The Passion

Chapter 6

Chapter Six

FLYNN

“ W hat do you mean you still don’t have any further information?” I’m standing in the kitchen at Rem’s house as he grabs plates for the pizza that has just arrived.

All the guys are here to watch the football match. England is playing Australia, and it’s always a good time to get Nic riled up, with him being the only Aussie in the room.

“The guys are doing their best, but the trail’s gone cold. There hasn’t been anything since the money was paid, and since old man Kentwall won’t hand over any information, then we are left searching in dark places I would rather not be.” Rem is looking at me all apologetically, and I know it will be eating him alive too that he can’t tell me it’s all dead and buried.

“This is so frustrating! Ughhh.” I’m grumbling as he places the plates in my hand, and the sound of Tori yelling at us to hurry up because she’s hungry comes from the living room.

“No work talk tonight, man. Come on, let’s go give Nic hell as we whoop the Aussie asses.” He pats me on the shoulder as he passes me, and all I’m thinking is that it may feel like work talk to him, but it’s my life.

Not that I wanted it to, but my plan has worked with Felisha. The more I went out with other women, the more hate I got from her, until she just finally went silent.

It did rock me more than I was expecting, though, when I saw the photos that caught her leaving a luxury yacht in the early hours of the morning in St. Tropez. Shoes in hand and being kissed goodbye by a man who was just wearing a pair of black pants, bare feet, and no shirt. Not that I had any right to feel jealous, but I did.

I wasn’t the one who wanted not to see each other, she was, but it doesn’t mean I was happy about it.

I merely did as she asked and made her hate me.

It didn’t stop me from getting my guys to find out who the guy was that she was with. Some multi-billionaire property mogul who made his money in the nineties buying up real estate when everyone was hitting the recession and needing to offload their assets. He somehow was cashed up and reaped the benefit of others’ hard times. He is in his mid-fifties, and if you ask me, too old for Felisha, but hey, who am I to pass judgment. As she reminded me many times, she is a grown-ass woman who doesn’t need anyone to help her run her life.

Before I start to follow him, Elouise, Rem’s nanny and Tori’s best friend, comes bustling into the kitchen.

“Whoa, slow down. Where’s the fire, gorgeous?” Now, Felisha has me buzzing when I’m with her, but Elouise is a woman who I keep telling myself would be perfect for me. She is quiet, reserved, and beautiful in her own way. Young and still finding her place in life, but she also has strength and drive when she is pushed.

“Oh, Flynn, stop that.” She rolls her eyes at me and goes to the cupboard to grab a plastic plate that Rem forgot for his son.

“What, can’t a man express when he finds a woman attractive?” I stand in the doorway she needs to walk through.

“Of course, just not when it’s me. Read the room, Flynn, not interested.” She seems flustered, and I could take that two ways; one is frustration, and the other could be she might have a spark of interest.

“How many times have I told you Lou is off limits to you, buddy?” Nic says from behind me as Lou pushes past me to head into the living room, and I just start to laugh because it’s probably at least twenty times now.

I have thrown out my interest plenty of times, only to be shot down in flames by both Nic and Elouise. She’s not interested, but that doesn’t stop me from trying. I’m annoying like that.

But if I’m honest with myself, if I really thought she was the right woman for me to marry and settle down with, I would have pushed harder by now. It doesn’t stop me from trying to convince my brain that she is a good option for a happy life. You know, that kind of life my parents and society keep telling me I should have now that I’ve just turned forty. Marriage, kids, and a white picket fence.

The score in the game is two all, and it’s time for halftime treats.

“You better have picked up good desserts, Flynn.” Forrest is looking at me, and I can tell he’s trying to bait me because they are bought ones. Normally I would make something, but work has been so crazy since we decided to purchase a castle in Scotland to turn into a boutique hotel. And of course, Nic wants everything done ASAP because it’s for Tori. Apparently, that’s what you do for your fiancée when she mentions she likes castles; you buy her one.

Obviously, I’m not cut out for a relationship because that kind of crazy still makes me laugh, not that I would say that to him.

“They will be good but won’t be magnificent like the ones I make. You know that, so quit your bitchin’ and just be happy you got dessert.” I watch him taking forever to choose one off the tray that Elouise is holding for him to peruse the selection.

Tori is busy asking Elouise about a babysitter for the charity dinner we have on Friday and telling her that she has set her up with a blind date, then all of a sudden, there are desserts sliding everywhere, hitting the floor and Forrest’s lap. Elouise looks so flustered and embarrassed that I can’t help but feel for her.

