Long Way Home (13 page)

         “And
if those woman are made to feel you are above them as his mate, they may be
intimidated by you.”

         “Just
trust me, Gib, OK?”

         He
sighed.  “I do, kid.  I’m just concerned for your safety.”

         “I
know.”

         “You’d
better get back on the road.  If they are monitoring you then you don’t
need to linger too long.”

         “Just
give us a few more minutes, then I’ll send her on her way,” Shane told him.

         “Fine,
but not too long.  Stop at the counter when you come out, Tess.  We
ordered a dinner for you to help with your cover.”

         She
nodded.  “Thanks, Gib.”

         After
he left, she turned back into the comfort of Shane’s arms, snuggling to his
chest. 

         “I
know you can’t be there all the time, but I really will need to hear your voice
every day.”

         “I
know…but you can’t wear the earpiece all the time like you did today.
 Especially not with Helton trying to get intimate with you.”

         She
sighed.  “I know.”

         He
tilted her head up and claimed her lips in a kiss that left them both
breathless and clinging to each other.

         “I’m
sorry you had to sit through him kissing me,” she said softly.

         “You
don’t worry about me,” he repeated, “I’m just sorry you had to endure it.”

         “If
it means helping those girls I’ll do whatever it takes.”

         He tightened
his hold on her.  “I know you will, baby.  You just be damn sure you
take care of Tessa in the process.”

         “I
will.”

         “I
know you will…we’d better get out of here so you can get on the road.  I
love you, Tess.  Don’t you ever forget that.”

         “I
love you, too. No matter what you see or what you hear, know that, Shane
Gabriel.  Know that I love you.”

         The
drive back to the compound the next day didn’t take nearly as long as Tessa
needed it to.  She was painfully aware that this was likely the last time
she would be outside of its walls and have time to herself for a long time.
 She’d packed carefully last night, all the fancy designer clothes that
went along with her rich girl persona.  This morning she’d dressed with
calculated precision, Prada, Chanel, the telltale red soled Louboutin
heels…everything that would convey wealth and confidence to Nathaniel and remind
him that she wasn’t just the average girl off the street.

         The
guard waved her through the gate with a bow that made her uncomfortable.
 She drove up to the Main House where a valet took her bags, another took
her car, and Paul Helton stood waiting for her.

         “Nathaniel
is currently unavailable,” Paul told her, his cold brown eyes sweeping over her
from head to toe.  “James will take your bags to your room.
 Nathaniel has asked that you wait in his office with me and then he’ll
show you to your room himself.”

         “Sounds
good.”

         He
led her to Nathaniel’s office, a huge room of deep dark wood tones that
reminded her of classic Lord of the Manor type spaces.  She decided it
suited Nathaniel perfectly.

         “We
really didn’t a chance to speak to one another yesterday,” she said when Paul
shut the door.  “You are Nathaniel’s brother?”

         Without
warning, Paul grabbed her shoulders and roughly forced her back against the
wall, causing her to cry out when her head slammed against it.

         “Let’s
get something straight here, bitch,” Paul bit out, his fingers digging
painfully into her upper arms.  “My brother may be enamored with you but I
assure you I am not.  To me you are no different than those whores in the
dormitories.  Nathaniel sees something in you and has claimed you before
witnesses.  That gives you a measure of freedom not afforded to the
others, but know this, if you test him he will not hesitate to educate you and
I’ll be right there to aid in the lesson.”

         “You’d
like that, wouldn’t you, Paul?” she threw back at him.

         His
eyes narrowed, “Don’t test me, either, Madelyn.”

         She
actually laughed.  “Or what? You’ll take me to the Arena? Nathaniel
already promised that as a place I’d never go.”

         “Promises
made to a woman are meaningless,” he shot back at her.

         “Careful,
Paul, you’re sounding like a petulant little boy afraid of his Mama.”

         His
temper exploded and he backhanded her, knocking her to the floor.  She
scrambled to retrieve her glasses before he could step on them, then began
laughing.

         “Really?
 Is that all you got?” she taunted him, thankful that she wasn’t wearing
the earpiece to hear Shane and the others telling her to back off.  “I
fought girls in summer Camp when I was growing up who hit harder than you.’

         He
grabbed a handful of her hair and yanked her up off the floor just as Nathaniel
walked in.

         “Let
her go, Paul,” he said in a mild tone, as if he was used to diffusing his
brother.

