My office is only a block and a half away, I can make it there before he catches up to me, lock myself in and call the police. Fear ignites my adrenaline, and I flee, my sights on my office building. Heavy footsteps hit the sidewalk behind me. His breath is on the back of my neck. An icy shiver runs down my spine. If he reaches out and grabs my shoulder, he can swing me around, knock me off balance. I'll be at his mercy. I've been there before—the victim of his cruel torture while he proclaims his love and possession of me. The sting of the flogger as it rips through my skin is as real to me today as when it happened.
My heart races out of control. The door to my office is ahead. I catch a glimpse of my reflection in the storefront windows. John is still behind me, and for a fleeting moment, I consider screaming for help. But John is far too adept at talking himself out of tight situations. He has an uncanny ability to get people to believe the most outrageous excuse is actually quite rational. It's what made him one of the top attorneys in the state.
A few more steps—I'm at the door. My hand grasps the doorknob. I yank the door open, stumble onto the landing, and slam the door shut behind me. The whoosh delivers an ominous whisper, "You will never escape me, Kylie."
I scramble up the stairs, fumble through my purse to find my cell phone. My hands tremble. A dark figure appears in the reflection in the glass walls of my office. He's behind me. My chest heaves. The more air I try to drag in, the less I can breathe. The room is spins, everything distorted, and I'm trapped here.
Hands are on my shoulders, fingers dig into my flesh. I squirm, but he tightens his grip, and I'm unable to break free of his clutches.
"Let me go!" I twist around and escape his restraint. He lunges for me. I step back, but hit the desk behind me. I'm cornered—but I'll be damned if I go down without a fight. Balling my hands into fists, my eyes shut tight, and pummel his chest. His hands wrap around my wrists, and I try to wrestle away.
"Kylie, calm down. Stop fighting me."
That's not an option. I know my fate if I give in. There is no limit to the torture he will inflict on me. It could be days, weeks—months—before someone finds me, or he kills me.
"Leave me alone, John."
He loosens his grip on my wrists, and pulls me into his body. "It's me, baby—it's Alex."
It takes a moment for the words to sink in, and even longer for me to begin to believe them. I open my eyes. Things come back into focus—Alex's suit, the tie I bought him, his strong hands. His unmistakable scent. I raise my head, and gaze into the beautiful Mediterranean blue sea of Alex's eyes.
I wrap my arms around his neck, and crush him. His hands are on my back, his lips gently kiss my temple, and I melt into his warm protective embrace.
"Tell me what happened?" he whispers.
"It was John—he was following me." I swallow over the lump in my throat, and tears sting my eyes.
Alex shakes his head. "No, baby. John's incarcerated at Cedar Grove, remember?" There is a mix of concern and pain in the deep creases on his forehead that reach into my chest and squeeze my heart.
"He was here—I saw him. I've seen him before, driving his car. He's coming after me." My eyes dart back and forth between his, and search for any hint of faith.
Alex guides me into my office and sits me down on one of the chairs, grabs a bottle of water from the mini-fridge, and returns. He twists the top and hands it to me. Maybe it's the cool water on my dry throat, or dehydration—I don't know, but the water rejuvenates me and I feel a little more normal. After another long drink, I hand the bottle back to Alex. He sets it on the desk, pulls his chair closer to mine, and takes my hands. I look at his beautiful face, usually so quick with a smile that conveys the depths of his love for me. Something is missing, though, the brightness in his eyes is dull, and he looks exhausted.
"I know how this sounds," I say, staring at the centuries-old hardwood floors. It's easier—not having to see skepticism on his face or in his body language. "There's no way for John to stalk me…but I know what I saw, Alex. It was him, and he was reaching for me."
He places his hand under my chin and lifts it. "We'll figure this out. I won't let him hurt you again." A shadow crosses through his eyes, darkening them. "I won't fail you again."
"You didn't fail me—I wish you could stop blaming yourself. John posted bail. John hunted me down. He shot me. There was no way for you to know I was in danger that day. We both believed he was still in jail."
