by Lily White
Clutching the nightgown to my bare chest, I glance over my shoulder to see Gabriel taking a long, slow look down my body and back up again.
“Problem?”
He smiles when his eyes meet mine. “Not at all. I just swallowed down the wrong tube. You know how it is.”
Such a liar, this man.
“Uh huh. And here I thought you must have seen something you like.”
A small shake of his head as he looks around the room and back to me.
“There’s nothing special that grabs my attention. I’m not sure why you thought that.”
With a roll of my eyes, I grab my clothes and haul ass into the bathroom.
“I’m taking a shower,” I call out. “If you get bored by yourself, there’s a balcony you can jump off.”
He laughs. “I’d never do you the favor.”
“Such a shame,” I say, the door slamming behind me just before I lock it and slide down the smooth surface.
Fuck my life. I have no idea what to do to get rid of him. I can call Scott and tell him to get me. I can jump on my dad’s private plane and fly away. I can run again, but I have the sneaking suspicion none of this will be easy.
Gabriel wouldn’t have come all this way if he didn’t have a plan in place. And what did he mean by saying I’d want him here?
I don’t want him here.
I want him at home, a thousand miles away from me, his cold fury and jagged temper a perfect match to the cement and steel city.
How the hell did he even get into my room this morning?
There’s no telling with him, and with that thought in mind, I shove up to my feet and force myself into the shower. The hot water does nothing to soothe my frayed nerves, is powerless to ease the tension from my shoulders.
I want to hide in here forever, but I know that’s pointless. He’ll wait forever just to piss me off. Gabriel is aggravating in his level of patience.
One thing I’ve learned through my war with him is you never know when he’ll strike back.
Knowing this won’t end the longer I stay in the shower and panic, I get out and get dressed, being sure to take my time brushing my teeth and throwing my wet hair up into a messy bun.
Gabriel is still on the bed when I walk out of the bathroom, his eyes glued to the screen of his phone instead of lifting to look at me.
He’s far too relaxed for me to trust anything about this situation.
“Okay, so enjoy the room for the next hour or so, but I won’t be here much longer. They’ll probably ask you to leave since I’m checking out.”
I begin packing my things, and he chuckles behind me.
“I’m going with you, or I guess I should say you’re coming with me.”
“It’ll be a cold day in hell when that happens.”
“You should grab a coat, then. I’d hate for you to catch a chill,” he murmurs, the tone to his voice running a blade down my spine.
I spin to look at him.
What the fuck has he done?
You know what? No. There’s nothing he can do to trap me. Gabriel is lying like he always does and is trying to psych me out.
It’s not going to happen.
After finishing my packing, I march into the living room to grab my phone from my purse. Gabriel steps out of the room just before I hit the button to speed dial Scott, my lips twisting up into a fuck you grin.
He cocks his head and stares back at me, casually leaning a shoulder against the doorframe while I listen to Scott’s phone ring on the other end.
The call goes to voicemail, and my brows tug together in confusion.
Scott never misses my calls. Not even in the middle of the night when I shouldn’t be calling.
Maybe he’s in the bathroom or taking a shower.
Hiding the twinge of panic I’m feeling, I leave him a chipper message letting him know to pick me up as soon as possible.
It’ll take me a little while to check out and settle the bill, so I’m sure he’ll have heard the message and be heading over by then.
Hanging up, I drop my phone back in my purse and stare at the amount of bags I have. There’s no way I’ll be able to carry them, so I grab my electronic key and decide to leave them behind.
“How’s your bulldog doing?” Gabriel asks, his voice far too assured to be comfortable.
“He’s great,” I lie, refusing to meet his stare. “Never been better. He’ll be here any moment.”
I head for the door, and Gabriel calls out at my back.
“You’re leaving all your stuff behind?”
Flicking my fingers at the massive stack of bags, I answer, “I’ll send a valet for them. That’s too much to carry.”
Gabriel grins, just the corner of his mouth tugging up. “If you say so.”
Oh, I do not like the look on his face. Not at all. The liar is up to something, and it’s hard to breathe.
“Are you ready to go?” he asks as he pushes away from the wall.
“I don’t need an escort,” I insist while opening the door to step out into the hall. “It’s been good seeing you, Gabriel, but I have places to be.”
He steps out behind me like a demon at my back.
“We’ll see about that, Ivy. I can’t wait to find out where you’ll go next.”
What the hell is that supposed to mean?
And why do I get the feeling I don’t want to find out?
Gabriel
Check. Fucking. Mate.
This moment is far more enjoyable than I thought it would be, the tremor in Ivy’s voice and the way she keeps flicking nervous glances back at me doing things to my body that make me worried I’m more of an evil bastard than I’d thought.
Do I enjoy causing pain in other people? Not usually. But do I enjoy trapping them?
Yes. I happen to be a master at it.
And I especially enjoy trapping this particular woman for all the crap she’s caused in my life.
She’s cute with the way she marches down the hall like she has a leg to stand on. Her blue eyes keep glancing over her shoulder, her quick stride not fast enough to outrun mine.
It’s not fair to her, actually. My legs are much longer. So she’s practically running toward the elevator while I’m keeping a casual, smooth pace.