Trying to divert the attention from the mess, I speak up. “I would’ve been her plus-one if she needs a date. I’d be the perfect gentleman.” And I would, but no one seems to be laughing at my comment. Rem looks like he is about to kill the next person who speaks, and Elouise is pink on the cheeks and has a fine sheen of sweat on her forehead.

But it doesn’t stop Tori who is still rambling and chastising me.

“Flynn, Elouise is not interested, when are you going to get the message?” Tori glares at me, saying her piece, but that doesn’t mean I’m giving up annoying her just yet. Tori may have Nic under her thumb, but she has nothing on me. And I can’t help but continue to bait her.

“How can she not be interested in this hotness? I mean, I’m a perfect catch.” I try to hold back my laughter at the reaction in the room, but Tori doesn’t take a breath and continues on about the doctor she is setting her up with, and I’m still torn in my head if I should be fighting harder for Elouise or the nagging feeling that won’t go away of a woman who has totally captured me but I know I can never have.

Rem’s phone ringing breaks the conversation instantly because we all know that ring tone. It’s the one he uses for the security team, and it’s a call that means there is trouble.

“Fuck!” That trouble is me.

The sex video is live for the whole world to see.

Someone will die for this. I don’t care if the blood is on my hands, but they will pay.

I hear words around me, but I can’t even process them.

Because all I can think of is that I need to get to my Felisha.

My feet are moving, along with the guys as we head into Rem’s office.

I need answers, and I need them now.

“How did this happen!” Those are the first words out of my mouth as the office door closes, and I’m looking for something to hit or throw.

“Just breathe, man, we need to think clearly and put in place everything we prepared. We knew this day would happen, if we’re all being honest.” Nic puts his hand on my shoulders to try to calm me.

“No! It shouldn’t have happened. You were fixing it. You were all fucking fixing it. I promised I’d protect her…” I reach for my phone that I dropped onto Rem’s desk when he fired up his computer so we could all see what was going on.

“Don’t even think about that shit. You are not calling her just yet. And you can cut the bullshit. Her father fucked this up for you both, and we all know that. The moment he paid off that blackmailer we knew this would happen one day. Now that it has, we can’t change that, so sit the fuck down and help us to do the best damage control we can.” Rem’s fingers are working ferociously on the keyboard as he yells at me, not looking up at me for even a second.

Forrest takes the phone out of my hand, and the look in his eyes is one of pure anger, and I know it’s not at me. This is the face of a big brother trying to figure out how he is going to shoulder my pain for me.

His hands land on my shoulders and push me back a few steps until I feel the back of my legs hit the chair, and the pressure from him makes me sit even though I don’t want to.

So many emotions are racing through my body, and I don’t know how to control any of it.

For the first time in my life, I feel completely hopeless and like I have been punched so hard in the gut that I can’t breathe or function in this state.

“I just need to protect her,” is all I can say.

“And we need to protect you.” Forrest is now crouching in front of me, concentrating on talking to me in a calming tone.

“I don’t care about me.” And I don’t, people already think they know who I am and what sort of reputation I have constructed. But she doesn’t deserve this.

“Maybe so, but we do, and you know the way it works. We have each other’s backs, and right now it’s yours we are covering. Bare ass and all.” He has the smallest of smirks on his face, waiting for my reaction. “What, too soon? Come on, you have to admit it was funny… even for me.” Standing up in front of me again, I look up him and give him the answer he is hanging on for.

“Yeah, for you, that was actually okay.” I push myself up out of the seat because I know I can’t sit here but wrap my arms around him. And the feeling of his strong arms around me too is what I needed right in this moment. Nothing feels as comforting as your big brother when you need him.

“Thanks, Bro, you’re always here when I fuck up.” And he is.

“It’s a full-time job.” There it is again, his attempt at humor, and I have to hand it to him, he is kind of nailing it today.

“Asshole.”

“I want the whole security team and PR department in the office in twenty minutes.” Nic’s deep voice turns my attention to him and Rem at the desk where they are coordinating the fix-Flynn’s-fucked-up-life crisis plan.

“Right, Flynn, you’re with me, we will get your car back to your place later. Let’s go.” Rem has his bag over his shoulder, and there is no mistaking he is in full work mode now. There is something comforting knowing this man is on my side, because I wouldn’t like to be someone who pisses him off.

