Page 4 of Protecting Her

I knew it might be my biggest mistake yet, but when I thought about that cold room, how I could barely sleep because I was afraid, even with that door locked, I wanted the room that Kevin offered. I wanted a night of peace and a shower. Oh, a shower would be heaven!

“Do you have a bag somewhere?” he asked as he handed a debit card to the waiter who came to the table and didn’t even blink.

“I... No, all I have is what you see.”

“Do you have your passport?” he asked, his brows knitted. He looked so concerned, so sweet, when he did that. My heart fluttered, but I told it to shut the fuck up. We were done with men.

“Yeah, that stays in my guitar case. I don’t go anywhere without either one.” I wasn’t totally stupid, after all. I had that lifeline anyway.

“Good. Come on then, let’s get you settled in for the night.” He took my hand, picked up my case from under the table, and led me out. I wasn’t sure if I was about to head into a nightmare or not.

Kevin’s hand felt far too good around mine to be anything but a dream.

Kevin

We strode down the busy street, her hand in mine, her shoes a squeak on the damp pavement. I wasn’t quite sure why I hadn’t let her hand go yet, but know it felt nice. Her fingers were long and slim, and her palms were just the right size for cupping around the neck of a guitar. I’d seen her in that park, on the way to a meeting, and had totally forgot my appointment.

The sound of her voice had drawn me in first. I’d followed the sound until I found her, on that bench with her guitar. I’d sat as she sang a song about broken wings and faded dreams and wondered who had hurt her so much. Was the song her own or had she heard it somewhere else? She had a country music sound with a rock and roll edge that I liked. It was only after I’d studied her for a moment that I noted the lines of hardship around her mouth and the signs of exhaustion on the delicate skin beneath her eyes. Those bruised eyes told me she was hungry, had barely slept recently, and I’d wondered if this music, if her moment in the park wasn’t panhandling but an escape.

Something deep in my chest had twinged, and I’d waited for her to stop her song to speak to her. She’d given me a look I could only describe as feral before she’d barked at me. Then, as if she’d lost control, she’d turned an attractive shade of pink and had backed off. When she’d regained control, she answered my questions.

I was surprised to hear an American accent, a Southern one at that, but shouldn’t have been. My fellow Americans came here often. I explained my transatlantic accent to her then, how I’d been sent over here to boarding school, and that I’d spent most of my life here. I’d even gone to university here. I didn’t exactly want to disclose that I’d gone to the poshest, most exclusive boarding school in the country, but not because she was poor.

No, the girl whom had sat across from me inhaling food wasn’t the kind who would be impressed with names or prestigious schools, if she even knew what those schools were. From the frank way she spoke, I knew she was down to earth, and from the guarded look in her eyes, I knew she’d been hurt and hurt badly. I wasn’t surprised when she revealed her story to me.

I wanted to find this Graham fellow and pound him into dust, but something about the way she talked about him spoke of fear. And if he was mixed up with drug runners here, well, it was bad news I’d walk into if it meant keeping her out of it; otherwise, I didn’t want to get mixed up in any of that. Besides, all I had to do was put her up in the hotel and then get her home. Hell, since she was at loose ends, I could even give her a job in any of the hotels she wanted to work in. We had hotels all over the world; she could actually go wherever she wanted to. Quite literally.

I wouldn’t disclose most of that just yet though. I knew she’d want to escape the minute she saw the hotel, when she saw the staff rooms; she’d probably want to ask me a few dozen more questions before she ran. We owned one of the most expensive hotels in London. Even our staff rooms were quality. She might be down on her luck, but the tilt to her chin told me this girl had pride. She wouldn’t want to take my charity, and only had so far because she was hungry and tired.

I could already hear how tired she was in the way her steps slowed, so I knew I’d be able to convince her to stay at least one night. That would keep her off the streets for that long anyway. I had to fly back to America in the morning, but I’d keep her warm and safe for tonight at least. I’d have Mason arrange something for her the next day; my brother was good at stuff like that. Both of my brothers were preoccupied with their new women, but I knew Mason would squeeze that in for me if I asked.

My elder brothers, both blond with gray eyes, were so different from me with their coloring, but we had the same face, all three of us. We were our father’s sons, after all.

“Oh!” I heard her gasp as I tugged at her hand when we reached the hotel. I couldn’t help a smirk when her eyes went round and her mouth dropped open as her head tilted back.

“I thought…” she started, but shut her mouth.

“You thought it was a Holiday Inn, maybe?” I teased her, and she looked at me with eyes full of doubt.

“I can’t go in there. It’s too nice. I don’t have… and I look… Oh, thank you, but no.” She tried to pull away, but I wouldn’t let her.

“You can, and you will. I don’t often drag women in off the street, but when I do…” I knew it was the wrong thing to say, and her eyes filled with tears to prove it.

I’d dated models and waitresses, I’d dated princesses and store clerks; I wasn’t a picky kind of guy. Nor was I a snob. What I was, however, was thoughtless. “Look, I’m sorry, I know that came out utterly wrong. I meant, I’m not often given the chance to give back, to use what I have for real good. If you let me help you, you’ll be doing me a favor.”

“What?” she asked, and I knew she was confused because so was I.

“My dad says I’m a selfish jerk and need to learn the value of hard work. So he’s making me work in the hotels. If I let you stay here, free, with no strings attached, then I’ve proven to myself I’m not selfish, right? Which in itself may be selfish, hmm.” I stopped and thought about it for a moment, but dismissed it; it didn’t matter. “Either way, I’m not about to let you go back out on the street. Especially without your cheese sticks.”

“Fingers,” she said, a twitch at the corner of her lips.

“Pardon?” Now I really was confused.

“Well, they call fish sticks fish fingers here. Shouldn’t they call cheese sticks cheese fingers?” Her brown eyes filled with mirth this time, and I knew I’d won.

“You’re quite right, my dear. Come on now, in you go.” I tugged at our joined hands, and she followed me in.

I grabbed a few things from a supply closet, found an empty staff room in the computer system, and headed to the fifth floor where the room was. It was a wing we hadn’t renovated this year, but it was still resoundingly posh. White walls, cream carpet, and tasteful gold accents made the floor a dream to walk through sometimes. There were no distracting colors or tasteless paintings. Just pure, creamy white everything.