Silence surrounds us, a cloak that protects us from reality of the world around, offering us a refuge to speak freely and find our way back to each other. Alex brushes the hair from my eyes. "I'm so sorry I lied to you when you came out of the coma. I was desperate for you to feel safe again. The doctor was concerned about your recovery, and urged us all to avoid anything that might stress you. When you thought John was dead, your entire demeanor shifted. I wasn't going to allow anything to disrupt your progress. I was so afraid of losing, baby."
"I get it, Alex, in the beginning—but you've had months to tell me the truth."
"I know, and I should have. As soon as the doctors cleared you to come home, I should have told you the truth. And everyday, I swore that I would, but days got away from me, and after a while, it became harder to tell you. Our lives finally seemed back to normal. I couldn't bring myself to ruin it."
"I would have understood, Alex. I would have forgiven you—if you had just been the one to tell me. Everything I believed in was destroyed the moment John walked into that room. I was no longer safe, and I no longer trusted you."
Alex places his hand on my cheek, caresses it while his eyes delve into my heart, melting a layer of ice that's encasing it. "I'm so very sorry. I know I have to work to rebuild your trust, but I will do anything—anything at all—to get back what we've lost. Please forgive me, and give me a chance to set things right between us again."
"I forgive you—I just can't forget. I need more time."
We gaze at each other, and something passes between us. An unspoken understanding that we will always be together, that the love we have is not something to be thrown away, but to be cherished and nurtured—and saved at all costs.
Alex leans closer to me, his face inches from mine, and whispers, "I love you, Kylie. Always."
"I love you, too, Alex. Forever."
His lips brush across mine, and I shudder as the tingle it produces reaches every part of my body. My hands wrap around the nape of his neck, and I pull his lips firmer against mine. The kiss is sweet, on the verge of passionate.
Alex runs his hands along my sides, over my ribs, and pulls me closer. My lips part and his tongue accepts the invitation, and slides along mine. The tingle is now an electric charge surging straight to my core. This is what he does to me. My body craves his touch, it's been too long since we last made love, and my core is demanding his attention.
Visions of him lying me on the desk as I wrap my legs around him, driving me ecstasy flood my mind. I want to grab his hand, drag him to the apartment, and make love to him all afternoon. I want this spark—this undeniable need we have for each other—to ignite into a flame that can only be extinguished by an explosive orgasm.
The sound of a throat clearing behind us interrupts us. Reyes is standing in the doorway, stone-faced, a thick vein in his neck pulsing. "Sorry, I didn't mean to intrude."
"No, you didn't," the words rush out of my mouth. I feel like a teenager who just got caught in the backseat of a boy's car.
Alex grunts something beside me. I glance at him. His eyes have narrowed, his jaw is clenched, and he is staring down Reyes. I squeeze his hand, and manage to get his attention on me, and hopefully thwart any desire he has to rip into Reyes.
He stands, lifts my hand to his lips, and places small kisses over my knuckles. "I'll let you get back to work." His eyes slide over to Reyes, a threatening glint in them that Reyes apparently picks up on too as he turns and walks to his desk.
Alex smiles at me and I force down the desire to
roll my eyes. Why do men constantly feel the need to play "my dick's bigger than yours"?
"I have the awards dinner tomorrow night. It would mean a great deal to me if you would come," he says, a desperate plea in his eyes.
With everything going on lately, I had forgotten about it. "I'm not sure, Alex. The press will be everywhere, and I'm not up for the scrutiny of our relationship." The press had followed me out of the office one day, hounding me for a statement about the protests and the appeal, and had discovered I was not living at Alex's. The PR people at Stone Holdings released an official statement that I am staying in town as a convenience while I worked on the appeal. But speculation still runs rampant. "I'll think about it, though. Deal?"
The smile I've been missing, the beautiful smile that brightens his face and hits his eyes, shows his approval. "Deal." I walk to the door, watch as he climbs behind the wheel of the Maserati, and drives away—and a piece of my heart goes with him.
