Page 9 of Protecting Her

Mainly, they weren’t sex-traffickers so I wasn’t getting myself into anything shady. Would that be on a tabloid site though? I wondered as I headed into the kitchen to make some toast and scrambled eggs. I saw a bottle of white wine in the fridge that I would definitely have a go at later on tonight.

I tripped on my guitar case as I walked back into the living room, but I managed to not set the kitchen on fire. That was a miracle. I wasn’t the best cook in the world, and my brush with the guitar case wasn’t my first. I could be clumsy sometimes. My mom always said I needed glasses because I could trip over thin air, but how would glasses help improve that? My eyes had been tested anyway, and they’d been fine.

I brushed my hair out of my face and settled on the couch to eat. I felt a twinge of soreness and smirked. That was new, but it wasn’t a bad thing. Kevin had been thick and long. I wouldn’t have minded a bit if he’d still been here this morning, but beggars couldn’t be choosers. Besides, his note had said his father was ill. I couldn’t blame him for leaving, could I?

I munched on toast and my eggs and waited for the day to pass. I didn’t want to go outside; something might fuck up this opportunity I’d been given, and I had nothing else to do. I found a free book on Amazon and opened it on my new phone, determined to enjoy the luxury of a king-size bed all to myself. I snuggled down and began to read, still amazed at how much had changed in less than twenty-four hours.

Yesterday, I’d basically been begging in the park. Today I was in a hotel I could never hope to afford, and the world had shown me a kindness I didn’t know existed anymore. Well, Kevin Thompson had. I’d made a mistake when I decided to come to England with Graham, but somehow, fate had decided to turn that into a very good decision. I wasn’t going to argue with that.

I’d be careful, I’d tread wisely, but I’d also take the hand that had been held out to me. It would be stupid to do otherwise. Even if I never saw Kevin again, this would have all been worth it. I had this new thought in my head, a new idea. Maybe humanity wasn’t all bad.

Kevin

I scraped a hand over my jaw and knew I needed to shave off the beard I’d grown recently, but I was too exhausted. A night with Ember, a transatlantic flight, and dealing with a shitstorm at home had left me with little time to rest. I hadn’t even had time to eat yet. I’d hidden in a bathroom at our Charlotte branch for the time being. I just needed a moment to myself.

I wasn’t normally around at our offices in the States; I preferred to stay on the other side of the Atlantic, but the message said Dad was ill. I couldn’t stay away, could I? There was always too much tension in the air when I was at home, and I liked to avoid that. I liked to keep peace and calm in my private life, even if I couldn’t have it in my work life. Especially because of that, actually.

I scrolled through my phone, my feet on the wall ahead of me. The bathroom was one of the luxury numbers for upper management, and I had sat in the leather chair in one corner, my feet propped up as I tried to fight off the urge to sleep. Thoughts of Ember flashed in my mind, and I smiled. She’d snored softly when I kissed her goodbye this morning.

She was one incredible, determined woman, Ember Jones. And sexy as fuck too. Her body was lush, and I’d loved every moment of my discovery of her. I swear, I could still taste her on my tongue. I didn’t even try to stop the smirk that spread over my face then. She’d been all I could have hoped for and then some. The way she sighed my name just as she came, and the way her back arched when I thrust into her were all seared into my memory.

My phone chirped, and I swiped the message from my eldest brother away. Fuck Trent. Fuck Mason. Fuck Dad if he didn’t want to see any of us. Why had I flown across the Atlantic if he didn’t want to see me after I got here? Rubbish, that’s what this was. But soon, Ember would be back.

That would make this worth it. Tomorrow she’d be in Charlotte, late, but still here. I couldn’t wait to see her. I could barely get her off of my mind. Even if Trent already had jobs for me to do. I’d do them, it was my duty as my father’s son to help take care of his empire, but for the rest of the night they could all piss off.

I sighed, stood, and straightened my clothes. I wanted to call Ember, but it was late here in America; it would be extremely late in London. It had been a fucker of a day. The flight, the confusion when Dad wouldn’t see me, and here at the hotel, where Trent had already started with his demands, and I was fairly certain Mason had already set up a party. He always did.

