by Force, Marie
Biting my lip, I nod. I blacked out during that part of the assault, but the pain is the worst there.
She helps me to lie back down. “Did he rape you?”
“No.” I don’t tell her that he said he was so disgusted by my perversions that he couldn’t believe he’d ever gotten it up for me in the first place. Thank God for that.
“I’d like to take photographs of your injuries in case you change your mind about pressing charges.”
“I’m not going to change my mind.”
“You don’t know that right now.”
“Yes, I do.” My plan is to ruin him every other way I can—and there are several ways that can be done without exposing myself and my life to the relentless media scrutiny that would ensue from reporting something like this to the authorities.
“Let me take the photos in case you change your mind about pressing charges. Please.”
“Fine.” Whatever it takes to get this over with that much faster.
She takes the photos and gives me a shot for the pain.
I’m sure Addie, Sebastian and the doctor assume I’m in shock and not thinking clearly, but there’s nothing wrong with my brain. I’m thinking clearly and had a very long night in excruciating pain to plot my revenge.
Not only am I going to make him sorry he fucked with me, I’m going to make him sorry he was ever born. I’m going to ruin him. That’ll satisfy me far more than any long, protracted, public airing of this incident ever could.
Planning my revenge makes it possible to withstand the pain.
“I need to tell Hayden and Flynn,” Addie says. “They’d want to know.”
“She said not to tell them.”
“We can’t keep this from them.”
“Why not?”
“Because!” Addie throws her hands in the air. “They see her practically every day when they’re all in town. How’re we supposed to hide this from them?”
“I’ll take her home with me. You’ll tell them she got called away.” I have no idea what the hell I think I’m doing. All I know is that she should have whatever she wants right now, and what she wants is privacy—even from her closest friends. The more I think about this idea, the more committed to it I become.
“Please don’t take this the wrong way… Marlowe loves you. Of course she does, but she’s going to need her girlfriends.”
“Come visit her any time you want. Just you until she asks for someone else. We have to take our lead from her, Addie.”
I can tell she’s not happy about it, but she concedes the point with a small nod. “I’m not comfortable with keeping something like this from my husband.”
“Hell, neither am I. Your husband and the rest of the partners are my bosses, not to mention my closest friends. Keeping something like this from them is not cool for me either. When we tell him we were doing what Marlowe asked us to do, what choice will he have but to understand?”
“You know how he can be.”
“Better than anyone, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to put him ahead of her when she’s the one who’s been so badly hurt—in more ways than one.”
“You’re right.” She sighs deeply. “Of course you are. But I do think we need to loop Gordon in, not just so he can put security on her, but in case the piece of shit decides to do something with the info he obtained here.”
“He signed the NDA. I checked when I went down to get the water. It was sitting on the reception desk.”
“Just because he signed it doesn’t mean he’ll honor it. If he’d do this to her…”
“Yeah, true. Call Gordon and ask for his discretion. But no one else, Addie. She’ll tell the others when she’s ready to.”
“Okay.” Her eyes fill when she glances up at me. “How could he do this to her?”
“I’ll never understand how any guy could hurt a woman, especially one he’s pretended to care about for months.” And that he’d hurt Marlowe, of all people… The kindest, sweetest, most wonderful woman there ever was. She’d do anything for anyone. I’ve literally seen her give someone she’d never met the shirt off her back.
We were at the beach once, and a homeless woman was shivering in the early evening chill. Marlowe unzipped her sweatshirt and handed it to the woman, who cried from the kindness. If you ask me who Marlowe Sloane is, I always think of that before anything to do with her fame or celebrity. That’s who she is to me and the rest of our crew.
If you’d asked me an hour ago if I’d ever admit to anyone, even myself, that my feelings for her go well beyond the bounds of platonic friendship, I would’ve laughed in your face. I’ve barely allowed myself to entertain those thoughts, as she’s so far out of my league as to be in another universe altogether. She’s Marlowe Fucking Sloane, badass woman, Academy Award-winning actress and the most magnificent human being on the planet.
Sebastian Lowe, formerly of Compton, would have no business whatsoever setting his sights on a woman like her. I’ve never so much as considered doing anything about my overabundance of admiration for her. She’s one of the bosses and one of Hayden’s closest friends. The Quantum team puts up with me because I grew up with Hayden like brothers from another mother. But not for one second do I ever think I’m on the same plane with her or Hayden or any of them.
They’re among the most accomplished people I’ve ever known. All I did was have the foresight to make a good friend as a kid and then listen to him when he got in my face and told me I was going to end up dead or in prison unless I went to work for him.
I took the job to shut him up—and my mother—and have been with him ever since, as he went from wannabe to Oscar winner. I’m so fucking proud of him and what he and Flynn have built at Quantum. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for either of them, and I mean that sincerely. I’d fucking kill for them.
Only for Marlowe would I risk my job and my friendships with them. It’s a lot to ask of Addie, who’s married to Hayden, to keep this from him. I understand that, but Marlowe is calling the shots, and we have to respect her wishes.