Reaching the elevator, she stabs at the button repeatedly as if it will send the car fast enough for her to slip inside and the doors to close before I can walk in behind her.
Obviously, that doesn’t happen, and I take the opportunity to draw close, to press my chest against her back and drop my mouth to her ear.
“Where are you running off to?”
Ivy shivers at the whisper against her ear then attempts to hide it with a sneer, her reflection staring back at me in the mirrored doors.
“Away from you,” she says with that ultra-sweet voice that drives me fucking crazy.
She should stop using it on me. I know she does it to piss me off, but all it does is turn me on.
Nobody, and I mean not one other woman that I’ve ever known, has affected me like she does.
We all have an ultimate in life.
The ultimate career. The ultimate home, the ultimate vacation, or car or lover.
Yet, for me, none of those other things have ever really mattered as much as the ultimate conquest I’ve always sought:
The complete destruction of Ivy Callahan.
In body, mind and soul.
It’s within my reach now, and I’d spent the past month preparing. Meanwhile, she’s been traveling around enjoying a superficial life with no real substance or meaning.
In the end, this will all come down to finishing the task my father set me on, but for the time being, I can finish a task I’ve wanted to accomplish for what feels like a lifetime.
A bell dings to signal the elevator has arrived, the doors sliding open with a smooth motion.
Ivy steps inside and moves to a far wall on the left, while I take up the wall on the right.
For fo
urteen floors we stare at each other, her eyes brimming with distrust and speculation, while mine simply enjoy the sight. I don’t miss the tension in her body, the way her arms cross over her abdomen before she untangles them again to hang at her sides.
She has no idea what to do with herself while I’m staring her down.
“This is ridiculous, Gabriel. What do you plan to do? Follow me to my car and chase after it like the dog you are? Isn’t that just a bit beneath you at this point?”
I grin and say nothing. It’s insane how much I love the sound of my name on her lips.
The doors open as we reach the bottom floor, and I swing out an arm.
“After you.”
She laughs. “Such a gentleman.”
“Only for you,” I murmur, her eyes flicking to mine for only a second before she crosses the lobby to approach the front desk.
Standing back, I chuckle to see the female desk attendant’s face light up. Her excitement will be short lived. It makes her just one more innocent victim who had the unfortunate luck to get between Ivy and me.
Practically bouncing on her toes, she glances between us and down to Ivy’s finger. Not finding the engagement ring I’d used to lie my way into Ivy’s room, her expression falls, and her eyes seek me out again.
I wink and shrug. “Can’t win them all, I guess.”
The poor woman looks broken-hearted.
I hadn’t actually planned on this, but her eyes narrow on Ivy next, the friendly desk clerk now hating the beautiful blonde staring back at her.
“I take it you’re checking out?”
Chuckling at her snappish tone, I cross my arms over my chest and wait.
Flinching at the woman’s voice, Ivy pastes on a wobbly smile, clearly still off balance with me standing nearby.
Normally, someone snapping at her would have no effect. Our prep school was practically wallpapered with spoiled, bitchy people. We’re used to this.
Which only makes seeing her knocked back by the clerk’s anger even more hilarious than it should be.
Fuck, I’m enjoying this.
Perfecting her hundred-watt smile, Ivy rounds her shoulders and drops her purse to the counter, becoming little Miss Congeniality right before my eyes. It won’t help her, but it’s fun watching her try.
“Yes, I’m checking out a little early, so I hope that’s not a problem.”
The desk clerk’s eyes shoot to me again, and I shrug and feign a sad face because the sympathy is fun, and it only pisses her off more.
When her gaze locks back on Ivy, there are a thousand knives shooting out of it.
“Normally, we’ll work with our guests who have to check out unexpectedly, but in your case, that won’t happen.”
Tapping her fingers over the keyboard, she slams her pissed off eyes back on Ivy.
“You’ll need to pay for the full two weeks.”
“What?”
When Ivy’s jaw drags the floor in shock, she loses the fake facade, her eyes narrowing on the woman in return.
“But I was only here for one night.”
The clerk shrugs, her eyes darting to me again as she flashes a conspiratorial smile.
I’d expected to reap my own revenge eventually, but it’s nice to have someone conspiring with me.
Eyes back to Ivy. “Full two weeks. That’s how long you reserved the room for, and that’s what you’ll pay. Give me the card that you placed on file with us so I can run it.”
Ivy opens her mouth, an argument right there on the tip of her tongue. It clings with scrabbling hands as she fights the urge to spit it out.
But then she looks at me and lets out an angry grunt, her eyes rolling as she whips her gaze back to the clerk.
“You know what? That’s fine. Anything to get away from that annoying as all hell man standing behind me. It’s not like I can’t afford it.”
Slapping the credit card down on the counter, Ivy misses the change in the desk clerk’s expression.
Anger colors the woman’s cheeks a healthy red, her eyes flicking to me where I stand like the unwanted war hero, a poor neglected man who was cast aside by the woman he’d worked his ass off to chase down.
It only makes her angrier.
Snatching the card, she inserts it into the reader, a bark of laughter bursting from her lips when a beep sounds from the computer.
