LCR had given him an opportunity for training that few people had experienced. Spotting lies and subterfuge had become one of his best talents. Last year, he’d seriously screwed up with Shea and sincerely regretted his error. Other than that one time, Gabe could, without ego, claim to be an expert in spotting a liar. And he was damn good at spotting evil, too.
The men he’d mentioned to Skye were all hiding something. He didn’t know what yet. Evil? Perhaps. That would take more time.
“I’ll call Noah. Ask him to assign someone to watch Pickens. Cole, you keep an eye on Harrington.”
Skye eyed him curiously. There was one other man he’d targeted. Hell, there was no point in denying his intense curiosity about the man dating his wife.
“Bradford is coming for breakfast in the morning. I’ll zero in on him and see what I can find out.”
A small, enigmatic smile played around her beautiful mouth, but she didn’t dispute or argue with his plans. She might disagree with his assessment, but thankfully appeared to be willing to trust his judgment.
The limo glided to a stop in front of her building. They waited until Cole got out and went around to open the door. And again, Gabe felt like an idiot. As if he couldn’t open his own damned door. Appearances might be important but he didn’t care. He was pretending to be a self-made man. That meant he went against convention. Before Cole could open the door, Gabe shoved it open and stepped out.
“Impatient?”
Cole’s amusement earned him a glare. Then Gabe turned and surveyed the well-lit street and sidewalk. Only two photographers lurking. He turned back and said to Cole, “Take Skye up, will you?”
A flicker of compassion crossed his friend’s face. “I’ll see you in a few minutes.”
Skye stepped out of the car with a graceful elegance that defied description. She gave Gabe a brief look, waved at the photographers snapping their photos, and then allowed Cole to lead her into the building.
Glad to see the photographers get into their cars and drive away, Gabe took one more glance around and then headed inside. He might be as tired as an old dog, but he’d be damned if he got back into that elevator with Skye.
Cole believed it was because of his claustrophobia, and while that was a huge reason, it wasn’t the biggest. Having Skye try to distract him again as she had before wasn’t something he could afford. She might not have known it, but he had been within a second of unzipping his pants and shoving himself inside her. The distraction had worked but damned if he could afford another incident.
This was a job and nothing more. After Cole left, he would explain that to her. And now, he had forty floors ahead of him to convince himself.
Skylar eyed the giant man standing beside her. She wasn’t used to big men. Most of the men in her family were of average height. Benjamin stood a little over six feet and was the tallest man she’d ever dated. Not counting Gabe … whom she’d never really dated. She’d fallen in love with him, slept with him, and married him. But she could never say they’d dated.
Gabe was tall … very tall. When he was a skinny youth in his early twenties, he’d been tall but not muscular. But now … she smiled dreamily as she remembered what those muscles had felt like under his tuxedo jacket tonight. How she’d wanted him to make love to her.
A hard hand grabbed her arm. “Skylar?”
Skylar opened her eyes and stared up at Cole Mathison’s concerned face. She’d almost collapsed at his feet.
“Sorry, guess I’m more tired than I thought.”
His hand still holding her as if he was afraid she’d fall, he said, “You zoned out for several seconds.”
A deep breath revived her. “I’m okay now. It’s just been a tough few weeks.”
Cole nodded. “And you really haven’t had a chance to recover from all the trauma you’ve gone through.”
“So you know about Gabe and me?”
“That you’re married, but you thought he’d committed suicide?”
She grimaced at his accurate and succinct answer. “Yeah.”
“Yes. He told me. That must have been quite a shock.”
“You LCR people are masters of understatement, aren’t you?”
A small smile tweaked at the corner of his mouth. She got the impression that this man rarely smiled. Gabe’s smiles were rare, too, but Cole had a grimness to him as if he’d seen something so horrible that smiling was foreign to him.
“How long have you known Gabe?”
His eyes on the elevator doors in front of him, he shrugged. “Two or three years.”
“Do you have a family?”
“No.”
The short, harsh words cut off any other questions. Apparently realizing how he’d sounded, he softened his expression slightly as he looked down at her. “LCR is my family now.”
“It’s a good organization.”
“The best.”
Thankfully, the door slid open. Skylar’s natural curiosity and Cole’s reticence to talk about himself didn’t make for a good combination. Though she’d always been good at small talk, her mind was whirling from exhaustion, limiting her ability to come up with anything to say. Not that it would do any good. LCR was a well-known organization, but they were almost as famous for keeping secrets as they were for the work that they did. Their employees knew how to keep those secrets.
With a relieved breath at being in her own home, Skylar walked through her living room to her bedroom. “I’m going to change clothes. Tell Gabe I’ll be back in just a moment.”
Just as Skylar shut the door to her bedroom, she heard the front door open. Cole’s amused voice grumbled, “Hell, did you run?”
A barely winded Gabe answered, “Had some energy to expel.”
With a slight smile, Skylar unzipped the side zipper on her gown and slid it off. Despite her exhaustion, anticipation zinged through her. She knew the real reason Gabe had taken the stairs. His claustrophobia might have been partly the reason, but it wasn’t the only one. He’d wanted to avoid a reenactment of their earlier elevator encounter. Hence his need to expel some energy. Gabe wanted her but he didn’t want to want her. Tough. She was married to the man. If she wanted to kiss him, then she damned well had the right.
