“Yep.”
“Oh, I thought that was because of your position at Gordon Industries.”
“The timing was pretty much the same because my father was dead a week later.”
I squeezed his hand before bringing it to my mouth. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you, Gabriel.”
“You have nothing to apologize for, Emma. Really. Apologies for things beyond your control aren’t yours to give.”
“Maybe, but I wished I’d been there anyways. I also wish you’d never been stabbed.”
Gabriel shrugged. “It was a wakeup call. I wouldn’t be who I am now without it. So for that I’m grateful.”
“Did the person who did it ever go to jail?”
“No. Never got arrested either.”
“Well that fucking sucks!”
“Emma, language! You gonna kiss me with that mouth too?” Gabriel pecked me on my naughty lips. “Mmm. Yummy.”
Resting my head on his shoulder, I wrapped both arms around his. “Why did you go down that path?”
“I was angry.”
“At me?”
“Yes, but I was also angry in general. I was eighteen and thought my life was over. Not just because you dumped me. I felt…doomed. Doomed because of my family, doomed because I didn’t know how to get out from under my father’s fists, doomed because I couldn’t see any other way to live.”
“I know how that feels.”
“Yes, but you’re strong enough to keep moving forward no matter what.”
Gabriel said it as a compliment but in light of Lucas and this discovery, I wasn’t that confident about it.
“Things have turned out really well for you though.”
“Yes, they have.” Gabriel kissed my temple. “I got the girl of my dreams, my mother is happy and doesn’t live in fear anymore—life is good.”
“You’ve got so much more than that. You’re the head of a majorly successful company.”
“Which I got because of my father.”
“Yes, but you took it into the stratosphere.”
“I had luck on my side.”
“Bull. It was you that did it.”
“Fortune favored me.”
“You don’t take compliments well at all, Gabriel.”
“Neither do you.”
“We’re a pair of slippers for sure, aren’t we?” Gabriel’s teasing lilt faded. He cleared his throat and admitted softly, “Things were shit at the beginning when I took over. We were losing money left and right. Our operating cash was going to carry us for only nine weeks, ten tops. Employees were jumping ship and nobody thought an eighteen-year-old brat was going to turn things around.”
“But you made it happen.”
“You were my inspiration.”
Surprised, I cocked my head. “I don’t understand.”
“Every time I thought of throwing my hands up in the air, I’d think of you. ‘How would Emma handle this if she were in my position?’ Your poise became mine when I’d have board members screaming in my face about what kind of an idiot would put a kid in charge. I’d think of you and let the insults roll of my back.”
Looking out the window, I admitted softly, “They never rolled off my back.”
“I know. No one could tell that they didn’t though. You just kept moving on, completely focused on your goals regardless of what people said or thought. I admired that about you so much. I still do.”
“Gabriel, you think too highly of me.”
“Emma, don’t make me pull over and wallop you for that.”
I rolled my eyes, feeling humor push through my melancholy. “Your threats, Sir, are repetitive. FYI, they’re losing their effectiveness.”
“No respect!” Gabriel sighed forlornly. “Now, Emma. Can you promise me that you won’t let Lucas poison you against me?”
I looked over at him in shock. “I’d never let anyone do that!”
My love spared me a quick glance before looking back at the road. “I’m not saying you’d do it on purpose. I’m just saying I know my uncle and how silver tongued he can be to get his way.”
I bit my lip, debating if I should share Lucas’s ambiguous warning. “Gabriel, before he left your uncle told me he wasn’t a monster and that I should have some good memories but that I’ll move on because I’m strong. It doesn’t sound good.”
He bit out a curse and then grabbed his phone. A few more seconds and then “I know you’ve gotten my message already. Call. Me. Back.” Although he didn’t do anything but drive, I felt the waves of rage rolling off him. I wasn’t scared of Gabriel—I was scared for him.
“What are you going to say to him?”
“Plenty.”
