Temptation from My Husband's Brother - Chapter 4: Chapter 4

The second I got yanked inside, even through my alcohol haze, I could just barely recognize the face in the dim lighting.
When it hit me that Shane Roland was the one who'd pulled me in with those massive hands, my stomach did this weird flip-flop between terror and exhilaration.
But Shane wasn't acting how I expected. The guy looked downright frantic, clamping his palm over my mouth before I could yelp. "Alice, stay quiet," he hissed, breath hot against my ear. "There's someone trying to get photos of you!" His finger flew to his lips in that universal shut-the-hell-up gesture.
Ice water flooded my veins. Just like that, I was stone-cold sober.
Lately, I'd been getting that creepy skin-crawling feeling - like someone's eyes were on me when I cut through the alley at night, or when I was in the bathroom, or even... God, especially when I showered.
Holding my breath, I heard it - soft shuffling outside the door. Then something metallic slid through the gap at the bottom. A camera lens?
"Hey! What the hell are you doing?" Zachary's voice cracked like a whip from the hallway.
At my husband's shout, Shane released me like I'd burned him and bolted. I yanked my dress straight and charged after him.
Outside, I saw them both chasing some guy in a black mask and baseball cap, his backpack bouncing as he hauled ass down the corridor. Zach was inches from grabbing him when the creep kicked over a trash can - sending my husband sprawling across the linoleum.
The stalker vanished through the emergency exit like smoke.
"Zach! You okay?"
"Forget me - go get him!"
Shane hesitated, torn, until Zach barked at him to keep chasing. I tried helping Zach up, but the man's built like a linebacker. Thank God Lily and some staff showed up when they did.
Down on the street, Shane stood panting, hands on knees. The guy had already darted across four lanes of traffic and disappeared into the night.
"Did you get him?" Zach demanded as he limped up. Shane just shook his head - the stalker knew every back alley and was gone in seconds.
Zach filed a report, but with no face shots or solid evidence? Cops basically shrugged.
Back home, nausea rolled through me.
Thank Christ I hadn't done anything stupid - and double thank Christ Shane had kept his hands to himself. If that creep had snapped compromising photos and sent them to Zach... I'd have to change my name and move to Antarctica.
The thought made my face burn. I couldn't even look at my husband.
"Alice," Zach said suddenly, making me jump. "I told you to meet me earlier. Why'd you go into the wrong bathroom?"
My pulse went haywire. I stared at my shoes like they held the secrets of the universe. The last thing I needed was Zach suspecting my... whatever this was with Shane.
"I... had too many cocktails. Wasn't thinking straight."
"Whatever. Tonight was messed up. Just glad it was some perv with a camera and not worse."
Thankfully, Zach dropped it, just told me to be more careful. But watching how he'd thrown himself after that creep - how hard he'd eaten pavement - made the guilt sit even heavier.
That one moment showed exactly how far he'd go to protect me.
That night, desperate for sleep, I popped in earplugs after Zach conked out.
Weirdly, Shane and Lily's place was dead silent next door. Guess we were all wiped.
Come Friday after work, I hit the fish market, loading up on fresh seafood to make Zach's favorite. Grabbed four boba teas on my walk home - one for each of us.
But when dinner was ready, Zach texted - stuck at the office. Lily was pulling late hours too.
I was mid-text to Shane when the front door swung open - and there he stood.