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“Lochlan?” Her voice sounds shaky, scared, like the fragile girl I met that first night in her room who cowered before me. I hate that so fucking much. She may drive me insane, but I love the stronger, tougher Sophie who refuses to put up with my shit.
“Are you okay? Are you hurt?”
“No. I don’t think so. Lena’s hair caught on fire. God, I’m so sorry I made you stay over tonight.” She’s obviously talking to the guards now, apologizing to them, when I’m the one who should be saying I’m sorry.
In the background I hear Lena tell her, “Stop apologizing. If those things had dropped when you were inside the house, you may not have made it out alive, and then Lochlan would’ve disemboweled me with a rusty knife.”
“She’s not wrong,” I tell Sophie. “I’m so sorry this happened, and that I wasn’t there.”
“Where are you? Why didn’t you come home?” that soft, fragile voice asks.
I can’t tell her the truth. If she knew, she would never believe I didn’t touch anyone, and if I tell her I watched Owen get his dick sucked, she’ll think the worst.
“I was in a business meeting,” I say which isn’t a complete lie. “Employees fucked up for the last time and had to be fired.”
“Oh,” she replies, and I can’t tell if she believes my half-truth or not.
“Where are you?” I ask.
“We’re on the way to the airport. Toni said it’s the only place she could think of that wouldn’t allow drones to swarm.”
“Good. I’ll meet you there in a few minutes, okay?”
“Okay.”
There are a million things I want to say to her, but I don’t know how. “See you soon,” I tell her before forcing myself to end the call.
“Get me to the airport as fast as possible,” I tell Wade who is driving. “Find out where they’ll be waiting,” I instruct Wolfe who is in the passenger seat.
“Yes, sir.”
A half hour drive is cut down to twenty minutes thanks to Wade breaking every traffic law. It’s still twenty minutes too long.
As we pull into the airport, I tell my men, “I’ll grab Sophie and get her in here. Then I want you to just keep driving until I figure out where the fuck we’re going to sleep tonight.”
I can’t think about anything right now other than seeing Sophie, wrapping her in my arms, and never letting her go again.
“Just up ahead,” Wolfe points out the direction to Wade where one of our SUVs is sitting between other vehicles in the crowded lot, trying to blend in. He rolls the vehicle up behind them, and as if Wolfe told them the plan, Lena and Toni have Sophie out and hurrying toward us.
Throwing the door open, I sweep her into my arms. For once, she doesn’t flinch or try to pull away. Sophie lets me hold her, and even winds her arms around my back squeezing me tight.
“Best to keep moving, boss,” Lena says, ever the professional when I freeze.
“Thank you both,” I tell the women before I release Sophie to guide her to the other vehicle. She climbs into the backseat with me quickly following behind. Wade is pulling away before my door shuts all the way. The jolt of acceleration makes Sophie gasp. Her fingers clutch my thigh in a death grip, as if I make her feel safe or she’s at least reassured by my presence. Hell, maybe I was just the only thing to hold on to in the backseat.
When she doesn’t relax her grip even once we’re smoothly cruising down the highway, I realize how starved I’ve been for her touch. That I enjoy when she’s touching me.
I usually don’t allow it. It’s always felt too fake and obligatory for the women I’ve been with. Sophie isn’t like them, though. She’s never casually laid a hand on me before now, and she would never do it because she wants something.
Feeling brave, I attempt to slip my arm around her back to pull her closer to my side.
Not only does she accept the embrace, but some of the tension also drains from her body as she relaxes against me, even letting the side of her head lean on my shoulder. I take a deep breath, inhaling the scent of her lavender and rose shampoo to remind my frazzled nerves that she’s alive and unharmed by some miracle.
“It’s okay. You’re okay,” I assure her, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.
My relief is short-lived when she shivers. I tilt the air conditioning vents above us so they’re pointing away from her when I realize she’s still in her sleeveless shirt and short tennis skirt. Slipping my arms out of the sleeves of my suit jacket, I drape it around the front of her body like a blanket.
“I’m so sorry this happened,” I tell her again. “I had no idea…”
