I Have an Invisible Stalker (Guardians #1)

Chapter 53

Olivia's POV

"I know you can see him too," Charlie says before I can open my mouth. 

We are sitting across the table from each other, but while he is faced toward the counter, I have my back to it. Even without looking, though, I know that with him, Charlie means Samuel.

"How—" I begin, but Charlie shakes his head.

"Not now." He nudges his chin in the direction where I know Samuel and Nick are still seated. "You better go back before either of them decides to do something stupid."

I hesitate, undecided between my curiosity about Charlie and the need to keep my own secret. A moment later, I push the chair back and shoot Charlie an honest smile. "Thank you for giving me the chance to explain my side of the story."

With a smile from Charlie in return, I head back to the counter and stop at the other side from Samuel and Nick.

"How'd it go?" Nick is the first one to ask and Samuel follows a second later with, "You got a chance to apologize?"

"It went better than I expected and yes, I got a chance to apologize. Charlie even accepted my apology."

Nick shoots his younger brother a quick look and then wordlessly turns back to me. His silence reminds me of the other unresolved issue I still have looming above my head. "About what you heard at the intersection—"

Nick raises his hand to stop me. "You don't have to explain. I'm the one who should apologize. I was wrong to call you crazy and then to walk away from you."

"You don't have to apologize," I disagree.

"Yes, I do. I was an idiot, and I'm sorry for how I reacted."

"Why the change of heart?" I ask while peeking at Samuel to find him looking as confused as I feel.

"Because of Charlie." Nick nods at the table almost across the room from us. "The kid's smart for his age; smarter than I'll ever be. He made me realize that just because I can't see something, it doesn't mean it's not there."

"He told you this?" I glance back at Charlie but find him gazing through the window instead.

Yet again I wonder how he got the ability to see Guardians. A Guardian must have saved his life, but the question remains of who and when. Before I can voice any of the questions aloud, I count to three. There is little point in me knowing, as it is only a matter of time before my memories of Guardians will be erased.

My attention is pulled away from Charlie when the front bell goes off. I turn to the entrance with a soft smile to greet the new customer, but it dies the moment I find Weston, with his long locks unusually disarrayed and his shirt stained with sweat, marching toward the counter. Before the door even closes, he stops beside Nick.

"We need to talk," Weston says and turns to Nick. "In private."

"You can talk to her, but I'm not going anywhere." Nick leans against the back of his stool and levels Weston with narrowed eyes.

"I agree," Samuel nods and crosses his arms in front of his chest.

I can barely hold in the giggle at Samuel's and Nick's matching scowls and instead turn back to Weston. "What's going on?"

"It's about Brooke." The moment Weston mentions the name of my childhood friend the smile disappears from my face. "I need you to talk with her."

"Why?" I ask. "Is she okay?"

"She's been acting weird for the past few weeks. And then an hour ago she suddenly broke things off between us."

"And you want me to find out why she broke up with you?"