His body got airborne as he lost his balance and landed on the concrete of the breezeway, nearly toppling over into the carpark below.

Elizabeth gasped, but I didn’t look at her.

With tightly clenched fists, I loomed over him, doing a mental checklist: five eleven, blond hair, newly broken nose, a Rolex on his wrist. I fished around in his pockets, but his wallet wasn’t there.

“Don’t hurt me, man,” he said, opening his eyes with a wild look on his face as he took me in. He swallowed, wiping at the blood that dripped from his nose to his mouth. “I was just saying hi to an old friend. Nothing’s going on.”

I didn’t like the look of him, from the expensive cut of his clothes to the petulant droop of his mouth. And then his eyes slid over to Elizabeth as if drawn there. Incensed, I kicked him in the ribs with my bare foot. “Don’t look at her. Get out of here before I rip your throat out.”

He scrambled up to his knees and crawled away a few feet until he jumped up and took off running. I watched him dart across the carpark and then cross the street to Minnie’s Diner where he’d parked in a darkened area.

He squealed out onto the street and drove away in a black Porsche with tinted windows.

I turned back to Elizabeth.

“Are you okay? Did he hurt you?” I rushed over to her and tilted her chin up.

She took a deep breath, her lashes fluttering as she tried to gather herself. She gasped in air then slowly let it out.

“Panic attack?” I asked softly, careful to keep my distance from her as she inhaled and exhaled.

She nodded and spoke around her breaths. “Yeah. Only happens when I feel out of control.”

I gave her a few minutes to gather herself and watched as she took deep breaths, her color slowly coming back to her face.

“Who was that guy? Did you know him?”

Her eyes flared wide and then she looked hurriedly away. “Just—just someone I met tonight at the bookstore. He—he followed me home, I guess.”

She was lying. But why? Was she protecting him?

“He said he knew you.” I clenched my fists. Was he one of her one-night stands gone wrong?

She blushed a bright red and clamped her lips shut.

Why wouldn’t she confide in me? God, I didn’t want to upset her when she was already freaked out.

I sighed and looked around the breezeway. Okay. Changing gears. “Can you tell me what happened?”

Her tongue darted out to lick her lips. She nodded. “One minute I was thinking about getting into my apartment, and the next he was just there. He didn’t touch me, but if you hadn’t come out …” She shuddered. “Thank you. Again.”

“You get a name?”

She stiffened. “Why?”

I shrugged. “I have a friend with campus police. Wouldn’t hurt checking in to see if any complaints have been filed about him.”

She let out a deep breath as if steeling herself. “Colby Scott.”

“Okay.” I smiled gently, filing that name away as I took the keys from her hand and pushed her door open for her. I’d be doing my own investigating as well.

She blinked at the door, not moving.

I cupped her shoulders, consciously keeping my hands soft. “Hey, it’s over, okay? I showed up in time, and I’ll make sure it doesn’t happen again.” She rested her head on my shoulder, and shit, I got angry all over again. I should have hit him harder. “I think we should call the police and file a report. He followed you here, and that’s not cool.”

She tilted her head up and looked at me. Her lips trembled. “He didn’t actually do anything.”

“But you felt threatened, right? That’s enough to report him. Maybe I should just go pay him a visit myself.”

Her eyes widened. “No,” she bit out. “It’s over, and after what just happened, he won’t be back.” She swallowed. “And don’t you do anything on your own either, Declan. I don’t want you getting into trouble because of my stupid mistakes. Besides, he could stab you or shoot you or hit you with a two by four … just don’t.”

I grinned at her. “A two by four? Is that what people fight with in Petal, North Carolina?”

She smiled—just a little—and damn it made my heart glad.

She wavered for a moment at her door, her glance falling on my hand. “You were so fast, and I didn’t even know you were there—until you were. I wish I could do that.”

I gazed down at her, assessing. “If you want, I can show you how to hit, but I’d need to touch you. Are you good?”