by Adams, S. C.
“Step back from the door,” I tell her.
“Okay. I’m as far away as I can get.”
I do the same, my back hitting the other side of the hallway. With all of the energy I have left, I lunge forward with a kick to the weakest part of the door. The lock doesn’t hold, and the door crashes onto the dreary carpet.
“Sean!” Maggie screams. “You’re here! Oh my God, I can’t believe you’re here!”
She runs and jumps into my arms. Maggie’s figure is just as gorgeous as it was when we slept together a week ago. Feeling her curves up against my chest, and knowing that she’s safe and okay, almost undoes me completely. I have my girl back in my arms! Today is a great day.
At least, it is until I get a chance to take in the room Maggie has been living in.
“Is this your bedroom?”
She nods nervously. “It never used to bother me until I was locked in and couldn’t get out. They even locked the bathroom door so that I couldn’t escape that way, either.”
“How long have you been in here?”
“Since the morning I came back home,” Maggie admits. I feel like an absolute ass. This entire thing is my fault! If I hadn’t let Maggie fall asleep that night, she wouldn’t be in this mess.
“Oh, Maggie, I’m so sorry…”
She squeezes me tightly. “It’s not your fault. My parents are crazy. I hate that it has taken me until now to figure that out. I should have moved out the second I turned eighteen instead of letting them control every aspect of my life.”
I glance around her room. It really is more like a closet than a bedroom. There’s hardly enough space for the twin-sized bed and the small dresser lined up against the far wall. The closet-sized space only has a single window.
Maggie has done her best over the years to turn it into a livable space. Aside from her bed and dresser, there’s a small table with a sewing machine perched on top. It’s taking up the last remaining space in the room. I couldn’t walk from one side to the other because the table and chair come right up against the side of the bed.
It’s a good thing I’m not claustrophobic or this room would be suffocating.
“I can’t believe they locked you in here,” I finally say. “If I’d known…”
“You couldn’t have known!” Maggie assures me. “They took my computer and my phone. I’ve had no contact with the outside world for a full week. The only reason I know the time is because I have that clock on my wall.”
Sure enough, a simple clock adorns the wallpapered wall above her bed. I’m definitely missing my meeting right now. But like I’d said, Maggie is way more important to me than whatever those people needed me for. I’ll have Greg reschedule it when I get back to the office. That likely won’t be until tomorrow, if not the next day.
I will not let Maggie stay in this hell any longer. “Pack up everything you own,” I tell her. “We’re going to my place.”
“Sean, you don’t have to do that. I can go stay with Jenna. She’s been offering me a place in her apartment since high school graduation…”
I shake my head to cut her off. “I’m not letting you out of my sight again!” I promise.
Maggie smiles through her tears. “I’m so glad you came to find me.”
I stroke her messy hair. “You’re safe now, Maggie.”
She nods against my chest. “I always feel safe with you. I’m so sorry about what I said. That was what my parents thought, not what I thought…”
“Shh,” I say. “I get it now. I shouldn’t have been so angry with you that morning. You tried to explain how controlling and conservative your parents are, but I couldn’t imagine it. Now that I’ve seen your room, I really do understand.”
“I want you to know that this is the worst it’s ever been,” Maggie informs me. My heart shatters. This is all because of me, no matter how many times she tries to say otherwise! I’m the cause of her worst punishment to date. All the more reason to get her out of here. If her parents knew I was here right now, they’d probably come up with something worse than locking their only daughter up in her windowless bedroom.
“I’m sorry they did this to you.”
“Me, too. But can I be honest?”
I nod. “You can always be honest with me.”
“This week has been terrible, but I have to look on the bright side. At least their awful punishment brought me back to you. Which is especially funny considering the whole idea of the punishment was to keep me away from you.”
“You told them about us?”
Maggie laughs. “I tried to lie and say I was at Jenna’s, but they didn’t believe me. As soon as I spilled the truth, they called me every foul name in the book. Well, I shouldn’t say they did because it was mostly my mother. Dad didn’t do anything to stop it, though, so he’s as much at fault as she is.”
I can’t imagine letting anyone treat my child that way, let alone her own mother. If Maggie and I ever have children together, they’ll be so well-loved, they’ll want to rebel. At the end of the day, they’ll love us for loving them.
Maggie reluctantly steps out of my arms to gather up her possessions. After she’s filled a small suitcase with clothes, including the dresses from the floor beside the sewing machine, she joins me back in the doorway. She stares longingly at her sewing machine.
“We’ll get you a new sewing machine,” I assure her. “You can turn the spare room in my penthouse into a sewing room!”
Her eyes light up. “You’d let me do that?”
I kiss her for the first time in a week. She’s surprised at first, but then she quickly melts into my embrace. “I’ll let you do anything,” I whisper against her sweet lips. I absolutely mean it. Anything she wants, it’s hers.
She already has my heart.
24
Maggie
Sean’s big show of barging into my room felt climactic until we got outside.
“Where’s Stefan?” I ask, my suitcase starting to feel very heavy. It’s relatively small, but it holds all of my possessions. My arm strength has a limit, and I think I’ve reached it.
