He climbed in beside her. It was the most natural thing in the world for her to turn toward him and slide closer. To put her hand over his beating heart. And as sleep pulled at her, she heard herself whisper, “I’ve got you.”

Chapter Seventeen

The gallery had a new alarm system. All fancy with bells and whistles. Was he supposed to be impressed? Intimidated?

Eric Wilde and his employees thought they were the only people in the world who could string up some tech.

Wrong.

He disabled the system, sure, it took a little longer than he would have liked, and there were a few moments when he started to sweat, but he got inside.

Thanks to Jessica, he knew a whole lot about the security there, and Eric’s team had been a little sloppy—they should have started fresh with a whole new system, not just done upgrades.

Their mistake.

Maybe they’d been rushed. He could give them the benefit of the doubt. After all, the cops had taken their time doing their crime scene BS. The Wilde team had only been able to work their magic after the cops had finally cleared out.

Maybe they planned to do more at the gallery. Too bad they weren’t going to have that opportunity.

He slipped inside. Took a deep breath. Could have sworn that he smelled Piper in there. That sweet scent that she liked. Lavender.

He took out his knife. Slid his finger over the blade.

It was time for the final act. Time for the big show. No more waiting. Whistling, he stepped forward. And he brought along his surprise…

***

The sharp ringing woke Eric. He jerked upright, his heart racing, even as his hand flew toward his nightstand. His fingers closed around his phone, and he yanked it toward him.

Gallery breach. One of the sensors at Piper’s gallery had just gone off. The main security detail team on the gallery would be notified immediately, and the system would also send an automatic alert to the Atlanta PD. The sensor wasn’t connected to the main system at her place, but it had been a back-up that he’d ordered installed. Just in case the perp somehow got inside her gallery again…

And he had.

“What’s happening?” Piper’s worried voice.

“Someone is in your gallery.”

Someone who didn’t realize that he’d just been caught. The cops would go in fast and quietly, as would the security team. They’d trap the bastard. They’d—

A call came through on his phone. He frowned at the number even as he answered it. “Wilde—”

“It’s Mark Rogue. Someone is at the gallery!” Mark’s voice was frantic. “I see them, man! I see them! The lights are on and someone is on the second floor—up in Piper’s work area.”