Thrill of the Chase (Dangerous Love) (15 page)

B
ut doctor, can she mentally handle that information?” Chase asked.

The doctor took off his wire-rimmed glasses and set them on his desk. His fingers formed a steeple as he sat and stared at Chase. The doctor had provided Chase with frequent updates over the past year, as Chase was granted full disclosure to Gabrielle’s progress and long-term prognosis. Because Gabrielle was in no shape to make that decision at the time of her admission to the Loyola Ranch, the Greens had given the hospital permission to speak with their daughter’s fiancé. Chase knew he should have informed Gabrielle’s parents that there was no possible way that he and Gabrielle would ever reconcile. But they had just learned that their daughter had tried to kill herself, and he’d thought that it was best they focus on Gabrielle’s recovery rather than the relationship that was beyond repair.

“Gabrielle came to us fragile and frightened. She left as a strong and confident woman, one who understands the importance and necessity of ongoing therapy. Though she was discharged over three months ago, she continues her weekly therapy sessions here at the Ranch. She has shared with me that she is working again, modeling for some high-end clothing designer, and has even ventured out on a few dates.”

Chase processed everything the doctor had said. He had questioned whether he should come. Chase hadn’t seen Gabrielle since she was admitted, though he had checked in quite often with her doctors. His inquiries, the need to know that she was going to be okay, were motivated by guilt, not love. The love he thought he’d felt for her evaporated completely the moment he had walked into her apartment that night. He recalled how she looked, straddling some guy he had never seen before and riding him fiercely. Her long, dark hair flowed wildly down her bare back as she arched in pleasure. She had been panting when she screamed her lover’s name. Chase had simply looked on, watching his future crumble. And though self-pity could have taken over at that point, and rightfully so, his anger had moved to the forefront.

Thinking about Gabrielle fucking another guy had once made him crazy. He had spent months envisioning her, playing that scene from her bedroom over and over again in his mind. But what really brought him to his knees, what devastated him, was the fact that everything had been a lie: their relationship…even the baby.

Chase shook his head, trying to dispel thoughts of the unborn child, a child that he thought he had helped create. He hadn’t come all the way to California, leaving Erin with a bodyguard and her fear, to reopen old wounds. There was a clear purpose to his visit, and the information that the doctor had just given him was the green light he needed to end this once and for all.

“I’m happy to hear that she’s doing so well,” Chase said, as he stood from his chair. It took him a moment to realize that he truly meant what he had just said. He was happy and relieved that Gabrielle had obviously moved on with her life and had battled back from a very dark place. She may have betrayed him in more ways than anyone could count, but he wasn’t an asshole. He wanted to be sure that she was in the right frame of mind, strong enough to hear what he had to say to her.

The doctor rounded the desk and shook Chase’s hand. “It was nice to finally speak to you in person. If you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to call me.”

“Thank you, doctor. I appreciate everything you have done for Gabrielle.” Chase gave him a polite nod and walked out of his office.

His flight had been delayed due to the weather, but it was still possible to make it in time. Chase didn’t want to miss Erin’s presentation. Yes, he was interested in her report and in learning about a drug his company might possibly launch. But what he truly wanted to experience, what he had a feeling he would witness, was Erin taking on this project, making it her own. He had seen glimpses of that fire, the confidence that would have served as a solid foundation for a promising career as a doctor. He didn’t buy the excuse she had given him while they lay in bed. She had been fully committed to attending medical school, even up until the last night of final exams. And then she’d left Philadelphia and tucked herself away in one of his many research labs for the past few months. All signs pointed to her ex-boyfriend. He couldn’t think of anything else that would make her change her mind and choose a career path that didn’t appear to suit her.

Chase stared out the window of the airplane and thought about his encounter with Gabrielle. She had said all the right things, even seemed gracious during their visit. But something didn’t sit right. And as New York City came into view, he felt the knot in his stomach tighten.

B
eing a man of means opened many doors, which had allowed Scott Morris to be quite resourceful over the years. And it was time his Angel knew just how resourceful he could be.

He had felt his Angel slipping further away from him. Erin needed to be reined in, reminded of whom she belonged to. And if that meant him contacting a third party to make Erin realize that her new boyfriend wasn’t the perfect man she thought he was, so be it. He was more than willing to set aside his desire to go about this all alone and seek assistance from someone who could unravel everything Montclair and Erin thought they had built in such a short time.

Scott looked at his surroundings, appreciating the beautiful potted plants and well-maintained porch. Great care had been given to the flowers that hung from multiple hooks, as they were full and obviously flourishing. He rang the doorbell and waited. A set of footsteps could be heard from the other side of the door. Without a sound, the door opened, revealing a woman who many would describe as breathtaking.