         “She’s
not the docile thing you think her to be, Brother.  She’s oozing with
disrespect.”

         “I
never said she was docile, Brother,” Nathaniel countered.  “On the
contrary, I said she had spirit.”

         “Nathaniel,”
she said, calling attention to the fact that she was trying to pry Paul’s hands
from her hair.  

         “Paul.
 I said release her.  Now.”

         Paul
growled and pushed her roughly back to the ground, sending her sprawling.
 Nathaniel stepped to help her up with surprisingly gentle hands, but his
eyes never left his brother.

         “Do
not ever touch her again, Paul, do you hear me?  Madelyn isn’t one of the
dorm girls, nor will she ever be.”

         “You’re
going to side with that bitch over your own flesh and blood?”

         “Go
attend to your ladies in the Arena, Paul.  Leave Madelyn alone.”

         With
a final glare at her, Paul left, slamming the door behind him.  Nathaniel
gently brushed her hair away from her face and examined her cheek.

         “I
should have known better than to leave you alone with him.  I apologize.”

         She
offered him a weak smile.  “He hits like a puny girl.”

         Nathaniel
laughed and drew her into his embrace.  “You are a delight.  You
aren’t even intimidated by him, are you?”

         She
shrugged.  “He’s weak.  I’m not.”

         “He
truly didn’t frighten you.  He can be…volatile at times.  I try to
indulge him with women who give consent but I’m afraid he oversteps himself at
times.”

         “He
doesn’t scare me, but I will watch my back from now on.”

         “That
would be wise.  I’m afraid he gets jealous of anyone who tries to get
close to me.”

         “He’s
your brother.  Surely I’m no threat to him.”

         “It’s
just been the two of us for so long…but enough about him.  Are you OK?
 He didn’t hurt you too bad?  I don’t see a bruise forming.”

         “Nothing
I can’t handle.  I’ve definitely had worse.”

         He
lightly stroked a finger over her reddened cheek.  “You’ve been hurt
before?”

         “Let’s
just say my father wasn’t exactly a Prince.  He liked to pick on anyone
weaker than himself.”

         “I’m
so sorry, Madelyn.  What monsters you must think we are here,” he said,
catching her off-guard.  “What you saw yesterday with Olivia and
Stephanie…I assure you it’s all an act.  It’s part of the service we
provide our clients.”

         In
the control room, the men all exchanged puzzled glances.  Clients?
Services? How stupid did he think Tessa was, Shane wondered.  He was still
shaking with rage at seeing Paul Helton strike her.  And now Nathaniel was
telling her that everything she saw yesterday was an act?

         “You
all right, kid?” Gibson asked Shane.

         “I’ll
be better once I can get my hands on Paul Helton.”

         “You
and me both.  She handled it well, though.”

         “Yeah.
 Real well,” he murmured, clutching her ring and dog tags.  He looked
up at the monitor just in time to see Helton lean in to kiss her.
 Perfect.  Exactly what he didn’t need to see just now.

         “We
created quite a bit of a stir last night, you and I.  Everyone can’t wait
to meet you,” Nathaniel told her.  “I’ll formally introduce you at Sunset
Chapel tonight.”

         She
reached up to stroke his golden hair, smiling when he was at first startled.

         “You
aren’t used to having someone freely touch you, are you?”

         “Honestly,
no.  I’ve run this place for so long with such rigid rules that I’ve
forgotten what having someone with free will around is like…it’s quite
refreshing.”

         Tessa
laughed, she couldn’t help it.  When he was like this it was hard for her
to remember that she was supposed to be wary of him. 

         “You
mean all those wide-eyed girls in the dorms who look ready to fall at your feet
aren’t cutting it for you anymore?”

         “I
don’t think they ever did hold an appeal for me.  That’s all for Paul.”

         “They
why do you do all of this?”

         He
shrugged.  “The money’s good and it gives me the freedom to pursue my
interests.”

         “And
preaching?”

         “Well,
I wouldn’t call what I do preaching, per se.  More like teaching.  I
could take or leave it but the clients expect it.”

         “He’s
downplaying everything,” Joe said, “why would he do that?  And he’s
setting Paul up as the Gung Ho one.”

         “Does
he suspect her?” Bruce wondered.