I chuckled and headed to my room. I should have just gone back to the house, but it was more convenient to stay here in the family quarters. I hadn’t told Ember the exact truth about the suite she was in. It was a staff suite, yes, but it was for family more than staff. I knew she’d have refused and demanded one of the less costly rooms.

I knew she’d received all of the packages I’d arranged, and that she’d soon be out of the country that hadn’t shown her many kindnesses. I’d have to change that for her one day and show her just how wonderful London was when you were there with the right people. I headed for the kitchen area once I’d reached my rooms and pulled out a bottle of water. I shrugged out of the suit jacket I’d had on for far too long today and slipped the buttons loose on the light blue shirt I wore underneath.

I kicked off my shoes and headed into the bathroom. After a shower and a fresh shave, I dressed in a long-sleeved gray v-neck sweater and a pair of dark blue jeans. I headed into the living room and ordered room service, and then sat down to wait at the piano. My room was the only one with a piano. My fingers tapped out a tune as I thought about Ember. Ember whose real name was Bridget Jones. That poor woman.

I felt a smile cross my lips and stroked the keys with fingers that were sure of the tune now. I wasn’t surprised to find I’d recreated the song Ember had sung only hours before. I was as musical as she was, some even said talented when it came to the piano, but my band days were over. I still liked to play the piano and the drums, but these days my fingers tapped at keyboard keys far more than at the ivory keys of my piano.

I lost myself in the memory of notes, in her voice, the serenity of her face as she’d sung about loss and happiness, a song that had lit her face up with the memories it evoked. I had to make that girl a star, somehow. She had the voice for it.

And I had a bar that needed a singer. My fingers continued as I developed the plan in my mind. I could install her there, she’d have rooms of her own, a job, and the protection of hotel security. And I knew a few people in the music industry who might be interested in her. Yes, this might work.

I stopped playing when my food came to the door and sat down on the couch to wait for her to arrive. A car would pick her up from the airport and I’d meet her later, when she came back to me. I didn’t plan to fall asleep after I ate; it just happened.

This wasn’t the life I’d planned so long ago. I’d once had the desire to be a musician, but businessman with a family and responsibilities seemed to be the path my friends had taken. Some were serious partiers, but they’d now settled down and become family men. I’d never wanted a child, not until I saw how my friends looked at their new babies. There was something there I wanted. Something that I envied them for, and I’d never felt that before.

My thoughts were on those things when I leaned my head against the arm of the black leather couch. Music played softly from the television, and my thoughts drifted lulling me into a dreamy sleep. I pictured Ember with a baby bump, and then a child in her arms. Her sweet face, so sensual when I kissed her, so eager when we talked about her music, would be filled with that look I’d seen so many times on others.

And my baby would be in her arms.

An ache formed in my chest unlike anything I’d ever felt before. Deep and painful, it burned out to my stomach and across my chest as I walked toward them. My hand went into her hair, and she smiled at me. Fuck, my heart swelled, and I fell to my knees in front of her. She was seated beneath the sprawling oak tree in my family’s estate, sunlight a beam around her.

“I knew you’d bring me to life.” I wasn’t sure what the words meant, but I said them.

Her brown eyes, a dark but clear brown, pierced into me, and I felt as if she’d wrapped the sunlight around my soul. I sank down, my fingers now on the head of the child in her arms, our child. Tiny green eyes looked up at me, and something shifted in my chest. Our baby.

“Ember… I…” I couldn’t say it though because she kissed me instead. I placed my hands on her shoulders and let the kiss carry on.

How she’d managed to give me so much happiness was a mystery, but there it was.

The dream shifted, and I was alone in a dark room. A woman with black hair sat in a chair and waited for me to strip the black wrap dress off of her, but I turned back to Ember, to the light she’d promised. I called out Ember’s name, reached for her, and felt terror as the woman in the black leather chair pulled me to her with some invisible beam. I fought and screamed until I woke myself up.