“No.” I said, a little more forcefully.
His head lowered and his chin rested on his chest. “I could have hurt you and I never want to do that.”
“You didn’t. You scared me for sure, but I’m still here. That has to say something doesn’t it?” I let the tears fall as I held his bloodied knuckles to my cheek.
He leaned forwards, his forehead rested on mine and I put my arms around him, stroking the back of his neck to soothe him. We stayed like that for a while. I heard voices, Travis and Evelyn, and he looked up at her with such sorrow on his face it broke my heart. Walking to her, he took her in his arms. He towered over her, and he hugged her to him as if his life depended on it.
“I’m so sorry,” he said.
She smiled up at him and nodded. I looked over to Travis, his shirt was torn, and he looked as bad as Robert. My forehead furrowed in question. He’d simply shrugged his shoulders and smiled before taking Evelyn by the arm and led her back to their apartments.
Robert went to the kitchen and returned with two beers. He handed one to me and then sat in silence, his hand rested on my curled up legs.
“Where did you go?” I asked quietly.
Without looking at me he said, “I just drove for a bit, smashed the shit out the car in a parking lot somewhere, found a bar, and tried to get drunk. Then Travis showed up.”
“How did he know where to find you?”
He let out a soft chuckle. “Travis always knows where to find me. We sat, had a few beers, got into a fight, and then got chucked out. I can’t wait to see the papers tomorrow on that one.”
“You got into a fight?”
“With Travis, he tried to knock some sense into me,” he said with a small smile.
He saw me look at his hand and quickly added, “Don’t worry, I didn’t hit him. I hit the car windows. Going to cost a fortune to recover and get it repaired.”
He turned to look at me. As he cupped my face in his hand he said, “I mean it, Brooke, you will get hurt if you stay with me.”
“Do I get a choice?” I asked. “If I get a choice then I choose to stay. I don’t doubt you will fuck up again, but can I be the judge of when, or if, I leave?”
He sighed, “I will hurt you and you will hurt me, and I don’t know if I can handle that.”
“People in love hurt each other all the time, it’s what they do about it after that matters, Robert.”
His eyes flew to mine.
“You love me, I can see that. You’re scared of what you feel. I know we’ve only known each other a short time, but I know what I feel. Like I said, I know you better than you think I do. I know you feel something for me. You wouldn’t be here now if you didn’t. I mean, I know this is your house, but if you wanted it, I would have been long gone by now.”
“Brooke, whatever you do, don’t ever say things to me you don’t mean. I take everything literally.”
“I’ve emailed my boss and told him I’m not coming back, not for the next three months anyway. He’s not happy and I will be poor because of it, but I wouldn’t have done that if I weren’t sure how I felt. Now, you need a shower, you look like hell and then you need to sleep.”
I took his hand and led him downstairs to the bathroom. I stripped off his shirt, slid down his jeans, and walked him to the shower. I sat and watched him while he let the water wash the day from his body and the blood from his hands. His head was held low, dejected, and then when he was done I wrapped a towel around him and hugged him to me. Once he had dried, I led him to the bed and climbed in. I held him in my arms and let him fall asleep.
As I watched him sleep, I saw a number of emotions cross his face as he dreamed, and I smiled when he called out my name. I’d had to be really sure of what I was doing. I had already set the wheels in motion and I would have to call on every resource I had to make it work. Three months, that was all, to know whether we could work it out, whether we could be together.
I remembered Travis’ words. If I took him on, it had to be for life. That was hard bearing in mind I’d known him for a week. I knew I could never break his heart; it would finish him.
And then it happened.
The realisation hit me like a punch to my chest and I gasped for air. For the first time I had clarity. I reached for my phone and sent a message to Sam knowing he would be asleep.
“We can stop searching. I found it. I found him.”
Chapter Six
I woke early, just as the sun rose. I was on my side facing him, studying him, and knew; somehow, he was the person I had been searching for. I hadn’t known I was looking for a person when I felt the need to search, but watching him then, I was absolutely sure. How to explain it though was another matter. I left Robert still asleep, showered and dressed. Rifling through my bag I was pleased that Sam had packed some jeans and a sweater. I found a note in my trainers, “For running away in” and I laughed quietly, so as not to disturb him.
I noticed some missed calls from Sam, and a text with one word, “What?????”
I needed to get how I felt straight in my head before I could explain it. I replied, letting him know I would speak to him later. I made my way upstairs and was surprised to see Evelyn already in the kitchen.
“Good morning, Brooke. Did you guys manage to talk?” she asked.
“A little,” I said. “He asked me to leave and I said no.”
She chuckled. “I bet that surprised him, people don’t normally say no to him. Is he still asleep?” she asked.
“No, he’s not,” a voice said and we turned to see Robert stride across the room.
He planted a kiss on top of Evelyn’s head and then walked towards me. He took me in his arms and kissed me on the mouth.
“Ev, Brooke is going to stay here now, can you arrange for her things to be brought over from Sam’s?” he said looking at me.
I smiled back at him, a huge smile that reached from ear to ear.
“Of course. Brooke, will you let Sam know and I can collect your things later today.”