         The
thought made the room fall silent for several minutes and voiced a small
suspicion that had been bothering Shane.  Helton didn’t fool him for a moment:
he knew exactly what would happen when he sent Paul to escort her in.
 He’d set her up to provoke his brother then conveniently stepped in
before things got out of hand.  Tessa surely recognized that.  It all
pointed to the fact that Nathaniel didn’t trust her and may suspect she is
something more than she appeared to be.

         He
began to pace while she and Helton made small talk.  The whole situation
made him uncomfortable.  Something wasn’t Kosher about it all.

         “What
are you thinking?” Bruce asked.

         “This
doesn’t feel right.  I think you’re right, he is suspicious of her…let’s
look at it from his point of view.  This beautiful, wealthy, unattached
woman shows up at one of your meetings.  She’s hot, she stands out in a
crowd so you want to meet her, then BAM!  Within four days you're kissing
her and she’s moving in, she thinks for the night but you’re sure you can
convince her to stay longer…but why?  Why would a beautiful, wealthy,
educated young woman be interested in staying, especially after you’ve hinted
at what goes on here and you’ve given her a taste of violence.  Why would
she stay unless she has a hidden agenda?’

         Gibson
regarded Shane thoughtfully for a moment.  “You don’t think he’s arrogant
enough to think she’s genuinely attracted to him?”

         Shane
shrugged. “It’s possible, sure…but I still come back to this: he knows Paul is
unstable.  He knew what would happen if he left Tessa alone with him.
 If you really cared for a woman you would never put her unprotected into
a volatile situation.”

         “What
do you suggest then?” Gibson asked.  “We could pull her out now.”

         “I
honestly don’t know,” he admitted.  “The part of me that loves her says
yes, I want to go in, guns blazing and pop that miserable SOB out of
existence…but the cop in me isn’t sure.  We don’t have any real evidence
to take them down yet.”

         “This
is a tough one for me as well,” Gibson admitted. “Tessa was one of those
soldiers under my command that I could always rely on.  She’s solid.”

         Bruce
spoke up.  “Let’s give her a little more time.  She’s surely got the
same suspicions we all have.  Let’s give her a chance to work through it.”

         Shane
took a deep breath.  He knew Bruce was right; they needed to give Tessa a
chance to build her case.  Didn’t mean he had to like it.

         He
turned his attention back to the monitor.  Helton was leading her out of
his office and up the main staircase, he assumed to her room.

         “So,
what’s the history of these buildings?” she asked Nathaniel as they headed up
the stairs.  “This house is beautiful.”

         “Thank
you.  My great grandparents built it.”

         “Really?”
she asked, surprised.  Why hadn’t she known this was family land?

         “Just
our own little piece of Texas history.  That’s Paul’s wing to the
right.  I suggest you don’t venture down his way.”

         “Duly
noted,” she said, smiling up at him.

         He
stopped and looked down into her upturned face, caressing her cheek with such
tenderness it surprised her.

         “What
is it?” she asked, trying to interpret the look on his face.

         “I’m
just amazed how you can smile after that run-in with Paul.  You’re cheek
is only slightly bruised, thankfully.”

         “Why
not?  It’s over and he’s not here with us now.”

         “God’s
in His Heaven, all’s right with the world?”

         She
laughed.  “Something like that.”

         “I
wish I could be as forgiving.  I didn’t like seeing him touch you, hurt
you.  How is it I could feel this way for someone I just met?”

         “Maybe
you should get out more,” she teased.

         He
laughed.  “You may be right.  Let’s go check out your rooms, shall
we?” he said, taking her hand. 

         Tessa
told herself to stay in the moment and not think of Shane to help her focus.
 She hated to think of what seeing her flirt with another man was doing to
him.

         “Here
you are,” he said, opening the door.

         “Oh,
Nathaniel, this room is stunning,” she said, and she meant it.  The room
was huge.  A luxurious canopied bed was against the far wall, draped in
white and soft rose hues, extremely soft and feminine décor.  There was an
enormous bay window with a window seat the size of a full bed, a fireplace and
conversation area.  It was beautiful.

         “Through
this door is the bathroom,” he said, ushering her inside.  It was like
something out of a magazine.  The bathtub was the size of a small pool.
 The shower was a large walk-in with multiple showerheads.  There was
a long vanity and sink along one wall and another sink along the other wall that
held notably men’s accessories.  “The door at the end of the room connects
to my bedroom,” he told her.