by Cat Miller
Tony fired at Luc but his sudden move to catch Everly caused the shot to go wide and miss him entirely.
Rourke shot the gun out of Tony’s hand before he could fire again.
Luc fell to his knees with Everly sprawled awkwardly in his arms.
The Inferno security team surrounded Archie and Tony and subdued them easily. Archie hadn’t seemed eager to fire his own weapon. Lucky thing for Luc and Rourke. He was willing to sacrifice Marco to keep Everly. He would likely have thrown Tony under the bus if the authorities became involved with a shooting. As long as Archie didn’t pull the trigger himself, it wasn’t his rap to beat.
Luc laid Everly on the plush carpet and quickly looked her over. He felt her limbs for breaks and checked for obvious blood. She seemed in one piece other than a nasty bruise spreading on her jaw and another on her knee.
Rourke held out the keys to the sedan waiting out front.
“Get her out of here, Luc. I’ll take care of things here. If anyone downstairs called the cops, you don’t need to get caught up in the shit storm. I’ll wrap this up while you get her some medical attention.”
Luc just nodded and scooped Everly up into his arms. Her weight in his arms and the steady rising and falling of her chest was a comfort. He would get her to a doctor. She would be just fine.
Once he was sure she was in no real danger, he would take her back to his place. Then he had a lot of explaining to do. He just hoped she’d be willing to listen.
* * *
Everly woke slowly from the blow dealt to her by an irate and rather battered Tony that had knocked her unconscious. Once her brains were unscrambled, she was sure she’d be proud of how she’d defended herself. Not that it had done her much good.
Her last thought before passing out had been of Luc. He’d hurt her so badly that she wasn’t sure she’d ever be the same, but she was in love with him still. This heartache would change her forever. How could it not? But that was a problem for later. She’d have plenty of time to mourn when she went home. That is, if she ever made it home again.
Just before blacking out, Everly had conjured the sound of Luc’s angry voice echoing around her battered brain. She was good at making him angry, so it was a familiar tone. She’d seen him in the club, and her hopelessly romantic heart had prayed that he was there for her, to save her, not just Dolce, the friend he’d grown up with and loved like a sister. Once Dolce was safe, Everly saw no reason why Luc would have stayed. He might have sent Rourke to give her a hand, but wouldn’t come for her himself. It was a foolish hope she couldn’t help wishing for. Then she had herself a little nap, thanks to Tony and bouncing her head off the floor.
Waking in a strange place was unpleasant and damn scary. First, she became aware of a sense of movement. Then road sounds filtered in. There was the stop and go of traffic. Then the honking of horns filtered in to her consciousness. The vibration of a moving vehicle came next. She was in a vehicle. If they hadn’t made it to their destination yet, she might still have a chance to get away.
Everly was afraid to open her eyes. If Archie didn't know she was awake, she would have more time to gather information and formulate a plan of escape.
Everly just barely cracked one eye to examine her surroundings before closing it quickly. It was a sedan and she was alone in the back seat with her head behind the driver seat.
She slowly shifted her legs just a bit. There were no bindings that she could feel. That was good. She could run if she got free.
She cracked her eye again to peek at her hands in front of her on the seat. They weren't tied either. She would have sighed with relief if it wouldn't draw attention to her.
Everly was in no way restrained in the back seat. She wore no shoes, but she ran around barefoot at home all the time, so as long as she didn't run into any broken glass, that wasn't a hindrance to her escape plan.
Just what was her plan? How the hell was she going to get herself out of this mess? She slit her eyes open and found no one watching her from the front passenger seat. It was just her and whoever was driving the car. One on one was decent odds.
Feeling more confident since the driver couldn’t see her face, Everly had a good look around. The windows were tinted, but she knew it was still night. That gave her a far better chance of getting lost in a crowd or hiding somewhere dark until morning. The doors were locked. If there was a rear door safety lock in use, she was screwed. If not, she could just open the door and run like hell. There was only one way to find out.