We sat at the bar and watched Evelyn prepare breakfast for us. I didn’t know if I could get used to that, having someone run around after me. She placed fruit, yogurt, tea, and toast on the counter and we helped ourselves.
“I have to go into work for a couple of hours, I want you to come with me, and then I’m going to take some time off. I know you have Sam to think of, but we need to spend some time together to talk,” he said to me.
Evelyn’s eyes shot up as she heard him say that, a smile crept across her face.
Without even looking at her he said, “Don’t make that face, Ev,” and I laughed.
He dressed for work and I sat on the bed watching him. He donned his customary black suit, white shirt, and red tie.
“Don’t you ever wear anything different?” I asked.
He looked at me, “Why would I?” he replied. “I like these suits, I like the colour so why change.”
I laughed, “Okay, Trouble, one change at a time, I get it.”
Travis waited by the Range Rover and we slid into the back. I was excited to see his office, the people that he worked with. It was still early when we’d arrived and parked in an underground car park. We took the lift to the eleventh floor. The doors slid open into a huge reception area; a large desk occupied the space with a glass panel behind it, water cascaded down. I hoped whoever sat there did not get wet. Behind the glass panel I could see four doors, all were identical, and out of one came a woman in a grey suit, tall, slim with her long brown hair pulled back. She walked to the glass desk.
“Good Morning, Mr. Stone, Travis,” she said. “I have a list of calls for you to attend to when you’re ready and there’s coffee on your desk.”
“Thank you, Gina,” he said and without any introduction, we walked into his office. Travis headed to another.
Gina, I’d heard the name before. Maybe it was coincidence but hadn’t Miranda called her friend Gina?
“Why didn’t you introduce m
e?” I asked.
“Oh don’t worry, she knows exactly who you are. Now, I have some calls to make, are you going to be comfortable?”
“Sure, to be honest, I could do with a laptop and the internet. I can catch up on some emails. I also need to call my boss.”
Robert picked up his phone, “Gina, grab a laptop for Miss Stiles and she would like tea if we have some.”
“Don’t you ever say please?” I said, as he replaced the receiver.
He looked at me as if I was the rude one.
There was a gentle knock on the door and Gina came into the office. She placed the laptop and a pot of tea with a china cup and saucer on a coffee table surrounded by a large leather sofa. With a forced smile she backed away.
“Thank you, Gina,” I said to her retreating back. Her hand hesitated slightly as she reached for the door.
“History there?” I asked with raised eyebrows.
“With Gina? No, but she is Miranda’s friend. As much as she has to be nice, she works for me, I guess I’m not her favourite person,” he chuckled.
“I’ve met her,” I said. “Well, when I say met, I overheard her and Miranda talking in the ladies’ Tuesday night.”
He looked at me.
“What were they saying?” he asked.
I told him as I set up the laptop and connected to the Internet.
As much as I’d wanted to know about his relationship with Miranda, I was quickly learning not to ask too many questions. If I seemed unconcerned about anything, he would talk. That time however, he picked up the phone.
“Travis, come in here.”
Travis came into the room and Robert asked me to repeat not only what I’d heard in the restroom, but also what Miranda had said that night we’d first met. Travis nodded, looked at Robert, and left the room.
“What was that all about?” I asked.
As he opened a file on his desk, he said, “Nothing I want you to worry about. Now, stop distracting me. The quicker I get through this, the quicker you and I get out of here. Or rather, the quicker I get you out of those too tight jeans.”
He picked up his phone and returned some of the calls on his list. I’d tuned out and concentrated on replying to emails. A plan began to form in my head. I realised that I could carry on work; I could manage my accounts from DC. If Robert didn’t mind, I could use a desk, conference call and oversee what needed to be done by way of email. I didn’t know if my boss would go for it, but at least I wouldn’t just be abandoning my job. I had a great team around me and I was sure I could make it work; it was only for three months.
At that point I would make a decision whether to return or leave work and set up base in Washington. I had no idea whether it was legal or not, I was on a tourist visa but I reasoned that I wasn’t working in America as such. People carried on with their work while on holiday, so I believed I would be fine.
I used my mobile to call my boss and we had a long conversation. I explained that I had some personal issues and that it was going to take me a little while longer to resolve them. I offered to work part-time, for a reduced salary and explained how I could do that from DC, how I could manage what I did online. I had access to an office, I could receive faxes and emails, and to my surprise he’d agreed. He wanted me to email my new terms and he would adjust my contract.
I left Robert on the telephone, and wandered out of his office. I wanted to refresh my tea and find the ladies’. Gina was sitting at the reception desk and I asked her where the kitchen was.
“Second door, Miss Stiles,” she answered, tersely.
I thanked her and made my way back behind the glass waterfall. Second door from which end, I thought. The door to my right was Robert's, so it could be either of the middle two. Not wanting to go and ask her again, I opened the door immediately next to Robert's and walked straight into what looked like a command center. There were desks and banks of TVs along one wall, CCTV mainly.
Travis sat at one of the desks and another, very well built guy with a crew cut, military style, sat opposite. Travis rose and walked towards me, quickly closing a file on his desk.
“Brooke, this is Mark,” he said by way of an introduction.
