by Eva K. More
Gabriel took his hand back and shrugged. “It’s a moot point anyway, the plan changed.”
Moot point? She gaped silently. “Would you? Would you have brought me back, washed your hands, and be gone, forever rid of me?”
He looked to the side. “You were never meant to be part of our world, little bird. Yes, if it meant keeping you safe, I’d gone back to watching you from afar as you lived your life without all of us.”
His words felt like another strike at her heart. She still wasn’t sure he even liked her for herself, and now he told her unabashedly he would have easily lived on without her. He had planned on never seeing her all along.
“Was that at the club you watching me from afar?” She asked, and couldn’t avoid the bitterness that escaped her lips.
Gabriel smiled ruefully. “You were rather safe with your grandparents, but Maryan always kept an eye on you. When he had to go away for a while, he told me to make sure everything was alright with you. At the club? That was me taking a closer look – against my orders. I hadn’t anticipated the attraction, though. The last time that your father ordered me to watch you, you were 16 and drunk at a camp.”
Coming to terms with everything that had happened had her head hurting, and Gabriel’s revelations made it even worse. Was he more than just attracted to her? Did she want him to be? This was too much.
“Yeah, well, thank you for the tea. I have to go, and I kind of don’t want to see you… watching me… in the next couple of days.”
“Not so fast,” Gabriel’s arm shot forward. He clasped her hand again, pulling her toward himself, preventing her from being able to stand. “Who was that guy you were with the other night?” he asked.
Baffled, she scrunched her forehead in thought. “Eric?”
“You have the last name as well, little bird?” he growled threateningly.
“Why do- Now, wait a minute.” Kat tried moving her arm, but his steady hold didn’t waver. “You don’t need to look him up or do a background check or whatever it is you want to do with his data. I don’t want the mafia involved in the life of my friends.”
“He’s your friend?” The narrowing of his silvery eyes made her heart beat faster.
“What does it matter?”
“Answer the question, Kat.” He spat, and his brusque tone made her defensive.
“It’s none of your business.”
“The hell it is! Have you even been listening to a word I’ve been telling you?” He said, sounding exasperated.
“I have, and I’m pretty sure that Eric is a decent person, unlike your acquaintances,” Kat said.
If his stormy expression was any indication, then Kat had managed to get a rise out of him, finally. She knew it was a low blow, but she was unable to eat the words back. Only for a second, his eyes had flashed in an unreadable emotion.
“Is that so?” He asked in a syrupy voice, his hand tightening on hers until it felt numb. “I’ve seen prettier boys kill for fun. If I relied on a person’s looks to judge their character, I’d be long dead.”
It was a direct insult to her, and Kat knew she deserved no less, but it wasn’t the right time to give Gabriel some credit. “I judged your character the first time I saw you, and I’ve been proven right.” She nodded her head toward her hand. “You’re hurting me.”
Gabriel released her immediately, but his intent stare remained. “In comparison to first meetings, does Eric come out the winner?”
Kat sighed in annoyance. “I’ve never compared him to you.” Liar. “He’s just a friend of a friend, and you are… Beast.”
“No more Gabriel, then? Fine. He’s not your boyfriend?” He said between mockingly and deadly.
“No. But if he were, it wouldn’t concern you or Maryan?”
Gabriel just looked at her. Kat took it as her sign to go and stood up, fully intent on going away without another word.
“Little bird!”
Kat stopped and looked back, watching Gabriel stand, put the necessary cash on the table, and stuff his wallet into the back of his jeans. He squinted at her, his mouth grim.
And he still looked like her avenging angel, like her darkest fantasy.
“My mama,” he said, “was a nice girl. Most of her life, she was a good mother. A few months before she was killed, she had fallen into a depression and was about to starve me. Rationally, her death was my salvation. I’ve known that for a long while. But… as a kid, she did mean the world to me.”
he air was fresh and crisp, the wind blowing some strands of her hair in front of her face. She intended to turn the corner and catch a cab. No way did she want to spend another minute on the streets.
Kat reassured herself that she didn’t go out on a date with Eric just to spite Gabriel. She had been genuinely interested in getting to know him better. That’s why she had called Andrea right after her meeting with Gabriel and had asked for Eric’s number.
God, I’m such a hypocrite… and childish, just as he accused me of being, she contemplated.
Eric was a nice guy. He was studying business, honest, bright, the perfect son-in-law—precisely the man she was predestined to marry according to her upbringing. Going on a date with him was the right thing to do.
So, earlier that day, she had chosen to wear a cute, moss green dress that complemented her eyes with beige knee-high boots and a lovely leather jacket in the same color. It had started getting dark when she had left her apartment, but she pushed her weariness aside. She knew what living like a hermit felt like, and she’d rather face her anxiety than spend another minute living in a cage.
Then, when Kat was dining with Eric, she felt guilty. He had been very courteous and polite as he had assisted her in taking off her jacket and sat her at the table that was favorably placed in the far corner of the room, right next to the large floor to ceiling windows overlooking the busy streets.
