Forever Distraction (Distraction #3) (26 page)

T
hat was it; I lifted her from my body and laid her on the bed. I was angry, furious, and I didn’t want her to see that, because she was sharing so much and I was concerned she would stop when I still had more questions. “You want a water?” I ran my fingers through my hair and couldn’t bring myself to look at her. She didn’t answer, so I removed myself from the room in search of some water bottles. She had made excuses for the man who beat her her whole life. Katarina held no resentment, no anger toward him, and the thought infuriated me.

I stalked back into the room and she was dressed in her nightgown
, tiptoeing around the bed. If I wasn’t standing in her way, my princess would’ve been running again. She paced slightly, reminding me of a cat waiting for the perfect time to run beneath my feet. I leaned in the doorway until she finally had a seat on the bed directly in front of me.

“You would like them
,” she told me, and I ran a hand through my hair, leaving my hand on the nape of my neck, pinching the back of it and causing pain to forget the torture sitting in front of me. “My parents…everyone likes them. He’s charming, smart, and loves to share how wonderful he is. I have been told he’s an exceptional teacher. My mother is the ideal combination of beauty and brains. She’s an accomplished surgeon, a supportive wife, and quite brilliant. My brothers don’t feel the same way I do about them, and that’s okay.”

She start
ed to play with her hair, pulling it back into a sloppy bun on her head, and I saw the bite mark I gave her earlier. My furious anger turned to self-hate. “I am just saying—when you meet them, you will question everything I just told you. You will think it is some sort of a mistake, because my parents are great actors.” I glared at the spot on her neck and fought the urge to kiss it better. “Other people saw the bruises,” she said, and my eyes shifted back to hers, but she was vacant. “My ballet teachers did, but after they talked with my parents, they didn’t question the marks anymore.” She paused again and I waited. I wanted to know who else knew, who else let this go on.

“I even saw a
psychiatrist, and I drew lots of pictures. She asked me for the truth and I told her, and she gave me her advice.” An evil smile and a twitch in her left eye happened before she continued, “Leave the things that happen in the closet…in the closet. It’s actually great advice and I took it.” Emotion hit me hard like a fist to the face as she sat there. This perfect woman described the horrid details of her life without grief or hate; her face was stoic and her voice matter-of-fact, and I lost every sense of strength I had held for years. I was crumbling inside and couldn’t hide from it anymore. I gazed at Katarina in amazement; she was so much stronger than I could ever be.

Her eyes danced over my face
and worry touched every feature of hers. She quickly stood and rushed over to me until she was about a foot away, and then carefully approached like the tables had turned and I was the frightened animal. My body was heavy and swallowed with grief. It felt like my body ached and my heart clamped, creating an excruciatingly painful afterglow. “Don’t cry for me. I’m happy now,” she said.
What the heck is she talking about?
My vision was blurry and moisture fell on my face, running over my cheeks, and I couldn’t make it stop. Her hands trembled as they reached for my face to wipe away my tears, and I watched like it was someone else, because I didn’t frickin’ cry, not for other people. “Please, Jason, don’t cry. You have to stop crying for me.”

I picked her up after that
, she wrapped her legs around my hips, and I laid back down on the bed, burying my nose in her hair as I cried. I let myself feel everything I was feeling—no more using anger and intimidation to hide my vulnerability. I fucking cried in front of my girl, because I wanted her to know how bad the pain felt, how bad it hurt me, even though I wasn’t there to protect her. I lost myself to all the tears and she stroked my hair, rubbing my back to give me comfort. When all my tears were shed, I spoke firmly so she could hear me and not misunderstand, “I hate them. I know you don’t handle that emotion, but fuck, Katarina, I hate them above everything else. If I could, I’d kill both of them.”

She hugged me and kissed the top of my head.
“I don’t want them dead. I think dying is the easiest way out for them. I want you to love me. I want you to make the rest of my life a wonderful dream. I want you to be my fairytale, a fairytale where no one dies and there is no more hate or pain.” She stroked my hair when she spoke, and it eased all the fury out of me. She wanted me to be wonderful? Well fucking game on. “I think it’s time you bought me a book, Mr. Riggs.”

