“I…I don’t know where you got the idea, but Piper and I…we’ve never screwed around. She’s my best friend.”

The thunder of Eric’s heartbeat seemed very, very loud. Too loud. “She was your first.”

“What in the fuck?” Ben’s voice wasn’t low now. It was a yell.

Piper’s footsteps rushed toward the closed door. “What is happening in there?”

“My brother is being crazy! And delusional!” Ben shouted. “That’s what’s happening.”

No, he wasn’t crazy. But Eric was tired of sitting back and not taking what he wanted. He’d had a serious wake-up call. If he didn’t act, he would lose Piper.

“She’s in danger,” Eric snapped. “You know it or you wouldn’t have called me. I can protect her in ways you never can. If some asshole is following her, if she’s got a stalker, I will eliminate the threat. She needs me now.” Me, not you.

It was Eric’s turn. And he wasn’t going to screw this up. Ben couldn’t fix this problem for Piper, but Eric could. He would.

Ben’s face showed his frustration. “She doesn’t even like you.”

An unfortunate situation he’d fix, hopefully. “I can keep her safe. My place is freaking Fort Knox, and you know it. Until we see exactly what we’re dealing with, I need her with me.”

Ben searched his gaze.

The door rattled behind him. “Did you lock the door?” Piper demanded. “Did you lock me out of my own bedroom?”

“Don’t you hurt her,” Ben rasped.

“I never would.”

Ben held his gaze a moment longer, then, finally, nodded.

Eric dropped his hand and stepped back. Ben began to move forward, but at the same instant, the door flew open. He stumbled when the door hit him in the back.

“I unlocked it from the outside!” Piper announced triumphantly. “Now what in the hell is going on?”

Ben raked a hand through his hair. “I want you to stay at Eric’s tonight.”

She bit her lower lip. “I have a motel room, and it’s not really about what you want.”

No, it wasn’t. This was all about Piper. Hell, it had always been about Piper. “I don’t want to scare you anymore than you already are,” Eric began carefully.

Her long lashes flickered. She glanced at him, hitting him with the direct impact of her amazing eyes. Gold and gorgeous. Golden eyes, golden skin, and silky, golden hair that fell just below her chin.

“The cops are overworked and understaffed.” A sad truth. “And if there wasn’t evidence left behind, if this guy covered his tracks and didn’t leave prints, but still left a wake of destruction, you know that’s bad news.”