Chapter 10
Eva
Irolled onto my back and stared up at the ceiling.
My mind was foggy and my mouth was so dry it was hard to swallow.
That was the last time I went drinking with the girls.
The way I was feeling right now wasn't worth the small amount of fun we'd had.
Not to mention how quickly it had all gone downhill.
I frowned as I recalled the events from last night.
Looking around, I sighed. It hadn't all been some dream.
I was sleeping in Idaho's room, not my own.
I sat up, groaning when my head spun. It wasn't just the hangover plaguing me, but the lack of sleep as well.
I needed a solid nine hours of sleep a night or I woke up grumpy and ready to fight the world.
Slipping out of the bed, I went into the bathroom and took care of business before I pulled my toiletry bag over and brushed my teeth.
I ran a brush through my hair, then splashed cold water on my face, washing off the remaining makeup from the night before.
I contemplated putting more on, but decided against it.
I didn't wear much to begin with, just some eyeliner, mascara, and lipstick normally.
My mother didn't approve of wearing more so I'd never gotten in the habit.
My stomach growled, reminding me that it was empty.
I hadn't eaten since lunch yesterday. That had been a quick bite between classes at school.
It wasn't surprising that I was hungry after all that time.
My head was aching, but otherwise, I felt fine.
I walked out of the bathroom, wondering where Idaho was when he walked through the door.
I froze as his gaze landed on me. He looked good enough to eat in jeans and a white t-shirt with that leather vest on over it.
His hazel eyes were mesmerizing and it was hard not to admit that he was even more handsome this morning than I remembered from my drunken fog.
That was unfortunate. It would be so much easier to be angry if he wasn't gorgeous.
His brown hair was a bit longer on top and shaved on the sides and looked like he'd been running his hands through it.
"Good, you're awake. How're you feeling?" he asked as he walked over toward the night stand. He pulled a bottle of water out of the small fridge there and handed it to me.
"Fine." I took it from him, but didn't drink it yet. "Where have you been?"
"Church."
I frowned. "You went to church?"
He looked up as he pulled a bottle of pills out of the nightstand drawer. "It's what we call a meeting with our club," he explained.
"Oh." I held my hand out for him to shake two pills into it.
"Those will help your headache."
"How did you know I had one?"
"I can see the pain in your eyes." He stepped forward and brushed some of the hair back from my face. "You have very expressive eyes," he murmured.
My mind went blank at his touch. It was as though every fiber of my being was focused where his fingertips were brushing against my skin.
I'd never felt this way around a man before.
And other than my family, and our bodyguards, I'd never felt so safe.
What was it about him that made me feel as though nothing bad would happen?
I mean, he'd promised me that, but he was a stranger.
I wasn't in the habit of trusting people I didn't know.
I broke eye contact, fighting to control my own body as it went haywire from being so near to him.
I couldn't believe I'd slept in his arms all night.
That had been incredibly inappropriate. My father was going to be livid when he found out.
He would demand I come home immediately if he heard about everything that had happened last night. "Where's Thomas?"
A muscle in Idaho's jaw flexed at my question. "You need to eat something," he said, ignoring my question.
"Idaho," I sighed, "I need to speak with Thomas."
"Who is he to you?"
Narrowing my eyes on him, I put the pills into my mouth, opened the water bottle and took a drink. "I told you-"
"Stop lying to me."
It was hard to hold back my anger. He was pushy, and arrogant, and I wasn't sure why he affected me so much.
He bothered me, in more ways than one. "It's none of your business.
I need to speak with him." He crossed his arms over his chest and I couldn't help but notice the way his biceps strained the sleeves of his shirt.
Why couldn't I think when he was close by?
"If you want to see him, you're going to have to tell me the truth first."
"What truth?" I muttered, glaring at him.
"Who is he to you? Why were those men following you last night? I'm sure I'll think of more once you start talking."