I
slid down her body and rested my head on her soft belly. I chuckled into her stomach when her words processed, and I realized that was what she did to me; she took the rage and made pie with it. I was laughing, because she wanted me to buy her a silly fairytale book. My arms loosened around her as I made my way down to her sweet spot to give my very funny princess a nice reward for her honesty.

Jason

We arrived at the hospital, and similar to the day before, Katarina played with her skirt and straightened her blouse. She was immaculate from the top of her perfectly straight hair, all the way down to her bright pink nail polish. She wore a pale pink blouse that buttoned down the front and fit snug to her body, with a light, matching sweater; both complimented her gray skirt. She was polished and privileged, and if I didn’t know what I knew, I would think she relished in fine things, needed the fancy watch and clothes, but all Katarina needed was love. She could do without all of the added hoopla.

My eyes fell back to her hair
; two butterfly clips held strands away from her face. It was like even her hair knew where to fall, like it took instructions and followed them. I resisted the urge to touch her, smother her, because that’s what I wanted to do every time I knew she was going to go out in public looking…edible. Instead, I observed her, and I could feel the distance she was putting between us, but I couldn’t put a finger on the source.

I reach
ed out slowly and took her hand. My fingers slid in-between hers and I relished the feeling. She turned and peered at me through her long lashes, and I thought I saw fear. I studied her big blues for as long as she let me before she shifted toward the window. She was stalling, and I was not ready to force her out of the car. My door was now open and her bodyguards waited outside, but even though our hands were touching, she was somewhere else. I relaxed against the seat and waited, because she was always so patient with me. I needed to be that for her.

Long moments later, her body
shifted back and she relaxed against me. Her head continued to gaze out the dark window, and I took the opportunity to wrap my not-so-patient arms around her, pulling her closer. Her side now rested on my front, her tiny body snuggling into mine. She fit so perfectly, just like a puzzle piece. I leaned in to get a smell, kissed her exposed shoulder, and I waited. I’m not sure what I waited for, but right now, she needed me to wait. I heard a small whisper from her mouth.

“My grandfather spoke in riddles and rhymes
, and gave advice through sayings and idioms.” She sighed and then continued, “Like he’d say, ‘Accept someone for who they are, not who you want them to be.’”

I listened
, wondering about all the hidden meanings in what she just said, and then I kissed her shoulder. “Who do you want me to be?”

She pulled away quickly
, like someone just poured cold water all over her. Her eyes flickered all over my face. “Never mind,” she shook her head, “it has nothing to do with you. I’m just confused.” She tried to get off my lap, but my arms were wrapped tight.

“So
, are you asking if I believe the saying?” I enquired, but she remained stiff in my arms. “As far as sayings go, it’s a good one. You can accept them, but you don’t have to like them.” She was quiet and her heart was rapidly beating; I could feel it against my body. “The sayings I don’t like are the ones used for people to be lazy, like, ‘It wasn’t meant to be’. That one
pisses
me off when I hear it. Or, ‘It is what it is’.”

She giggled and my face smiled a small victory. “My grandfather wo
uld like you…a lot.” Her words gave me comfort beyond belief. Her grandfather was her favorite person, and for her to tell me he would approve of me was huge.

“I am glad you think so.” She pulled away slightly
and gazed into my eyes and then ran her hands up to the sides of my face to hold me still.

“You are perfect for me, but sometimes I wonder why you chose me.” She kissed me after that
, not allowing me to respond. It was weird how she insinuated I was too good for her, when she was the one who was obviously too good for me, and everyone around us knew it. I let her kiss me; I knew it was part of her avoidance, and I also knew she was aware of how deeply I felt for her. She rested her head on my chest when she finished. “I wanted a different family when I grew up. I never accepted them for who they were. I just woke up one day and hated them. I hated them until I didn’t feel anything at all for them. The crappy thing was…I always wanted them to accept
me,
accept me for who I was and not for whom they wanted me to be. I think you would like them, even though I…”

I stopped listening after that as s
he spoke nonsense; of course I wouldn’t like them. She must not have remembered a couple nights ago when she cried in my arms about her father, who beat her with a belt. Katarina was clearly going delusional, and it was something about the hospital we were sitting outside of. “Let’s go see Crew, princess, and then leave. I’ll be by your side.”

