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Her face falls and she shakes her head. “Spencer, they’ll go insane if I do that. I can’t do it that way. They’ll come after me with guns blazing.”
My eyes hold hers. “Charlotte...”
She stares at me through her unshed tears, already terrified of their reaction.
“It’s time,” I say calmly.
She drops her head and stares at her hands in her lap.
“You are not a child. You are not a possession to be owned. Stop allowing them this control over you. You’re with me now. We’re happy, and we’re not hurting anyone.”
“But…” She stops herself from saying something.
“But what?”
“What if I leave them and then…” Her voice trails off.
“And then we don’t work out?” I frown.
Her eyes rise to meet mine, and I know that’s it—that’s what she’s most afraid of.
“Then we make it work out,” I tell her.
“How do you make something work out?”
I smile softly at the beautiful woman in front of me, and I lean over and kiss her, brushing her hair back from her face. “I don’t know, I’ve never done it before. We’ll work it out together.”
She wraps her arms around me, and we hold each other close.
“Just give me the permission I need to handle this for you… please,” I say into her hair. “You’re driving this ship, angel, not me.”
“What are you going to do?” she whispers.
“Nothing sinister but I’m not taking their shit, and I can’t stand by and let them have you living in fear like you do.”
“They’re my family, Spence. I love them.”
I cup her jaw. “I know, angel, and they love you back. Once they see you’re happy and taken care of, they’ll ease up. They will accept us eventually.”
She smiles softly.
“But you need to let me lead us into battle, okay? It’s not just going to happen without a fight.” I kiss her. “You already know that, and you need to prepare yourself for a few hard times.”
She stares at me.
“They’ll tell you I’m not the man for you, and to not rush into anything. They’ll refuse to let you move to London if you let them, and what happens then? You live in Nottingham miserable, and I’ll live in London, unable to visit you. Your security will be tightened, and we won’t see each other again.”
Her eyes hold mine and then she nods with renewed purpose. “You’re right. That’s exactly how it will go.” She turns and stares out through the front windshield, deep in thought, and then she turns to me again. “You take the reins.”
I lean over and kiss her softly, placing my hand on her thigh. Once she’s calm, I pull back out into the traffic.
That’s exactly what I’m going to do.
* * *
I sip my scotch as I sit at the bar of the hotel. I’m waiting for Wyatt and Anthony. When we got back here, I took Charlotte up to the room and called the two of them, asking them to meet me here instead of at the apartment. I need to talk to them without Charlotte hearing.
I dial Seb’s number while I wait for them to arrive.
