Broken Wings (The Broken Series Book 3)

by Ruff, K. S.

  I unlocked the door to Rafael’s house and disengaged the alarm. Shae stood gaping in the foyer. “Wow.”

  I smiled. “I know. It fits him though, don’t you think?”

  She nodded as we made our way upstairs. “Yeah. There’s an awful lot of testosterone in this house. You should buy a fluffy pink throw pillow and toss it in the middle of that couch before he comes back home, just to see how he reacts.”

  I laughed. “He’d probably revoke my gym privileges if I did that.”

  Shae looked confused.

  I paused at the top of the stairs. “Rafael gave me the key so I could work out in his gym, which is just down the hall. He’s going to teach me self-defense.”

  Shae nodded her approval. “That’s a great idea, especially considering your history.”

  I tore my eyes from Shae as we approached the photograph. “This is what I wanted you to see.” I nodded toward the picture.

  Shae eyed the photograph. “It’s really pretty… very romantic… kind of surprising to find in this house, though.”

  I stared at the photograph. The lyrics to the song the man sang wove gently through my mind. “Make you feel my love” was still one of my favorite songs.

  “Kri?” Shae asked. “Is that you?”

  * * * * * *

  The dark fog that had been hovering over me lifted by the time I woke Saturday morning. I stretched out in bed. Every part of my body seemed to know that Rafael was sleeping next door. I was really looking forward to seeing him. I flung the covers off and hopped out of bed. I brushed my teeth and pulled my hair back before heading downstairs.

  I programmed my iPod to play my entire collection of Adele songs while I ate a power bar and brewed a pot of coffee. I retrieved my laptop from the library and set it on the kitchen counter so I could review the recipes that I had found for seafood lasagna. I was attempting to recreate a crab and lobster lasagna that I had eaten in Paris. I couldn’t find a single recipe that replicated the dish, so I was picking and choosing ingredients from three different recipes. I wanted to surprise Rafael with dinner to thank him for the Russian and self-defense lessons he was offering me.

  Once I cooked the noodles, I layered the noodles, crab, lobster, ricotta, and Italian blend cheeses. I drizzled each layer with an Alfredo style sauce that I spiked with cooking sherry and Worcestershire sauce. I left the lasagna to cool on the counter while I cut vegetables and tossed a large salad, which I stuck inside the refrigerator. I cleaned up my mess and took a shower before covering the lasagna with aluminum foil. I tucked it inside the refrigerator alongside the salad. With all the prep work out of the way, I’d only need an hour to bake the lasagna before dinner.

  I settled into my office to get a handle on my homework. I couldn’t believe spring semester was nearly over. At three o’clock, I took a break from my studies so I could stretch out and do some yoga. I wasn’t sure what kind of workout Rafael was planning, but I figured it couldn’t hurt to loosen up.

  Rafael sent me a text message at exactly four o’clock. I’ve missed you. I thought you’d be here by now.

  I laughed. I wasn’t even a full minute late! I pulled the lasagna out of the refrigerator and set it inside the oven, so it would be room temperature by the time it was supposed to bake. I programmed my oven on a time delay to start at five-thirty. Then I threw my cross-trainers on and walked over to Rafael’s house.

  My jaw dropped when Rafael opened the door. His black sweat pants were hanging low on his hips. His hair was wet, and he wasn’t wearing a shirt. “Holy crap,” I breathed. “How am I going to concentrate on anything you say when you look like that?”

  Rafael practically grunted as he yanked me inside the door. We collided as he pulled me into a toe curling kiss.

  I was out of breath by the time he released me. I reached for the wall. “Mind. Numb. Can’t. Think,” I breathed.

  Rafael laughed. He linked his hand in mine and pulled me upstairs. He paused in front of his bedroom. “What do you think about warming up in here, first?”

  I shook my head. “If we go in there, I’ll never get my self-defense lesson… and I’m quite certain I’d end up burning dinner.”

  A single eyebrow rose. “Dinner?”

  I laughed. “Yes. I made you dinner. It will be ready at six-thirty. Do you think we’ll be done by then?”

