Jayden lifted the Styrofoam cup to his lips. The steam rolled out of the top and he blew it a little before taking a sip of the bitter gas station coffee. The door to the dorm opened and his gaze locked on Haley as she walked to her first class of the day. The spring breeze caught her blonde hair and lifted it into the air. Her delicate hand brushed a strand of yellow silk out of her eyes.
Jayden frowned. Even from this distance he could see the faint dark circles under her eyes.
She wasn’t sleeping.
This would explain the drop in her grades.
Jayden hadn’t left the campus until late last night, watching for anything out of the ordinary. He saw nothing. So he spent the rest of the night on the computer hacking into the university’s database, gathering any information he could find on Haley. Her grades had progressively spiraled downward and even her teachers had commented on her state of withdrawal from participating in class. Where she had once been a dedicated student, she was now showing signs of disinterest and possibly failing out of college completely.
That pissed him off. The stalker was now controlling her life as well as affecting her future.
Jayden eased closer as Haley headed for the entrance of the building where her last class was held. She hurried past a group of college guys, head down, her fingers clutching her backpack like a lifeline.
“Hey, beautiful.” One guy wearing a bright orange T-shirt called out to her.
Haley kept her head down as she walked. Jayden’s gut clenched as he tossed the Styrofoam cup into the nearest garbage can and hurried near.
He had been given strict orders to stay back and watch, only revealing himself to Haley in an emergency. But when he saw her blue-eyed gaze dart nervously and how she clutched the straps of her backpack in a white-fingered grip, the only thing he could think of was protecting her from the group of assholes.
“What’s your hurry?” The guy reached out and grabbed her arm. Haley stared up at him, eyes wide with fear.
“Fuck the orders.” Jayden murmured as he stalked right up and pulled the guy’s hand off Haley.
“Get your fucking hands off my girl.” Jayden stepped in front of Haley, hands fisted ready to fight.
The guy’s eyes widened as he took in Jayden’s large size. Werewolves were bigger and more muscular than normal humans. As much as he liked intimidating humans, he much preferred the feel of bone cracking under his fists.
“Sorry, man. I didn’t know she was dating anyone.” The guy held up his hands as he backed away with the rest of his friends.
Keep it moving, motherfuckers. Jayden growled behind clenched teeth, restraining the wolf within.
Jayden watched the group of guys head to the safety of their cars before turning to face Haley.
She was nowhere in sight.
“Fuck.” He hurried up the steps into the building she’d just left and peeked into every classroom. He couldn’t find her anywhere.
According to his notes, the only other place she ever went was her dorm. When he researched Haley and which dorm she stayed in he had been surprised to discover it was coed. Since she’d transferred in midsemester, she didn’t get a choice in dorms. He jogged over to her building, ignoring the appreciative stares and smiles from the silly college girls he’d passed.
He entered the dormitory hall, and a sense of déjà vu washed over him. He had blown it in college. What did he expect when he partied all the time, skipped classes and chased too many girls? He’d been young and dumb and had been more concerned with getting into girls’ panties than getting a college education. He still remembered the day he was called into the dean’s office and kicked out. The worst part was going home to face Granny. The look of disappointment on her face about killed him.
Not getting a college degree was one of his regrets in life. If he could go back and do things differently he would have studied harder, maybe gone into computer programming. He was good at the tech stuff.
Ignoring the flirty looks from the girls he passed in the hall, he continued on until he found Haley’s room. He took a deep breath and knocked. He had probably scared her half to death when he got all aggressive with those guys. He couldn’t blame her.
She cracked the door. She stared back at him between her locks of blonde hair shielding half her face. He nodded, impressed that she didn’t just throw open the door without knowing who was on the other side.
“Jayden, what are you doing here?” She looked only slightly less scared than when the college guy grabbed her.
Fucking perfect.
“Haley, we need to talk.” Jayden lowered his voice and looked both ways down the hall. With the exception of two girls heading for their rooms, it was virtually empty.
He glanced back at her, wondering how long she was going to keep him standing out in the hall like an idiot.
“Barrett sent me.” He leaned in and lowered his voice. “I’m here to help.”
Her eyes widened for a fraction of a second and then she closed the door. The chain rattled before the door swung open. She stepped back, allowing him entrance.