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“Where have you been?” I asked her through the tears.
“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.” It wasn’t until hours later that we calmed down enough for her to tell me.
“The man who’d taken my sister away from me turned out to be the villain, not the prince he’d pretended. The moment he got Angie under his roof, she became a prisoner. He controlled where she went, who she talked to, what she ate. He’d forced her to marry him. She’d spent over a year under his control, the entire time trying to escape, trying to find a way to contact me. He was abusive, with a temper that could turn violent out of nowhere. When she’d become pregnant, he’d locked her in a room, paying for a nurse to come to the house instead of taking her to the doctor. His money could buy all kinds of things, including his staff’s silence. He was sure the nurse was the same, but they became friends when he wasn’t around and one day the nurse slipped Angie one of my posters. They memorized the phone number and destroyed the paper the same day. They came up with a plan together and waited until he was out of town for the night, then she helped her escape. Angie hid in the trunk of the car, but the adrenaline of escaping sent her into labor.
“It was awful, Adam, the things she’d been through, hearing what he’d done to her. She wouldn’t tell me his name even then, insisting how dangerous he was and that she didn’t want me to be anywhere near him. Neither of us trusted the cops to help so I promised her I’d protect her and Miles and we started planning another escape. One where the three of us would go into hiding and we’d raise Miles together. I left them at the hospital to prepare, sure they’d be safe surrounded by people. I was able to buy a crappy car with the money I’d saved. I got groceries, destroyed my phone so that it couldn’t be tracked and made my way back to the hospital on the day she was to be released.
“When I got to her floor, something was wrong. There were police in the waiting room, nurses and doctors shared matching looks of horror. I started to rush to Angie’s room when a hand grabbed my arm and dragged me into an empty one. It was the nurse who’d helped her escape, I’d met her the day before, when she’d come to check on Angie and Miles.
“She told me that when they’d gone to her room with her discharge papers, Angie was dead. A single bullet wound to her forehead. I’d collapsed to the floor, so overwhelmed by pain and guilt. She’d dragged me across the room and hidden behind a stack of supplies was the small bassinet with Miles sleeping safely inside. He’d been in the nursery at the time and when she found out Angie had been killed, she snuck him out and hid him.
“I’d moved on autopilot as she took us through a back exit of the hospital reserved for staff. A bag full of baby supplies and a forged birth certificate with my name on it were shoved into the car with us. I don’t know how she did it but she saved our lives that day.”
When I stopped talking, my throat felt raw. Reliving the horror of losing Angie left me exhausted. The heartache was a familiar feeling, it hadn’t faded in five years. A new worry formed. What did Adam think of me? I’d stolen Miles, kept him from his father, no matter how awful of a man he was.
“Jesus, angel,” his kiss was soft against my lips, lacking the usual heat but offering consolation. “Thank you for telling me.” His hands braced on either side of my face. “You and Miles have never been safer than you are right now. Do you hear me? Anyone who wants to get to you has to go through me.”
He wrapped his arms around me and I pushed as close to him as I could get. I’d felt safe since the first night I’d seen him outside watching me. I didn’t know if Miles’ father could find us but there was no doubt in my mind to the certainty in Adam’s words.
20
GAGE
Two weeks passed in a blur.
My nights were full of Mia, my days spent counting down the hours until I saw her again. I’d go to her house after work and share an early dinner with her and Miles before taking them both to Brooks’ for her shift. Then I’d drive them home, where she’d tuck Miles into his bed and I’d wait in hers. The rest of the night was spent fucking her in a hundred different ways and falling asleep with her in my arms.
She’d text me randomly throughout the day and I’d grown addicted to the little red hearts she’d add at the end of her messages. It was so cute, I wanted to reach through the glass and grab them. But they were nothing compared to when she’d send me a picture.
I’d heard of selfies, I wasn’t completely ignorant, I’d just never wanted one from a woman before. I’d been entranced by the close-up of my stunning girl smiling at me, surrounded by colorful flowers like she was the goddess of spring herself. Part of me had wanted to hide my phone away, no one should see Mia like that but me. Then Jesse had offered to show me how to make the picture my background, now I could get my fix simply pretending to check the time on my screen. Which is exactly what I’d been doing when my boss’s words sank in.
“Gage, you hear me?”
Sliding my phone into my pocket, I grunted. Not a ‘yes’ but not a ‘no’—either way Gray would repeat himself.
“We’ve got a new case. I know you hate hanging around the office for too long between jobs.” He slid a folder down the table and I caught it with my index finger. It was the same type of folder that Roe had given me that night at Brooks’.
“It’s pretty straightforward, wife hired us for protection while her divorce is finalized.”
“TRO?” I asked, flipping open the folder. There were a few pictures attached to the stack of papers inside; what looked to be a happy couple, smiling at the camera. Him, tall with thick, brown hair and a natural looking tan, probably from vacationing on his private yacht that was in the next picture. She looked like a stepford wife, blonde hair with a mix of expensive highlights to look as though she wasn’t her real age, not a single line marred her face and fat diamond studs winked on her ears.
This was the kind of couple that could afford anything, including a private bodyguard when that service of ours didn’t come cheap.
“Temporary restraining order was awarded this morning. She alleges that he’s been violent in the past, he says she’s crazy. Don’t let your guard down. Either of them could try to pull some stupid shit after the judgment.”
There were murmurs of agreement from around the table. We’d all met people who were angry and violent, even with someone they insisted they loved. My thoughts strayed to Mia’s friend. Angie had been married to a man like that, she’d tried to escape and paid for it with her life. I’d tortured myself with thoughts of what could have happened if Mia had still been at the hospital that day. Would he have killed her, too? What about Miles?
My hand clenched into fists beneath the table. Since the day Mia had shared her past, my dreams had been plagued with visions of Mia and Miles covered in blood, injured, or already dead. The nightmares were relentless, I’d stay awake long after they were both asleep, checking the doors and windows, watching for any signs of danger. When the sun rose, I’d be able to reason with myself, they were safe, I was overreacting. There was no need to torture myself all because of what Roe thought he’d found.
“If there’s nothing else, we can conclude the meeting. Gage, see you in a few days.”
Coming back to the present, my stomach dropped at his words. “A few days?”
“Told you he wasn’t paying attention, cough it up my little banana split.” Sam slapped twenty bucks into Roe’s waiting palm.
“I’m going to regret asking this, but banana split?” Kane asked him as they made their way to the door.
“Banana split,” Roe repeated and gave him a lewd smile. “Because she’s got two delicious scoops of ice cream and I just want to slide my banana right between...”
