Chapter 5
Within the circle of light, all else ceases to exist but flame and shadow.
Cheryl
It hadn’t been my intention to disobey Gabriel, but I wanted to offer him the same relief he’d just given me.
At least, that was the lie I was telling myself.
The truth was, I wanted the code, and I wanted to entertain the idea of being a naughty girl.
I wanted options, and I couldn’t have a choice if I couldn’t leave when I wanted.
I even figured I wasn’t responsible for my actions, since he called me a naughty brat all the time.
I blamed him for creating the monster, not me.
In the end, logic won out, and instead of sneaking out, I stayed put.
A noise in the apartment woke me. Gabe must be home, was my first thought, but something felt wrong; he wouldn’t try to be quiet. He’d want me to know he was here and would have come to kiss me. I threw on my clothes and tiptoed out of the bedroom, following the rustling sounds.
Someone in black was inside the apartment, and it wasn’t Gabriel.
Shit, shit, shit. I’d forgotten to lock the elevator.
I tiptoed back as quickly as possible to enable the emergency protocols Gabriel had discussed with me.
Gabe had a spare set of keys in his nightstand.
I grabbed them and moved silently through the bedroom to the walk-in closet, where a hidden panel and staircase would take me down to his garage.
I checked my phone; the last text message was at 2:00 a.m.
Gabriel: An issue at work; I won’t be home for a while. Be good!
It was now three a.m. Damn, I needed him.
I knew the plan, but I had a bad feeling.
These must be my father’s men, sent to find me, drag me somewhere, and sell me off to the highest bidder.
Well, I’d be damned if I’d just lie down and allow him to use me.
I rifled off a quick text to Gabe, informing him that two men were in the apartment.
Then, I made my way down the stairs to the parking garage and peeked through the door to ensure no one was watching the elevator.
No one was there, not even Gabriel’s two-man security team. What the...
I closed the door silently behind me and, ducking down, scurried to the closest vehicle, a black Alpha Romeo.
A perfect getaway car—dark and made for speed—and I’d actually driven one before, so I was vaguely familiar with it.
Getting in, I locked the doors and pressed the button for the secret garage door.
When it opened, I started the car and sped up the ramp and out into the pre-dawn night.
Once I was a safe distance away, I pulled into a parking lot to check my messages. Nothing from Gabriel. I called; it went straight to voicemail.
“Gabriel, I need some freedom and decided to try out Italy. I’ll be waiting for your call in familiar places.”
The drive back to my apartment gave me plenty of time to reflect.
Meeting Gabriel and trusting him so completely was unfamiliar territory for me.
My mind had reservations that my body thoroughly enjoyed ignoring.
To Gabe, I was a total slut, and while I’d enjoyed sex before, nothing had ever come remotely close to what we shared.
My body had fallen for him, hard, and my heart was quickly falling in line—maybe too fast, but wasn’t that how it always happened?
The most significant things in life often arrived when you least expected or sought them out.
Gabriel had instructed me to circle the new location several times to check for any signs of compromise.
After doing so, I parked a block away, entered my building through the side door, and used the new code Gabe had given me to get into my apartment.
So far, so good. For an hour, I waited and watched, making sure I wasn’t followed or attracting unwanted attention.
Fueled by caffeine, my anxiety grew as I waited for word from Gabriel that he was safe. When dawn broke, casting light through my living room window, and I still hadn’t heard from him, I feared I would never see him again, and tears flowed freely.
This had to be my father’s doing. After what Gabriel had revealed—Senator Johnson’s illegal prostitution ring and his plans to sell me, I knew I was in danger. Then a text arrived from an unknown number.
Unknown: “No problem, darlin’, we’re landing and will see you soon. Stay comfy. Bryce.”
Gabriel had spoken about Bryce, had said he trusted him with his life, and so could I. Gabriel was okay. I could finally breathe.
My phone pinged again. This time it was my best friend, Maddie.
Maddie: “Cheryl, I’m on my way to your place. Please answer the door. I need to talk to you.”
I texted her back and started another pot of coffee. If she was coming to see me this early, something was seriously wrong. When she arrived, I locked the door behind her and reactivated the security system, then held Maddie in my arms.
“My goodness, what happened? Did he hurt you?”
“No,” Maddie sobbed. “It’s worse. It was perfect.”
I pulled back, confused. “What was perfect?”
“Please, Cheryl, I need coffee, and then I’ll tell you the entire story.”
I grabbed her a cup and gestured for her to sit.
To my credit, I remained silent through her tearful story about her time with Mr. Perfect, Langden Ross.
The truth was I wanted to smack her and tell her to stop being so paranoid!
Seriously, she’d gotten what she wanted, and Langden was perfect for her.
Maddie’s parents were out to lunch, and she needed a strong, firm hand to guide her.
I was happy that it wasn’t me for a change.
Wasn’t that what I’d come to realize about myself?
That my helpful veneer was a guise, a way to keep me safe all these years in my father’s cutthroat, politically charged environment?
Hadn’t I desired what she had, what Gabriel was?
“I’m sorry, are you saying you found the perfect guy, and the sex is better than anything you could have hoped for?” Maddie nodded.
“And you’re afraid he might hurt you at an indeterminate time in the future, so you ran away from him before it could happen?”
Maddie looked shocked. “Uh, no. Well, does it sound like that?”
I nodded vigorously and was about to tell her to stop being a complete idiot, when her phone beeped again.
“Is it him?”
She nodded.
“Then tell Langden you’re an idiot and you’re sorry, get your ass back to his place, and share your fears.
