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Chapter Eight
Noah
I wake to find Elli gone, but the bed is still slightly warm from her body. Going in search of her, I find a note on the kitchen counter.
Noah. Didn’t want to wake you. Went to the house to grab my stuff. Back soon. Elli.
Shit! A sense of dread settles over me. We agreed last night that Elli would stay in the cabin with me until our return to New York, and we’d go to the house together this morning to grab her stuff. Why the hell did she go without me?
Throwing on jeans and a t-shirt, I tear out the door and jump in the car before realizing I don’t know her address. I head straight for reception, determined to bribe someone for the information if I have to. As luck would have it, I pass Simone on the way, and after briefly explaining the situation, she gives me Elli’s address and tells me to go get my girl.
This isn’t how I imagined the morning would go. I planned to make Elli breakfast in bed and then wash every inch of her gorgeous body in the shower. Pin her against the wall, and slide inside her tight heat until she screamed my name like last night. Shit, the memory alone has my cock lengthening painfully in my jeans. She gave herself to me freely and without reservation. It’s a night I’ll remember for the rest of my life, no matter how many more nights we have together.
My life has been all work and no play for years, first as a professional athlete and now as an agent, but simply being with Elli fills me with joy and contentment and anticipation for the future.
Ten minutes later, I pull up outside the small, two-story house to see Elli arguing with a guy I assume is one of her step-brothers. My blood boils as he grabs her, but a second later, Elli smashes her suitcase against his head. My girl a wildcat, and pride flares briefly in my chest until I see her stumble and fall. The asshole grabs her legs and winds up to punch her as she lies on the ground. A mist of red descends in front of my eyes. I’m going to break things, namely this guy’s face.
I’m out of the car in a flash, the element of surprise on my side as I plow into him and pin him against the wall. My competitive days flash before my eyes, a reminder of all the times I had a player from the opposing team pinned against the protective glass of the arena. I was a feisty bastard back then. Seems I still am, particularly when it comes to protecting my woman.
I press my elbow into the asshole’s throat, and his eyes bulge as he makes horrific choking noises. He’s a big guy, but I’m bigger. His muscles are for show, no doubt a result of hours spent pumping iron at the gym. I may not be a professional athlete anymore, but my strength is borne of hours and hours of functional training.
My voice is deadly calm as I get up in his face. “You ever come within six feet of my woman again, and I swear to God I will cut your balls off and stuff them down your throat before I haul your pathetic ass to the nearest police station and have you charged with assault. Do you understand?”
His eyes spit hatred at me.
“Do you understand?” I ask again, jamming my elbow harder into his throat. He gurgles, and his face is now an interesting shade of purple with mottled highlights.
The asshole chokes an unintelligible reply, which I take as a “yes.” He crumbles down the wall as I release him, clutching his throat and gasping for air.
“What the hell is going on out here?” an older man appears in the open doorway, a younger man hiding behind him: the step-father and the other step-brother.
“Nothing that concerns you,” I say coolly, striding toward Elli and helping her to her feet. “We’re leaving.”
“Leaving? Leaving to go where?” the older man blusters.
“Somewhere you’ll never be able to take advantage of your step-daughter again,” I toss over my shoulder, scooping up Elli’s suitcase and ushering her toward my car.
I toss the suitcase on the back seat and get her in the passenger seat with her belt fastened before walking back to the house.
I come to a halt in front of Elli’s step-father, my expression icy. “We’re leaving now. You won’t see your stepdaughter again. If you ever try to find Elli, if I so much as hear a whisper that you’ve tried to make contact or extract money from her, I promise your pathetic lives won’t be worth living. And just to be clear,” I narrow my eyes on each of them in turn, “I don’t make idle threats, so if you want to test me, go ahead. It won’t end well for you.”
Turning, I stride back to the car, climb behind the wheel, and roar off without a backward glance.
“Are you okay?” I ask roughly once I’ve put some distance between us and the house.
“I’m fine,” Elli whispers, keeping her eyes on her lap. “How did you know where I lived?”
“I was on my way to reception when I ran into Simone. What the hell were you thinking, going there alone?” I demand, trying to calm down. “I thought we agreed we’d go together?”
“I’m sorry. I wasn’t expecting anyone to be awake and thought I’d be in and out in no time. I was wrong.” She gives a jerky shrug and dashes a hand across her eyes.
The silence is oppressive as I make the journey back to the resort. Visions of the guy bending over Elli with his fist poised to strike her haunt me, and I take deep breaths, forcing myself to calm down.
I park outside the cabin and cross to the passenger side before Elli can get out, plucking her from her seat and carrying her inside. Placing her on the sofa, I grab a bag of ice from the freezer and wrap it in a dish towel. Returning to her, I place it gently on her wrist, gritting my teeth as I see the bruising and swelling from that fucker’s hand.
“Hold the ice on your wrist. It’ll help with the swelling,” I tell her, my voice harsher than I intended.
I stride to the bathroom, turn on the faucet over the bath, and pour some bath soak into the water. When I return to the sofa a few minutes later, Elli is sitting where I left her, tears pouring down her cheeks. My heart throbs and every ounce of anger drains through my feet. I sit next to her and scoop her up, pulling her into my lap.