Knowing Gabe and Cole would have no compunction about starting their meeting without her present, Skylar quickly slid into a comfortable pair of pants and button-down cotton shirt. She slipped her tired feet into her favorite sandals and pulled her long hair up into a twist, sticking a long pin through it to hold it in place.
As she expected, she opened the door to hear voices in the living room already discussing Cole’s findings. She rushed through the door, determined to lend information and a hand where she could. She might well relish the sexual play between her and Gabe, but she would never forget her real cause. Kendra was out there somewhere and had to be found.
“Get up. It’s time for your bath.”
Kendra snuggled into the soft pillow and shook her head. No, she’d been having the most wonderful dream. She didn’t want to let go. In the dream, she’d been sitting with Skylar in the little Chinese restaurant where they met and had lunch every Thursday. They’d just ordered moo shu pork and Chinese vegetables. Her mouth watered and she could almost smell the spicy fragrance wafting through the air.
“I said get up, bitch. This is the only bath you’ll get this week. You’d better take the offer while you can.”
Kendra rolled over and looked up at her current tormentor. A young woman, probably no more than a year or two older than Kendra, looked down at her with the coldest, meanest expression she could imagine.
“Please let me go home.”
Why she said it, she didn’t know. This girl didn’t care about her. She had a job to do. How many times had Kendra asked the same thing, only to get the response she got now?
“Get up, bitch, before I show you what your disobedience will cost you.”
Kendra sprang from the bed, as the woman knew she would. Anything to
keep from having to watch another torture or rape. Every time she remotely resisted, she was punished by being forced to witness a brutal act. She couldn’t handle another one.
“Get in the tub.”
Shivering from exhaustion and dread, Kendra walked into the bathroom. A large tub of water awaited her. Fighting tears, Kendra lifted her foot and put it into the water, jostling the ice cubes that had been added to it. Frigid, ice-cold water instantly chilled her.
“Get in before I push you in.”
Her lips bleeding from biting them from the pain, Kendra slid her body into the water and sat down. Ice-cold water rained down on her as buckets of freezing water were poured over her head. Crying in agony, Kendra forced her mind back to the restaurant with Skylar. The meal sat in front of her. Kendra picked up the chopsticks, speared a sizzling piece of pork, and put it on her tongue. Heaven.
Pain searing her scalp pulled her from her dream. The woman screamed at her, but Kendra didn’t understand what she was saying. She was beginning to feel warm and cozy again. Lassitude stole over her and she closed her eyes.
Another tug on her hair and Kendra woke to her body being patted down. Long past caring that strangers’ hands roamed all over her body, she felt tears pour from her eyes as needles of pain prickled the feeling back into her frozen body.
“You have a meal waiting for you.” The evil voice, filled with mocking amusement, continued the torture. “Grilled steak, fresh vegetables, baked potato covered in sour cream and chives. Chocolate cake for dessert. Yum.”
Despite the knowledge that it would be just another horrific event of temptation and denial, her empty stomach twisted, then growled in hopeful anticipation.
Someone put a robe around her, while another person towel-dried her hair. She wasn’t allowed to do anything for herself. She no longer protested, no longer resented their hands. No longer paid attention to who did what. This had become her life. She didn’t know the reasons behind their actions. Didn’t know who was responsible. Her only release, her only comfort, was to imagine that someone would rescue her. In her mind, that someone was often Skylar. Occasionally her mother. Her father sometimes, too, even though she hadn’t seen him in years. One time it had even been Calvin. But mostly it was Skylar. She cared about Kendra. She would find a way to save her. Kendra knew she would.
“Come on, bitch. Let’s go have dinner.”
Kendra shuffled toward the room where she knew a meal waited for her. A meal that would no doubt be denied to her. Even knowing that, she somehow prayed that at least this time, they’d allow her to eat.
As promised, a meal sat on the table in the middle of the room. The fragrance of grilled meat permeated the air and Kendra almost doubled over from the growling emptiness in her stomach. Just a little. Please, God, please. Just a little.
They made a big production of seating her at the table. Kendra looked up in hope. Surely now that she was seated, they’d allow her to eat.
One of the men leered down at her. “If you’re not hungry for steak, I got something else you can eat.” He rubbed his crotch.
Bile rose in her throat, even while her mouth watered in anticipation that she would actually be allowed a meal. Ignoring the three men and two women who surrounded her, watching her as if she were an animal in a zoo, Kendra picked up a fork and took a bite from her potato. Thick sour cream and creamy potato melted on her tongue. Her stomach leaped for joy. She took another bite, and then another.
The steak, tender and cooked to perfection, cut easily with a fork. Kendra placed a succulent piece on her tongue and moaned in delight. She took another bite and then … the plate disappeared from her sight.
“That’s enough.”
“No!” Kendra jumped up. Fork in hand, she jabbed at the nearest woman. The woman sidestepped the weapon and landed a blow to Kendra’s temple. She felt herself falling. As she landed face-first on the floor, the last thing she heard was a man screaming, “You bitch! He’ll kill you for that.”