Everly readied herself for a dash to safety. She hadn’t gone peacefully into captivity, and she wouldn’t be a good prisoner. She would fight to the end. She just needed to wait for the right moment to attempt another break for freedom. If she could get to a phone, she’d call Mills. He would move heaven and earth to get to her if she could just reach him. Her brother was the only man who’d never let Everly down.
The car slowed and idled. She could see street lights above and other cars around them. This was it. If the door would open she could weave through the traffic around them. She had to hope for a place nearby to hide or a large crowd to get lost in.
Whoever was driving, she assumed it was Marco because Tony would have killed her by now, would have to either pull over or leave the car to catch her. She hoped for the former. That would give her more time to put distance between her and the bad guy.
Everly reached for the door handle. She wouldn’t have long before the light turned red. Her sweaty palm wrapped around the handle. Slowly so as not to call attention to her, Everly’s other hand reached for the lock. If the child safety lock was engaged, she was fucked, literally.
With her heart pounding in her head and body tensed to bolt out of the car Everly tugged up the lock. It moved easily. The door was unlocked!
Not wasting another second Everly pulled the door handle. The door popped open and the overhead light came on. She shot out of the car and into traffic just as the light turned green.
The Nevada pavement was warm under her feet from the heat of the day, even at night. A horn blared when she stepped in front of a car that had just begun moving. There was a shout behind her, but Everly kept moving.
She didn’t look back to see if she was being pursued. Everly knew Archie’s thug would chase her down. It was his job, and Archie didn’t seem like a forgiving boss to her.
She remembered every childhood dream she’d ever had of running from a monster. No matter how hard you try you can never run fast enough. The monster is right behind you, and you just know that at any moment, they’re going to catch you and drag you back to wherever monsters come from. Under the bed maybe? Or to the closet? Either way you’d be gone forever. That’s how she felt with her knee aching and bare feet slapping against the pavement as she ran. She was sure the monster would catch her and she’d never be seen again.
Everly ducked and weaved between two parked cars. She ran into a crowd of rowdy guys who tried to slow her down.
“Hey, baby girl, why you in such a hurry?” One grabbed at her, and she spun away slapping at the guy’s hands.
“Stop!” she heard a deep male voice bellow.
Hell no! She would never stop. Fear had taken over. It was fight or flight and she’d already proven her fighting skills weren’t strong enough to save her from men the size and strength of Archie’s bodyguards.
Everly had gone a block when she turned a corner, going as fast as she could on her injured leg, and began looking for a spot to hide. She wouldn’t be able to outrun her pursuer for much longer. She was already tired and winded. Her head was pounding after being knocked out. She needed a hiding place.
Pounding footsteps turned the corner behind her, and Everly knew she was too late to hide. She was too tired to keep going. He was going to catch her. It was just like those fucking childhood nightmares. She just couldn’t run fast enough. Her legs felt leaden. Her feet seemed to be sinking into the concrete sidewalk.
Tears began to track down her face. She c
ouldn’t outrun him. He was too close already. So she did the only thing a female in distress could do. She screamed. Everly began screaming for help, pleading for anyone to come to her aid.
“Stop, Everly, stop!”
Strong arms wrapped around Everly and hauled her right off of her feet.
She fought. People stood by and stared at her struggle but nobody stepped in to help. Why didn’t anyone help? She kicked at the monster holding her and she screamed.
“I’m here, baby, I’ve got you,” Luc crooned against her ear. “Stop fighting, Everly. I’ve got you.”
It took a moment for it to sink in that it was Luc holding her gently but firmly against his chest.
She stopped screaming and hung limply in his arms. Everly realized it had been Luc’s name she’d been shouting. Why had it been his name she called for help? A better question was why had he answered? And where was Archie’s thug?
“I left a car parked two blocks over,” she heard Luc let the valet attendant know. “Here are the keys. Have someone go drive it around.”