If he confirms this is all casual for him, then walk if you want, or don’t and enjoy it for what it is, but he may surprise you.
” I quickly called her an Uber before she could come up with an excuse to stay.
“I can understand that. I’ve met someone too, but this isn’t the time to tell you about my new guy. You need to get back.”
“How about Monday after class? I want to hear everything about him.”
I agreed and walked her to the front door. Exhaustion was kicking in, and I needed a shower and sleep. When I exited the bathroom, Gabriel was sprawled on my bed, leaning on an elbow. “Hi, beautiful.” I screeched, placing a hand over my heart.
“Jesus, are you trying to kill me?” He patted the bed invitingly. Aware I was buck naked, I sauntered over.
“If I were giving you a heart attack, this wouldn’t be my method. I’d rather fuck you to death.” I smiled and climbed into bed beside him.
“That sounds like a horrible way to go, but since I’m feeling suicidal, please demonstrate.” Once settled, he drew lazy, amazing-feeling circles on my back.
“First things first, Cheryl, what happened?” Shit, I didn’t want to own up to forgetting to lock the elevator or admit to thinking about being a naughty brat.
“I was terrified something bad had happened to you. What happened? You weren’t even answering my texts.
” Deflection was a powerful tool I'd learned from my father.
His large powerful hands alternated between squeezing and rubbing my ass.
I moaned as his large, powerful hands worked the tension from my body.
“I’m sorry, my good girl. There was an incident at the club, and the police were involved.
Langden wasn’t there, and as head of security, I was acting manager and had to handle it.
Things escalated, and I ended up at the police station, having forgotten my phone at the club.
I assumed you’d be asleep, so I wasn’t concerned until Bryce called to say that someone had breached the apartment and you’d left. So, I’ll ask again: what happened?”
“Well, you said it,” I bluffed. “Someone gained access to the apartment. Perhaps you’d like to explain that.
I was terrified, but followed the plan to the letter.
” I was hoping that while focusing on what I did right, he’d be distracted enough to—Gabriel’s hand, which had been gently massaging my rear, suddenly gripped a handful and squeezed hard!
“Ouch!” I cried, squirming away. Then all the stress and worry overwhelmed me, and I burst into tears as Gabriel pulled me into his arms.
“I’m sorry, baby, did I hurt you?”
“No. I was just scared. I thought something bad had happened to you, Gabriel, that maybe you were dead. I was crying and upset, and now here you are, alive and well. I don’t want to feel like that again.”
He rocked me and whispered soothing words.
“Now you know how I felt when I heard you didn’t lock the elevator after I left.
That’s how your father’s men got into the apartment.
If you hadn’t escaped, you’d be in a cage awaiting your sale into slavery to the highest bidder.
Do you know how that made me feel? Do you?
” He pulled back, allowing me to see the hurt in his eyes as they searched mine.
Guilt and shame washed over me. I was an idiot. “I’m sorry,” I whispered. “I swear, I didn’t do it on purpose. I thought about sneaking out, but I changed my mind, and I forgot to lock up. I’m sorry, please don’t be mad at me.”
But my plea was too little, too late, and fell on deaf ears. Gabriel was shaking with rage and hurt. “Are you saying the first chance you had to misbehave, you took it? I should whip your impertinent ass for lying.”
“I’m glad to hear the security measures we discussed worked perfectly.” I eyed him warily as his face shifted through a range of emotions and finally settled on regret. I didn’t like that look on my big, strong dom.
“It’s my fault. I let my guard down, and you got away with your plan.
Instead of just showing you how to lock the system when I left, I should have reminded you to do it when you came back upstairs.
I never should have allowed that; it’s on me.
But you won’t do it again, my sneaky brat. I’ll make sure of it.”
My phone pinged.
Langden - There has been an accident, and Maddie is in the hospital. She’s okay, but I know she would like to see you.
I passed my phone to Gabriel, and he read the text.
“That’s fine. We can stop there on our way out of town.”
“Out of town? Where are we going?”
“Somewhere safe. I don’t want your family knowing your whereabouts until we can shut down this operation and you’re in the clear.
Bryce is meeting us with your things from my apartment.
Now that it’s breached, and they’ve confirmed you were there, my place is no longer secure.
Pack for cool weather; it’s rugged where we’re going. ”
Rugged? What did that mean? I was a city girl and had never even been camping.
I examined my closet, confirming what I already knew—I lacked appropriate attire.
I grabbed my old jeans, my weekend stay-at-home jeans—well-worn and so comfortable I couldn’t throw them out.
Then I remembered my ski outfits in my storage locker and asked Gabriel if he’d take me there to grab my warm sweaters and jackets.
While I was there, I found a brand-new pair of hiking boots and pulled them out of a box, smiling. “You have some serious gear, brat, but it all looks brand new.”
“Ski trip, Aspen 2018—and now I’m glad I still have this stuff!” Except for the boots, I’d been thinking of joining a hiking group but changed my mind. “Look, Daddy, they’re not even worn.”
“That’s great, baby.” He scooped up all the items. “Come on, we need to get going.” I didn’t know if it was the upheaval, too much caffeine, or not enough sleep, but I didn’t share his enthusiasm. When I was done shoving everything into a single bag, I locked my apartment door, and we left.
“Gabriel, how long will we be gone?”
“I don’t have answers yet, but don’t worry, Cheryl, I will keep you safe.” I nodded, wondering when I would be back, and swallowed the sudden lump in my throat as we drove away from my life.