Savage Cinderella (26 page)

Then Justin stopped abruptly, pushed her
back, and severed the connection that burned between them. "No, not
like this, not now. You are way too vulnerable and honestly, so am
I." Seeing her disappointment, Justin managed to catch his breath,
then clarified, "I do want you." He leveled a steamy gaze at her, a
determined smile curving his lips, "When the time is right. But for
now, that kiss is all you are getting out of me."

Brinn released a shaky breath and nodded,
unable to form words to argue. Another thing her mother was right
about was that love was not black and white, right or wrong. What
Brinn did know for certain was what love was not. It was not about
domination, or hateful demand. It was not meant to be painful, but
beautiful and passionate, and mutual. Loving Justin would teach her
what love could be, and Brinn wanted to find out—needed to find
out. Determined to prove herself, even with Abby and Cody tagging
along on their trip to the mountain, Brinn would make sure Justin
would see how much she loved him.

"Okay, you win. We can make it a foursome,
then.”

Justin chuckled and lifted a dark brow. "When
we talk to your parents about our plans, you might not want to
phrase it just that way."

Hearts are Breakable

With plans made for the week after Labor Day,
Friday afternoon came and Brinn and Justin had agreed that he would
pick her up after work. They would travel to Cody's house on the
way out of Atlanta and they would find a way to stuff all of their
supplies into the BMW's trunk.

Brinn had a better idea. She had just gotten
her license and her parents—who were struggling to let go of their
hold on her—reluctantly agreed to let her take the Ford Escape
Hybrid they had recently purchased. Her father told her she could
drive it once she passed her driving test and she had held him to
the promise.

Her parents seemed distant from each other
despite their common goal of spoiling their only child, returned as
if from the grave. She’d asked her mother why they never had more
children, and her response made Brinn that much sadder for the pain
her abduction had caused her parents. Though her mother didn’t say
so outright, Brinn could see that her guilt over losing her
daughter that day in the park somehow made her feel unworthy of
having another child. Brinn stumbled upon her mother and father
more than once, arguing quietly about what was best for her, only
to have them stop short, pretending they weren’t. The awkward
silence that followed left her feeling that she was at the center
of their discourse. A few days away from the situation seemed like
a good idea.

Brinn wanted to surprise Justin by picking
him up at work. He would see that taking the truck was a much
better idea for packing all of their supplies for the weekend. He
would also see that she was no longer the naïve, sheltered girl she
was when he’d found her. She pulled into the parking lot and parked
next to his BMW.

Taking the stairs to the twelfth floor
office, Brinn felt light and happy. The trial date had been set,
she had a driver’s license, a boyfriend, and the freedom and sense
of belonging she’d always longed for. There was still a lot she had
to overcome. The trial was not going to be easy, but she was
beginning to believe that she had found a place in the world.

Twice a week therapy appointments with Dr.
Carlson, a sweet older lady who specialized in post-traumatic
stress disorder were going as well as Brinn could have expected. It
was a relief to find out that her nightmares and symptoms of
anxiety and nervous tension were to be expected under the
circumstances and perfectly normal. There was hope that, in time,
things would get better.

With her confusion over her feelings for
Justin and the way her body betrayed her at every turn, Dr. Carlson
had suggested she wait until after the trial before pursuing a
relationship. Justin said he understood Brinn’s need to withdraw,
but the tension growing between them left her feeling an unnatural
detachment from him. She missed how it felt to have his arms around
her, holding her against his solid frame, making her feel safe and
loved. She wanted him to kiss her again—the way he had before—but
she struggled with the warring sensations of desire and fear that
battled for control within her.

Brinn reached the landing in the stairwell
that had a large red number twelve painted on the door and wall,
out of breath, but anxious to see Justin. She opened the door into
the bustling atmosphere of the cubicled magazine office. She had
been there several times with Justin while he was writing her story
and had met his coworkers, who were all friendly and excited to see
her whenever she visited. She asked Stephanie, the fair-haired
receptionist at the front desk, where she might find Justin, and
was directed to the editor's office.