Everly was so disoriented. Finally coming down from her panicked state of mind, Everly dragged air into her lungs and looked around with calmer eyes. She was standing just a few feet from The Inferno’s grand entrance. No wonder no one stepped in to save her. Everyone knew her, and they knew the man holding her.
Luc set her on her feet and turned her in his arms. “Why did you run, baby?”
He was brushing the hair out of her face and wiping away the tears of terror.
“He . . . he was ch-chasing me. I had to get away,” Everly stammered. The real fear of being taken against her will still thrummed through her.
“I see. You thought I was one of Archie’s assholes.” He looked stern and foreboding as he wrapped a protective arm around her shoulders and guided her inside the hotel.
She said nothing until they were safely in the private elevator gliding up to the penthouse.
“It was you in the car? You . . . you came for me?” The tears were welling again. She hated that she sounded like a scared rabbit, but honestly, she’d been through hell. She’d had the right to fall apart. She’d never been so frightened in her life.
Luc pulled her against his chest. He lifted her chin so she looked up into his handsome face, the same face that had looked at her with pity in his eyes just hours ago.
“Yes, Everly, I came for you. I will always come if you need me.”
She pushed at his chest until he released her so she could step away. She didn’t need to be coddled. She was grateful that he’d come to the rescue when Dolce called, but she didn’t need to be patronized.
“Thank you for coming to our rescue. I’m very sorry Dolce was involved in my family drama. I’ll be getting out of your way now. I’m going home.” She was fighting another wave of tears.
Why did he have to be so fucking beautiful? Why did have to make her feel so safe in his arms? Dammit! Why couldn’t he be hers?
“Everly, we need to talk.” Luc reached for her, but she evaded his touch.
The elevator doors swished open, and Everly fled. She needed to get away from Luc and his sad eyes. Why did he look so fucking miserable? Probably because his girlfriend had left when he was forced to come to Dolce’s rescue. She was probably off too. The beautiful woman didn’t look like the type to sit idly by while her man ran off to save another woman.
The need to escape Luc’s probing stare rode Everly to her door. She just needed to have a quick shower. Maybe have Dr. Russell look her over in the morning. She was limping severely on her injured leg. She was exhausted physically and emotionally, and sore all over.
Yes, that’s what she would do. She’d have a quick shower and crawl into bed. In the morning, she’d pack and see Dr. Russell before she began the long journey home to Colorado.
At her suite, she stood staring at the door. She had no purse and no key. She’d have to go back to the lobby and ask for another key card. She turned back toward the elevator to do just that, but she didn’t make it far.
Luc lifted her into his arms and strode for his suite just down the short hall.
“What are you doing?” She struggled in his arms.
“You’re exhausted, and you’ve been through a trauma, Everly. I’m not leaving you alone. You’re coming with me. I’ll take care of you tonight,” he informed her coolly.
The hell he would! She wouldn’t dare take up another moment of his precious fucking time. She didn’t even want him touching her after he’d been with that other devastatingly beautiful and far more his taste woman. The fog of the madness of her evening was finally beginning to clear. She wanted nothing else to do with Luc, and she’d just remembered that fact. She relived the pain of watching him disappear into his suite with the laughing brunette in an instant.
“Put me down, Luc. I don’t need your help, and I don’t want it. I don’t want anything to do with you ever again, Mr. Christianson,” she told him in the coldest unfeeling tone she could muster with her heart collapsing in her chest. He wasn’t the man for her, no matter that he already stole her heart. Just like he’d stolen her family’s legacy. Coldly. Without remorse.
She looked him in the eyes. Hopefully he wouldn’t see the pain trying to crush her. Hopefully she’d get away before the tears started again. She couldn’t let him see her cry. Not over him.
SEVENTEEN
“I didn’t sleep with Cammie. Nothing happened,” Luc admitted.
