long she’d been closed in on herself
when Gabe’s panicked voice finally got through.
“Grace, tell me what’s wrong, baby.”
He was stroking her hair, and it felt good.
She brought her hands up to her face and found her cheeks wet with
tears. What the hell was wrong with her? She was losing her mind.
She looked around to reorient herself. Gabe’s hair hung low on his
forehead, and his eyes were full of concern. His chest was still
bare, but he’d at least managed to put his shorts back on.
Grace pushed his hand away and sat up
slowly. She was still naked, but she didn’t care. She cleared her
throat before she spoke.
“Sorry about that. I get panic attacks
sometimes. It’s no big deal.”
“You scared ten fucking years off my life.
It seemed like a pretty big deal to me.”
“It’s none of your business, Gabe. Leave it
alone.” She stood and gathered her clothes off the floor, stepping
into her shorts and then pulling the sports bra over her head.
“If something’s wrong with you, it’s very
much my business. Other than the obvious reasons, I also have a
team to manage. I have a right to know everything down to the
smallest detail about each of you.”
“I can go back on our bargain any time,
Gabe. Don’t push me on this.” She moved toward the elevator and
escape.
“Grace.”
The sound of his voice stopped her. It
wasn’t demanding or threatening, but understanding, and she
couldn’t deal with it right now.
“I lost her, too,” he said. “I lost you both
because you ran away. You can’t just bury the pain and pretend it
doesn’t exist. You need to talk to someone.”
Grace shook her head as her eyes filled and
tears threatened. But she remained in control, and her voice was
steady when she spoke. “It’s over between us, Gabe. Seeing you is a
painful reminder of things I don’t want to think about. I signed
the divorce papers a long time ago, and I think it’s best if
everything between us from now on is business only.”
Grace swiped her card at the elevator and
left Gabe behind. For the second time.
CHAPTER SIX
Hazy morning light filled the interior of
Ethan’s bedroom, and he opened his eyes with both reluctance and
anticipation. He put his feet on the floor and stretched, knocking
over an empty coffee cup on his nightstand along with a smattering
of papers. He swore and reached for his glasses, though they didn’t
clear the sleep from his eyes. He grabbed his pajama pants off the
floor and stumbled into them before shuffling to the bathroom.
When he came out, the smell of coffee
greeted him, and the last lingering dregs of sleep faded as he
realized someone had breached his security. He grabbed the closest
thing to him, which happened to be a shoe, and crept into the main
room as adrenaline flooded his system. Fear lodged in his throat,
making it difficult for him to swallow as he ran probabilities and
the implications of what a breach would mean. The others had to be
dead or captured.
His thoughts spiraled out of control with
every step he took closer to danger. What had he done wrong? He
should have been alerted the moment someone stepped foot in the
hallway outside his apartment. He’d never had problems with his
security before. No one had ever been able to breach it. Well,
except for Gabe, but that was to be expected of the guy in
charge.
“Are you planning on shoeing someone to
death?” A cold voice asked from his right.
Ethan whirled around to find Grace leaning
against his kitchen counter, a cup of steaming coffee in her hands.
She was dressed in a threadbare grey T-shirt and worn jeans, and
her hair was braided loosely down her back. At first glance, Ethan
thought she looked closer to his own age, but her eyes held an
experience and wisdom that most people never achieved. There was no
doubt in his mind that she’d earned every inch of her
reputation.
“How in the hell did you get in here?” Ethan
asked.
He felt the flush of
when Gabe’s panicked voice finally got through.
“Grace, tell me what’s wrong, baby.”
He was stroking her hair, and it felt good.
She brought her hands up to her face and found her cheeks wet with
tears. What the hell was wrong with her? She was losing her mind.
She looked around to reorient herself. Gabe’s hair hung low on his
forehead, and his eyes were full of concern. His chest was still
bare, but he’d at least managed to put his shorts back on.
Grace pushed his hand away and sat up
slowly. She was still naked, but she didn’t care. She cleared her
throat before she spoke.
“Sorry about that. I get panic attacks
sometimes. It’s no big deal.”
“You scared ten fucking years off my life.
It seemed like a pretty big deal to me.”
“It’s none of your business, Gabe. Leave it
alone.” She stood and gathered her clothes off the floor, stepping
into her shorts and then pulling the sports bra over her head.
“If something’s wrong with you, it’s very
much my business. Other than the obvious reasons, I also have a
team to manage. I have a right to know everything down to the
smallest detail about each of you.”
“I can go back on our bargain any time,
Gabe. Don’t push me on this.” She moved toward the elevator and
escape.
“Grace.”
The sound of his voice stopped her. It
wasn’t demanding or threatening, but understanding, and she
couldn’t deal with it right now.
“I lost her, too,” he said. “I lost you both
because you ran away. You can’t just bury the pain and pretend it
doesn’t exist. You need to talk to someone.”
Grace shook her head as her eyes filled and
tears threatened. But she remained in control, and her voice was
steady when she spoke. “It’s over between us, Gabe. Seeing you is a
painful reminder of things I don’t want to think about. I signed
the divorce papers a long time ago, and I think it’s best if
everything between us from now on is business only.”
Grace swiped her card at the elevator and
left Gabe behind. For the second time.
CHAPTER SIX
Hazy morning light filled the interior of
Ethan’s bedroom, and he opened his eyes with both reluctance and
anticipation. He put his feet on the floor and stretched, knocking
over an empty coffee cup on his nightstand along with a smattering
of papers. He swore and reached for his glasses, though they didn’t
clear the sleep from his eyes. He grabbed his pajama pants off the
floor and stumbled into them before shuffling to the bathroom.
When he came out, the smell of coffee
greeted him, and the last lingering dregs of sleep faded as he
realized someone had breached his security. He grabbed the closest
thing to him, which happened to be a shoe, and crept into the main
room as adrenaline flooded his system. Fear lodged in his throat,
making it difficult for him to swallow as he ran probabilities and
the implications of what a breach would mean. The others had to be
dead or captured.
His thoughts spiraled out of control with
every step he took closer to danger. What had he done wrong? He
should have been alerted the moment someone stepped foot in the
hallway outside his apartment. He’d never had problems with his
security before. No one had ever been able to breach it. Well,
except for Gabe, but that was to be expected of the guy in
charge.
“Are you planning on shoeing someone to
death?” A cold voice asked from his right.
Ethan whirled around to find Grace leaning
against his kitchen counter, a cup of steaming coffee in her hands.
She was dressed in a threadbare grey T-shirt and worn jeans, and
her hair was braided loosely down her back. At first glance, Ethan
thought she looked closer to his own age, but her eyes held an
experience and wisdom that most people never achieved. There was no
doubt in his mind that she’d earned every inch of her
reputation.
“How in the hell did you get in here?” Ethan
asked.
He felt the flush of
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