Mercifully, the rest of the day seems to be going by quickly. At first, Reyes was distant, but throughout the course of the afternoon, he's loosening up a bit, and actually cracks a joke now and then. Most of the boxes in the conference room are empty, we organize the contents and re-box according to the new classification. The most important crime scene photos take up half of the twelve foot white board, while the other half of the board outlines the timeline of the case.
All afternoon my mind has been going over Alex's visit. Seeing him again made me miss him even more. It's sometimes hard for me to remember what my life was like before I met him. Since the day he waltzed into my office with Jack, the man has never been far from my thoughts. At first, it was an infatuation…a fascination with the extremely wealthy business men who had women swooning around him. I never imagined myself with a man like him, and really never considered that a man like him would want me—and only me. But that's how it's been from the start—just the two of us.
Falling in love with him happened so quickly, and not without its own drama. Alex's need to protect me led to him thinking he could control my life. We had more than one blow-up over his inability to let me make my own decisions. Of course, sometimes he's been right, and left myself vulnerable to John's sadistic games.
When Alex finally admitted his love for me—an emotion he swore he didn't possess—it was the most impactful moment of our relationship. And since that day, through all the up and downs, arguments and make-ups, one thing remains the same, our deep love for one another. I never thought it possible to love someone as much as I love Alex, but he has my heart and he always will.
Always.
"Forever, " I murmur, grasping the double heart pendant Alex gave to me. We had said those words to each that night, and they remain as true today as they did when we first spoke them.
"What was that?" Reyes asks.
I glance over at him, heat rising in my cheeks. I didn't realize I said that out loud. "Uh, nothing. So, it looks like we have managed to get this in order. How about we call it a night?"
Reyes shrugs, "Sure, sounds good to me."
He turns off all the lights, and makes sure the coffee pot is off while I shut down my computer and grab my stuff. At the bottom of the stairs, he grabs a hold of my elbow. I glance up at him, wondering what the hell he's doing when his lips come crashing down on mine. His mouth attacks mine, and jabs his tongue along the seam of my lips in an attempt to coax them to part.
I push him away, rip my mouth off his, and stumble backwards. What the hell just happened?
Reyes drops his head, hands on hips, and when he looks up at me again, his eyes have a hint of sadness. "Sorry, I just want you to know that you have other options."
I'm still a little dizzy from the shock of his mouth on mine, and struggling with how he's trying to explain. "Options?"
He sighs. "Options other than Alex Stone."
"Oh." Oh! Wow, I'm not even close to being prepared for this conversation. I rub my suddenly sweaty palms together, buying some time to think of a way to handle this situation. I mean, we still have to work together. Yelling at him to keep his damn hands and mouth off me in the future might not be the best approach. "Um, I don't know what to say. I'm flattered, I really am, but…I love Alex. I will always love him."
His jaw clenches. "He's an arrogant prick—even you see that, right?" he asks through gritted teeth.
I bite my tongue, and tamp down my anger. "You don't know him like I do."
"He lies to you. You left him—which you should have—but he doesn't deserve you."
And you do? My blood is boiling, I want to haul off and punch him right the mouth. I'm so tired of everyone thinking they know Alex, what he's really like, when they know nothing about his heart, or his past. "I know how people see Alex, but there is a side to him that only I've been privy to. I'm not going to recite all the ways he does deserve my love—that's between him and me—but I'll tell you that I have never once felt he didn't deserve it."
Reyes runs his hand through his hair and sighs. "I had to give it a shot."
I nod and turn to go, but he grabs my arms again. "But don't think for one minute that I'll change my mind about him. You're an amazing woman. A man like Alex Stone will never fully appreciate how lucky he is to have you."
I turn, seething, and the best thing I can do is to get some distance between Sergeant Reyes and me before I say something I'll regret. Who the hell does he think he is, acting as if I'm some love-sick puppy that can't see Alex for who he really is? I don't have on blinders—I know Alex's many faults—but I also know the heart and soul that he doesn't let many into, and I experience the depth of his love and loyalty on a daily basis. And I'll have it forever, without question.