Walking out to the car, I can’t even face the girls, I feel too ashamed. And these are my friends. How am I going to look at my parents?

Looking across to Forrest as we are about to get into separate cars, I say, “Call Mum and Dad and tell them not to open it… please.” I’m almost begging him to do my dirty work.

“On it,” he replies as he jumps in his BMW and the engine roars to life.

Thank God I don’t have to talk on the trip to the office because Rem has his earpiece in and is taking phone call after phone call from his team, and I don’t want to be a part of those discussions right now.

But what I can’t do is stop from worrying about Felisha, and I don’t give a toss what they say.

Opening up the text message thread and looking at the last message from her, it reminds me how she told me in her stern words to fuck off and leave her alone.

I don’t give a damn what she thinks she wants because I know in my heart what she needs now is me.

Flynn: Are you okay?

Felisha: No.

Flynn: I’m coming to you.

Felisha: No, you can’t.

Flynn: Don’t do this.

Felisha: What?

Christ, I hate these one-word answers. I just want to call her, but I know she won’t pick up, and Rem will want to kill me when he told me to stay away from her and give him time to get on the front foot with this mess.

Flynn: Don’t push me away. Let me be here for you.

Felisha: Why, not like you can do anything now. It’s too late!

Fuck! I want to scream because I can’t argue with her. She’s right, and there is not a damn thing I can do about it now. The time for action was before now, and I should have handled it myself instead of relying on others.

Who am I kidding, I don’t know the first thing about tech security, and I trust my friends with my life. I know that they have been working hard to find the answers we need, to no avail.

Flynn: Doesn’t mean I don’t care. You can’t deny we are in this together.

Felisha: Wrong. I’m on my own in this life.

Flynn: I swear to God, woman, if I were there right now, I would wrap you in my arms and kiss the shit out of you until you listen to me.

Felisha: These lips aren’t yours to be kissing. They belong to someone else.

Flynn: Who the fuck do they belong to!

Flynn: Tell me! Your old man from the boat in St. Tropez?

Felisha: What, you can screw every slut in town, but I can’t?

I can feel my anger brewing, and if I was driving, I would be turning this car around and driving straight to her home. I’ll show her who those fucking lips belong to.

Felisha: Don’t you dare even question me on my dates. You hypocrite.

Felisha: I hate you. Leave me alone!

I pull the earpiece from Rem’s ear before I lose my shit here.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Rem’s startled face whips to the side to look at me.

“Take me to her now!” I’m holding my phone so tight in my hand I’m probably close to cracking the screen, and I know if I keep replying to her, this is just going to get worse. This needs to be face to face.

“Not a fucking chance when you are wound up this much. I have one disaster to sort out, I don’t want two.” He grabs the earpiece from me and pushes it roughly into his ear. “I’ll call you back.” Then he throws it into the center console of the car, and his knuckles are white from gripping the steering wheel so tight.

“Then stop the fucking car and let me out. You don’t run my life.” My hand is on the door handle. I need to get out of here.

“You open that door, and I’ll kick you on to the road myself, you idiot. Now shut up and listen to this because I’m only going to say it once.” Rem doesn’t even look sideways at me. His full focus is on the road, but it doesn’t stop the words of authority pouring out of him.

“Tonight, I do run your life, and tomorrow and every fucking day after that until we can get this to go away. I know you feel guilty and want to help Felisha, but you can’t. None of us can. She has a whole damn team around her whose job it is to protect her, and if she has any sense, she is listening to them and doing exactly as they are telling her to do, which is what I’m telling you too. You are not to leave your home, talk to no one except us, and let us handle it. Do not—and I repeat this loud and clear for the idiots in the back— do not give the media one more piece of footage or pictures that will drag this out any longer than it will already be. We are getting it pulled down as fast as it is appearing, but you know we can’t stop this. All we can hope is that some other celebrity does something stupid tomorrow that pushes you down the rank in the who-gives-a-fuck scale. So, keep your ass in that damn seat, and when we get to the office, you are going to use that anger, that I can see is about to blow the damn top of your head off, to squash this shit.”

I have never wanted to hit Rem like I do right now, but I know he is right.

I thump the front dash of the car with the heel of my palm so hard I worry for a split second I have cracked it. Luckily, we are in the work Range Rover and not his Porsche, otherwise I’m not sure I’d still be alive right now.

Rem sighs deeply and looks across at me for the first time since he started his rant.

