Overture (Rain Dance, Book 1) (Rain Dance Series) (74 page)

     
"New York.
I would be busy for most of the time, but I would know that you're safe. There
are plenty of places to shop there," he added. "And you'd like the
pizza."

     
I chuckled.
"When do you have to leave?"

   
  
"Tonight, actually. I wanted to tell you Friday
night, but you left before I got the chance and yesterday you asked for some
space…"

     
Pulling away, I
glanced at the clock. It was just after five now. "What time?"

     
"The
flight is scheduled to leave at nine-thirty. It's short notice, I know. But I
wanted to tell you in person, and there were some last minute details I had to
take care of before coming here."

     
"But is it
really okay? There are a lot of people in New York. If someone found out I was
with you, wouldn't that be bad?"

     
He shook his
head. "It's alright now. Since I got all the information I needed from
Noel, we were able to figure out exactly who to look for. We've already got a
lead on her. It will all be over soon, Daphne. You won't have to hide away
anymore." He smoothed out my hair and tucked some of it behind my ear.

     
Well, that
was fast.
Relief flooded through me.
Holy shit.
Could all of this
worry have been avoided had I just let him talk to Noel in the first place?
Does this mean that I won't have to leave?
Had I just spent yesterday
packing most of my shit and crying for nothing?
Wait a minute…
"What
will you do if you find her?"

     
"
When
we find her," he corrected. "Don't worry about that."

     
"You can't
turn her in without Wilhelm somehow coming up, though." I began to panic.
Even if she was no longer a member, she was still linked to them. That was why
I couldn't go to the police about her without giving myself up to Wilhelm, who
now had members working within the force.

     
Ethan gently
squeezed my hand. "We're aware of that. If we can't reason with her, there
are other ways of dealing with the situation that don't involve the police or
the feds."

     
Slowly, I stood
up and walked to the opposite side of the table, now needing my own space.
"Like?"

     
He observed me
very carefully as he spoke. "Killing her would probably be last on the
list."

     
Killing
.
There was that word again, spoken just as easily as any other ordinary word.
Like it was a normal topic of conversation. It was one thing for me to think
about it - I had already experienced it, so it had since become a part of my
life. But for Ethan to have actually seriously considered it an option - that
it was even on his list at all…

     
That right
there told me a lot. It was enough to make me want to open my eyes again.

     
I stared at
him, needing clarification. "You would allow that woman's death?"

     
Leaning
forward, he rested his elbows on his knees. "Daphne…we got a hold of her
records. She's a far cry from what you'd call a good egg. If she were to get
sentenced for the crimes she's committed, she would get prison for life, if not
the death penalty. The same could be said for her deceased lover, as
well."

     
He thought I
was against killing her?
Of course. To him, you're the good girl, after all.

     
"But
Ethan," I began, unsure of how to go on. "This kind of thing is…It's
a little beyond…I mean, I know you sort of deal with security-ish things now,
but you're a fucking business man. You can't just-" I stopped when his
gaze shifted to scrutiny. I was going to have to think of another way to
continue. "…If you aren't involving any officials, then just how exactly
are you…
Who
exactly do you have looking for her?"

     
"Other
professionals who are far more qualified."

     
And there was
that
word again.
Professionals
. "Are you serious? Tell me, where do you
find these professionals? Hunts-R-Us? Catch-a-criminal-dot-com?" I became
more frustrated when he smirked at me. "Be honest. You aren't doing any
illegal shit are you?"

     
His sly smile
faded slightly. "I'm not Noel."

     
No, he
certainly wasn't. But that didn't mean that he was completely clean, either.
Whatever business he had with Karina had to have been something shady,
especially if it involved an NDA. "You were telling me the truth, right?
About why Karina came home with you Friday night?"

     
"Yes," he answered immediately with a straight face.

     
After taking a
moment to breathe and clear my head, I took a good look at the man who sat in
front of me. He was young. He was also extremely smart. Not to mention
skillful, observant, charming, clever, good looking, and rich. He had insight
into things. He had resources. He had connections. Chances were very likely
that he had been exposed to some dark shit in the early stages of his career.
How else could he have known what he did about Wilhelm? How else could he have
accepted my story without a second thought? It was how he was able to handle
all of this so easily. The man was knowledgeable. His wealth allowed him access
to things that no normal person could get a hold of. But could it allow him to
get away with things no normal person could get away with, too? Was he above
the law?

     
I looked at
him.
Really
looked at him, finally allowing myself to see what I wasn't
willing to before. No longer was he just
my
Ethan - the man who, no
matter how authoritative he might have been, still managed to be unbelievably
sweet when the occasion called for it. What I saw now was a king with secrets
and a hidden darkness that I couldn't touch on. I had already known this to
some extent, but there were so many more things that I had overlooked. Things
that I had purposely ignored to keep myself from questioning us.

     
He
was
intense. More than that, he was overwhelming. He was covertly persuasive. He
was controlling. He was possessive. At times, he was even scary. These were
some of the things that others saw, whether they realized it or not. They were
the things that I had stopped myself from seeing after that first day. I didn't
want to question him - to question our compatibility. But now that I was being
honest with myself, it was okay. Because I knew that I could handle this man
now.

