Chapter 21
JULIUS
Rose is nervous, and part of me is glad about that. She must realize there’s a target on her back and not get complacent.
The waiter approaches, causing her to stare blindly at the menu, and as I place my order, she glances at him and smiles. “That sounds lovely; I’ll have the same.”
He nods, his smile genuine when he takes her menu, and I wonder if there is a man on earth who would be immune to this woman. It certainly makes my job harder, and with a sigh, I reach for my water and drain the glass as quickly as Rose did hers.
It’s awkward between us, and I’m guessing that’s a lot to do with me. It’s as if something is hanging in the air and I don’t have the strength to shift it.
It’s probably because I dragged her attention back to the danger she is in, and I hate myself for that. So I reach across the table and grasp her hand, forcing a softer expression onto my face and whisper, “Relax. We’re on an adventure, remember.”
“I know, but–”
I shake my head.
“Just enjoy Madrid while we’re here. Leave the worrying to me.”
She smiles, but it’s obvious she’s got a lot on her mind, and I feel responsible for that, and the easy relationship we were developing has faltered under the weight of the problem.
Rose could be taken from me at any moment in time, and I shouldn’t really give a fuck about that, but I do.
The old me would merely shrug and move onto the next mission, but this new pathetic me would burn down the world to find her.
To bring her back in whatever state I find her and slay the people responsible with a brutal hand.
It’s as if my entire life has been one long training camp for the job of protecting Rose, and all I require is the smile of happiness on her face as payment for that.
I am confused, conflicted and in uncertain times, and so I take my own advice and push it to the back of my mind to analyze later.
“So, tell me about your time at the boarding school.”
My voice is low and undetectable from eager ears around us, and she leans forward with a frown on her pretty face.
“I hated it, and I suppose I can thank my father for that.”
“In what way?”
“He never allowed us to have friends, so I wasn’t able to read the room. To play the game after years of studying the rules.”
“You’re right. It must have been tough.”
“It was.”
She chews on her bottom lip and sighs. “I had my sisters, but they weren’t always around, and many times I was alone in a hostile crowd. The teachers weren’t much better, and I blame my stepmother.”
“She was the one who arranged for you to go there.”
“Yes.” She nods, a flicker of distaste passing across her features.
“Our father would never have agreed. When he died, she couldn’t pack us off quickly enough. We were excited to go, but it soon became apparent that rules had been put in place for us that weren’t the same for anyone else.”
“Such as?”
“The locked door, for one. After lights out, the teacher would lock us in and only unlock the door the next morning. If we required the bathroom in the night, we used a bucket we had to empty ourselves in the morning. The other girls were aware of this, and I lost count of the times I was tripped on the way to the bathroom. It was humiliating, Julius, and it happened a lot.”
“Go on.”
My tone is steady, but I am already forming a hit list in my mind. I will discover every name of the girls that were in her class and arrange their downfall – personally.
“Was anyone kind to you?”
She shakes her head. “Some were not unkind, but the ringleaders held so much power nobody wanted to go against them. It was easier to turn a blind eye and allow us to take the hit, and they hit a lot.”
The food arrives, and as we eat, my stomach churns. Three sisters who apparently had everything really had nothing at all. They were forced to flee to a place that may as well have been a prison, and they were denied a childhood, which doesn’t sit well with me.
Rose is deep inside her mind, and I allow her to remain there for the rest of the meal, and only the occasional polite comment passes between us.
As we eat, a plan forms in my mind because Rose must be protected at all costs, while giving her amazing memories to replace the bad ones.
So, I shove aside my demons and prepare to make all her dreams come true, while figuring out the nightmares for her tormentors. Canton House is about to enter a dark period, and as soon as I’ve uncovered all the facts, I will burn that nightmare to the ground.
The first place we head to is the theater. I’m guessing Rose hasn’t been a frequent visitor to that, and there’s a musical I think she may like that we passed on the way.
“What’s happening?” She stares at the bright lights of the building in front of us where many people are pouring through the doors, and I grip her hand a little tighter.
“We’re going to watch the show.”
“But we don’t have tickets.”
“Not yet, but we will.”
I head inside, pulling her behind me, and as soon as we reach the box office, I pull out my wallet and slide another bundle of cash toward the woman who is staring at me as if I have two heads or something.
“I want to reserve one of the boxes.”
“She glances at her computer screen and shakes her head. “We are fully booked.”
Rose sighs with disappointment beside me. “Maybe next time then.”
“Check again.” I slide more money the woman’s way, and something in my eyes causes her to swallow hard and tap away on her keyboard before saying brightly, “It appears that there is an opening. The box is usually reserved for a local business, but gave no indication they will be using it tonight.”
“Really.”
Rose sounds excited, and the woman smiles.
“Here are your tickets. Enjoy the show.”
Rose takes the tickets with a grateful smile and turns to me, her eyes shining.
“I can’t believe our luck.”
The woman catches my eye and I shrug. “Same.”
With a devilish wink at the woman, I grip Roses’s hand and we move toward the staircase that leads to the upper level. It doesn’t take us long to locate our box, and as the woman checks our tickets, she smiles respectfully. “Would you like to order some drinks, sir?”
“A bottle of champagne, please, and make it the finest you stock.”
Once again, I thrust several bills into her hand, and she nods, a flush of pleasure telling me she hit the jackpot tonight.
As we enter the private box, Rose turns to me and, without warning, she plants a soft kiss on my lips and whispers, “Thank you.” Before turning away and settling into one of the seats overlooking the stage.
As I join her, my heart is pounding because one sweet kiss from an innocent woman appears to be all it takes to set my world on fire.