He was normal. And normal was good, not boring. His ability to joke about himself was definitely an asset, too, but for some reason, the flutter in her belly didn’t come, and she hadn’t been able to keep her mind away from him, from Gabriel.
Their confrontation from a few days ago was still fresh on her mind. She had used the time to think, but ironically, she hadn’t been able to sort her feelings where Gabriel was concerned.
Instead, she had thought about Maryan, about how Gabriel had portrayed him. And Eric’s talk about his oh-so-perfect-life with his parents didn’t help at all. Kat wasn’t fooled enough to think of him as a hero, but if there was some substance in Gabriel’s admiration, then maybe her father wasn’t the worst guy on earth.
And if everything Maryan had said about her was true, she might even have it in her heart to meet him again.
There were so many questions she needed to ask her grandparents, but they had avoided talking about him except for verifying his fatherhood. Kat knew that she had become more than just slightly curious, wanting to know more about that man.
Eric didn’t stop talking about his family throughout dinner, and involuntarily, her mind began wandering again. What would have happened if she had spent her life with her father? Kat couldn’t deny that he was protective of her, but he had her at a disadvantage. Why did she have a sudden yearning to see him and get to know him?
When she had thought about Gabriel next, sadness tinted her heart. She couldn’t really mourn her childhood because it had been good. But what about Gabriel? He had lost before the game had even begun. Even as a child, he had no chance of ever becoming as innocent and goofy as Eric.
And then, in the middle of the date, with Eric’s laugh as a background, she realized with startling clarity that, maybe, Gabriel couldn’t show her how much he cared for her, because he had never experienced it himself. The only woman in his life who had loved him and he had loved in return hat been brutally murdered. Kat couldn’t even envy him growing up with her father because Maryan had been the one human being that had cared for him.
Would Gabriel rebuke her love?
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Dear God, Love. It was too fresh, too forbidden, too dangerous. But she knew what she felt for Gabriel, for the cold Beast that had rescued her innumerable times. For the man that had caressed her so wildly.
Unfortunately, Eric did not evoke even half of those feelings she had when thinking about her avenging archangel. It wasn’t fair to him to pursue another date. Besides, with her background, she realized that she could bring unknown dangers to Eric’s doorstep because now she knew that Ivo or nor Ivo, she could not simply ignore that part of her life.
She had lost her innocence, as well as a part of her heart in that cabin and in Maryan’s penthouse.
The rest of the evening, she listened to him with moderate interest but made sure to laugh at the right times. Her sudden epiphany had made her gloomy. She didn’t have any real interest in Eric aside from friendship, but her revelation had still dampened her mood.
They parted ways with a friendly hug, and she headed in the opposite direction of Eric.
And that’s how she found herself at that precise moment, crossing a corner to pick up a cab while perusing all that she had thought during her futile date. For the first time in many years, she wished for her mother to be alive so she could confide in her and ask her for advice.
How should she cope with her father being the boss of the Mafia? How could she get to know a man - who refused to give away his heart - better?
Had her mother had the same conflicting emotions regarding her father?
The streets were mostly deserted now, so she noticed the car following her the moment it reduced its pace next to her. Her heart beating wildly, she tried looking at it through the corner of her eye.
Relieved and somewhat annoyed, she recognized the black BMW.
The window on the driver’s side rolled down, but she ignored it and kept walking.
“You trying to get yourself killed?” Gabriel’s voice drawled, and she turned her head to see him with one arm hanging lazily on the steering wheel.
“Dear God, Gabriel. I remember telling you to leave me alone,” Kat replied. She knew that she had to be nice if she wanted to be with him, but Gabriel could make her blood boil with just one sentence.
“And I remember you being not quite so stupid. Hop in.”
“No,” Kat said to spite him. But really, she was getting anxious to be out on the street, exposed to the creatures lurking in the shadows of the night.
His expression darkened visibly. “That wasn’t a question, Kat. Get. In. The. Car.”
She stopped, and he braked. She leaned forward and peered into the window. “Read my lips: No.”
His nostrils flared. “Kat.”
“Look.” She sighed, swallowing her childishness a moment. “See that taxi station over there? I just skipped a bit, but I wasn’t about to walk back home.”
“Can’t say I believe that.” His voice reminded Kat of honey and spice.
The noise she made in the back of her throat was a mixture between a growl and a screech.
“I need my independence, and I don’t want to feel like a lamb anymore, Gabriel. How about you watch me walk to the first cab, and then you leave?” Kat asked, trying to use a figurative olive branch.
“No.” He drawled. “It’s pretty late, and I’m not risking it. Ivo might not be here right now, but there are other people like him everywhere, people that could do a lot more damage to a pretty young girl such as you are, and I’m in no mood to fight today. So please, get into the car with me. Now.”
It didn’t matter that what he had said might have been right because Kat was fuming at his brusque and domineering tone. “Will you never quit?”
Gabriel took a deep breath. “I give you five seconds, little bird. If you’re not in the passenger seat by then, I will get out and take you forcefully. You’ve tried my patience.”