She’d met Charlene a few times. Justin’s boss
was a pretty and outgoing young woman who was pleasant enough, but
Brinn felt awkward and shy around her. She was uncomfortable with
the way Charlene was always touching him and standing so close. It
left an unpleasant feeling in Brinn's stomach.

As she approached Charlene's office, she saw
the door opened a crack, and noticed the odd feeling had returned.
She knocked once lightly and then pushed the door open. A jolt of
hot anger took over her whole body when she saw Justin and Charlene
in an embrace. Their lips were locked together in a kiss,
Charlene’s fingers entwined in Justin’s hair as he let out a
groan.

Brinn stood frozen for half a heart beat and
then she turned and bolted. She heard Justin far behind her,
calling out for her to wait, but her heart thundered in her ears.
She bypassed the elevator, and ran down the stairs. She jumped from
the third and fourth step of each floor, nearly sprouting wings in
her effort to flee from the heartbreaking scene. She didn’t want to
hear anything he had to say.

By the time she reached her vehicle and sped
out of the parking lot, Justin was just coming out the front of the
building. She saw him run after her truck, but she didn't slow
down. Tears blurred her vision as she forced herself to concentrate
on the road.

How could he do this to her? She felt like
someone had stabbed her in the heart. A bone-deep ache, mixed with
a pain and fury she had never imagined she could feel, poured from
her body like molten lava. She sobbed and cried and screamed, but
didn't stop driving. What had she been thinking? She should never
have come down from her mountain. She should never have trusted
him.

Her cell phone rang several times until
finally she shut it off and stuffed it in the glove compartment.
She didn't want to talk to Justin. There was nothing he could say
to explain why he was kissing that woman. Mopping her face and
wiping her nose with her sleeve, Brinn saw the scene over and over
in her mind.

Charlene had red, luxurious curls, and bright
green eyes that glowed like fiery emeralds when she looked at
Justin. Now, she understood why. The woman was obviously in love
with him. But why did he kiss her? Did he love her? Maybe it was
like Phillip had told Abby. "Men have needs," he'd said, just
before breaking off the engagement. The idea that Justin wanted the
kind of relationship Brinn might never be able to give him made the
hot tears stream faster.

Charlene had a worldliness about her. Justin
would like that. He had travelled and seen places Brinn would never
see. And Charlene dressed like a model in a magazine. She wore
short skirts and high heels and tops that made her large breasts
squish together like she'd stuffed her bra with two ripe
grapefruit. Brinn fumed, remembering Charlene's body pressed
against Justin's. How could he not want such a woman? She was
everything that Brinn would never be: sexy, self-confident, in
control, and not burdened with an ugly past that made her afraid of
intimate contact. The thought of Justin holding that woman the way
he’d held her caused Brinn to swerve. The SUV slid toward the edge
of the road and then back on just before it nearly careened into a
ditch.

She regained control, gripped the wheel
tight, and screamed her pain. Shuddering breaths escaped through
sobs until her tears stung and dried on her cheeks. She watched the
mountains in the distance growing closer. A combined sense of
comfort and dread filled her chest. She would be alone there, but
there was no one to hurt her, no one to lie to her, and no one to
break her heart. And maybe if she was gone, her parents would stop
arguing.

Brinn, exhausted but fueled by her raging
emotions, blindly followed the GPS coordinates that her father had
programmed into her truck. They would take her to Abby's farm at
the eastern edge of the Chattahoochee National Forest. She would
park there, commiserate with Abby about what rats men were, say
good-bye to her friend, and head into the hills alone. She needed
time to think by herself. She needed to get away from Justin—from
this foreign world determined to keep her out.

A crushing sadness bigger than she'd ever
felt before permeated her soul as she drove along the stretch of
highway leading out of the city. In all the years that she’d lived
in the mountains, she had never felt as alone as in that moment.
She couldn't think about how worried her parents would be or even
if Justin would care that she was gone. They would all be better
off without her.