At five foot ten, probably weighing less than one hundred and twenty pounds, and with dark brown hair that flowed uninhibited past smooth shoulders, Gabrielle Green was definitely a vision. And though he could appreciate a good-looking woman when the moment arose, she was flawed. She did not possess that one quality that could send his body into a frenzy. She was not pure. Her body was tainted, thoroughly marked over the years, most likely used by multiple partners.

“Chase is due to arrive in less than an hour. Obviously, I don’t want him to walk in on us,” Gabrielle said as she opened the door wider. She gestured for him to enter her home.

“But that wouldn’t be the first time Chase walked in on a thought-provoking situation.” Scott smiled at her, though she returned his gaze with a scowl, making her suddenly look less than gorgeous.

“I told you on the phone that I would hear what you had to say. But I won’t tolerate you if you are choosing to be an asshole.” She sat down on her loveseat.

Yeah, they were going to get along just fine.

“Gabrielle is such a pretty name,” he said, sitting on the sofa across from her.

“Don’t bullshit me. Just tell me what I want to know. My mother called me this morning and told me that she saw Chase with a woman named Erin Whitley while she was out to dinner.”

He had to quell his anger as his Angel’s name passed Gabrielle’s full, pouty lips. “Yes, they seem to be a couple.”

Her body stiffened and it was clear to Scott that the news that her ex-fiancé had moved on was not sitting well with her. Initially, he had been concerned that too much time had passed, that Gabrielle most likely had gotten over Chase Montclair and was comfortable with the new life she had established on the West Coast. But the jealous look in her eyes suggested she was far from finished with her ex-fiancé.

“I know that there have been others. I’m not naïve enough to think he has abstained this past year. What makes this Erin Whitley any different?” she asked, folding her arms across her chest.

“You’ll have to take my word for it,” he said, a smile spreading across his face. “Trust me.”

“Trust you? I don’t know you, and you still haven’t proved to me why I should waste another minute on you,” she said.

Scott was showing remarkable restraint. It took everything he had not to wrap his fingers around that pretty little neck of hers and squeeze until her smart mouth was silenced for good. Later, he thought. Right now, Gabrielle Green actually served a purpose.

“Let’s just say that we could be of great use to each other. Obviously, you still want Chase Montclair. And I have a past with Erin Whitley that I wish to rekindle.”

Gabrielle crossed her long, slender legs and sat back in her chair. Her lips curled to form a mischievous smile, signaling that the lightbulb had turned on.

Finally, he had her full attention.

E
rin was already a nervous wreck due to the presentation she was going to give when she realized that she had misplaced the diamond earrings Chase had given her. Erin ripped her bedroom apart looking for them, but she had to face the possibility that she had left them at Chase’s penthouse. She looked at her watch and decided that she had time to stop by his place, find the diamond studs, arrive at work, and still iron out the remaining wrinkles pertaining to her presentation. Erin was probably making a mountain out of a molehill, but she didn’t want Chase to think that she didn’t appreciate his gifts.

Erin stepped out of her apartment only to be greeted by her oversized and very serious babysitter.

“Good morning, Ms. Whitley.”

“Hi, Andrew. I need to stop off at Chase’s this morning and pick something up.”

“Not a problem, Ms. Whitley.”

They reached the elevator and he pushed the button to descend. “Please call me Erin,” she said, knowing full well the response she would get, being that she had corrected him on the formal use of her name at least a dozen times already.

“I’m sorry that I cannot grant such a request,” he said. His voice was stern, but she detected the slightest hint of a smirk.

“Very well,” she said. It took Erin a second to realize who she’d just sounded like. She smiled as she remembered Professor Farrell’s go-to response for almost any given situation. Guilt and sadness crept in as she recalled her abrupt departure from Philly. She had been so selfish, so anxious to leave her past behind and escape, that she hadn’t even given the professor she had grown to love like a father a proper good-bye…and a thank-you. Someday soon she would gather enough courage to pay him the visit he deserved.

They arrived at the penthouse in record time, somehow navigating the typically clogged streets of New York City. As they walked through the lobby of the luxurious apartment building, Erin noticed the clerk at the desk first glance at her bodyguard and then nod. She had planned on begging building management to let her into the penthouse, hoping luck would be on her side since more than a handful of the building’s staff had seen her coming or going with Chase over the past couple weeks. But it appeared that luck was not needed, as the two men silently corresponded, and they proceeded to the elevator.