“Gabriel, I don’t want to come between you two. Seriously. That won’t make me happy at all. He’s your family and you love him and it wouldn’t be right. I know how I’d feel if someone was trying to come between me and my mom.”
He exhaled. “Emma, I want to wring Lucas’s neck but I’m not going to cut him out of my life. I just need to know what he’s thinking going to you like that. I don’t know. He’s always been fixated on thinking he knows what’s best for me. He’s always been like that.”
“Your mom defended me pretty well.”
“Oh? How?”
I shared what I’d accidentally overheard Marie and Lucas talking about. “She told him to leave us alone and to leave her house.”
“Wow. Go Mama!”
“She’s really nice to me. I really would’ve thought that she’d blame me too for what happened to you.”
“My mom understands that love is rarely black and white. Besides, she’s heard me talk about you since 9th grade. I think she admires you as much as I do. And then there’s the girls.”
“The girls? You mean the triplets—Annette, Minnette, and Linnette?
“The very same. Do you know why they work for my mom?”
I shook my head, extremely curious to what Gabriel was going to share.
“I met them back when I was going on self-destruct. We got to talking one night and Annette told me how their dream was to do hair and makeup for a living together, but that was never going to happen because their grandma thought school was a waste of time.
“After I got back on track, I looked them up. I offered them a scholarship and an internship with my mom. The rest is history.”
“Do they just work for her?”
“Mainly, other than freelance shoots for photographers and fashion shows.”
I sat there, overwhelmed by the pure kindness of his heart. “You humble me, Gabriel Gordon. I had no idea you were this sweet. Forget chocolate. You’re a veritable bowl of sugar.”
Gabriel laughed, reaching over to ruffle my hair. “I helped them get off the streets and into a better life because that’s what you inspired in me, Emma. So if I’m a bowl of sugar then you’re the sugar cane.”
“I don’t know what to say.”
“You don’t need to say anything, my love, other than you trust me to fix things with my uncle.”
Sighing, I looked up into the sky. “He’s really against me. I don’t know if you can change his mind.”
“I will.”
I’d already given hope a try. Now I’d give faith a go. “If anyone can change his mind, Gabriel, it would be you.”
“You’re right and I will.”
We sat in companionable silence for a while before I asked, “Are you sure you don’t want to go back to your mom’s?”
“I’d love nothing more but I have to take care of you.”
“I’m fine. Really. I was just shaken up by what Lucas said to me—that’s all. We can go back and enjoy the rest of the weekend.”
“You need comforting. The kind I can’t give you at her lake house.”
“Oh.”
“Oh indeed.”
“You don’t want me to ‘Sub Drop’ somewhere other than the space you control.”
Gabriel shook his head, tossing me a wry smile. “Emma, Em
ma, Emma. Your need to be a walking encyclopedia of kink leaves me confounded!”
“What? I like to be informed. Besides, I just wanted to make sure you knew I didn’t mind staying at your mom’s. That’s all.”
“You’re so incredibly sweet.” Gabriel traced a pattern up the inside of my thigh. “We’ll be back again and I’ll take you on the lake. Better yet, I’ll pack a gluttonous picnic and take you to my favorite little island. We’ll lay out on the grass and just talk about anything.”
“That sounds wonderful.”
“Let’s mark our calendars for it…say next weekend?”
“Definitely.”
We spent the rest of the ride in a mix of companionable silence and random musings when Gabriel’s phone rang. My body tensed and I sat there with bated breath as he answered with a curt “Gordon here.”
I barely heard the muffled tones of Lucas’s voice. Whatever he said had Gabriel biting out “What are you doing there?”
And then “We’re about fifteen minutes away.”
Gabriel carefully placed the phone back down. His control bespoke of great anger. Or fear. I couldn’t tell which. Suddenly I felt we were kids again being called into the principal’s office for an infraction.
Which had totally happened the week before prom.