My mouth dropped open. "I don't know why they were following us," I exclaimed. "Other than they were jerks." I searched his face, concern growing inside me. "You think they were following us for a specific reason." It wasn't a question.
Both his brows shot upward. "You're perceptive."
I'd been working with my father for over ten years.
I'd learned to read facial expressions and body language to help piece together some of the things that often weren't said out loud in his negotiations.
Which led me back to last night. Idaho suspected those men hadn't only followed me because I'd refused to dance with them.
I stumbled backward a few steps and sat heavily on the bed.
What was going on? I'd gotten the feeling that the interaction last night was off as well.
I'd been willing to chalk it up to not knowing how things in America worked, but if he suspected foul play as well, I had to take that seriously.
"I really need to speak to Thomas," I said, voice soft as the realization that Father could have been right about the dangers of me coming here hit. "Please."
"Fuck," he muttered under his breath. Louder, he said, "Wait here."
I just stared at the floor, trying not to cry.
If this was some kind of nefarious plan by some unknown person to get to my father through me, I was going to have to go home.
I didn't want to. I wanted to stay here, complete my degree, get away from the oppressing overprotectiveness of my father.
But how could I, if someone was after me?
The door opened again and I swallowed hard as I looked up at Thomas. The plan had been for us to live here for a few months, and then I'd speak to Father about him sending Thomas's wife and children over here to live as well. I didn't want to be responsible for splitting up his family for years.
"Lady Desmet," he said, tone formal as always. "How are you?"
I shook my head, stealing a glance at the doorway where Idaho was standing. "Could we have a moment?" It was obvious he was reluctant, but he stepped backward and shut the door, so I was alone with my bodyguard. "Thomas, I'm so sorry."
He frowned. "What for?"
"I think the attack last night may have been more than just men being jerks."
Thomas sighed and nodded. "I thought the same."
"You didn't call my father, did you?" I asked, standing quickly in desperation. I wrung my hands together as I waited for him to speak.
"No, but I should have." He shot me an apologetic look. "Your father agreed to only send me with you because we thought it would be safe. If someone is targeting you, I'm afraid I won't be able to keep you from harm. We have to call him."
"No!"
The door slammed open, making me jump as Idaho stalked into the room. "What the fuck is going on?"
"I told you, it's none of your concern," I told Idaho, though my words had lost all heat in the face of my despair. "It doesn't matter anymore."
"What does that mean?" he asked, looking between the two of us. When neither of us answered he sighed and raked a hand through his hair. "Look. I have permission from my president for you to stay here."
"President?" I asked.
"Not happening," Thomas said at the same time.
"She's not leaving here," Idaho growled, taking a step toward Thomas.
Idaho was a big man, but Thomas was built like a tank.
Which was why it took multiple men to take him down last night, and the reason my father had hired him.
I didn't want to see them fighting, because it would be a bloodbath.
"Stop it," I told them. Sighing, I considered my options.
"I can't stay with you. If those men targeted me last night, it would put everyone here in jeopardy. "
There had been women in the main area of the building last night. And I'd sworn I'd heard children's laughter out in the hall when I'd been waking up. If there were families here, I couldn't let Idaho, or anyone else, help me. It was too dangerous.
"You're staying," he told me. He looked over at Thomas. "And you're leaving."
Thomas took a step forward, his hands fisted at his sides as he glared at Idaho. "Who the fuck are you to tell me what to do?"
"I'm the man who saved her ass last night," he snarled back. "You're lucky we found her before those assholes took her. I'm not letting her out of my sight until I find out what's going on."
"Why?" I asked, stepping forward and putting a hand on Thomas's shoulder. That's all it took for him to halt his aggressive movements. "Why would you want to help me?"
"Well, last night we were helping Jo. But..." He glared over at Thomas. "I promised to protect you."
"Can you give us a minute?" I asked Thomas.
"I don't think that's a good idea. I don't like him," Thomas said, staring straight at Idaho.