I moved to the open
ed door, not giving her a chance to deny me. She was insecure and questioning her past, a past she had no control over. She was clearly the victim, but in her head, she was just as at-fault as her parents. I told myself if I got my hands on the people who fucked with her head; they would get what was coming to them. I set her down when I got out of the car and weaved my fingers through hers as we journeyed to Crew’s hospital room. She kept her head down like the day before, her hand gripped tightly in mine, and I felt protective.

I don’t know what I thought would happen in a hospital, but my blood was pumping faster
, and my eyes were aware of all the movement around us. It was as if all five senses were on alert. When we reached the door, Owen went in with her and I stood outside the door, making sure she wasn’t interrupted. Crew was awake, but couldn’t seem to remember anything.

Kat
arina arranged for him to return to Seattle with his family in a couple days. This was her last visit to him in the hospital. I wanted her to take her time. She was racked with guilt, and I knew rushing her would only amplify that feeling. I nodded at her other bodyguard, who stood at the door to Crew’s room, and I walked down the hall to the waiting room in search of coffee. The coffee was nasty, like they attempted to cover the real taste with syrup. I sipped it down, hoping like hell I would receive magical energy from it.

“Romeo.”
I glanced around knowing there was only a handful of people who called me that. It was my nickname at the club when I was young, underage, a name given to me by a man who was like a father to me. He taught me everything I knew about my lifestyle in the club. I was lost when I met him, but he put my focus in check and helped me be better—perfect, actually. I was a perfect Dominant because of him. He called me Romeo, because I could get any woman; it was simple for me. The other stuff—the bondage and disciplining—helped to relieve pent-up aggression, and it came naturally.

I turned and smiled as
Doc approached me. I saw him a couple days ago, but I never got a chance to say hi. “I didn’t know you were in town,” he said with a grin.

He stuck his hand out
, and I threw my hand in his eagerly. “I have only been here a week.” I replied. I shrugged and caught his eyes as they scanned around for something. He was looking for someone.

“We should have a drink and catch up
,” he suggested as his eyes met mine, and I remembered the first time I ever drank whiskey. My addiction to fine whiskey had been thanks to him.

“I am leaving today
,” I told him, “but next time. I thought about calling when I got into town, but…” I trailed off, and I looked over at the movement coming my way; it was Doc’s wife. I hadn’t seen her in a while, but the presence she brought into a room was jaw dropping. I held it together though, but completely forgot what I was about to say. I’d never talked to her; Doc wouldn’t let me, and the look she gave me stunned me quiet anyway. Her face was always stoic, and her blue eyes held authority. I wasn’t sure if I’d ever seen her smile. I didn’t even know her name, but there was something about her intimidation that to got me, made me want to pounce on her just to remind her I was a Dom and she should yield to me.

I remind
ed myself it was Doc’s wife and turned my focus back to him. “I’m here with my girl. I should check on her.”

He studie
d me. “Is she staying here? Shit, Romeo, I will make sure she’s getting the best treatment. Why didn’t you say anything?” Doc’s eyes locked with mine and I felt like the small boy I was when I met him, and once again, he was taking me under his wing. I caught movement and jerked my head over to see another doctor wearing a white lab jacket. He moved in close to Doc’s wife, and I saw traces of Doc in him.
Interesting…Doc had a son
.

He was always so intense
, and the thought of him with a son made me cringe. I always thought he watched out for me because he didn’t have any children of his own. He was a father figure at the club, but didn’t allow for mistakes or excuses, and errors were flat out not acceptable. I valued his teaching skills, but I was grown when I met him and looked to him in a hero-worship way. Mini Doc started to talk, pointing down the hall as he did.