After being stared at and mocked one time too many, I’d snapped and yanked Kristen Yager’s hair and shoved her into the lockers. Kristen’s boyfriend had then grabbed me by the arm and was about to slap me when Gabriel tackled him to the ground.
We were then marched into the front office where we were both lectured soundly about fighting and jeopardizing our records so close to graduation. Thankfully a lecture was all we got. I touched Gabriel briefly on the hand and then went back to class. The whispers intensified and so did my distance with the boy who’d pummeled a guy half a foot taller than him.
It’s not just a principal we have to see. It’s the man who’s been more than an uncle to Gabriel.
I would’ve rather it be the principal again.
All too soon we pulled up under the building’s lot. Gabriel parked his car in his private garage space, next to his SUV, and then got out and opened my door. He linked his fingers with mine.
“Lucas is upstairs, waiting for us.”
“I know.”
Despite my smile, Gabriel pulled me close and whispered against my ear, “It’s going to be okay, Emma.”
I wanted to believe him. Truly, I did.
FIFTEEN
The world I’d built up with Gabriel fractured piece by broken piece. Hope and faith were words that never belonged in same sentence with my name. When was I going to learn that and what was I going to do now?
Thirty Minutes Earlier
The elevator ride up to the penthouse was unbearable. I felt like I was on my way to the executioner, dreading what I guessed was coming and wanting so badly to hold onto these last seconds of life before everything ended.
Gabriel held my hand in his, firmly but not tightly. He caught me looking up at him and gifted me a breathtaking smile. “What do you say to dinner out tonight?”
“Sounds good.”
“I’d like to go back to that Chinese restaurant. You remember? The one we first went to?”
“Yes, I remember.” Dread pricked my spine. I had a strong feeling we weren’t going to be going out anywhere tonight. Lucas wasn’t here for a social call. He was here to make an ultimatum. I was sure of it.
We got off the elevator and walked into penthouse. I drifted past my pedestal, wishing we could rewind time and go back to last week when I’d perched on it. I would’ve walked around D.C. with Gabriel forever if I had any clue that coming back here would result in this.
You sensed it. Somehow you felt this was coming…
Lucas awaited us by the wall of windows, shadowed and framed dramatically as I’m sure he intended. He waited a beat too long before turning around and acknowledging us.
“Gabriel. Emma. I’m glad you got here quickly. I’m due for an appointment in an hour so I won’t take up too much of your time.”
My lover shifted until I was half-hidden behind him. His instinctual move didn’t go unnoticed by any of us. Lucas tossed me a smile, colder than anything I’d seen of him so far.
Gabriel began with “Lucas, I’m going to be frank with you.”
“Of course, as I’m sure you realize I will afford you the same courtesy.”
“I don’t appreciate what you said to Emma at Mom’s. You had no right to insult her that way.”
He cocked his head slightly. “I don’t recall insulting her at all. Emma, how did I insult you?”
“Cut the crap!” Gabriel broke in hotly. “All of us know what you said and why you said it. I’m going to make this really clear. I’m not getting back with Embry. Ever. Emma is the one I love. Always.”
“Yes, I know.”
Lucas’s calm delivery confused us both. “If you know then why are you trying to make her feel unwelcomed?”
“Because she is unwelcomed, Gabriel. Emma is not good for you. She doesn’t fit into your life and the sooner you realize that, the better.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about. She’s the best thing that has ever happened to my life.”
The older man sighed and came closer. “I don’t want to fight with you, Gabriel, and I don’t want to hurt either of you. Not if I don’t have to. Listen to reason, both of you. This romance between you will never last. You’re not compatible in any way.”
“I disagree.” I hadn’t meant to say it out loud but there it was.
“Of course, you would. Gabriel is the best thing that could ever happen to someone like you.”
“Watch what you say, Lucas,” my love warned coldly. “I’m warning you.”
“I’m only speaking the truth. You can’t fault me for that.”
