Yours to Keep part 3: Billionaire CEO Romance (Captured and Claimed)

by Cathryn Fox

  She glanced out the window and an uneasy feeling gripped her when he started into the neighborhood she was far too familiar with. Surely to God he wasn’t…

  He rounded the corner and reached for her hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

  “Quinn?” She sat up a little straighter in her seat, the hairs on the back of her neck prickling. “Where are we going?”

  “Almost there,” he said, shooting her a quick look. The car slowed outside Dorothy Kean’s home, and her gaze locked with his. Fight or flight instincts kicked in and urged her to flee, to get as far away from the place as possible.

  She pulled her hand from his. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” She gripped her forehead, pushing her hair from her face as she tried to wrap her brain around this unexpected turn of events. Quinn reached for her hand again and she snatched it back, anger coming sure and swift. “You shouldn’t have brought me here. Take me home right now.”

  “Rebecca,” he said, his voice soft. “Just hear me out.”

  The car seemed to be closing in on her, choking the last of the air from her lungs. She could feel Quinn’s eyes assessing her. She turned from him and glanced at the house. A gasp caught in her throat when she saw Dorothy exiting the front door and making her way down the weed-infested walkway. She walked down the cracked and pitted sidewalk with a cane, hobbling past the car without noticing Rebecca inside. Rebecca’s stomach twisted and she gripped the dash to steady herself.

  “She can’t hurt you anymore,” Quinn said quietly. “Look at her, she’s nothing but a lonely old lady lost in her own misery.”

  “How…how do you know her?”

  “I paid her a visit.”

  “You did? Why?”

  “I wanted to try to figure out what happened to you.”

  He had no right to do this. Panic gripped her. “She knows who you are?”

  “No. I made up a story about a neighborhood watch program.”

  The hem of Dorothy’s dress swayed as she walked away and Rebecca’s heart slammed harder against her chest.

  “Just look at her,” Quinn said again. “She’ll never hurt you again. No one will. Because I’ll never let them.” Rebecca had spent so many years hating the woman—fearing her. “She’s old and broken and not the least bit scary.”

  Rebecca took in her feeble and twisted frame. Quinn was right. She didn’t seem so scary anymore. Didn’t look like the monster she remembered from her youth. Not only did she look old and frail, she looked completely alone and miserable. It almost made Rebecca feel sorry for her. Almost.

  She turned to Quinn and didn’t realize he had her hand in his. “Why did you bring me here?” she asked again.

  “To confront old ghosts.”

  “You had no right to do this.” She shook her head. “I told you something private and you betrayed me.”

  “You must know by now how much I care about you, Rebecca. How I would do anything for you.”

  She looked at her lap. “I can’t give you what you want, and you shouldn’t change for me.”

  “I’m not asking for anything more than for you to face your past. These things inside you…you need to confront them before you can let them go.”

  She opened her mouth to demand he take her home, but he pressed his fingers to her lips. “This house…your youth, has something to do with being afraid of the dark. I want to help you move past that.”

  She scoffed. “Why? So you can have me the way you want me in the bedroom?” she shot back. “Jesus, Quinn. You should have just left me alone after our trip to the resort.”

  “This isn’t about me, Rebecca. This is about being free, period. From a childhood riddled with uncertainty and rejection. From the darkness forced upon you by a cruel and unloving woman. About recognizing your inner strength and overcoming your fears of darkness and embracing the security and pleasures that it offers. I’ll be with you all the way, but that first step is yours to take.”

  “How do you know all this? I never told you where I grew up.”

  “I had a friend look into it.”

  With her emotions running high, tears filled her eyes. “You had no right.”

  “I know, and I’m sorry. I took what you told me in private and dug deeper. I hope at some point you realize I did it for you, to help you free yourself.”

  She shook her head. “You have no idea what you’re talking about.”

  “Okay, then prove me wrong. Come inside with me.” He opened his door, crossed in front of the car and came around to her side.