Doc turn
ed back to me. “I have to go, but if you would give me a call, I will take care of your girl,” he smiled sincerely and then he finished, “like she’s my own.”

I nod
ded before he stepped away from me. “Thanks, Doc.” My eyes drifted to his wife, catching her stare, and I flashed her a teasing smile.
Like what you see?
I wondered if she ever talked and what her voice sounded like. She was pretty in a porcelain doll kind of way, like you’d just want to stick her on a shelf, stare at those powerful blue eyes, and not touch a hair on that black head of hair. I’m curious why she held my stare for so long, and I wondered if she was battling with something. I was also curious who the winner of our staring competition was going to be. I broke my stare, feeling intense eyes on me.

Kat
arina stood about five feet from me, her mouth hanging open, and I’m not sure why, but I didn’t get the feeling she wanted me to put my dick in it. It was more of a shocked and horrified kind of stare. Doc walked up behind her, gripped her upper arm, and whispered in her ear. I watched as she attempted to jerk her arm out of his hold.

I froze in my spot as
I looked between Doc’s wife and my princess, seeing the stunning resemblance. Everything came flooding into my brain at once.
Holy fuck!
Instinct kicked in as I realized my hero was Katarina’s abusive father. I decided then, right then, Katarina would never see him or versions of him through my actions.
Ever.
“Don’t touch her!” The threating words left my lips in a loud growl, drawing attention from all the hospital staff.

Doc look
ed up at me in confusion, but didn’t release her. “Romeo?” His voice and the look on his face begged me to stand down, but he didn’t know. He didn’t know Katarina was mine now, and he no longer had any claim to her, not even her fucking arm he had in his greedy hand.

“I will
fucking
kill you in front of everyone right now if you don’t let her go,” I said in a scarily calm voice I didn’t even recognize as my own. It was funny how life was. He always seemed so big, so all-powerful, but now, as I narrowed my eyes at him, not in warning, but as a promise, he was weak and scrawny. His hand gradually released his hold on her arm and I stepped in front of her, sweeping her behind me. My body shielded hers from her family; my fist curled as visions of black and blue marks on Katarina’s body came flashing to me. Her hands reached around and she hugged my stomach, and it only made me angrier. Owen stepped in front of me, stealing my heated gaze toward Doc.

“We need to leave
; security has been called. This isn’t the place, Jason.” Owen’s eyes filled with understanding, so I trusted him. I turned, unable to see Doc, so my glare was for his wife and the other man who was close by as I picked Katarina up. It was clear to him and everyone as I cradled her in my arms that she was mine. She wrapped her arms around my neck and I carried her out, her bodyguard leading the way.

****

Katarina

He knew them. I watched the way he shook my
father’s hand and the way he ogled my mother’s beauty. It hurt me in ways I couldn’t describe to know he liked them. All I could think when he was talking to them and I hugged him from behind was,
I hope he chooses me
. He swept me into his arms before he left, and that was when I allowed myself to be hurt, to be angry. I gazed over his shoulder as Jason tore from the hospital and noticed the stunned disbelief on everyone’s faces, including my mother’s.

“Don’t go with him
, Katarina,” my father warned. “He’s like me. I know. He was my student, I taught him everything.”

I squeezed my eyes shut battling with his words. “You knew him,” I whispered into Jason’s ear. “You liked him
,” anger grew inside me like a hungry bear feeding on all my insecurities, “and
her
? Did you have her?” I pushed from him as he entered the elevators, because this was the point I ran, and right now, I wanted to run.

The elevator was silent other than my grunts of frustration because he wouldn’t let me loose. “I didn’t sleep with your mother. He’s very protective of her.” I stalled for a moment
, listening, waiting for the warm and fuzzies to come from his mouth, but nothing happened. He never made me feel more wanted or more cherished with his words, so I began hitting him with my balled up fists on his chest and back. I used my feet to kick my way out of his hold, but he never relented, his arms like thick chains around me.