Sean sighs. “Stefan is at home, I imagine. I ran here from Havisham’s.”
“You ran here? And why were you at Havisham’s?”
The grown man blushes. “I was looking for you since you wouldn’t answer my calls.”
“They took my phone!”
“I know that now!” he says. “You didn’t quit your job, either, did you? Your mother did that for you?”
I nod, feeling the tears coming back. I don’t want to cry about this anymore! I’m finally free!
“I’m so sorry, Maggie.”
“It’s not okay that they did this, but I don’t want to talk about it anymore. I’m out now, and we need to get to your place somehow.”
Sean watches the street for a yellow cab. It only takes a few seconds for one to show up. We pile into the back with my suitcase between us, and Sean gives the guy extra to get us to his penthouse quickly. It takes less than ten minutes for the cabbie to drop us off in front of Sean’s building.
Which now, I suppose, is my building.
I’m not sure I’ll ever get used to that.
The doorman welcomes us back. He’s clearly surprised to see Sean back so early. “Is everything okay, Mr. Jones?”
Sean nods to the kind man. “Just fine, Jeffrey. I’d like you to meet Maggie. She’ll be staying with me.”
Jeffrey holds out his hand to shake mine. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Maggie.”
“You too, Jeffrey.”
“We should get going. Have a good day, Jeffrey!”
“You, as well, Mr. Jones!” he calls after us. One of the things I like best about Sean is how friendly he is with the staff. I’ve seen him goofing around with his driver, Stefan, and he always leaves high tips on restaurant bills, no matter how the service was. I think it stems from his working-class upbringing. Even though Sean had money growing up, his parents made sure he knew how hard they’d worked to e
arn it. He understands and values hard work, so he shares the wealth he has accrued with the people around him.
I love this incredible man.
Sean hits the secret elevator button, and we ascend to the penthouse. Unlike last time, there’s no heavy make-out session against the cold, mirrored surface of the elevator wall. Neither of us is in a good place to be shoving our tongues down each other’s throats.
I’m holding out for a repeat of last weekend later on tonight, though.
We reach an awkward moment when the elevator opens into Sean’s apartment. He has three bedrooms up here. Which one am I supposed to put my things in?
At my parents’ apartment, Sean had mentioned turning a spare room into a sewing room for me. Does that mean I sleep in the other spare room while Sean enjoys the large master suite?
Sean catches my confusion and squeezes my hand. “Put your things in the master bedroom, Maggie. You’re staying with me.”
My smile surprises both of us. “You mean it?” I ask.
“Of course. I wouldn’t have you staying anywhere else! You belong in my bed.”
He has a smile of his own, but it’s much less innocent than mine. I close the small distance between us and kiss him tenderly. “Thank you, Sean. I love you.”
The words slip out before I have a chance to think about it. Is Sean going to kick me out for being so forward? Where will I go? I have no phone to contact Jenna! Perhaps Sean will let me use his…
I allow my eyes to meet his, feeling completely flushed and flustered. To my surprise, there’s no anger there. His smile is wide, and his eyes are dancing with excitement.
“I love you, too, Maggie,” he tells me. “I wanted to be the one to say it first!”
We both laugh. “It just popped out!”
“I’m glad it did because I was hoping you felt the same way. This last week has been torture for me. All I could think about was what I did to push you away. I thought you were… what’s that word? Ghosting me. My trip to Havisham’s was borderline stalking because I just had to see you. I’ve never felt like this about anyone before, Maggie. With all of my heart and soul, I am truly, deeply in love with you.”
“Oh, Sean!” I cry. I jump into his arms and wrap my legs around his waist. He has no trouble holding me up in this position. “You’re the sweetest guy I’ve ever known. I love that you encourage me to break out of my shell and be someone other than my parents’ daughter. You make me the best version of myself. I love you so much!”
We kiss passionately, but that’s as far as it goes. I’m acutely aware that our declarations of love felt almost like vows. Did Sean mean them that deeply? I know I did. Sean is the man for me. I never believed in destiny until we met, and now I’m sure he was sent to Havisham’s that day so that I would meet him and we could fall in love.
Sean pulls away from our deep kiss. “You need to put your things in my bedroom, and then we’re going to christen our bed.”
“Our?”
He smiles. “Starting right now, that bed belongs to us.”
I love the sound of that almost as much as I love Sean.
My suitcase is thrown haphazardly onto the floor just before I’m thrown onto Sean’s – I mean, our – bed. He merges our lips in a slow, heavy kiss that turns my stomach into fireworks and my heart into a speeding train. Just like that night we spent together last week, our bodies meet in the most intimate way. Our lovemaking isn’t even close to frenzied or careful this time around, though. We enjoy each other’s bodies with the fervor of two lovers trying to become one.
When it’s over, I cling to Sean’s sweaty body. We breathe deeply, trying to catch our breath.
“I’ll never get enough of your perfect body,” Sean says, kissing my shoulder and then my neck. “I love it, and I love you.”
I giggle against his chest. “I love that you love me even when I’m sweaty and gross.”
“You could never be gross, my love. You’re just not capable of it.”