  He smiled. “We can be done anytime you want.” He placed his hand on the small of my back and steered me toward the gym. “I’m kind of digging the fact that you made me dinner.”

  I froze in the middle of the hallway. “Wait. We need to talk about this.” I nodded toward the photograph.

  His eyes lit with amusement. “I was wondering how long it would take you to recognize that picture.”

  I leaned against the railing. “You took this?”

  He nodded.

  My eyes flitted toward his, then strayed back to the photograph. “You’re an amazing photographer.”

  He smiled. “And…”

  I tried to pull my eyes from the photograph, but I couldn’t. “Did you ask that man to sing to me?”

  “Does it matter?”

  I jerked my eyes from the photograph. “Of course it matters. That was an incredibly sweet thing to do. If you did, then I want to thank you.”

  He smiled. “You’re welcome.”

  I stared at him. “So, you did ask him to sing to me.”

  Again he nodded. “He was singing in front of Union Station before you came outside.”

  I studied his face. “Did you choose the song?”

  “Yes.”

  “Why that song?” I inquired breathlessly.

  Rafael looked mildly embarrassed. “Because it captured how I felt about you.”

  I took a step toward the photograph as I tried to put it all into perspective. “Why did you take the picture?”

  “Because you looked beautiful in that moment… and because I wanted to remember how it felt to make you smile.”

  I fell back against the railing. “Does Michael know about this photograph? Has he seen it?”

  Rafael shook his head. “No. I have the only copy.”

  The air rushed from my lungs. “I know I should be creeped out by this… I mean, you were spying on me for Michael… but for some reason I can’t. When I look at this photograph, I can see how much the photographer really cared about the subject.”

  “I do,” he whispered. His fingers ran softly up and down my arm, leaving goose bumps in their wake.

  I turned to face him. “And the fact that you asked that guy to sing for me, to cheer me up when I was crying, also shows how much you cared. You only knew me from a distance, and still you cared enough to dry my tears.”

  Rafael folded me in his arms. “I had to do something. I couldn’t stand to see you cry like that. You looked so alone. It was the only thing I could think of to cheer you up. Besides, if I hadn’t sent that man over there, I would have ended up going over there myself. That would have blown my cover.”

  I looked up into his soft brown eyes. “But what if you had gone over there? This photograph was taken before I met Kadyn, before Justin, and before Michael for the most part.”

  Rafael rested his forehead against mine. “I’ve asked myself that question at least a thousand times.” He kissed me on the top of the head. “We’re together now. That’s all that really matters.”

  I blinked back tears. I rolled onto my tiptoes and kissed Rafael softly on the lips. “It’s just… I can’t believe how long you’ve been there for me. Thank you,” I breathed.

  He raised an eyebrow questioningly. “Do you still want to beat me up?”

  My eyes widened. “What? I never wanted…”

  He laughed as he nudged me toward the gym. “I didn’t mean over the picture. You have to beat on somebody if you’re going to learn self-defense.”

  I stared at him in shock. “I’m not beating on you.”

  He nodded. “Oh, yes, you are. Maybe not today, but before you go t
o Ukraine, you’ll beat the snot out of me.” He reached for a shopping bag, which was sitting on the weight bench. He pulled a pair of women’s kick boxing gloves out of the bag and tossed them at me. “I want to see how you hit.” He nodded toward the large punching bag. “You can start with that.”

  I slipped the gloves on and planted my feet in front of the bag. I took a deep breath and blew it out. Then I hit the bag as hard as I could with my right hand.

  “Stop.”

  I gaped at him. My left hand was still suspended in the air “What did I do wrong?”

  “Don’t tuck your thumb in, unless of course you want to break it.”

  “Okay…”

  “You’re right handed, so you should stand with your left foot forward.” Rafael paused to position my body. “Keep your eyes on the opponent, but turn your body so your chest opens to the right. This position helps protect your abdomen and chest, and it will allow you to gain more momentum in your swing when you hit with the right hand. There. Now, give it all you got.”

  I pulled my right hand back.

  “Stop.”

  I groaned.