“Look, buddy, I know you want to help her, but this is the best way you can do it. Plus, I hate to say it, but by the way you just reacted to whatever those texts said, I don’t think she wants to see you anyway.” He shrugs a little, and I don’t say a word.

Because it hurts like hell that he’s right. I thought I was doing the best thing for her, giving her someone to hate, but I didn’t think it would hurt so much when it worked.

I sit silent the last few minutes until we pull into the office parking and just get out of the car and storm toward the office.

Rem is right. I need to find a way to fix this, and the only way our team can do that is with my help.

Man up and do what you do best, put on that fake public image you have created so well over the years and deflect the publicity away from Felisha as much as you can.

Marching into the boardroom that is fast becoming the war room, I hear Forrest say to Rem, “What the hell happened to him in the car? His stare looks like it could peel paint off the wall. The sad puppy is gone, and some raging bear just walked in here.”

Ignoring him, I walk to my normal seat next to Nic, which is one off the head of the table.

“One word: Felisha,” Rem mumbles his reply to Forrest quietly behind me so none of the other staff that are already in here working could hear.

“Roger that. Moving on.” Forrest just pats me on the back and takes his seat on the other side of the table, and Rem continues down the room, talking to his men and Rohan, our head of the PR team.

I slam my hand down on the desk to stop all the chatter. “Don’t talk like I’m not in the room. Start talking and tell me where we are at. It’s my mess, and I want to fix it!”

Nic gives me a nod as he looks around the room, then takes his seat at the table. “You heard the man, start talking.”

And that was the start of what feels like the longest night of my life.

Followed by the morning of no sleep, trying to get my head around a press conference I have to show up to tomorrow and visits from my friends who care, but I just need to be on my own.

The fight I had last night has left my body, and instead, all that’s left is a blanket of shame and embarrassment.

I’m a strong man, but today, I just can’t seem to find that strength.

Staring at my phone is not healthy, but all I see is the last text message from Felisha, and every time I read it, the pain gets a little bit sharper.

Lying on the couch and looking out the windows, the light outside is starting to dim at the end of the afternoon and exhaustion finally wins. My eyelids start to fall.

I need to sleep and hope like hell tomorrow is a better day.

Because today couldn’t feel any worse.

Something doesn’t feel right as I try to wake from the groggy feeling. The room is dark as I slide my eyes open, and I’m not sure what woke me, but I could easily go back to sleep. Then I feel it again and realize it’s my phone vibrating in my hand, and I’ve put it on do-not-disturb from everyone except my family and friends, but when I sit up and stare down at the name, it’s not who I was expecting, and my heart starts racing.

“Felisha,” I say, my voice gravelly as I almost yell down the phone at the relief of her calling me.

“Flynn, it’s Harper.” And although I recognize the voice, it’s not strong and confident like it usually is.

Standing, I’m already on my way into my bedroom to get dressed in proper clothes instead of the trackpants and shirt that I threw on when I came home after the press conference.

“Is she okay, what’s happened, where is she?” I knew I should have ignored her messages and gone to her anyway.

“I can’t console her. She won’t stop crying, and I’ve never seen her like this before… ever.”

Shit, it’s all too much.

“Can I get into your building without being detected?” I ask, pushing the shoes onto my feet.

“No! Don’t come here, please, you can’t come here. If her father finds out, that will be a disaster.” Harper is panicking, and I see red.

“What. Did. He. Do.” Looking at myself in the mirror, I feel like I could break down a wall with the pent-up tension. All the tired muscles in my body are long gone, and the adrenaline is pumping fiercely through me now.

“I can’t say, but I don’t know what to do.” It’s then I hear faintly in the background the sobbing as Harper must be getting closer to Felisha again.

My mind is racing as I try to think.

“This is what you will do. I want you dressed in some of her clothes, put on her sunglasses and a hooded jacket. Have one of your security team drive you out of the carpark in her car with you in the front seat. Make sure none of your hair is showing so they think you are Felisha. Do the whole performance of trying to hide from all the flashes of the photographers that are camped out the front of the building.”

“I can do that.” She is quick to reply, knowing there is more to come.

“Before you do that, I want you to get one of the staff’s cars that aren’t linked to her. The older the better. Get her into the back seat, lay her down, and cover her with a blanket. Get someone you trust to drive her to my building, and I will give you the code to the underground parking. Tell her not to move from out of that blanket until the driver tells her. I will be waiting underground for her to arrive. But Harper…”

“Yes?”