We lie together for a while longer, welcoming the closeness we’ve missed during my week-long captivity.
“You should know, I thought of you constantly,” I say, breaking the comfortable silence between us. “For the entire week my parents had me locked up, you were on my mind. Especially at night when I needed release.”
Sean groans as his cock grows. “I thought about you, too. Multiple times a day.”
“Really?” I gasp.
“Oh yes. Not having you around made me extra crazy. And extra needy. But you were the only one I wanted to help me with my little problem.”
My hand squeezes his throbbing member. “I don’t see anything little about this problem.”
Sean moans. We hadn’t planned on a round two, but there’s no way we’re getting anything done without a second release for both of us.
This time when we finish, I climb out of our bed.
“Make yourself at home, Maggie,” Sean says from the bed. He watches my every move as I unload the small suitcase and hang up my few pieces of clothing. “This is your home now.”
I’ll do my best to bring my personal touch to our apartment, but I don’t own many personal things. The dresses I sewed during my week in parental prison are hung beside his expensive, designer suits in the closet. My t-shirts and jeans are folded and placed beside crisp, button-up dress shirts and slacks.
Is this what the world sees when they see us together? Him, put together and perfect, and me, one torn seam away from falling apart?
I’ll need to get some better clothing if this is going to work.
“I see your wheels turning, and I want you to know: don’t change yourself. I love you for you. Especially for the incredible clothes you’ve designed for yourself. You’re going to be a big name someday; I just know it.”
His words are exactly what I needed to hear. With my suitcase empty and my heart feeling at home, I climb back into bed to cuddle with Sean.
“You never told me how you found me. Did you come to my apartment because you heard I’d quit Havisham’s?”
Sean looks surprised. “No. I came because someone told me you were in trouble. I thought maybe it was you, or that you sent someone to alert me.”
“How could I have done that? Who contacted you?”
He shrugs. “I haven’t a clue. I got a text saying I needed to go to you right away, so I did. Got in a week’s worth of cardio doing it, too!”
“Can I see the text?”
Sean digs around on the floor to find his phone among the hastily tossed clothing. When he finally finds it, he hands it to me.
“The passcode is 1973,” he shares.
“Your birth year?”
Sean nods. “Do you have a passcode?”
I can’t help but laugh. “My mother wouldn’t let me put one on my phone. It was easier for her to keep track of me that way. And now, I don’t even have a phone.”
“Right,” he says. “We’ll get you one first thing tomorrow. I don’t want to leave our apartment again tonight. I’m thinking delivery is in order, for sure.”
I tell him I love that idea and scroll through his phone to find the mysterious texter. When I do, I recognize the number immediately.
“It was Jenna!” I gasp. “She texted you. How did she know I was in trouble?”
“She’s your best friend; I’m sure she figured out pretty quickly that something was wrong.”
“I never go this long without talking to her, so she probably knew I was in trouble. I have to call her!”
Sean gestures at his phone. “Please do, and tell her how grateful I am that she led me to you!”
I’m about to hit call when a different call comes in. The caller ID reads “Dad.”
I try to hand the phone back, but Sean shakes his head. “Actually, I need to talk to you about that. My parents are here in New York for three more weeks. I’ve been bloody miserable since they got here the morning we got into that awful fight, so I owe it to them to turn their vacation aroun
d. Would you like to meet them? We can hang out with them for the rest of their time in the States.”
“You want me to meet your parents?”
Sean blushes slightly. “I do. Don’t take this the wrong way, but I very much would not like to meet your parents. I’m worried they’d kill me for stealing their daughter away.”
I laugh because he’s right. “You don’t have to meet my parents. Maybe someday, but definitely not for the next year or so. They really might drag you into a dungeon, too.”
I’m glad we can laugh about it, though I’m still very aware of how awful the situation is.
“I’d love to meet your parents, Sean,” I say, turning the conversation back to where it had started.
“You would?”
“Of course!”
“Good! I’ll tell them to expect us for dinner tomorrow night, then. Thank you!” He kisses my forehead. “You talk to Jenna first, though. That’s much more important!”
I take his phone back and dial Jenna’s number. She picks up on the first ring and cries when she hears my voice.
“I’m so glad you’re okay!” she screams.
“I am, thanks to you. Thank you for texting Sean!”
We continue to talk for an hour while Sean plays with my hair. I tell her everything, from the punishment to my new living arrangement, and she promises to visit when the dust settles.
I thank her a few thousand times more before hanging up. Jenna has always been the best friend I could ask for, and she took it the extra mile.
If it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t be with the love of my life, cuddling in bed right now.
I owe her everything, literally. I hope she knows how much I love her.
It’s almost as much as I love Sean.
25
Sean
Mum and Dad were beyond thrilled when I called last night to tell them Maggie would be joining us for dinner.
I left out the part where she’d been held captive in her own home. Mum can be very sensitive, and she has a habit of taking on cases that she wants to fix. Maggie, aside from needing someone to get her out of her parents’ apartment, doesn’t strike me as the type to need fixing. If anyone can survive what she went through and turn around to do something incredible, it’s my Maggie.