by Penny Dee
“I’m not going to tell anyone anything.”
“Oh, I know you won’t.” He stood up and gave me that cold, psychopathic smile. “Because if you do, you’ll never see your brother again.”
I stood up so quickly my chair crashed to the floor. “Leave Noah out of this.”
“I’m sorry, did I forget to mention that he’s gone?” His smirk was cruel. “Oh, don’t worry, he’s somewhere safe. Your silly little babysitter didn’t even notice he was gone. While I distracted the ditzy little girl, Jean-Paul took your boy.”
A cold chill shot up my spine. “You’re lying.”
“Am I?”
Terrified, I tore down the hallway to Noah’s room, an overwhelming wave of fear crashing over me when I saw his bedroom was empty.
Alex came up behind me.
“Don’t worry. Like I said, he’s safe. It’ll be good for Noah to have a holiday away from …” He looked around the little apartment with distaste. “The boy deserves more than this, don’t you think?”
Inside, I trembled with overwhelming fear, but outwardly, I was rippling with fury.
“If you hurt him, I will kill you.”
“Oh, he won’t be hurt. I find that so unnecessary.” He waved the idea off as if it was ridiculous. But then his eyes sharpened. “But you’ll never see him again if you don’t give me the right decision.”
My knees buckled and I had to grab onto the doorknob to hold myself up.
I didn’t want to work for Alex anymore, and he knew that.
He stepped closer. “You have one day to give me your answer. Then I take the boy.”
When the man who had once been my world disappeared out the front door, I fell to my knees.
Alex had finally caught up to me.
And now my brother was gone.
TAYLOR
If Alex thought I was going to sit back and let him take my brother, then he had another thing coming.
When he left, I waited less than a minute to follow him.
He was hardly difficult to tail. There weren’t too many limited-edition Mercedes SUVs in this part of town.
I hung back, careful not to be seen, my stomach churning as I followed him out of Destiny, toward Emerald Lake, a fancy lakeside community where the holiday houses of the rich and infamous dotted the shoreline. Alex pulled into an enormous gated home and disappeared into a garage, the automated door dropping down behind him.
I parked up the street and slipped into the darkness, making my way through shadows and avoiding the light, until I was on the shoreline directly outside of Alex’s house. A massive boat was moored on the pier, and the smell of garlic and melted butter drifted across the evening to where I stood watching.
I was hoping to see Noah, but the windows of the lake house were dark. My hands curled into a fist, and I choked back my fear.
I wanted to go in there and confront Alex for everything.
I wanted to yell and scream at him for everything he put me through.
For everything he made me do.
For every lie he made me believe.
Then I wanted to tell him that my debt to him was paid, that I owed him nothing, that I would no longer do what he wanted me to do.
And if he resisted or told me no, then I wanted to put a bullet in him.
But I couldn’t. Because I had to be very careful about how I played the next hand.
My life depended on it.
Noah’s life depended on it.
With my heart a heavy weight in my chest, I backed away and slipped back into the shadows.
My phone vibrated in my pocket but I waited until I got back to my car before I opened it.
My clients always said you were their favorite.
Resisting the urge to vomit, I quickly messaged him back.
I have your word you won’t harm Noah?
I have no intention of doing something so unavoidable. Do this for me and you are both free. You have my word.
With tears falling down my cheeks, I drove toward Destiny, back to the tiny apartment I shared with my brother, feeling terrified that if I played my cards wrong, I could lose him forever.
When the tears got too much, I pulled over to the side of the road and with my heart breaking, I picked up my phone and dialed Bull’s number.
Bull answered on the second ring. “Taylor?”
The sound of his voice tightened the knot in my chest. “Can I see you?”
“Is everything okay?” He sounded sleepy.
Tears welled in my eyes. “I’m sorry about this afternoon…”
“It’s okay, baby.” I could hear the hint of concern in his deep voice.
“No, it’s not. Can I come over?”
“I can come to you. Is Noah in bed?”
My tears breached my lashes and spilled down my cheeks, but I kept my voice steady. “No, he’s at a friend’s house.”
“Then get your sweet ass over here, little bird,” he whispered huskily.
Twenty minutes later, he answered his door, shirtless and in a pair of sweats sitting low on his hips. When he saw my face, his dark brows pulled in. “Are you okay?”
I went to him and kissed him. Suddenly I wanted this moment to last. I wanted to remember every kiss. Every touch. Every breath with him in it.
Because this was goodbye.
He just didn’t know it.
Feeling my desperation, he pulled back.
“Hey, talk to me.” His gentle fingers swiped a strand of hair from my face. “Tell me what’s going on.”
I wish I could.
“I know we need to talk. But not now. Please, I need you.”
He frowned. “Why won’t you tell me what has you so frightened you can’t tell me the truth. Let me help you.”
“Because you can’t.”
“I can protect you from whatever it is you’re afraid of.”
I shook my head.
No, he couldn’t.
I pressed my fingertips into his cheeks and brushed his lips with mine. “Please…” I begged. “We’ll talk in the morning. But for now…I need this … please… just make love to me.”