  He shook his head. “Don’t pull back. That gives away what you’re about to do. Bend your knees, so you can draw power from your legs and hips. Keep your movements small. Keep your left hand up in front of your face with your elbow covering your chest and stomach. Keep your right wrist locked, fist should be parallel with the ground.”

  I fell out of position. “Oh my God! How am I supposed to remember all of that?”

  Rafael laughed. “If you do it enough times, you won’t even have to think about it. That’s why we’re doing this now.” He nodded toward the bag. “Let it rip. One hit, then run.”

  “Run?” I asked incredulously.

  Rafael’s face grew serious. “Yes. Your goal isn’t to win the fight. Your goal is to get away. Hit and run.”

  I silently reviewed the checklist. Then I hit the bag and took off toward the door. I felt like an idiot running, so I pretty much just jogged. Backwards.

  Rafael just shook his head. He motioned me back over to the punching bag. “This time, I want you to quickly follow that right punch with a left and then run. I’m standing behind the bag, but I’m going to take off after you when you run. Your goal is to get to the end of the hallway before I catch you.”

  I took a deep breath and blew it out. “Okay. I can do this.”

  He smiled as he pushed the bag. “You’ve got a moving target this time.”

  My eyes followed the bag as I got into position. I hit it with my right and left. Then I ran as fast as I could.

  Rafael caught me just before I reached the door. He flipped me around as he pinned me against the mirrored wall. “What are you going to do now, love?”

  I tried not to smile. “Scream?”

  He shrugged. His forearm was still braced under my neck. “You could. It wouldn’t hurt. How are you going to get away?”

  I tried to raise my leg so I could knee him in the groin.

  Rafael laughed as he stepped on my foot. “Not a bad choice. What else could you do?”

  My eyebrows furrowed. “Head butt you in the nose?”

  He smiled. “Good. You could also hit me in the neck or gouge out my eyes.”

  The smile slid from my face. The thought that someone would try to hurt me again… that I might truly have to defend myself… scared the crap out of me. There had been too many near death experiences. I could not go through that again. My pulse quickened as I began to panic.

  Rafael still held me pinned against the wall. “Shins, groin, neck, eyes,” he repeated. “If you can’t reach those areas, do the unexpected.”

  The unexpected. My mind flitted to what I’d done to get away from Justin. I grabbed Rafael’s shirt and pulled him in for a passionate kiss. My head fell back against the wall when he broke the kiss. “Do you know how long I’ve been fantasizing about this mirrored wall?” I rasped wantonly.

  Rafael blinked back his surprise. His body instantly hardened against mine. “You want to have sex against this wall?”

  I bit my lip and nodded.

  Rafael released his hold on me. He bracketed his arms on either side of my head as he leaned in for another kiss.

  I ducked under his arm and made a break for the door. I made it halfway down the hall.

  He was laughing as he tackled me onto the floor. “I didn’t give you nearly enough credit, baby. That was very, very good.” He rolled me over and eased his body on top of mine until we were touching in all the right places. “Now about that mirrored wall…”

  * * * * * *

  I smiled as I pulled the cork from a bottle of Pinot Grigio. Rafael and I had gotten a little sidetracked on the self-defense lesson, but the feel of his warm body pressing me against that cold glass wasn’t something I’d soon forget. I was secretly hoping all our self-defense lessons would end on that lovely note.

  I had wandered back over to my place so I could finish pulling dinner together. I asked Rafael to come by when he was done with his phone call. He was stuck on his computer troubleshooting some problem for his security team. He pulled his attention away from the computer long enough to warn me that our lesson wasn’t over. I wasn’t sure whether he was referring to the punching bag or our romp against the wall.

  I sliced the French bread, wrapped it in tinfoil, and tossed it inside the oven. I was reaching for the dinner plates when two well-muscled arms snaked around me. One hand covered my mouth while the other arm wrapped tightly around my waist. The plates shattered against the granite countertop as he dragged me across the floor.

  I knew it was Rafael. I could smell his cologne, and his body was familiar enough to me by now. Still, I panicked. Justin had held me in this same position when he kidnapped me. Suddenly, it wasn’t shattered plates scattered in front of me, it was Diwa and Habib huddled in front of his cab. I closed my eyes against the image and whimpered.