Brinn was so distracted by the whirlwind of
thoughts and feelings that she didn't notice the pickup truck that
followed her every turn not far behind.

Running Scared

Justin flew down the highway but Brinn’s
truck was nowhere in sight. Why wasn’t she answering her damn
phone? But he already knew the answer to that question. How could
he have been so stupid? He knew better than to let Charlene get
close. She’d been waiting for a chance to corner him and her timing
couldn’t have been worse. When his phone rang, he jumped to connect
the call. “Brinn, is that you?”

“
This is John Hathaway.
Isn’t Brinn with you?”

Justin hesitated. "No, Sir. She took off
without me a half an hour ago. She was upset about a
misunderstanding. She isn't answering her phone, but I'm on my way
out to Abby's house. It's the only place I can think that she would
go."

“
Oh, God.” John’s voice
crackled with tension. “We have to find her.”

“
What’s happened?” Justin’s
jaw tightened as he gripped the steering wheel harder.

"I just received a call from Bud Paulsen.
Apparently, the van transporting Stockman from the county jail
overturned. He killed both guards, freed himself, and escaped on
foot." He hesitated before adding. "We have to assume he's armed.
The police have put out an APB on any stolen vehicles in the
vicinity and contacted the State Police.” John’s voice had lost any
remainder of calm and was now frantic. “I’ll call Bud back and have
him add Brinn’s Ford to the search.”

“
I’ll call Abby and warn
her that Brinn is probably headed her way and to keep an eye out
for Stockman.” Justin’s mind spun with the horrible possibilities
of what would happen if he didn’t get to Brinn before her
kidnapper. As if echoing his thoughts, Brinn’s father came back on
the line, the fear in his voice palpable.

"I don't know how he could possibly get to
her, but I'm certain that he will try. He knows she’s the key to
his conviction...and he’s going to want her silenced.”

"I'll pick up Cody on my way out of town.
Call me if you hear any news on Brinn." Justin hung up the phone
and pressed his foot hard to the accelerator.

∞∞∞

By the time Brinn reached Abby's farmhouse,
her tears had dried and she was as composed as she could be under
the circumstances. Seeing her friend, however, sent her back into
hysterics. "I hate him!" she cried, while Abby rubbed her back in
soothing circles.

"They are all vermin," Abby agreed.

"I thought Justin was different." Brinn
sobbed and then hiccupped. "I thought he loved me."

Abby nodded, "I’m sure he loves you, Sweetie.
There has to be a logical explanation for what you saw."

"You didn't see them.” Brinn shot off the
couch, waving her arms as if to push the thought away. “Her hands
were all over him. She was like a poison ivy vine with lips!" Brinn
ranted, fuming at the memory and pacing a swath along the living
room carpet.

"What was Justin doing?"

"He was kissing her!"

Abby shook her head and added helpfully, "I
know, but where were his hands?"

Brinn choked back another sob, but thought
back to the horrible picture that was seared into her mind. "His
hands were at her waist...on her hips, I guess. Not that it matters
much where his hands were. It was his lips attached to hers that
makes me angry." She stopped pacing, took in a shuddering breath,
and wiped her tears away again. She faced Abby and set her
shoulders. "It doesn't matter. I don't need him. She can have him.
Her and her fancy clothes and her curves can keep him. I'm going
back to the mountain. It's where I belong."

Abby bit her lip. "Why don't you stay here
for tonight? It's getting late and don't you think you should give
Justin a chance to explain? I mean, even if what you saw is what
you think it is, at least then you'd know for certain."

Only Brinn could understand her friend's
roundabout logic, but had to admit that she made sense. It was late
in the afternoon and the days were getting shorter, the nights
cooler. She could smell a hard rain coming on. Maybe it would be
best if she waited until morning to start up into the mountains.
The sound of a truck out front caught her attention.