She stared at him through narrowed eyes. The fiery glint in his own marked his seriousness, so she put her hands up in surrender when he reached for his door handle.
“Fine.” She gritted her teeth before he could put his words into action. Stomping around the sleek convertible, she plopped down on the passenger side and crossed her arms in front of her chest.
“Put the seatbelt on.”
She glared at him but did so anyway. He had a remarkably authoritarian air around him.
His car was warm and cozy, and she felt a little juvenile for having made such a show. But she had to show him that she was no pushover, right? How else was she going to gain his respect?
Gabriel shifted the gear, and the car drove off smoothly.
A tense silence filled the closed-off space as Kat watched the streets outside, and Gabriel didn’t acknowledge her presence either.
Finally, without taking his eyes off the road, he addressed her.
“How is Eric?”
Of course, he had known, she wasn’t surprised. “Fantastic.” She emphasized her answer. “Thank you for asking.”
He ignored her jibe and shot her a sideways glance. “You are not spending the night together.” A statement, not a question.
Furious, she pursed her lips. “That’s none of your business. But if you must know, he was a perfect gentleman.”
“Not very gentlemanly of him to let you walk home alone at this time of the night.” He said with a cocky grin.
“Neither is fucking your boss’ daughter with a mask on.”
His grin faltered, but not by much. “I thought it turned you on. Want me to put it on now?”
Well, that was a low blow, so with her face burning in shame, she wound her arms tighter around her body. “You’re an asshole, Gabriel.”
Respect her? Maybe Kat needed her brain washed out because he obviously loved to grate on her nerves.
Next to her, Gabriel cracked his neck before stretching his arm and pressing his back tightly against the seat.
“I’m sorry,” he murmured in a velvety voice.
Stunned, she met his eyes for a moment.
“It’s not been the best of my days, and I’m sorry. I didn’t want to hurt you.”
***
Gabriel could see that he had shocked her with his admission, and it was good. Because he couldn’t remember the last time he had apologized for talking shit.
He had been in a bad mood, to begin with, barely having slept within the past 24 hours.
And her date with that… boy hadn’t lifted his mood anyhow. Still, she was lovely in her green dress and high boots, a wonderful sight for his sore eyes, and much too pretty to look at him with such disappointment. He was starting to think she’d never smile at him again, like back at the cabin, and it was a rotten outlook.
“Yeah, well, you are excused,” Kat stuttered and flushed. “And I’m sorry, too. You know, for behaving like a brat.”
Now that had him letting out a genuine laugh.
His smile slowly faded as he looked at her from the corner of his eyes. “You know, I didn’t think I’d ever like you.”
“What?” She asked. He had stunned her again, and it was his turn to look forward.
“Yeah. Ever since that time I saw you stupidly drunk at that camp, I had that picture of you in my head: spoiled little princess—the best of schools, the best of clothes, the best of life. I guess, in a way, I envied you being the star of his affection. Not because I was jealous of you for Maryan’s love, but because I knew that there was no one out there who’d care for me as he did for you.”
When Gabriel glanced at her, she was looking at him with big eyes, mouth slightly agape.
“But,” she said and wet her lips, and he stared back at the road again, “but it wasn’t like that. Sure, I meant the world to my grandparents, and I love them, but it had its price. Most of the time, I felt like I was suffocating under their care. That time at the camp was my only adventure into drunkenness and- and freedom.”
Gabriel took a turn to the left, slowing down the car as he approached a red light. “On the pictures that Maryan received from your grandp
arents, you always looked happy.”
He heard her sigh. “I was happy, but at the same time, I resented that I could not go out like my friends, live a little, and all that.”
The light turned green.
“They only did what was necessary to protect you. I’m sure they were afraid to lose you like your mother.”
“I know that now. But growing up, it wasn’t all that clear and easy.” He could feel her small, rueful smile in his bones. “And look how it turned out. You still caught me.”
Because she had said it with such a sweet smirk, his gut clenched. Yeah, he had caught her like the big bad wolf had caught little red riding hood, but what he had found beneath Kat’s hood had been so damn delicious. When his pants tightened, he cleared his throat and accelerated.
Then he felt Kat tense beside him. “Does this mean you didn’t like me very much at that time in the club?”
Because she looked so thoughtful, he lifted one corner of his lips. “Can’t say I did. I mean, I still didn’t know you as an adult, only your ‘Kat the dragon,’ and ‘Stupid teenager’ persona. But let me tell you, I was pissed when I left the club.” He said while quickly looking at her to then look back at the street. “All I had wanted was to take a closer look, get to know some of your quirks again, so after all that Maryan had briefed me, telling me that you were a saint, I was curious about what the hell you were doing in that club then.” Gabriel couldn’t hold the rueful laugh that escaped him. “And when I saw you, I knew you were trouble. Because prejudices or not, I was drawn to you like a moth to the flame. Did I still think you were spoiled? You bet. But ever since then, I had a problem because you were a sexy little princess, and I couldn’t remember the last girl that had impressed me so much, I nearly forgot my job.” He finished and turned off the ignition after he parked in front of her building.