  Rafael nipped at my ear. “How are you going to get away when someone grabs you from behind, love?”

  I tried to slow my breathing, to blink back the memories that still poisoned my mind. Rafael. It’s only Rafael, I repeated over and over again. I tried to break free, but he only tightened his hold. I stilled as I sifted through the instructions he’d given me. Then I tried stomping on his foot.

  Rafael shifted to a wider stance, easily avoiding my foot. “Come on, Kristine. Think.”

  He still had my mouth covered, so I couldn’t ask any questions. I couldn’t breathe a single word. I raised my knee so I could kick him in the shin. The move was pointless because I didn’t have any shoes on.

  “Bite me,” he growled.

  My eyes widened in shock. I shook my head as best I could. No way was I biting Rafael.

  Rafael grabbed me by the shoulders as he spun me in his arms. He looked frustrated, annoyed, and a little angry. “Kristine, you do what you have to… to survive. You do everything you can to get away. Nothing is off limits. You bite, spit, pull hair, and rip your nails through his eyes if you have to. Do you understand me?”

  I started trembling. “Stop,” I whispered. “Please stop.”

  Rafael swung his leg behind mine, and suddenly I was falling back toward the floor. He caught me just before my back and head hit the ground. He eased me to the floor. He pinned my legs with his knee as he shoved his forearm under my neck. “Your attacker won’t stop, Kristine. He won’t stop until one of you is dead.”

  I couldn’t even see Rafael’s face in front of me. Tom’s abuse… Justin’s attack… the drowning… a million violent images rained down on me at once.

  “Get off!” I screamed.

  “Make me,” he responded flatly.

  I bucked violently against him. “Get the hell off of me!”

  Suddenly, Rafael was gone. I heard a loud crash as I scrambled to my feet.

  Kadyn had Rafael pinned against the wall. His hand was pulled back.

  I stumbled toward them. “Stop!” I screa
med.

  Rafael shoved Kadyn in the chest, just as Kadyn’s fist connected with his face.

  Blood spurted from Rafael’s nose, then streamed down his mouth and chin.

  I lunged for Kadyn’s arm as he pulled back to throw another punch. “Kadyn, stop. You have to stop. He wasn’t trying to hurt me.”

  Kadyn scowled as he broke free. “He was. He was trying to hurt you, Kri.”

  Rafael swiped the blood from his face.

  I continued tugging at Kadyn’s arm. “No. This is Rafael. Remember? I told you he’s teaching me self-defense.”

  Kadyn stumbled backwards. “This is Rafael?” His entire body shook as he pulled me into his arms. “God, Kri. I thought he was trying to rape you. I heard you scream.”

  I immediately began crying. “No. I just got scared. I just… the memories… I wasn’t expecting this to bring back all of those memories.”

  “You’re okay?” Kadyn rasped.

  I nodded as I swiped at my tears. I pulled away from Kadyn so I could help Rafael. “Are you okay?”

  Rafael glared at Kadyn. “I’m fine.”

  I tried to wipe the blood from Rafael’s face with my hands. “I’ll get you a warm washcloth and some ice.” As I turned to retrieve the ice, I stumbled over a bouquet of lavender roses that was lying on the floor. My heart tripped right along with my feet. Kadyn had come by with roses. Why?

  An awkward silence filled the room as I filled a Ziplock bag with ice. “I’m thinking formal introductions aren’t needed at this point, but Kadyn, this is Rafael. Rafael, this is Kadyn.”

  Both men grunted their acknowledgement as I pulled Rafael to the couch and washed his face. “I’m so sorry,” I whispered. I wrapped the ice in a dishtowel and held it up to Rafael’s nose. I winced at the same time he did. “It doesn’t look crooked. Do you think it’s broken?”

  Rafael shook his head. He took the ice from my hand and nodded toward Kadyn. “How did he get in here?”

  “She gave me a key,” Kadyn growled. He picked up the roses and tossed them on the counter. He eyed the broken plates. “What the hell is going on, Kri?”