“How do you propose to get her out of here undetected with everyone at the office?”
“I’ll take her out tonight, after everyone is gone, and I’ll be with her every minute between now and then.”
Addie thinks about that. “I guess that’ll work.” She’s obviously still reluctant to go along with my plan. “I’ll come by tonight and bring anything you need. Just send me a list.”
“I’ll do that. Thank you.”
She gives me an odd look. “Why’re you doing this, Sebastian?”
I realize I need to be very careful here, lest I give away things I’ve never wanted anyone to know, especially to the always astute and intuitive Addison York Roth. “Because she needs help. I’m the lowest-profile member of our posse. No one would think to look for her at my place. It’s really the best place for her to hide out and recover. Don’t you agree?”
“Yes, I suppose that’s true.”
I can tell there’s more she wants to say, but Dr. Breslow emerges from the room, closing the door behind her.
I move toward her. “How is she?”
“She’s…” That the doctor is upset would be obvious to anyone. Breslow takes a deep breath and seems to summon her professional demeanor. “She gave me permission to update you both on her condition. As far as I can tell, nothing is broken. As I said to her, I can’t tell if she has internal injuries without X-rays, but she’s adamant about not being transported.” Breslow glances at me and then quickly looks away. “I gave her a shot for the pain that’ll knock her out for most of the day. She’s going to be in pain when she wakes up, so I’ve written a script for painkillers that’ll need to be filled and antibiotic ointment that’ll need to be applied to the wounds on her back.”
Addie takes the paper from her. “I’ll take care of that.”
“If there’s any sign of blood in her urine or stool or pain that seems excessive, I want you to call 911 immediately. She should be in th
e hospital.”
I answer for both of us. “We agree, but she was insistent.”
“Just keep a really close eye on her, and if you sense something is seriously wrong, make that call.”
“I will.”
“Now, about the person who did this…”
“We’re on that. We’ll take care of him.”
“I assume it’ll be handled through proper, legal channels?”
“Of course.” I tell her what she needs to hear, but I honestly can’t promise that our treatment of Rafael Laurent will be entirely proper or legal.
“I’m in a difficult spot as a mandatory reporter. I should be calling the police.”
“We appreciate your discretion, as always, Dr. Breslow,” Addie says.
Breslow glances back at the closed door. “Marlowe Sloane is one of the smartest, toughest women I know. She says she doesn’t want the cops involved, for obvious reasons, but no one should get away with what was done to her.”
“We couldn’t agree more,” Addie says with the same fierceness that grips me.
“We’ll be consulting with our security personnel about how best to handle this in light of Marlowe’s request for privacy.” I hope to set the doctor’s mind at ease so she’ll leave us to tend to Marlowe.
“All right, then. I’ll check in with you later.”
I shake her hand. “Thank you so much for coming.”
“Of course.”
While Addie walks her out, I go in to check on Marlowe, who’s sleeping peacefully. As I study her beautiful, bruised face, I think about what the doctor said, fearing we’re risking Mo’s life by not taking her to the hospital for a more thorough examination. What if something terrible happens to her because we didn’t do the right thing?
“Stop. Take a breath.” I whisper the words to myself any time my lifelong struggle with anxiety threatens to suck me under the way it used to when I was younger and didn’t yet know it for what it was. Years of medication and therapy have helped me combat it to the point that it has very little effect on my daily life anymore. However, in stressful situations such as this one, it hovers just below the surface, ready to rear its ugly head to remind me there’re times when I’m powerless against its destructiveness.
This cannot be one of those times. Marlowe needs me, and I’m going to be there for her, no matter what it might cost me personally. She and the others at Quantum have done everything for me, and it’s time to return the favor.
My hands roll into fists that I want to pound into that arrogant Frenchman’s pretty face until he’s not so pretty anymore. How dare he do this to her? If I wasn’t so furious with him, I might feel sorry for him. When the Quantum team seeks retribution for Marlowe, which they will certainly do when they find out about this, the guy’s life won’t be worth living. That’s the very least of what he deserves.
Addie returns from seeing the doctor out. “Is she asleep?”
“Yeah.”
“I need to get back upstairs before I’m missed.”
“Okay.”
“You sure you’ve got this, Seb?”
I’ve never been more certain about anything in my life. “Yeah. I’ve got it covered.”
“Call me if you need anything. Okay?”
“I will.” I glance at her. “You gonna be able to keep it cool upstairs?”
“I’ll do my best.”
“I know this is hard for you, Addie.”
“It’s horrible!” She chokes on a sob. “How am I supposed to pretend like nothing is wrong when everything is? Hayden will take one look at me and know something’s up.” Swiping furiously at the tears on her cheeks, she makes a visible effort to pull herself together. “She’s going to be all right, isn’t she?”
“Eventually. We’ll make sure of it.”
She nods, takes another deep breath and turns on her three-inch heels to head for the stairs. I don’t envy her the task of having to pretend everything is all right when it isn’t.
I sit next to the bed where Marlowe is sleeping, determined to keep watch over her for as long as she needs me.
