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Paul glanced at her again but thankfully he didn’t say anything. She could see the questions in his eyes. She wished she could confide in someone but right now she had no one but herself. She couldn’t even turn to Rissa or her parents. She had to stay alone. Trusting him would be a mistake.
“It could be that easy. I’m here if you want to talk. Sometimes it helps to share the burden.”
She gave a dismissive shake of her head. No one could lighten this load for her.
“Look, Liv, I’m one of the good guys, you can trust me with your secrets.”
She didn’t even bother to answer. He had no idea what he was dealing with and she wasn’t willing to enlighten him. Knowing Paul, he would try to jump in and make things better but he would only put everyone at risk. It was better to remain strangers.
“Don’t believe me?” he demanded when she remained silent. “I can take you down to the station where they’ll give you all my references, along with a few embarrassing stories. You can talk to the detective who replaced me and the chief who bossed me around for more than a decade. My partner asked me to be godfather to his new little boy. I’m safe. And when you’re with me, then you have nothing to fear – unless you did something illegal and you need to be brought in?” He raised his brow in question and she gave a small shake of her head. He seemed satisfied and continued, “Either way, I’m here and I’m not going anywhere.”
Olivia didn’t answer. She didn’t know what to say. She appreciated his sincerity but he really didn’t understand the depth of Ethan’s depravity or the danger she was in.
“One way or another I’ll get to the bottom of things,” he added when she remained silent.
His words sounded like a threat and she didn’t want him digging for answers. She knew he was trying to reassure her but she felt even more panicked than before. “You really don’t want to get involved.”
“Maybe I do,” he countered. “Are you hiding something?”
Olivia’s cheeks heated. She didn’t like this line of questioning. “I didn’t do anything illegal, I assure you.”
“Then let me in. I want to help you.”
She shook her head again. “You shouldn’t. It’s safer if we remain strangers. Trust me on that.” She ought to go straight home and pack her things. Already this was too complicated. Unfortunately, she didn’t have enough money for another move.
“Safer for who?” Paul demanded.
“For both of us.”
Her answer didn’t warn him away like she hoped.
“Like I said, I’m not going anywhere, Liv. Bad guys don’t scare me.” Silence grew between them as Olivia digested his words. He was determined, she could tell, and if she offered any more protests he would only dig in deeper. In some ways it was nice knowing he was so stubborn, yet she was also terrified. Ethan would destroy Paul.
Paul wordlessly pulled into the mall’s parking lot. There were a few cars but it was mostly empty. The truck’s engine idled with a low growl. “Which store?”
“This will be fine. I’ll get out here.” She reached over and pressed a quick kiss to his cheek, surprising both of them.
He gave her a sexy grin. “I hope there’s more where that came from.”
“Don’t count on it,” she retorted with an answering smile. She was probably being too impulsive and needed to throttle this back, but his chivalry touched her. “I only wanted to thank you for helping me. You have no idea how much it means to me.”
“I’ll help you however I can, Liv. You can trust me,” he responded seriously. She threw open the door and slid down from the truck. Before she could slam the door he called to her, “Hey, Liv, what time should I pick you up?”
Olivia frowned. She hadn’t considered that. She didn’t know the bus schedules and it was too far to walk. “I get off at four, if you don’t mind –“
“I’ll be here,” he grinned and she felt her heart melt a little bit more.
***
Ethan sat back in his cushy chair and grinned at his computer screen with satisfaction. His eyes were bleary and red-rimmed. His hands were shaky from the caffeine and cocaine cocktail he needed to keep himself going. Soon the buzz would wear off and he'd crash for a couple of days. But for now he was flying high. He'd worked through the night and it had been a productive one. Soon his little butterfly would fly back home. She'd tried to spread her wings and he had to give her credit for effort, but this diversion had to come to an end. She was still fighting her destiny. When would she realize she belonged to him and he wasn't going to share her with anyone? She was created for his pleasure alone.
He reached for the framed photo of her that he kept on his desk next to the monitor. Didn't she realize everything he did was for her? She never fully appreciated him and even now she was testing him, forcing him to prove his loyalty to her. Soon he would test her. As he stared at her photo she seemed to transform before his eyes, turning into a butterfly. Her green eyes mocked him. Her red lips pouted. He reached for her but she fluttered out of his reach. In the back of his mind he knew it was the drugs making him hallucinate but it seemed so real. He watched her dart this way and that. He tried to swipe at her and catch her in his fist but she eluded him. As he snatched at the air she rose higher. “I’ll get you, Olivia!” She was a mere swirl of color refusing to land. Instead, she hovered just out of his grasp. She was about to escape him, his little butterfly, but he wouldn't let her go. He surged to his feet and climbed on his desk. He would capture her. She belonged to him! She hovered a little lower, mocking him, just out of arm’s length. He stretched, knocking his monitor to the floor. He kicked the photo and it landed beside the computer screen. He winced at the sound of sharp glass cracking. The sound entered his head like a a stabbing pain, and then his little butterfly vanished.
He blinked away the vision and realized where he stood. He climbed off the desk and sat back in the chair. With a moan, he held his throbbing head in his hands. His head was pulsing with the same pain he felt in his heart. How could she do this to him? Didn't she know how much he needed her? Why would she want to hurt him, to break his heart? With an anguished cry he slammed his head against the desk. He had to find her. He had to bring her home!
“Boss, you okay?”
Ethan raised his head enough to peer at his hands-on guy, Dirken. Dirken took care of the things Ethan didn't want to do. Sometimes he exerted a little “pressure” when people were uncooperative. Other times he eliminated the distractions entirely. Ethan never felt remorse for ordering Dirken to handle his dirty work. Life was easier without complications. Between Ethan's skill with a computer and Dirken's brute strength, Ethan always got what he wanted.
