. “Has she had anything like this before?”

“Not that I know of.” I grip the back of my neck. “It was like a fucking horror movie in that bus. The letters were one thing but then he sent her roses, too. I’m not sure if he saw the two of us together and that made him escalate this quickly.”

He shakes his head as he studies the last letter. “He’s clearly watchin’ her. Has she said she noticed anything else? Anyone following her around? Anything out of the ordinary?”

I tell him about the guy that called out when we were walking to our car that morning. I can’t remember what he looked like or even if I bothered to glance his way.

“I want to pack her shit and take her back with me,” I admit.

Wade smirks. “You like her that much, huh?”

“I left the bar and drove four hours to see her. I’d say I’m pretty fucked.”

He laughs. “I’d agree.”

“You’ll protect her?” I ask tersely. Wade is the only person I trust right now with this.

“With my life,” he promises.

That’s all I need to hear. I’ll pay whatever to keep her safe. Emily has become more to me than I ever thought possible. As much as I want to stay here and be the one to do it, I have to get back. Presley and Wyatt know most of the business, but I can’t spend a few weeks touring with her.

“I fucking hate that I have to go,” I grit out.

Wade claps me on the shoulder. “I won’t let anyone hurt her. This is what I’m trained for, and if I wasn’t good at my job, I’d never be with the McKay-Taggart team. I know that doesn’t mean much to you, but it means something down here.”

It doesn’t have to mean anything to me. Their reputation speaks for them. After talking to Ian Taggart on the phone, I knew there was no doubt this was the right choice and they were the only ones I could trust with her.

“If I had a doubt, she’d be hauled over my shoulder on a plane to Bell Buckle.”

He nods. “I want to go look at the bus without her there. Sometimes there are details that you might not see.”

“You’re already on the list as the security team.”

“Good. I’ll be back after I check things out,” Wade tells me.

We go over a few more details and then he leaves.

I make my way back up to the room and climb in the bed, wrapping my arms around her. She releases a deep breath and nestles herself against my body. Holding her like this is everything I could ever want. I don’t know how I went this long denying the feelings I have for her.

Unable to stop myself, I let my fingers move against her soft skin. Her blonde hair is spilled around her head, framing her perfect face. I slide my fingers through it and move it over her shoulder. There’s nothing about her that doesn’t call to me. Her blue eyes are closed, but I can replicate them in my head. The denim color with tiny flecks of green that deepen when she’s aroused. I rub my thumb against her plump lips, and she sighs.

I lean forward, needing to kiss her.

“Cooper,” she breathes against my lips as she pulls herself out of sleep. Her hand grips the back of my neck, urging me to slide on top of her.

I kiss her hard. The emotions of the last few hours hit me, and the fear of losing her takes over. If I had left just a minute earlier, I would’ve never seen her rush off the bus. What if he was there watching her, too? My heart races as I kiss her with everything. Her lips mold to mine, and I touch her everywhere, needing to feel her skin.