Gabriel shook his head, voice tight with pain. “Why are you doing this to us, to me? You’ve always known how much Emma means to me. Why would you try to hurt me like this?”
“I’d never want to hurt you and you know that.” Lucas looked away. For the first time he looked vulnerable and all-too-human. When he raised his head, Lucas’s unlined face didn’t betray regret. “I’ll do what I have to so I can save you from a bigger hurt later.”
“And what hurt might that be?”
“Don’t be daft, Gabriel! Just who she is will cause you harm! My God, her only friend is a dominatrix! Can you imagine the fallout if word gets out about that? One domino falls, they all will.”
Lucas raised his hands in the air, pointing out the invisible words on the air. “‘Gabriel Gordon, darling of Wall Street, is engaged to a girl of unknown paternity whose mother is a domestic servant and a high school dropout. Emma Adams, the lucky Cinderella who stole Gabriel’s heart, counts as her closest confidant one Gretchen Smith, professional dominatrix and keeper of the elite’s basest desires.’ From there, how long do you think it’ll be before someone from your past breaks her NDA?”
I winced at the lurid description. Shame reddened my cheeks. Although every word of it was true, Lucas made me sound like an opportunistic woman of poor character.
I’d be hated and Gabriel would be made a fool.
My insides froze. It didn’t take much to guess where Lucas was going to attack next.
“You say this as if I didn’t know anything about Emma. I know everything about her, Lucas, and I’m not ashamed of Emma. I’m very proud of who she is, where she comes from, and who she knows.”
“Have you thought about the board? Your mother? How well do you think either of you would be received if word got out about your extracurricular activities?”
Although I kept my head high, inside I was quaking. There was no talking to him and trying to get him to back off our relationship. Lucas wasn’t going to leave until he succeeded in pulling us apart.
Please, please, please don’t do this. Don’t make me leave Gabriel. Don’t make me have to ch
oose between our happiness and everyone else’s.
“No one is going to say anything, Lucas. I chose my partners carefully and there’s no reason for any of them to disclose anything publicly.”
“Be that as it may, the press gets hold of Gretchen Smith it won’t take long for them to dig around and uncover something.”
“Gretchen would never talk. She also doesn’t know that I’m seeing Gabriel.”
My lover briefly touched my arm. “You don’t have to explain yourself to him.”
Lucas smirked. “Aren’t you the least bit curious, Gabriel, why Emma hasn’t even shared your name with her closest friend? Maybe because she wasn’t planning on keeping you for long?”
God, this man could twist the kindest emotion into something spiteful!
“That’s not true. I did it for Gabriel.”
“And why might that be?” Butter couldn’t melt in his mouth. “Enlighten us.”
“You know why.”
“Ah, yes. Embry mentioned the lunch the three of you had. You made quite a spectacle of yourself, Emma. Flipping over the dining cart? Was that really necessary?”
“At the time it was.” I wasn’t going to apologize to Lucas for what had happened. If anybody needed an apology it was the bus boy and I already did that.
“And now you accept Gabriel. All of him.”
“Yes, I do.”
Lucas regarded me like one would a naïve idiot. “And so happily-ever-after happened because you submitted, begrudgingly I’m sure if all your trips to Ms. Smith are any indication, to my nephew’s sexual tastes.”
Gabriel’s hand cut through the air. Rage crackled. “This conversation is over. What happens in my bedroom is none of your business, Lucas. I don’t poke my nose in yours, you don’t poke your nose in mine. Understand?”
“I’m afraid it’s not that simple.”
“I want you out of here, Lucas, and don’t come back until you apologize to Emma for your crude behavior.”
The older man searched Gabriel’s gaze for many long moments. His full lips tugged into a frown. “You see what’s already happening, son? She’s breaking our family apart and you’re too blind to see it.”
My blood ran cold. This was the last thing I wanted for Gabriel. All my fears came back to life, bigger than before.
Dangerous for You Page 16
