Total pages in book: 34
Estimated words: 32396 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 162(@200wpm)___ 130(@250wpm)___ 108(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 32396 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 162(@200wpm)___ 130(@250wpm)___ 108(@300wpm)
Part of him didn’t like it, and another did.
She didn’t expect presents from him.
He hadn’t had to give her diamonds or jewelry to see a smile. In fact, while they were watching a movie just last night, he playfully pressed the ice-cream-covered spoon against her nose, and that had sent her into a giggle.
Beth had given him so much, and it fucking terrified him. If he had any sense at all, he’d send her packing, but he couldn’t do it. Ben was still out there, and he knew in his gut the little bastard would find some way to get to her, to use her.
Rome had started to see that her brother hadn’t taken her away for good reasons, but instead for his own selfish ones. Beth worked hard, she wanted a good life, and Ben didn’t like working. He didn’t think he should work hard to get where he needed to be. He hated men like Ben.
“I want to stay,” Beth said, and she surprised him by kissing his lips. “And I’ll stay for however long you will have me, but…”
“No buts.”
She pouted. “There always has to be a but, I don’t want to do nothing. I like my job and I want to get back to it.”
“Beth, you know who I am and you know what I am capable of. Do not try to fight me on this.”
“I’m not trying to fight you, but I’ve got to earn my keep, and don’t say anything like me having sex with you will earn my keep. In a week, my vacation is up, and I’ve got to go back to work.”
Rome didn’t like this, but he also didn’t know how long this was going to last. He stared at her for several long minutes. “You can return to work, but you have to take one of my men to guard you.”
“Rome, come on, please,” she said. “Let me do my job.”
“And let me handle everything else around you. You want your job, fine, but now that you belong to me, there are going to be people out there who want to hurt you.”
“Oh,” she said.
“Yeah, oh, and it is my job to make sure they don’t get that kind of power.”
Beth frowned and then smiled. “I belong to you?”
This time Rome pursed his own lips. “Stop.”
“I’m just saying, your words, not mine, but does that mean you belong to me?”
Rome didn’t answer her, instead, he pulled her in for a kiss, in the hope of silencing her. He was already falling down this slippery slope, and he didn’t see a way out.
Ben was balancing in dangerous territory, and there would come a point that he was going to have to take the decision out of Beth’s hands.
Chapter Nine
Beth had missed being back at work. She wasn’t going to deny that the break was refreshing and helped her to recharge, but getting back to work gave her a sense of focus through the day.
The only downfall was the man she was now expected to take along with her to each job. Rome said his name was Paul, and that he didn’t like to talk but he would be a good guard for her.
She’d been back at work for one week, and so far Paul had stayed true to his word. He stood in the corner of every place she worked. The agency hadn’t been happy about her suddenly having a guard, but all it had taken was one phone call from Rome, and there had been no arguments. She wished she knew what he said to people. She had a feeling it was the kind of stuff that made people regret questioning him.
It was so strange to her. So many people feared and respected him, and Beth was so afraid to admit what she did feel for him. She also knew if she told Rome she had fallen in love with him, she had a horrible feeling he’d burst out laughing. There had been a few times in the past couple of weeks, late at night, when she had wanted to tell him she loved him. But she kept secret locked up in her chest, with no way of telling a living soul.
She had never been in love before. She had no idea what she was doing.
Rome had invited her to stay with him, but that didn’t mean anything. She didn’t want to expect anything from him.
She stepped back from dusting the top corner of the room, and was on some tall ladders to get to those places. She took a deep breath, and all too soon, she felt a little unsteady on her feet. She gripped the top of the ladder as the earth seemed to move, and she felt sick.
“Paul, help!” she said.
She started to feel herself losing her grip, and then, nothing.