How did a fortune-teller from Gothic know a movie star? More ominously, why were they chatting and glancing at Adam?

As soon as Ludwig whisked away Adam’s plates and refreshed his coffee, Clarice wove her way through the tables and indicated the empty chair opposite. “May I?”

Up close, she was striking but not beautiful. Young but not a teenager. Tall but not...well, no. She had legs that rose to the moon. Adam couldn’t imagine that any man ever said no to her. Still, she waited for him to grant permission before seating herself.

Of course, he did grant permission.

Mr. Kulshan said to no one, “Well, he’s a good-looking-enough boy.”

Clarice smiled, gently amused. “Rune told me to wait until you’d eaten. She said you weren’t such a grump when you’d been fed.”

Adam still felt like a grump. “I imagine that’s true of most men. And women.”

“Eating always works for me. Smooths out my temperament.” She seemed so calm, so unassuming, Adam found he couldn’t imagine her showing temperament. “As K.H. told you, I’m here studying for a part. I need privacy. I’ve got one paparazzo who stalks me everywhere I go. Rune says that because of the roads, and because the sheriff and his deputies have a lot of county to cover, it can sometimes take them thirty minutes plus to answer a call in Gothic. Rune indicated to me that you’re the unofficial law enforcement in town.”

“Rune is wrong. I am absolutely not the law enforcement, unofficial or otherwise.”

“I can’t call the sheriff about a paparazzo. Bruno doesn’t do anything criminal. He takes my picture for profit.” Clarice took a quavering breath. “What he really enjoys are photos of me glaring, or sobbing in frustration, or threatening him, so when Bruno finds me, he gets in my face. Pops out and scares me. He’s a stalker who uses a camera as an excuse to terrify. Worse, I’m his special target. He’s told me so.”

At one time Adam had been a target of the press. They were ruthless, but once the scandal had passed, they were on to the next story, indifferent to the pain they left behind. If this guy stalked Clarice specifically...he was dangerous.

“Señor Alfonso promised that Gothic was off the beaten track...and so far, it is. But it’s also known among insiders as a place to stay to study a part.”

Adam remembered the flash of binoculars from the hill above Gothic. Perhaps not binoculars, maybe a long-range lens. “Let’s assume Bruno won’t find you.” Because Adam didn’t want to get involved. Not with her, not with anyone. Even now, a vast weariness weighed him down, and to think that he needed to protect someone when five years ago, he had proved to be so lacking...