  With defiance urging her on, she put her hand on the door handle, then hesitated as old memories resurfaced. Her glance met Quinn’s, and when she saw the reassurance in his eyes, strength blossomed inside her and her chin came up. He was right. The things that had happened in that house were still controlling her, robbing her of having normalcy in her life, her relationships, and no matter how scary, it was time to face her demons, slay them, and put them behind her once and for all. She gave a small tug on the door handle. The second it opened, Quinn was there beside her, his arm around her waist.

  He held her as they crossed the street and climbed the stairs. She hesitated again. “Dorothy isn’t even in there for me to confront.”

  “That doesn’t mean we can’t go in.” He pulled a credit card from his back pocket and slipped it between the door and the frame.

  She gasped. “What are you doing?”

  “Opening the door. These locks are as old as Dorothy, easy to pick.”

  “How do you know how to do that?”

  “Misguided youth, remember?”’

  “This is breaking and entering.”

  “Don’t worry. I’ll take all the blame.”

  She stepped back. “I’m a lawyer, Quinn.”

  “Good. If I get caught you can get me off.”

  The door opened and when she caught the smell of pine cleanser, old memories hit again. Her stomach twisted, bile pushing into her throat. “I hated it here, Quinn. When I left I swore I’d never look back.” She stepped away, but Quinn took her hand. It was a small thing, so often taken for granted, but that touch, his presence, his support helped her go on.

  “Sweetheart, you can’t move forward until you look back. You have things you need to deal with and overcome.”

  He stepped inside and she hesitated. She looked over her shoulder to see a car turn the corner. Not wanting to get caught hovering on the doorstep like a convict, she darted inside, shut the door behind her and leaned against it.

  The second she saw the door to the basement, she became overwhelmed with anxiety. Panic gripped hard and she clutched her chest. A noise sounded in the kitchen and she nearly jumped out of her skin.

  “It’s just the cat,” Quinn said.

  She nodded and noted the way he was watching her with great care, the way he always watched her.

  She looked at the basement door again and pinched her eyes shut, her mind going back to when she was thirteen. She was so angry when she’d first come to live here. She’d been so good at the previous home—did her homework, washed the dishes, and always did as she was told. When those foster parents tossed her aside when she hit her teen years, it left a bitter taste in her mouth and a huge hole in her heart. She’d acted out here at first, but had quickly learned that her disobedience came with severe punishment.

  Her gaze went to the heavy lock dangling on the loop, and under her breath she said, “It’s still there.”

  Quinn turned and followed the direction of her gaze. He stepped away and touched the lock. “This?” he asked.

  She nodded, unable to get the words past the lump in her throat.

  “What happened here?” he asked, his voice soft.

  She swallowed and managed to get out, “I don’t like the dark.”

  He pointed to the cellar. “She put you down there, didn’t she?”

  She didn’t need to answer. Her shaking body said it all.

  “I’m going down,” Quinn s
aid.

  Her hand darted out and she grabbed him. “Don’t. It’s full of rats and God knows what else.”

  “I’m not afraid of rats.”

  “I am.” A sob caught in her throat as she recalled the sounds of the rats closing in on her. She brushed at her clothes and hugged herself. It took all her mental strength not to lose it back then. Rebecca glanced at the front door, then back at Quinn. “What if she comes back?”

  He held the lock out in his palm, then squeezed it. “She can’t hurt you anymore. Not if you don’t let her.” Quinn reached up and pulled a chain dangling from the ceiling—one she could never reach as a kid—and the light to the basement flicked on.

  She took a tentative step forward and squeezed his hand hard as he led her to the dank, musty basement, the smells instantly taking her back in time. Her heels clicked on the cement floors when they reached the bottom, and she looked around. Besides the washer and dryer there was nothing in the basement, nothing for her to be afraid of.

  Her ears perked at the squeaking sounds, and she practically jumped into Quinn’s arms. “I can hear them,” she cried out.

