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Back Stalker Save as PDF
Chapters (66)
  1. Cover
  2. Dedication
  3. 1
  4. 2
  5. 3
  6. 4
  7. 5
  8. 6
  9. 7
  10. 8
  11. 9
  12. 10
  13. 11
  14. 12
  15. 13
  16. 14
  17. 15
  18. 16
  19. 17
  20. 18
  21. 19
  22. 20
  23. 21
  24. 22
  25. 23
  26. 24
  27. 25
  28. 26
  29. 27
  30. 28
  31. 29
  32. 30
  33. 31
  34. 32
  35. 33
  36. 34
  37. 35
  38. 36
  39. 37
  40. 38
  41. 39
  42. 40
  43. 41
  44. 42
  45. 43
  46. 44
  47. 45
  48. 46
  49. 47
  50. 48
  51. 49
  52. 50
  53. 51
  54. 52
  55. 53
  56. 54
  57. 55
  58. 56
  59. 57
  60. 58
  61. 59
  62. EPILOGUE
  63. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  64. MORE FROM GEMMA ROGERS
  65. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  66. ABOUT BOLDWOOD BOOKS

We said our goodbyes and I hung up. Dread washing over me at the thought of going back outside tomorrow and making that journey to work. At least it would be daylight, but I knew I’d be looking for him in the faces of the commuters. Seeing him around every corner, in every window.

9

MONDAY 1 OCTOBER 2017

When my alarm went off on Monday morning, I woke with a knot already formed in my stomach. It sat like a brick, refusing to move. I couldn’t eat anything, instead relying on a cup of coffee to energise me. Would I be stared at by the staff? No doubt, pretending they weren’t. Would they whisper about me? I’d be poor, broken, Eve. Well, fuck that.

Riffling through my wardrobe, I put on my smartest outfit – a grey trouser suit with a cream pussy-bow blouse. Pulled my hair into a chignon and put on some make-up, a first in over a week. A professional and confident woman stared back at me from the mirror, but it was a fabrication of how I felt on the inside.

Thankfully, the office was a short walk from home. Public transport would have been out of the question. Lots of people were on their morning commute, hurrying to start their day. Workers in fluorescent tabards were digging up a portion of the pavement to get to the water pipes beneath. Hemmed in by barriers, a sea of people swarmed towards me like an army marching on the enemy. I had to duck into a urine stained doorway to avoid being swept up in the crowd. I waited for them to pass, the back of my neck prickling with trepidation. I could do this.

I pushed forward and made a path for myself, veering off the main drag and around the corner where the office was situated. It was just before nine, but there were people I recognised at the bus stop smoking already. No matter what time of day, someone from our office would be there. Whispering travelled on the breeze as I passed. ‘Is that her?’ It was just as I had feared.

My phone buzzed, vibrating my handbag. A text notification popped up on the display and I was surprised to see it was from Ben. We’d swapped numbers when he had moved in, I was his landlady after all, but he’d never texted me until today.

Good luck, you’ll be desperate to come home by lunchtime!

His message made me smile. I didn’t realise, when I picked him out of the other applicants, he’d be such a godsend.