AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“That’s a good girl. How does it feel?”
Her fingers curl, and she lets out a deep breath. “Scratchy,” she whimpers.
I stroke her cheek. “That’s right. Tell me, what can you smell?”
She keeps her hand on my chin, flexing her fingers over the roughness of my short beard. “You. Citrus, I think. And…and whiskey.”
That makes me smile. She’s spot on.
“Yes. Good girl. Take a short breath in and exhale slowly for as long as you can.”
As she does it, I praise her softly. I continue to repeat instructions to her for several minutes until her eyes begin to focus again.
“Did he…did he really put drugs in my wine?”
“Yes. I saw you two when you walked in. I could tell you were uncomfortable. When you went to the bathroom, I was watching him when he poured something into the glass.”
She whimpers as more tears fall. “If you hadn’t…”
I cup her face again, forcing her to look at me. “Shh. Don’t think about the what-ifs.”
Even though I don’t want her thinking about it, I already know my mind will be reeling with all the what-ifs tonight when I try to sleep. My anger starts to boil to the surface again. He could have raped her. Or killed her. Or done a dozen other sick and disgusting things to her.
I’m not sure if she realizes that she’s on my lap, but she snuggles into my chest, keeping one hand on my beard and the other tucked inside my suit jacket. I hold her for a long time in silence as I try to calm my rage. I need to take care of her. She needs me to be calm and steady right now. My emotions can be dealt with later.
“Let me take you home,” I murmur.
She nods but doesn’t say anything.
“Where’s your car parked?”
When she doesn’t answer, I pull her away from my chest so I can see her face. “Chloe, where’s your car?”
Her bottom lip trembles. “He picked me up.”
A fresh sob breaks free, and I let out a string of curse words. If she were mine, I’d spank her ass until she couldn’t sit for a week for getting into a car with a stranger.
But she’s not your girl, so don’t even think about it.
I may not be able to spank her, but I can sure as fuck lecture her. And I will. But not tonight. She needs me to take care of her right now, not chastise her.
“Okay. My car is out front.”
Without giving her a choice, I rise and carry her out to the dark night.
3
CHLOE
Bash carries me to his black Escalade as if I weigh nothing and gently deposits me into the passenger seat. When I make no attempt to buckle my seatbelt, he reaches in and does it for me. Before he closes the door, he runs his index finger over my cheek. I close my eyes and lean into the warmth of his touch. It’s a small thing, but it gives me the comfort I need right now. As soon as he pulls away, my entire body turns cold and shaky again.
I could have been raped tonight. The man my father set me up with, the one he said was a standup guy, tried to drug me and do God knows what to me.
He rounds to the driver’s side quickly and starts the SUV, then leans over and turns on the heated seat on my side.
“What’s your address?”
I sniffle and turn my head to look at him in the dim light. His features are set into hard lines. He’s speaking gently, but fury burns in his eyes.
