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“He said something along the lines of planning to fuck me and sending you pictures. He wanted to hurt me and taunt you with evidence.” I can feel the deep growl that comes from Daniel’s chest.
“I’m starting to wish you hadn’t killed him. I want to,” Oliver says through gritted teeth as he looks up at Daniel. I lean out of Daniel’s arms and look up at him, shocked.
“He’s dead?”
Daniel nods. “I wasn’t going to let him live after what he did to you, princess.”
I know I should feel more than I do. I should be afraid of Daniel, but all I feel is relief. My whole body relaxes as I lean back into him.
“Is it wrong that I want to thank you?”
“A little,” Oliver replies, rubbing his head.
“So, forget all the business stuff. When did you come back?” I ask.
“A year after I left, I heard about your mum, and I wanted to help, so I managed to get Oliver to agree to meet me. I paid for all the treatment and the hospice at the end. I went to see her regularly when you weren’t there.”
“You were at the funeral at the back of the church, weren’t you?” I ask. Daniel nods and runs a hand over my head.
“I couldn’t have stayed away if I tried. I loved your mum as if she was my own, and I begged Oliver to let me go.”
“Why didn’t you say you knew he was there?” Oliver asks. I shrug as I try to remember.
“I think part of it was fear that it wasn’t him. The thought that he was back there gave me the strength to get through the service. I don’t think I could have if you had told me it was someone else.” I look up at Daniel and see him smiling at me. “You said you own this place and the shop, but you never explained why Mr Hudson, who is, in fact, your driver, comes in here every week.”
“I don’t have anything to do with that. He likes to read, and I told him about your shop. He says you always make him feel so welcome and give the best recommendations that he is happy to return every week. That’s all you, princess.” As I look at him, I am sure I see a bit of pride in his eyes. “Even if I am a … what did you call me?”
I hide my face in his chest as Oliver laughs out loud.
“Slave driver,” he answers, as Daniel laughs.
“In my defence, I didn’t know it was you,” I point out, trying to give him my best puppy dog eyes. I can only imagine what it looks like with the bruising and swelling. Daniel looks down at me and smiles. For a moment, our eyes lock, and I forget about anything else. All that exists is the two of us at this moment.
“I don’t think I’m going to like this next answer, but I need to know,” Oliver says, bringing us both back to the here and now. We turn to look and find him watching us.
“Are you two going to give being in a relationship a go?”
I look back at Daniel, who I find smiling down at me.
“Only if she wants me and everything that comes with me,” he says as I look back into his eyes. I can’t bring myself to answer, so I nod, smiling. Daniel cups my cheek and presses his lips to mine gently. “Good, because you are and always have been mine.”
Chapter Eleven
Gabby
Sipping my coffee, I look through the stock in the back room and try to find the best way to display them. After taking a week off to heal from my injuries, I have so much to do. Daniel and Oliver insisted I close so I wouldn’t need to explain the bruising and swelling on my face constantly. Even though it is still present, there is less showing underneath the vast amount of make-up I have on. For someone who doesn’t wear it often, it feels stranger than the injuries now.
Daniel has stayed at mine almost every night this week. When he hasn’t been able to come over, he’s insisted that I stay at his. He says he wants to come home to me when he finishes whatever he’s doing. I had no complaints, as I have been a little jumpy since the attack. Having Daniel close by helps so much.
The first few nights after our first time together, Danny insisted that we didn’t do more than sleep when in bed. I struggled with everything for a few days after the assault, I would zone out due to suffering from flashbacks, and my body ached. I also had a couple of panic attacks, which I hadn’t had before. I think the only reason we could do anything that first night was the adrenaline from Daniel finally telling me how he felt. It overrode all the pain, physically and mentally, for a short while at least.
Since that night, Danny has treated me like the princess he always said I was, and I’m slowly getting used to it. That being said, after the fourth day of everyone treating me like a ticking time bomb, I acted very un-princess-like when I waited for him to come home and accused him of not wanting me anymore. Daniel quickly showed me how much he wanted me in every way, chasing away all my growing insecurities.
Since then, he has taught me all kinds of things in the bedroom. Although I may have been a twenty-three-year-old virgin, I am well-read in the form of smut. There are many things I’m getting to experience now first-hand, which is better than the books make out.
“Princess?”
I turn to the sound of Daniel’s voice and smile.