Hoping that the man was talking to her, since death would mean blessed peace, Kendra descended into a welcoming darkness.
William winced at the creak of the stair beneath his feet. The entire house hold was still asleep. And he should be, too. But it was almost five o’clock and he had a standing breakfast meeting at eight, barely giving him enough time for full enjoyment, but he couldn’t wait any longer. He’d tossed and turned most of the night in anticipation. Visions of what she would look like, how she would be posed, how the shadows and the light would surround her nude body, revealing, then hiding that glorious silky skin, had been torturing him all night.
The DVD had been delivered yesterday evening just before he and Margo had left for their evening out. It had taken every bit of willpower and self-discipline he had not to cancel the night.
His wife would have understood and supported his decision. She knew about his needs, even if she didn’t really know what they were. She knew he had secrets, but as long as he was happy, she didn’t care to know the details. That was one of the many reasons he loved her. His secret life kept him satisfied. Kept their marriage secure.
William was a family man. He loved his wife and children. Saw to their welfare, supported them in their dreams and desires. Margo fully supported his need to find his happiness wherever he chose to find it. A loyal and supportive wife such as his Margo was a prize beyond rubies.
But he could no longer hold back the desire. A live recording was a poor substitute for the reality of being able to touch and caress that beautiful body, but it was so much better than the still shots he’d had to be satisfied with the last few days. It was a process of progression … for him and his subject. The anticipation built for both of them. Though she didn’t realize what the crescendo would be. William understood it … after all, he’d devised this training method. Had been using it for years and it hadn’t failed him yet.
He slipped into his office and closed the door, locking himself and his secret delights inside. His hands shaking with excitement, he unlocked the door to his vault. Picking up the DVD he’d left on the table beside his recliner, he held it to his nose, pretending he inhaled her scent.
No longer able to wait, he slid the DVD out of its sleeve and inserted it into the player. After taking a towel from the cabinet beneath the large-screen television, William seated himself in the recliner across from the screen. Unzipping his pants in preparation, he hit the play button on the remote, placed the towel at the correct position, and then settled back to enjoy himself.
He groaned at his first sight of her. Silky, beautiful perfection. Yes, she was thinner … all a part of the process. Soon that would change. He would feed her, clothe her, cosset her. She would love it … love him. He still saw a bit of defiance in her pose, in those pretty hazel eyes. But it had diminished. She was changing, refining, becoming …
How had he gotten so fortunate to find one so fresh, so beautiful … so malleable? Skylar, of course. She had brought the girl to his attention several months back. He remembered that day clearly. He’d been standing in the midst of some of the most powerful people in New York, but the instant she’d walked in, he’d stopped listening, mesmerized. As if a beacon had shone down on her, he’d known in an instant she would be his next jewel.
Though Skylar had introduced the girl to hundreds of people that day, he was the only one who’d sought her out when Skylar had been occupied talking with someone else. The only one who had seen her potential … her need to belong. After learning about the girl’s goal of becoming a model, he’d developed the perfect lure.
He must remember to thank Skylar. Perhaps later, after he recovered from his pleasure, he would send his goddaughter a gift of flowers or a box of candy in appreciation for the special gift she’d given William. Even if she didn’t realize it.
seventeen
Gabe placed a sleeping Skye on the bed. He had to give it to her, she’d been a trooper. As he and Cole threw names around, she’d listened intently, those
lively, intelligent eyes of hers gleaming with interest and determination. She’d even thrown in some tidbits of information neither he nor Cole would have been privy to. Then, when they had Noah on the phone, she’d hung in there as they discussed who and why they felt certain people deserved more scrutiny.
And despite the fact that two of the people they were very interested in were her boyfriend and her godfather, she hadn’t protested. Other than the slight furrow of her brow indicating she’d like to defend them, she’d kept out of it. An investigation would have gone on whether she had protested or not, but it was good they didn’t have to argue the point with her.
It wasn’t until after they hung up with Noah and were making plans for the day that he noticed Skye had literally sunk into the sofa. Though she was still sitting up, she was sound asleep.
Ignoring Cole’s knowing look, Gabe had scooped her into his arms. As he carried her into the bedroom, it was all he could do not to hold her closer and pretend he had every right to carry her to bed and love her awake.
He sat beside her on the bed and allowed himself the luxury of staring at her. When she was awake and aware, he couldn’t let his guard down. She could read him like a book.
Gently, so as not to wake her, he pushed back a strand of hair from her forehead. How could someone so innocent and sweet be one of the most famous women in the world? It defied logic.
A whispered sigh that sounded like his name came from her soft lips. Desire thrummed through him. Years ago, their lovemaking had been awkward and sweet. Their passion a new and pleasurable pastime. They’d made love for hours … four short days of bliss. But he hadn’t savored her as he would now. If given just one more opportunity to make love to this woman, he knew it would be the most meaningful physical connection he could ever have.
He stood before temptation got the best of him. The regret-filled sigh he breathed penetrated his soul. Slipping off her shoes, Gabe drew a blanket from the edge of the bed and covered her. He had to get out of here before he did something supremely stupid.
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