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“Come up here and tell us your name, gorgeous.” Adira beckons to the big brute as they get him to the edge of the stairs.
“Miss Love!” Jackson is still trying to get control of the situation.
I have no doubt he will. And then he’s going to catch up to me fast if I don’t hurry.
“Keys, Love?” Magnolia Clitterbean dangles the key to Adira’s car in my face the minute I’m out of the main room.
I straighten and take them from him. “In his usual spot?”
“Always.” He fluffs his violet curls.
I race across the foyer and yank open the door. “Tell Jackson when Adira is done with him that I promise I’ll make sure that Rogue doesn’t fire him.”
I have no idea how I’ll accomplish that just yet, but I’ll make it work.
“I’d love to.” He glances around the doors into the main room. “But you better move that behind or you won’t escape the parking lot before he catches up to you.”
The door bangs shut as I take off around the building to the parking lot. It’s full of vehicles because of everyone at the show tonight, but I find Adira’s Tesla easily because my bestie has this almost superstitious need to park in the same spot for every show.
Rogue is nowhere to be seen as I climb in and start the engine. He didn’t take the Range Rover, but it’s been a good ten minutes since he marched out. He could have called a taxi. He could be anywhere.
Jackson is pounding through the parking lot as I reverse from the space. We make eye contact for a second. Him breathing hard. Me, silently apologetic. Not enough to stop though.
I put my foot on the accelerator and the Tesla lurches forward.
Jackson stops running and jumps out of the way as I drive past him. I wave. Again, I’m sorry. I’m not trying to kill my bodyguard. I just need to keep Rogue from going after Nicole, which has to be her intention with these showy rose displays.
I put several blocks between me and Mojito Bar before I guide the Tesla into an alleyway. As Jackson drives past my hiding spot I get on Instagram and search up Nicole Hawthorne. Rogue could be anywhere, but if I find Nicole I can put myself between them. Talk him down.
At least I hope I can.
It takes me all of two minutes to work out her location. A charity ball at an upscale hotel filled with people who worship Nicole and her so-called compassion. It’s literally the perfect place for her to have Rogue confront her. Everyone who is in attendance already believes Nicole is who she presents herself as. They won’t think twice about supporting her campaign against my husband in a fight I still don’t understand.
It takes me twenty minutes to get to my destination. Another five to convince the security in the lobby that I’m Nicole’s daughter and they should let me in despite my bunny ears and blue wig and tiny dress. My heart pounds with each second that ticks by.
I don’t see Rogue.
Where is he? Did he beat me here? Am I too late? Has the wicked witch that is my mother beheaded him yet? Okay, perhaps that’s going too far… but I feel like I’m in a race against the clock to keep the man that I love from getting trapped in Nicole’s web.
I dart into the elevator the moment security says I can go in. One of them swipes a keycard and presses a pin code into a small number pad before they depress the floor button. It seems to take forever to arrive, and I tap my fingers against my leg all the way up.
When the doors open, it’s directly into the ballroom. It’s filled with women in sleek gowns and men in tuxedos. They give me strange looks as I leave the elevator.
I wrap my arms tightly around my waist, self-conscious of how I must look to these people. Where Rogue sees the fun and sexy side of me, the people in this room judge me for my imperfections.
I reach up to touch one soft and fluffy bunny ear when one of the women sneers at them. Despite her, they give me the strength to move forward.
At least… I glance around to make sure… everything is dull as dishwater here. There’s no scene. My husband isn’t on his knees with my mother screaming “off with his head.” He’s not brawling with any of the tuxedo clad fat cats. He’s not here.
I spin around again. One more time. I have to be certain. My pulse starts to slow. It’s been tripping all over itself since I left Mojito Bar, but perhaps… Could I have been wrong about what Rogue’s intentions were?
“Ivy, you look like a stripper.” Nicole hisses in my ear like a snake. She walks around me like I’m a piece of art she’s considering adding to her collection. Or not, if the disgust evident on her face is anything to go by. When she stops in her original position at my side she leans in. “And what is that on your head? Rabbit ears? How dare you come to my event looking like cheap trash.”
I bow my head as her words wash over me like a familiar tide. The bright blue wig hides my hot cheeks. “I wasn’t planning on coming here.”
“Of course you weren’t. Though why you would try to make your own decisions now… you’ve never been good at it.” She lifts my chin and forces me to look at her. She smiles like a loving mother even as her words drip venom. “It was my intention that you be the guest of honor tonight.”
“W-what?”