  He cupped her face. “Rebecca, sweetheart, what you hear are the pipes. This place is old. There are no rats down here, nothing at all to hurt you.” He waved his hand. “Look around, and when you realize that it’s not scary in the light of day, you’ll know you have nothing to fear in the dark of night.”

  She brushed her clothes again. “I could feel them. They were trying to bite me.”

  “Here.” He lifted her hand and held it over a vent. “This is what you probably felt. You were a child, and in the dark, the mind can turn anything into a monster.”

  “She told me one of these days the rats would eat me alive. I lived in fear. I used to curl up and recite the alphabet, just to help me focus on something else.”

  Emotions flashed in Quinn’s eyes. He pulled her to him and hugged her. “You were young, afraid, an innocent thirteen-year-old child who believed her because she was an adult. And adults are supposed to do what’s best, right?” She nodded and he continued, “But she let you down, Rebecca. She didn’t protect you the way she was supposed to.”

  She blinked at him. “I told on her once when some ladies came to check on me, but they didn’t believe me. The punishment was worse after that.” She sniffed back the tears that were falling harder now. “I was scared of her. Too scared to ever tell again, because I didn’t know what she’d do to me.”

  “I know, and I can promise you this. I will never let anything happen to you again.”

  “I want to go now.”

  He nodded and led her back up the stairs. When they reached the top, the front door opened and in walked Dorothy. Her eyes went wide and she dropped the small grocery bag. “What are you doing in my home?” she asked, her voice frantic, brittle. Arthritic, gnarled hands lifted the cane and pointed it at them. “Get out right now or you’ll be sorry.”

  Rebecca straightened. “You don’t scare me anymore.”

  Her eyes narrowed. “Rebecca?”

  “Yeah, it’s me.”

  She stumbled backward. “I…I…”

  “You what?”

  “I did it for your own good.”

  A strangled sound rose from Rebecca’s throat. “What’s done is done, but the only one you have to make it right with now is your maker. Now step out of the way, we’re leaving.”

  Dorothy hobbled to the living room and the second Rebecca stepped outside, she took a big breath and let it out slowly, releasing all the pain and fear she’d had bottled up inside her for so long. Her legs weakened and she gripped the rail.

  Quinn held her. “I got you.”

  She took in the fierceness in his eyes, along with his vow to protect her, but he’d betrayed her trust by taking her here and now things would never be the same between them.

  “I want to go home.”

  Quinn guided her to his vehicle, and after seeing her into the passenger seat, he slid in beside her and turned the engine over. Twenty minutes later, she was climbing out onto the sidewalk outside her condo. Quinn slipped the stick into park and joined her.

  His hand closed over hers and he dropped a kiss onto her forehead. Everything in the way he touched her, looked at her, shattered her last vestige of control. After everything she’d been though with Quinn, Felix and seeing that old house again, she’d never be that same Rebecca again.

  “I want to be alone,” she said.

  “I’m not leaving you, Rebecca. I’m never leaving you.”

  She touched his face, needing time to sort through everything she’d been through. “Please, Quinn. I just need time to myself. There are things I need to sort through.”

  He squeezed his eye shut. “Can I at least come in? I’ll stay in another room and give you space.”

  “No.” He was about to protest again, but she stopped him. “I need to be away from you.”

  Jesus. “How far away?”

  “Quinn—”

  “Just tell me what you need, Rebecca. I’ll do whatever you want. If you want me to move to L.A. with my brother because being here is too near, then I’ll do it, but I need to know you’re okay.”

  “What I need is to be alone,” she said and walked away.

  He shook his head, and even though it went against his protective nature, he turned from her. “I’m only a call away. I’ll be here in seconds if you need me.”

  She nodded, needing quiet time, because she’d never dealt with these kinds of emotions before. “I know.”