I slide behind the wheel of the Porsche and start the engine. Reyes had it all wrong when he said Alex doesn't deserve my love. It's me that doesn't deserve Alex. I roll down the window, accelerate, and revel in the cool fall air as it swirls around me. My hair flies in all directions, the fire Reyes ignited all but extinguished.
I know what I want to do. And I know just how to show Alex that he can always count on my love.
Forever.
Chapter Thirteen
I drop onto the couch, sink into the cushions, and hit the speed dial on my phone. It's ringing, so I take a quick swig of wine and set the glass on the end table beside me.
"Hello?" Leigha answers.
"Hey, it's Kylie."
"Hey, stranger, where the hell have you been hiding?" Her voice has a lilt and there is no animosity in it. We haven't been friends for long, but we've become close in that short amount of time, and one of only two female friends I have. I'm sure that says something about me, but I have no idea what, nor do I care.
"I know, I've been sort of off the mainline lately. Sorry—it's complicated."
She snorts. If anyone understands what I'm going through, it Leigha. She's in a long term relationship with Alex's brother, Will, and we often commiserate on the difficulties of loving Stone men.
"Yeah, I think I know that song, different verse, " she chuckles. "Things improving at all?"
"There was a major step forward today, and I'm about to attempt to leap. Care to help me?"
"Anytime, anyplace, sister." There's strength just knowing someone can relate to me and my plight, and backs me up whenever I call.
"Are you guys going to the philanthropist of the year ceremony?"
"Yeah, Francine called all of us individually to insist we be there to support Alex."
"Because his bitchy girlfriend dumped him, just like she always knew I would, leaving Alex broken-hearted?" Alex's adopted mother was not my biggest fan. She's objected to me being in Alex's life from the very beginning, and hasn't softened much over the past few months. At first it bothered me, but now it's just mildly irritating to be around her. Luckily, Alex is typically as annoyed by her as I am.
"Damn near word-for-word," Leigha says and laughs. "I think she is secretly happy you aren't going to be there."
&nb
sp; "Well, I'm about to piss her off, then."
"Are you going?" Leigha squeals.
I thought about it all afternoon, weighing out the pro's and con's, vacillating between wanting desperately to celebrate with Alex or avoid the confusion of where we are in our relationship. When it comes down to it, Alex wants me there, and nothing else really matters.
"If I can tag along with you and Will?" I answer.
"Of course. We'll swing by and pick you up." She pauses and it sounds as if she's walking into another room because I can no longer hear the TV in the background. "So, does Alex know you're coming?"
I sigh. I'm not going to tell Alex. If he knows, he'll go out of his way to make sure everything is perfect for me, and that's not the point of this event. It's to honor him and the work he does for various charities, and I want it to stay all about him. So much media lately is been focusing on him negatively, calling into question his actions the night his mother died, and outright accusations that he murdered her. The scrutiny is dredging up a lot of emotions that Alex only recently started to deal with, after he buried them for so many years, and now they're on display for the public to criticize.
"No, and I'd really like to keep it that way. I don't want to make a big deal about me being there—I just want to keep it low key."
"Got it," Leigha says. "Your secret's safe with me, and I will threaten Will within an inch of his life if he breaths a word of it to Alex."
We work out the details of what time they'll pick me up, and then we say our goodbyes. Well, I can't back out now. I grab my wine glass, refill it on my way through the kitchen, and go in search of something to wear tomorrow night. I'm pretty sure I didn't bring any of my evening dresses with me, so that means I will have to go shopping tomorrow on my lunch break.
I flop onto the bed and stare up at the ceiling. I'm happy. I know I made the right decision. This is important to Alex, and Alex is important to me. He took the first step today toward our reconciliation, now it's my turn to take the next one, and show him I'm just as invested in us making a future together.
Revenge: Tri-Stone Trilogy, Book Two Page 11