I kissed him and he kissed me back. At first it was hesitant, but as it grew in heat, his resistance burned away like embers, and he lifted me up in his big arms, and we both moaned as I wrapped my legs around his hips and he carried me to the bedroom.
On the bed, I straddled him and gently rocked against the hardness in the front of his sweats, and he took my face in his big hands with a moan, kissing me harder.
I wasn’t wearing panties beneath my dress. They were on the floor of my car. Because this was why I was here. I wanted this to be my last memory of him.
With a bit of maneuvering, I was able to slide his sweatpants over his narrow hips, and when I sank down on him, he moaned, his head falling back into the pillow as I began to ride him.
“Little bird …” he breathed, his voice strained, his eyes hooded.
I pulled my dress over my head and he groaned at my nakedness. Reaching up, his tender fingers swept down my throat and across my collarbone, lighting little fires along the way. They left featherlike trails down to my breasts. Every touch tender and meaningful. Loving. I gasped, slowly grinding against his pelvis, the friction building in my clit, his big cock filling every inch of me, making me wet, making me moan.
God, he feels good.
The muscles of his firm stomach flexed and clenched into a six-pack as he sat up, and his warm lips found my breasts and sealed over a tight nipple. He licked and sucked, his tongue dragging across my skin until his lips latched onto the other nipple. He hissed in a breath, and his hands slid over me like silk, creating magic with every touch.
I started to cry. I was riding him but he was making love to me with everything he had. His mouth. His tongue. His fingers.
And this was goodbye.
Because tomorrow I would be gone.
Far, far away from here.
A woman running from her past.
A woman running from the law for killing the man who kidnapped her brother and made her do the unthinkable.
Pleasure and heartache were a perfect storm inside me, and despite the chaos in my head, my orgasm was swift. Heartbreak collided with physical pleasure, and tears streamed down my face as I rode the rollercoaster to the top of the ride and freefell into a mind-blowing bliss. I closed my eyes and my head tilted back as I came, loud and unbridled, under Bull’s mesmerized gaze. And for a moment there was nothing but us, and the ecstasy our bodies were taking from each other.
As I came down from my high, I realized my face was wet with tears. I quickly wiped them away, but Bull grabbed my wrist. “Baby…”
I pulled it free and leaned down, smashing my lips to his.
But he pulled back. “Why are you crying?”
He reached over and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear, those magical eyes glittering all over my face, the tenderness in his touch telling me that his feelings ran deep.
His touch broke my heart.
More tears fell down my cheeks, and my emotions spilled out.
“Because you mean everything to me …”
Because this is goodbye and my heart is breaking.
He moaned and kissed me hard, rolling us until I was under his big body, not knowing that this was it for us. He pressed his massive palms to the side of my face and planted kisses against my cheeks, fighting off my tears with his tenderness as his hips began rolling into me again. Slowly and tenderly, and oh so deeply, he gave us both mind-shattering climaxes, the length and thickness of him driving us headfirst into blinding ecstasy.
Afterward, we were too spent to speak. Too lost in the haze and the late hour to talk.
“Tomorrow,” I whispered.
We fell asleep wrapped in one another, our bodies warm beneath the sheets, our limbs tangled and heavy with contentment, our breathing deep, and soft, and satisfied. But somewhere between midnight and the dark hours before dawn, I whispered my goodbyes to him before I slipped from his warm bed and disappeared into the cold shadows of the morning.
TAYLOR
Eight Years Ago
I stared at myself in the mirror, trying to calm my nerves. My hands shook, and the sting from Alex slapping me across my face was as fresh as the red mark on my cheek. I told myself not to cry, to breathe in deep and keep calm. He had hurt me. Struck me twice before walking away with Jean-Paul, leaving his trusted thugs behind to deal with the carnage. When he was gone, I’d looked over at the two dead bodies lying in pools of blood, their eyes half open but vacant. I’d stared, paralyzed with fear and heartbreak, my brain scrambling to make sense of what’d just happened.
After killing Jacob, Alex had killed Victoria. But he was careful about where the bullet went, considered the trajectory and how far from her temple he needed to hold his gun. Because Alex was no fool. He could dispose of Jacob with little concern, but Victoria was a different story. She was his wife, a permanent fixture in his life, and she would be missed. He needed a plausible reason for her death, and staging a suicide was the best option.
Later tonight, the cops would be called after Alex came home and found his wife dead in the pool house.
I sat in front of my mirror and began fixing the damage so the police officers wouldn’t see his handiwork all over my face, while he was at the country club, creating an alibi.
The sudden opening of my bedroom door made me jump, and Jean-Paul walked in. Immediately, the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. Lately, he’d started to treat me like I was something that belonged to him.
He took one look at me and knew I’d been crying.
“You’re crying over him?” he said with disbelief.
“That didn’t need to happen,” I replied through gritted teeth.
“He betrayed Alex. What did he expect? And Victoria… that whore got what she deserved.”
I stood up to face him. “Neither of them deserved to die.”
“They showed disrespect.”
“But that’s not a good enough reason to murder them.”