  He stayed in his car until she was safely inside her condo, then she heard him roar away. Rebecca stripped off her clothes and made her way to the shower. She stayed under the hot spray for longer than normal, washing off the past—the stagnant smells of the old house, the dampness of the basement on her skin, the fear that paralyzed her. She squeezed her eyes shut, her mind sorting through everything that had happened since meeting Quinn.

  Her heart raced when she thought about what he’d done for her, how he wanted to help her. And he had helped her by bringing warmth to her darkest corners as she confronted her past. She knew she’d never find in another what she’d found with him, and because of him, she was now a stronger, healthier Rebecca. Body and mind.

  She felt a deep, needy ache in her core. Her whole life everyone had left her. But Quinn hadn’t. In fact, he stayed with her even when she couldn’t give him what he deserved. She let loose a breath, and for the first time in her life she wasn’t afraid of getting close, wasn’t afraid of letting down her guard. Deep in her heart she knew Quinn was never going to walk away or discard her like she was yesterday’s news.

  He’d taken a risk by betraying her trust and was willing to lose her to help her. She ran through the series of events that led her to this place, this revelation. Her heart fluttered. It was worth everything they’d been through to get to this moment.

  Quinn had tried so hard to change, to give up the one thing that drew her to him in the first place. Earlier that morning after seeing the collar and knowing it represented a lifestyle she was running away from, she’d decided to walk away from Quinn, because he deserved better.

  A laugh lodged in her throat, because honest to God, it would be easier to give up breathing than to quit him. He was an incredible man who had taught her so much about herself, and now… Well, now everything was different.

  She climbed from the shower, wrapped in a towel and made her way into the kitchen to make a cup of tea. Her mind went back to the gorgeous diamond-encrusted collar, and this time she felt a little thrill to know what he was asking of her. BDSM was all about trust, and she knew before she could wear it she’d have to surrender herself to Quinn, physically and mentally. That might have scared her before, but she believed in Quinn, trusted him with her body and her mind. She glanced at her phone as an idea began to formulate. Oh yeah, she knew just what she had to do to show him how much she trusted him, how committed she was to making this right between th
em—before it was too late.

  Chapter Eight

  “Forget it, Josh. You’ll have to find your own way to the resort. I’m not stepping foot on the island. Never again.”

  “You don’t have to. I’m just asking for a lift, that’s all. You don’t even have to get out of the plane. Just drop me off and turn around.”

  Jesus, why did he have such a hard time saying no to his twin. “You checked all the other charters?”

  “Every one of them. There’s nothing available.”

  “You have to go tonight?”

  “It’s Saturday night. Come on. All you’re doing is moping around here anyway.”

  Quinn looked at his watch. It had been hours since he left Rebecca and he was still waiting to hear from her.

  “She already texted to say she was going to sleep. You’re not going to hear from her now. Besides, I talked to Sophie earlier, and she was on her way to Rebecca’s place. She’s in good hands, don’t worry.”

  “Fine.” Quinn grabbed his phone off his desk and shoved it into his pocket. “Let’s go.” They climbed into Quinn’s car and a few hours later they were buckled in his Cessna and on the way to the resort. Quinn remained relatively quiet, worried about Rebecca. Had he pushed her to far? Pushed her right out of his life? He could deal with that, if it meant he’d helped her. But goddammit, he needed to hear from her more than he needed his next breath.

  He shot a glance at Josh, who seemed out of sorts. “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  “Oh, nothing. I just haven’t been here in a while. I’m probably going to need you to sign me in.”

  “I told you, I’m not staying.”

  “Come on, big brother,” Josh said, and Quinn rolled his eyes. Josh only played into the big brother thing when he wanted something. “What if you turn around and they close the doors on me. Just sign me in, that’s all I’m asking.”

  “Fine, then I’m leaving. And you can have these too. I no longer need them.” He fished his cabana keys from his pocket and handed them over. “It’s yours.”

  “You’re giving it to me.”

  “Sure. I told you. I’m leaving this behind.”