Everly arched a disbelieving eyebrow. She’d seen them together. That wasn’t the embrace of a couple about to settle in for a nice game of cards to pass the time. Something happened? Bullshit.
“Alright, nothing more than what you saw. We went to a business dinner. That’s it.”
Everly’s eyebrows rose into her hairline. Did he think she was blind? Or just an idiot?
“I did kiss her. I didn’t think I needed to state the obvious. You saw it after all.”
Everly knew Luc wasn’t accustomed to explaining himself to anyone. His annoyance at having to do it now to gain her cooperation was visible. She didn’t give a shit. It didn’t matter. She wasn’t sure why he was bothering to explain himself now. He hadn’t cared to fill her in on his whereabouts or plans during the three days he was out of town “on business.” But she did believe him about not having sex with Cammie. Luc wouldn’t lie about it. He just wasn’t the type to tell you what you wanted to hear. He didn’t have to. People catered to him no matter how rude he was. He’d hung her out to dry for two days, and she’d been waiting for him to return, like an eager puppy with her tail wagging. It was disgraceful.
Luc looked at her with the annoyed countenance of a man who’d never heard the word ‘no’ and couldn’t get around the denial of his every wish. Everly struggled a bit until Luc set her on her feet, but he didn’t release her. Instead, his big hands encircled her upper arms to keep her close.
“I’m sorry to have interrupted your evening, Mr. Christianson. It won’t happen again.”
Everly wriggled out of Luc’s hold. Her head told her to get gone now. Her heart wanted her to stay and let him hold her. She knew she’d never see him again once she stepped onto the elevator. He’d never touch her again after that last caress of his long fingers up and down her arms.
“Everly, please, can we talk about this inside?” Luc gestured toward his door and released an exaggerated sigh.
Everly glared at him. No, they could not.
“Why would I be going inside? I’m going to get a replacement key for my suite since I no longer have a purse.”
She turned her back to him once again.
“Dolce has your purse,” he said to her back.
“Oh, good. I was worried about the long drive home with no license. I’ll have to visit her before I leave.”
She’d planned on going to see Dolce anyway. Everly had to thank her for being such a good friend. She hoped they could stay in touch. That could be hard for both of them considering Dolce was like fa
mily to Luc. She would also thank her for calling in the cavalry. Everly’s life had hung in the balance for a while there. She might have survived, but her life would never be the same. She shuddered to think of what Archie and his men would have done to her.
“I might have ruined your date, but I won’t be a replacement for the woman you really wanted, Mr. Christianson. That’s all over. I’m not going inside with you, so you can stop staring a hole through the back of my head,” she said with conviction to her reflection in the gleaming doors as she waited for the elevator car to ascend.
It made Everly unreasonably happy to know Luc hadn’t actually had sex with the other woman. Idiot that she was. He would have if Dolce hadn’t called him away to save her.
Luc moved in behind her and met her eyes in the mirror-like surface.
“You didn’t ruin my date, Everly. I didn’t sleep with Cammie because I couldn’t do it. I didn’t have sex with Cammie because she wasn’t you. Okay?” Luc ran a frustrated hand through his hair.
Everly struggled to understand his meaning. He hadn’t slept with the woman because of her? Why? She faced Luc, wanting to see his eyes when he explained himself.
“Look, I freaked out when I heard the staff were spreading rumors that we were together as a couple. This thing between us, it went from something incredibly immoral and wrong to something impossible to resist in a blink. I’m not prepared to commit to a long term relationship, and I likely never will be, but I want you, Everly. I want you for as long as I can have you. I want you and no other for as long as you’re willing to stay here with me.” He shook his head. “I had Cammie in my arms, and my only thoughts were of breaking this hold you have over me.”
“My hold over you? You’re the one holding the cards here, Luc.” Pun intended on her part. He’d won her. She had no hold over him.
“I’m not talking about the fucking bet or that ridiculous contract. You know damn well I had no intention of actually forcing you to have sex with me.”