Chapter 4
Everything still hurts, and I have no idea where I am. My mouth is painfully dry, my eyes feel goopy and I have to pee—urgently. I make the mistake of moving, and the sound that comes out of me resembles that of an injured animal. It all comes back to me in waves of memory, things I’d much sooner forget than have to relive over and over again.
Where in the hell am I? The room is unfamiliar to me. I was in one of the private rooms at Club Quantum. So how did I get to wherever I am now? This room is painted a dark beige, and the quilt on the bed is red-and-tan striped. The sheets bear the fragrance of fabric softener.
A soft knock on the door precedes Sebastian poking his head in. “Thought I heard something.”
“You heard me groaning. Where are we?”
“My place.”
“How’d we get here?”
“I brought you last night after everyone left the office.”
“Wow, I slept right through that.”
“Whatever Dr. Breslow gave you knocked you out cold.”
“Thank God for that.” I try to sit up and nearly pass out from the pain that zips through every inch of me. Groaning, I sag back into the pillows.
“Take it easy, honey.”
“I have to pee.”
“I’ll carry you.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“I know I don’t. Let me help you.”
I look up at him gazing down at me with worry in his soulful eyes that are so dark brown as to be almost black. I’ve always thought his eyes were beautiful, and the thick lashes women would kill for only make them more so. “Okay, thanks.” I concede only because I have to go so badly, and I’m not sure I could actually get there on my own.
He’s super gentle with me as he slides his arms under my back and legs before lifting me carefully, so carefully I barely feel the twinge of pain that comes from being moved. In the hall bathroom, he puts me down slowly and waits to make sure I’m steady before he lets go. “Will you be all right if I leave you alone?”
“I’ll be all right. Thanks for the lift.”
“Any time, sweetheart.”
He’s such a doll to take care of me this way. Some women would be taken aback by the big, burly, muscular body that bears its fair share of scars and tattoos. But anyone who knows him well can attest he’s a teddy bear in wolf’s packaging, and I adore him. We all do.
“Call me when you’re ready for a lift back to bed.”
“Will do.”
“There’s a toothbrush, toothpaste, hairbrush and that fancy face cream that Addie said you can’t live without. Let me know if you need anything else.”
I smile when I see the effort my friends have gone to in order to make sure I have what I need. Addie knows me so well, and the cream, which is four hundred dollars for three ounces, is at the top of my small list of must-haves. “Thank you.”
He smiles and closes the door.
I take the most satisfying pee of my life and then, remembering what Dr. Breslow said, I take a quick glance at my output. I’m relieved not to see any sign of blood. Thank goodness. I know it was a big risk not to be seen at an ER, but that risk was worth taking to protect my privacy.
It’s hard to explain to people who aren’t famous what it’s like to have to guard one’s privacy so fiercely that you’d forgo emergency medical care to ensure your business isn’t all over the web in a matter of minutes. That’s how fast it can happen. I couldn’t let Addie and Sebastian call 911.
All it would’ve taken was one person in the ER waiting room seeing Marlowe Sloane brought in after having been beaten up, and this incident would be catapulted around the world within seconds—perhaps even with photos that would stick to me forever. Every search of my name would yield those photos. Forever.
Ah, the joys of the digital age. If this story gets out, it’s going to be on my terms and my time
line. No one else’s.
I use one of the white washcloths Seb left out for me to wash my bruised face and then slather on the cream that feels like a cool oasis against the painful bruise on my cheek. While I ache all over, I don’t feel as bad as I did yesterday, which is good news.
“You okay in there?” Seb asks.
“I’m good.” I brush my teeth and hair and feel much more human by the time I open the door to find him leaning back against the wall across the hallway, ink-covered arms bulging with muscles crossed over his broad chest. Only because I know him so well can I immediately see that even though he keeps his expression neutral, he’s extremely upset about what happened to me. There’s rage in the eyes that usually convey only tenderness to me and the others he cares about.
“I’m okay, Seb. You can stand down.”
“You’re not okay, and I won’t stand down until that son of a bitch is hurting every bit as much as you are. Perhaps more.”
A fierce scowl accompanies the fiercely spoken words that make my heart flutter with love and gratitude for my amazing, incomparable friends. Thank God for them. After I lost my mom to cancer, I never expected to feel at home with anyone again. But then I met Flynn, and he made me part of the Godfrey family and, later, the family he and Hayden were building at Quantum. Thanks to them, I’ve never felt alone in this merciless world in which we live and work.
Because I can see that Sebastian is hurting, too, I take two steps to cross the hall, nudge his arms away and hug him, resting my head against his chest. “Thank you for taking care of me, for keeping my secrets and for wanting revenge on my behalf.”
His arms encircle me cautiously, above and below the wounds on my back. “I want him dead. The others will, too.”
“I know.” And even though no one is going to kill him, I wallow in the knowledge that any of them would kill for me and not think twice about it. They love me that much, which makes me one lucky girl.
“We need to tell them what happened. Before they fire me for keeping this from them and Hayden divorces Addie.”
“Neither of those things will ever happen.”