Slapping it back down on the counter, she locks a pissed off glare on Ivy. “Declined.”
“What?”
The one-word question is a shriek of sound that echoes through the lobby.
I cover my mouth to hide my smile, my shoulders shaking with silent laughter that I play off as soft sobs when the desk clerk peeks my way again. Thankfully, my eyes are watering, but not for the reason she thinks.
“How could you do that?” the clerk asks, truly upset that I’m being treated so poorly.
Ivy’s brows tug together as she pulls out another card and slaps it down.
“Do what? Try that one.”
The clerk runs the new card only for the computer to beep again.
“Also declined.”
“What?” Another shrieked question and Ivy is drawing attention as her panic attack ratchets higher.
I should be filming this for posterity’s sake. It’s almost too perfect to believe.
They go through three more cards, Ivy’s panic at full volume when all are declined.
Given she was staying in a suite that costs one thousand dollars per night, two weeks is a hell of a lot of nights to pay for when you have no money to your name.
After running through the sea of worthless plastic that fills her wallet, Ivy’s panic subsides just enough for her thoughts to catch up.
She spins my direction, her face a lovely shade of red while those aqua blue eyes narrow on my face with pure hatred.
“What did you do?”
If I were a cartoon, light would flash off my halo with the innocent smile I give her.
“Me? I’ve done nothing.”
Huffing out her rabid disbelief, she spins back to the clerk.
“I just need to make a quick phone call to settle this problem. I’m sure it’s all a giant misunderstanding.”
Oh, this should be fun. The grand finale is always the best part of the show.
Ivy marches off with her phone in hand.
I’m sure she’s calling her father and is seconds away from finding out just how alone she is in this fight. And while I’d love to follow after her and listen to the conversation, I decide to head to the front desk instead to smooth over the problem I created.
Resting my forearms against the counter, I lean down so I can level my eyes with the woman who has unexpectedly become my best friend in this part of the game.
“There has to be a way to work this out. Fourteen days is a lot of money when, clearly, she can’t pay. Can we just pay for the one night and be done with it?”
She cuts her stare to Ivy and back to me.
“Why should I give her that courtesy?” Her eyes tear up. “I can’t believe she turned you down.”
I frown. “Yes, it was extremely disappointing, but I’ll move on. There has to be true love for me out there somewhere.”
Reaching over, she touches my arm.
“Oh, you’re so brave. There’s a woman out there that’s perfect for you, I’m sure.”
“Thanks for that. So, about the bill.”
I pull out my wallet and open it.
“Ivy never should have stayed here. She obviously can’t pay for it, but it’s like I told you earlier. She has mental issues. I don’t have a lot of money. You know how it is. The Army doesn’t pay very well. But I can manage one night, if we can settle for that?”
From behind me, Ivy’s voice blares across the lobby. “Dad! You can’t do this to me! I haven’t done anything wrong!”
Intentionally dropping my expression so I look pained at the outburst, I wait until the clerk looks at me again.
“See what I mean?
Her dad died over three years ago. I have no idea who she’s talking to. Nobody has been able to convince her he’s not still alive.”
The clerk’s shoulders wither, and her eyes round with understanding. “You’re such a good man for helping her.”
“Thanks. But about the bill. Can I just -“
Her hand squeezes my forearm.
“One night is fine. I’m so sorry you have to go through this. If I could give it to you for free, I would.”
“Thanks for that,” I say on a sad smile. “I appreciate it.”
I hand her my card, and she runs it with no problem. Not that I expected one. Unlike Ivy, my finances aren’t tied entirely to my family. I sign the receipt and hand it over, my eyes locking on the clerk’s once again.
“I have one more issue. Ivy apparently brought all her possessions with her. Don’t ask me why. Crazy and all. But can we have a valet bring those down? It’s just too much to carry.”
Blinking at me, the clerk darts her eyes between Ivy, who is still frantically arguing with her dad, and me. “The valets expect to be tipped. Can you afford that?”
I sigh. “Not really. I mean, I can. I’ll just have to pay my utility bill a little late, but that’s fine.”
She nods.
“Actually, I can get them. It’ll only take a few trips. I’m just worried because my war injury I told you about-“
Another nod.
“It was to the leg, and it acts up with a lot of walking. But that’s fine. I’ll just-“
“No,” she says, cutting me off. “You’ve already done so much. I’ll have someone get her bags and bring them down.”
“I appreciate it.”
She turns to call a valet, and I twist around to see Ivy marching my direction. Judging by the thin line of her lips and the clipped sound of her strappy heels against the floor, I’m about to be in a hell of a lot of trouble.
Honestly, I can’t wait. Ivy is the most fun to screw with when she’s angry.
Stepping away from the counter to intercept her before she’s close enough for the clerk to overhear our conversation, I wrap my hands over her shoulders and stop her in place.
Lowering my mouth to her ear, I don’t miss the angry heat of her body, waves of it crashing against me.
“I suggest you dial down whatever it is you plan to say or do at the moment so this situation doesn’t become worse for you. The bill has been paid, and a valet is bringing down your bags. I’d hate for you to ruin it.”