     
He was all
these things, but more importantly…he was
good
. He was kind and
generous. Talented and capable. He was caring. He was loving. True, I hadn't
known him for too long, but I knew him well enough to know that all of this was
true.

     
"Now
what's wrong?" he asked, his frown deepening.

     
"…I see
you." I didn't realize I was tearing up until I heard how muffled my words
were.

     
The worry on
his face turned to confusion.

     
"I'm not
afraid of you."

     
He stilled
completely then, his expression going entirely vacant. My words had triggered
something within him. He didn't show it, but I could feel it. The disquiet was
palpable. It came to a point where I could feel it dripping from him. I felt it
touch the tips of my toes, slowly making its way up the inside of my body,
following my spine and continuing upwards until it leaked over the crown of my
head, surrounding me in a cold and wet mist of alarm.

     
My instincts kicked
in. I wasn't afraid. There was no doubt in my mind - he wouldn't hurt me, not
seriously. But in that moment I knew…he most certainly
could
if he so
wanted. This is what separated him from normal folk. Capability. Yes, this man
was
many
things. Among those of which I had mentioned, he was also
dangerous. In fact, I would go so far as to say he was lethal.

     
…Was that it?
Was that why I felt so safe with him?

     
Was that why I
craved him like I did the water?

     
My feet moved
on their own, quickly closing the gap between us. Before I knew it, his face
was in my hands and my lips were on his forehead.

     
I voiced my
thoughts quietly, "I was afraid to see it before…afraid of what it might
mean. But it's okay now." I realized that the chances of him understanding
what I was talking about were pretty slim. But that was okay, too. I sank to
the floor and, taking his hand, I gently kissed his palm before resting my head
onto one of his knees. "Sorry, I just had a bit of an epiphany."

     
I heard him
swallow. "You scared me there for a moment," he said as he ran his
hand through my hair. "Are you going to tell me more about it?"

     
I shook my
head, opting to remain silent for the next minute before I eventually murmured,
"You really do make me feel safe."

     
"…So
you'll come with me?" he asked, trying to get things back on track.

     
I smiled.
"No."

     
His hand
stopped mid-stroke. "Why?" Even though his voice was calm, I could
tell that he was struggling.

     
"I'm
almost finished with the mural. If I work super hard, I might even be done by
the end of the week."

     
"Are you
that eager to get it finished?" His voice was quieter now.

     
I lifted my
head up to look at him. "Of course. I love being able to visit the
building all the time, but I miss being able to work from home. More
importantly, I want you to see it already."

     
That seemed to
soften him up. "I'll miss having you there. Even if it's only ever for a
short amount of time, I enjoy the times I can be with you during my
breaks."

     
"I can
always stop by your office. Um…if you allow that kind of thing, that is."
It was okay to start thinking of the future now, right? Now that I was finally
willing to accept that there was a chance of me
having
a future...

     
"Of course
it's allowed. If you'll allow Douglas to drive you," he added.

     
Was there even
a point in arguing? "If that's what the master wants…"

     
He chuckled and
returned his attention to smoothing out my hair. "But the mural will have
to wait another week. I don't want to leave you here by yourself."
Yep,
persuasive by stealth.

     
"It will
be fine. Anyway, I won't be alone. Dale, remember?" At least until
Wednesday, but I wasn't about to tell him that.

     
"I'm not
leaving you behind," he stated obstinately.

     
I kept my voice
polite, but firm. "I'm not going."

     
His hand
stopped again. "I don't think you've fully grasped the extent of my
dilemma. You aren't safe here. Are you willing to let me leave you in the hands
of an escort to protect you?"

     
What
dilemma?
"No, definitely
not
."

     
"Then
you'll come."

     
"No, I
won't." I wasn't angry yet, but I was certainly a little miffed. "If
you know who's after me, then it won't be long before you find her. You said so
yourself, right? It will be over soon. Or were you just saying that?"

     
"No, we
have evidence of her crossing from Arizona into New Mexico about two weeks
ago."

     
"She was
heading east? That means I'm perfectly safe - for now, at least." Did this
mean that I could stay? Was it safe? Would she actually be caught before I had
to leave? I looked up at Ethan with a smile. It faded when I saw his
expression. "...What?"

     
"Noel is
still here. He'll be here for another two weeks, at least. On business, which
is no doubt a front," he grumbled.

     
"How do
you know?"

     
"He
mentioned it when I told him to get the fuck out of Washington."

     
I couldn't
contain the small giggle that erupted from me. There was just something funny
about Ethan thinking he had reign over the entirety of the state. Yeah, the
wine was finally starting to get to me. Thank the heavens for that. Although
now I wasn't so sure I needed it anymore.

     
He lifted my
chin and softly ran his thumb over my cheek. His eyes were warmer now.
"Come with me. Please," he asked softly. "I don't want to chance
you running into him while I'm gone. I won't be able to sleep knowing that he
might try something."