Jean-Paul’s cold eyes found mine and he tilted his head to the side suspiciously. “Why are you defending them? You feel something for that boy? Something romantic?”
“No!” Alarm tingled in the base of my spine as he began to walk slowly toward me. I wasn’t afraid of Jean-Paul but he was dangerous because he could be so unpredictable. “He was my friend. The only one I had.”
“Once we’re married, you won’t need any friends. I’ll be the only friend you need.” When he reached me, he slid the back of his fingers down my cheek. “We’ll be engaged soon and you won’t have time for friends. You will be too busy tending to my needs.”
The lust in his eyes churned my stomach. But I bit back my revulsion, determined to show Jean-Paul that he couldn’t intimidate me. I had Alex’s word. The marriage was a business deal. Nothing more.
“You’re forgetting, we’ll only be married in name only. I won’t be tending to anything of yours.”
A snarl curled on Jean-Paul’s lips. “You will tend to whatever the hell I tell you to do.”
I shivered, remembering Jacob’s words.
He’s lying to you, Taylor. Once you’re married to Jean-Paul, you will be expected to be his wife in every sense of the word.
“You need to leave,” I demanded. “I just lost my best friend and you coming in here and speaking like an asshole isn’t helping. Get the hell out.”
Taking me by surprise, Jean-Paul thrust me up against the wall, one hand on my chest, the other gripping my chin to the point of pain.
“You have a thing for that boy?” He seethed, baring his teeth. “You better not have let him have his way with you, Taylor. Better not have let him take what is going to be mine. I’ll know. When I fuck you on our wedding night, I’ll know if you’ve given that sweet pussy of yours to someone else. Alex told me you were pure. If I find out otherwise, I’ll punish you in ways that’ll make what you just saw look like a walk in the fucking park.”
He had no idea what I did for Alex. The things I was forced to do. The men. Or else, he wouldn’t have me up against the wall talking about my virginity with his hand wrapped around my throat.
“Get your goddamn hands off me,” I seethed.
His eyes dropped to my lips and became hooded. He loosened his grip around my neck, just enough for me to suck in a small breath before he mashed his lips to mine. I gagged and clamped my lips together, twisting my face away from him. But his grip on my chin tightened, making me whimper. And he was getting off on it. I could feel his arousal pressed against my thigh.
“I should just take you now. Take what is mine and be done with you.”
He smashed his lips to mine again, forcing his tongue between my lips and into my mouth. I growled and bit down on him, drawing blood and making him more enraged.
“You fucking cunt…” Both hands went around my throat. “You think you can do that to me?”
“Let me go,” I gagged.
His arrogant eyes brightened with rage.
“Who the fuck do you think you are?” His hands squeezed tighter.” I’m going to drain the life out of you, you traitorous bitch, and then I’m going to fuck your dead body while it’s still warm.”
“You won’t kill me…” I choked out, refusing to let him see how afraid I was. “Alex … will … kill … you.”
He scoffed arrogantly, too far gone to see that I was right, too high on inflicting his power over me to see the consequences he would have to face.
“I’ll tell Alex I came to console you and you attacked me.” His face rippled with the power he felt. He was getting off on choking me to death. “Tell him you lost your mind over your precious pal dying in front of you.”
I struggled against him. But his fingers only squeezed harder, cutting off my air supply. I couldn’t breathe. My skin grew hot and my brain felt like it was about to pop. Terrified, my hand smacked against the dressing table desperately, knocking
over bottles and photo frames as I searched for the only thing that was going to save me from this situation.
Almost at the point of unconsciousness, my hand finally wrapped around the familiar cold steel of my Beretta—the gun I took to jobs with me—and I wasted no time shoving the barrel of it into Jean-Paul’s chin.
Fear replaced fury on his face and he let me go. Barely able to keep myself on my feet, I used my hatred for Jean-Paul and the heartbreak of Jacob and Victoria’s murders, to keep me upright.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” Jean-Paul barked. “Put that gun away before you hurt yourself.”
I struggled for breath and felt a wave of dizziness wash over me. But nothing was going to stop me from saying what needed to be said. I fixed him with murderous eyes. “If you ever put your hands on me again, you psychopathic fuck, I will kill you.” I released the safety so he knew I wasn’t joking. “And you’d better believe I know how to do it.”
Jean-Paul retreated. “You’ll pay for this.”
I exhaled deeply and shot into the wall behind him, just missing his ear.
“That was a warning. I’ll put the next one between your eyes.”
Jean-Paul fled, and I stumbled across the room to lock the door behind him.
Two days later, Alex sent me to Cabo.
And my life changed forever.
BULL
She’s gone.
That was my first thought when I woke up and found the bed empty beside me.
But the bathroom door was closed, and with my mind still anesthetized by sleep, I figured she was in there.
It was early. Outside, the sun had barely reached the sky and the dawn fog still rolled through the streets.
Rolling onto my back, I thought about the woman who had flipped my life on my ass. I thought back to her words last night. Because you mean everything to me. And I sank deeper into the pillows, feeling content, feeling in love.
Never in a million fucking years did I think this would happen to me.
That I would fall this hard.
Want someone this much.