At first Erin had despised the idea of having a bodyguard with her, never having a moment to herself. But she realized she was again being selfish, and if it made Chase…and Paul…happy that she was protected, then it was worth the invasion of her privacy. She also had to admit that the monster coming after her was a living, breathing animal that showed no remorse, a man who had proved that he could get to her again. Paul and Chase were right. A bodyguard was not excessive.

She had to give it to Chase. Andrew had been a good choice. Although he was a bit stiff and reserved, he never pried or even hovered. He knew exactly how and when to keep his distance. It was remarkable how discreet he was; no one, with the exception of Chase and Paul, knew—or at least they didn’t let on—that she had a babysitter of the highest caliber.

“I’ll just be a second,” she said, as the elevator arrived at Chase’s floor.

Andrew nodded as they stepped into Chase’s foyer. The hollow feeling due to Chase’s absence deepened. It had only been two days since she had seen him, but it might as well have been two years. Erin couldn’t wait to see him, feel his arms around her as he pulled her close, claiming her as his. She had never imagined herself wanting a man this much. This thought filled her with both excitement and fear. She had fallen so fast…so completely.

Erin headed to Chase’s bedroom first, since it was the room they had definitely spent the most time in. She felt her face flush as she recalled their last evening, and morning, together. Staring at his massive king-sized bed now, Erin couldn’t help imagining the things he could and hopefully would do with her body that night, after the benefit. Shaking her head in an attempt to refocus, Erin shifted her gaze to the nightstand and then to the bureau. No earrings.

She walked into the master bath and switched on the light. She spotted their brilliance immediately, the light reflecting off the diamonds enabling her to zero in on their location. Sighing in relief, Erin practically skipped over to the vanity to secure earrings that she vowed she would never take off again. However, in her haste, she dropped one of the earrings to the floor and, as if in slow motion, she watched it roll underneath the door Chase kept locked.

Shit.

Erin bent down on her hands and knees and peeked beneath the door, only to be greeted by complete darkness. She tried to slip her hand through the small crack, but the diamond stud must have grown a set of wheels, because it was definitely beyond her grasp. Panic started to seep in when suddenly it was interrupted by two voices from the direction of Chase’s foyer. Erin leapt to her feet, not wanting to be found in her current pose, and headed for Chase’s bedroom door. She recognized Andrew’s voice immediately but it took a few moments to identify the female he was speaking to. Erin swallowed whatever pride she had left and exited Chase’s bedroom.

“Hi, Charlotte.”

“Good morning, Ms. Whitley. How are you this morning, dear?” the housekeeper asked, in her typical singsong English accent.

“Well, to be honest, I seemed to have dropped my earring in the bathroom and it rolled underneath the door. I tried to open it, but it was locked.”

Charlotte smiled, but it seemed strained this time around. “Not a problem. I’ll get it for you.”

“I don’t want to be a bother,” Erin said. “I’ll search for the earring if you can unlock the door for me.”

“No bother,” she said rather quickly, her tone somewhat clipped.

Erin forced a smile on her face and nodded. She looked at Andrew to see if he had witnessed the change in Charlotte’s demeanor. But his face remained neutral, as if made of stone. Charlotte excused herself and when she returned, a set of keys dangled from her right hand.

Erin started to follow her down the hall toward Chase’s bedroom when Charlotte said, “I’ll just be a second.”

Erin stopped in her tracks, knowing exactly what she meant to say. Stay here, Ms. Whitley. You are not welcome in that room. The room behind the locked door. What in God’s name was behind that door? Erin’s brain was entertaining several possibilities when Charlotte returned with her earring in the palm of her hand.

“Here you go, Ms. Whitley,” she said, handing Erin the stud. The smile that Erin was accustomed to had returned.

But something lingered behind that smile, leaving Erin with an uneasy feeling in her stomach. She was actually toying with the idea of just coming out and asking Charlotte about that damned door when Erin heard Andrew clear his throat from behind.

Instinctively, Erin looked down at her watch and noticed that she was cutting it close. If she wanted to get to work and have a little time for any last-minute changes to her presentation, she had to leave right now. Maybe it was luck, maybe it was divine intervention, but Erin suddenly felt grateful that she didn’t let her curiosity get the best of her and subject Charlotte to her questions about her employer’s locked door.

“Oh, thank you, Charlotte. I’m so glad you came when you did. I have to give a presentation this morning and I would have felt naked without these,” Erin said, putting the earrings on.

“You are most welcome, Ms. Whitley,” she said, her voice filled with that familiar warmth. “And good luck on your presentation. I’m sure you’ll do just fine.”

“I appreciate that,” Erin said, smiling. As Erin walked toward the elevator, she glanced over her shoulder just in time to see Charlotte tucking the ring of keys away in a kitchen drawer.