"Feeling's mutual, asshole," Idaho shot back.
My head began throbbing faster as they postured and barked at one another. "Thomas, please?"
He looked down at me, then gave a curt nod in answer. He moved toward the door.
"And please, don't call Father."
He shot me a look over his shoulder. "I'm going to have to sooner or later."
"I'd prefer later," I told him with a weak smile.
He shook his head and left me alone with Idaho.
"That's it, Duchess. I need you to tell me what's going on."
I looked over at the gorgeous, angry man staring me down.
"I don't understand why you'd want to help me. Did my father send you?"
He scoffed at that. "I don't have any fucking idea who your father is. Who you are."
"Then why are you so adamant about this?" Our eyes locked and I saw some emotion I couldn't place flicker there.
"I don't like assholes who try to hurt women."
"Fair enough, but that's still not an answer as to why-"
"Because I'm fucking attracted to you!" he snapped. "Is that what you want to hear? Do I need to spell it out to you? I can't explain it, but I want to make sure you're safe. I need to make sure you're safe."
I sucked in a breath when he reached out and grabbed me.
Before I could respond to either his words or the movement, he yanked me against his body and lowered his head.
His lips were softer than I thought they'd be.
He was gentle despite the anger pouring off of him.
My heart raced as he kissed me and my hands curled into the front of his vest, holding on tight so he wouldn't let go.
Our mouths moved together, and when his tongue brushed my lips, I opened for him as though it was the most natural thing in the world.
My body reacted to every stroke, my nipples hardening into little peaks, my pussy throbbing in time with my head.
With one kiss he had broken through all the defenses I'd built up over the years.
When we broke apart, I was panting and my head was spinning. Thomas had been right. Idaho wasn't a man to be trusted. Not because he was dangerous or a criminal—though I suspected he might be—but because he made me forget everything else around me when he touched me.
I stepped back, putting some distance between us as I tried to catch my breath. "I'm sorry," I whispered.
"Don't be," he said, voice low and husky. "Look, I don't have a concrete answer for you," he admitted. "I just know that I need to keep you safe."
It was everything I'd dreamed about as a kid.
A handsome man who would be my lover and protector.
But it wasn't real life. Those were a child's fantasies.
In real life men didn't fall in love at first sight.
They didn't go out of their way to help you unless they knew you.
"We know nothing about each other, Idaho. "
"I know enough."
My laugh was incredulous. "It doesn't make any sense." I shook my head. "But it doesn't matter. Once my father hears about this, I'll be on his private jet back to Luxembourg."
"Is that what you want?"
"God, no! I want to be here. I want to finish my PhD. I..." Shaking my head, I broke off because I almost told him I wanted to escape my family name and obligations.
"Then stay here. With me. I'll look into what happened and see if it was a random encounter, or something more."
I lifted my hands to my temples, pressing to try to ease the pounding. "You'd do that?" I finally asked.
"Sure. Why not?"
There were so many reasons as to why not. But the most important thing was if he was going to be investigating this, he would need to know the truth. "Why do I feel like I can trust you?" I asked, meeting his eyes again.
"Because you can."
"I don't know you," I whispered.
"Stay here and get to know me."
"Where is here?" I asked, looking around. "What is this place?"
"It's my motorcycle club. I'll explain more about that later. First, tell me whatever it is you're hiding from me." He closed the distance I'd created and with his big hand, cupped my cheek. "Let me help you."
It was stupid to trust him just because I was attracted to him.
But there was a part of me that had, from the moment he'd told me he was a friend after ripping me away from that man on the street.
From that point on every action he'd taken had been to keep me safe.
I wanted to stay here. Badly enough that I was willing to put my life in the hands of a total stranger.
It was insanity, but my heart kept urging me to trust him.
I was probably going to regret this decision, but I'd made up my mind.
Closing my eyes, I leaned into his caress, needing the comfort he was offering. How was a girl supposed to resist him?