“I’m sorry, I was looking for the kitchen. Gina said it was second door but not from which end.”
He chuckled as he ushered me out of the room, somewhat quickly I thought, and to the next door. He waited while I made tea and refreshed the coffee for Robert. I offered him one and asked if I should do the same for Gina, he laughed and shook his head.
“No, other than poison, I doubt that girl drinks anything,” he said.
They were obviously not the best of friends then.
I’d discovered that the last door was the toilet. There were two separate cubicles within the one room. I chose the men’s. Pathetic as it was, I didn’t want to sit on a loo Gina had been in. When I’d arrived back with the tea and coffee, I noticed Jonathan in the office with Robert. I’d backed out and made my apologies for interrupting them.
“Brooke, come and sit,” Robert said.
I poured his coffee and asked Jonathan if he would like some, he preferred to have tea so I gave him the fresh cup.
“I heard your call earlier and I’ve asked Jonathan if he has some space, a spare desk in his department. You can use the facilities and work from there,” he said.
“Oh that would be great.” I turned to Jonathan, “Thank you, I won’t get in your way. I just need a phone, a laptop, and Internet connection. You can bill me for the calls.”
He’d laughed. “It would be a pleasure, just let me have a list of what you need. However, if you don’t mind, I would like for you to sit away from Sam. It’s hard enough keeping his attention focused on what he should be doing without having you next to him.”
With a smile he asked Robert if there was anything else.
They had a quick chat about a few things; I didn’t listen but quickly ran to my bag to text Sam. We would be working in the same office and I was excited. When Jonathan had left, I ran around the desk. I placed my arms around Robert’s neck and kissed him.
“Thank you,” I said.
“I have a couple more calls then do you want to hit the gym?” he asked. “I need to release a bit of energy, I also have Travis to pay back,” he smiled wickedly.
“Sure, although I don’t have any clean clothes. I did leave my bag there the other day but it’s full of sweaty gear.”
He picked up the phone. “Gina, Miss Stiles needs some workout gear, can you call downstairs and have one of the boys look in the stores.”
He replaced the phone and then explained. “We have a room down there, sometimes people leave clothes, don’t worry they’re all laundered but it will do for today. I want to kick that beautiful ass of yours,” he said.
“I bet I can match you stride for stride, bring it on, my friend.”
He lifted the receiver again, “Travis, Miss Stiles here believes she can match us, and I quote, stride for stride in the gym,” he paused listening to the reply and then laughed. “Yeah, see you there, thirty minutes.”
“Now, go do something and let me get on,” he said with a smile.
I returned to the laptop. I’d been given a shiny Mac and dealt with my emails. I sent the email with a work proposal to my boss and explained about having an office; I gave all the details of the company so he could verify I was telling the truth, and Jonathan’s contact number. No doubt he would want to check with him.
I was concentrating so much on typing and checking out some images from a recent photo shoot that I’d not heard Robert move across the room and stand beside where I was sitting. I saw his reflection in the laptop and smiled at it.
“Stop creeping will you,” I said as I shut it down and stood.
“I’m not creeping,” he replied.
“Do you want to know something strange? I don’t have to see you; I can feel you. You could be on the other side of a crowded room and I would know you were there. That
’s odd, don’t you think?”
“No, not odd at all and it’s a good thing. You’ll always know where I am, that I’m watching you. That will keep you safe,” he said, the intensity coming back.
He immediately turned and beckoned me to follow.
“Come on, Ali,” I said as I passed him on the way to the lift. “Let’s see what you’ve got.”
After trying on some workout clothes, I left the changing area and made my way to the treadmill. A run would loosen me up, ready me for some kickboxing. I couldn’t wait to surprise Robert; I doubted he had ever sparred with a girl before. Being the only female at my class, I was used to having to train with the guys, some of them professionals and sometimes, to make a point, they wouldn’t hold back. We were always well protected with head and chest guards but I would often leave the class bruised.
I watched Robert and Travis warm up; the elderly gentleman I’d seen previously was with them. He seemed to supervise the boxing area, perhaps he was a former coach or something, but he certainly had a rapport with them. I unashamedly watched him in the mirror that time and noticed mine were the only pair of eyes on him.
Word had obviously got round that I was there with him and I could feel the coldness from the other women. I ran my mile, let myself slow, and my muscles wind down a little and loosen. I walked over to the boxing ring and Travis introduced me to Ted.
“Ted, this is Brooke, she wants to have a little go at some boxing with us.”
Ted laughed, a throaty, smokers cackle and I smiled sweetly at him. I knew they were making fun of me but I didn’t mind, I would have the last laugh.
“Now, girl, I don’t like you ladies boxing but if you insist, let me get a head guard and gloves. I’ll take you through some moves,” Ted said with a very distinct New York accent.
Robert and Travis entered the ring and I watched them fight. They meant it as well, there was no holding back, and they were an even match. I left them to it and went with Ted to the heavy bag. As I stood behind it, he told me how to land a punch. I’d pretended to not know and threw a feeble girly one that barely dented the bag. I didn’t want to give away my secret. Once I had shown my hand, I would find a sport shop and buy some equipment that fit.
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