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London let me go without an argument.
I got to the door in my jeans and t-shirt, something Ariel hardly ever saw me in. “What is it?”
She didn’t waste time with a smartass comment about me blowing off work today. “Pias sent our shipment to Istanbul, but it was intercepted.”
“Intercepted?” I blurted.
“Yes. By pirates. Everything was lost.”
That was a huge blow to our deal. Millions of dollars of product were on that ship. “Jesus Christ.”
“Come on, let’s go.”
I shut the door behind me and followed her.
18
London
I picked the wrong time to have my conversation with Crewe. If I had just done it a few hours before, I would have had his undivided attention. But he was gone with Ariel all day and most of the night. He didn’t call to check in, so I had no idea when he would be back.
Bad timing.
The stress of the situation was getting to me because I really had no idea how he would react. In my heart, I believed he cared enough about me that he wouldn’t hurt me after I made my request. He would be understanding and compassionate. He would understand he couldn’t keep me as a prisoner forever.
We couldn’t stay like this.
I had my own dreams and ambitions. I couldn’t be his plaything forever.
If he loved me, he would let me go.
And I believed he did love me—in his own way.
Crewe returned at three in the morning. I knew he was home because I hadn’t been able to sleep without him beside me. I tossed and turned constantly, the sheets feeling cold without the heat of his body to keep me warm throughout the night. I was used to having sex before bed, so that threw me off too.
He walked inside and tried to shut the door as quietly as he could, assuming I was asleep.
I sat up in bed wearing one of his t-shirts and sweat pants. I usually slept in just my underwear, but that was too cold when I was sleeping alone. “Everything okay?”
He stilled at the sound of my voice then flicked on the light near the doorway so he wouldn’t have to walk around in the dark. “Yeah. We retrieved the shipment.”
“How did you manage that?”
He ran his hand through his hair and kicked off his shoes at the same time. After working for over twelve hours, he probably didn’t want to talk about it, but he didn’t show me any attitude. “I’ve got eyes and ears all over the world.”
I didn’t leave the bed because I knew he would join me once his clothes were off. “Sorry that happened.”
“Not your fault. No one’s fault, really.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket and set it on the nightstand. “I know you were trying to tell me something earlier, but can it wait until the morning? I’m out of it right now.”
“Of course—”
A gunshot rang through the air.
Crewe stilled, his eyes immediately moving to the window.
A machine gun sounded in the distance, echoing across the castle walls. It was coming from outside, near the entrance.
Joseph.
There wasn’t a doubt in my mind he was here. He said he would give me two weeks, but he had obviously changed his mind. He probably assumed I was crazy for wanting to protect Crewe. His anger had blinded his judgment, and now he was the one who was crazy.
Crewe immediately sprang into action. He opened one of his drawers and pulled out a pistol. He checked the barrel to make sure it was loaded before he shoved it into the back pocket of his jeans. “Come on.”
“What are we doing?” I jumped out of bed, my heart racing a million miles a minute. I was more scared than the day I was originally captured. Joseph was here to take me, and he didn’t give a damn about sparing Crewe’s life.
Shit.
He grabbed my hand and pulled me to his side. He didn’t bother putting his shoes back on. “I’m gonna get us out of here.”
“Maybe it’s safer if we stay in here?”
“Doubt it. Whoever is here is looking for me.” He opened the door and stepped into the hallway, the sound of gunshots even louder. It sounded like a gang war was waging outside. “And they won’t hesitate to kill you too.”
I knew I was safe, but that didn’t stop me from being terrified. Now that Crewe’s life was on the line, I could hardly breathe. I gripped his hand tighter, unable to handle the possibility of something happening to him. I didn’t care about any of his men, but I didn’t want anything to happen to them either—not even Ariel. “Where are we going?”
“There’s an escape route on the other side of the castle.”
“What about everyone else?”
He pulled me into another hallway and approached a second staircase. “They know what they’re supposed to do.”