“Don’t tell her you are sending her to me. Just tell her you are taking her somewhere she will be safe.”

I know this is risky, for so many reasons. She could be seen leaving and be followed here, her stubborn ass might protest and won’t agree to get into the car, or worse still, she has pictures taken of her in this state and that will just fuel the gossip sites with more ammunition to keep driving the story. But I need to get to her, and by the sounds of it, she needs to get out of her apartment right now, so I’ll do anything to make that happen.

Even if it’s the exact opposite to what I have been told to do by my own team.

I know it will take time to get all this happening, but I can’t stand still.

I’m rambling to myself as I pace my apartment, with so many thoughts running through my head.

What did that old bastard do to her? I swear I will bury him.

Felisha is the strongest woman I know, and for her to be attacking me like a viper one minute over text message and then hours later, she is totally broken by her father.

I can’t even imagine what was said today, after hearing the way he spoke to her the day the first email arrived. I didn’t think it could have gotten any worse, but I was obviously wrong.

The phone in my hand finally buzzes from an unknown number.

Unknown: I’ve left with four cars and numerous bikes following my car, and the package has also left for delivery.

It’s Harper!

Flynn: Thank you

I move to the elevator without hesitation, wanting to be down there waiting before she arrives. My building is the same, a horde of photographers camped outside, but they won’t look twice at this car. They will only be looking for my cars or Felisha’s Mercedes that is currently doing laps of the city and then heading out toward Felisha’s mother’s country house.

The moment the old Ford comes into view as the door for the garage is lifting, I know this is her.

Pulling up in front of me, I open the door to find an old crocheted blue-and-cream-colored blanket covering the shape of a body that is lifeless on the seat.

“Thank you for your discretion,” is all I can say to the older woman at the wheel of the car.

“I am her housekeeper and have been for twenty years. She is a good woman and doesn’t deserve this.” Tears are in her eyes, and I can tell that she is on team Felisha, and I don’t have to worry about this going any further than the three people who are here.

“I promise to take care of her.” The woman gives me a nod, and I slowly pull back the blanket to find Felisha curled so tightly on the seat that she is shivering slightly with emotion.

“I’ve got you.” I gently pull her legs toward me so I can reach in and sit her up a little. Her body is so rigid that I have to pull her with a bit of force to get her close enough to the door to take her in my arms.

She still hasn’t looked up at all, and no words have left her lips.

I stand her for the split second I need to steady myself, and then I lift her into my arms, one under her knees and the other around her back, pulling her tight against my body. She is dressed like the night she turned up here with the strawberries, casual and a hoodie over her head. I’m starting to understand it’s how she hides from the world.

Her head falls onto my shoulder, and finally, she lifts her arms around my neck to hold on. Using my backside, I push the car door closed, and the sound of the engine picks up as the car starts moving again. I rush to get the door of the elevator open to make sure no one can see me as the garage door opens again.

The silence of the ride up to my apartment is only broken by the faintest sniffle every few seconds. The loud sobbing that I heard over the phone is gone, but now all I have is a lifeless woman who has nothing left to give.

I’ve been known to do some dumb things in my life, and this is probably going to be at the top of the list, but I don’t care.

Knowing that Felisha is completely numb, and her body is to the point she has just shut down from emotional overload, I take her to my bedroom, half expecting her to start yelling at me, but instead, she is still quiet.

Settling her on the edge of my bed, with Sassy hissing at me because she has been disturbed from her slumber, I grab the stupid cat and shoo her off my bed. I can tell she is confused because there is another human in here, and thankfully, she leaves the room because it all looks too hard for her to fight me on it right now.

Kicking off my shoes, I strip down to my boxers, and still Felisha hasn’t batted an eyelid or opened her mouth to speak.

“Trust me,” I whisper to her as I start to undress her down to her underwear. There is no fight from her, and it frightens me.

Pulling back the covers, I lift her into the bed, lying down beside her and pulling her tightly to my body. Her head is now on my chest above my racing heart, and after a moment, her hands start to slide around my chest and her legs entangle themselves with mine.

And then it happens.

The faintest whisper.

“I trust you… only you.”

Her tears start again and drop onto my chest as I hold her, sharing all that I have. Every bit of my warmth and strength to bring her back to me.

Finally, the silence of the night takes over the room and she is asleep.

Safe with me where she belongs, but I have no idea if it’s where she will stay.