Angel was smarter than most would give her credit for. Already, I knew any expensive or higher profile hotels would gain her unwanted attention and she wouldn’t want that. Whatever her plan may have been, it was likely that she’d go to a cash-only, cheap, remote, and out of the way motel. Hadrian—like Archer—would figure that out faster than even me. If CCTV footage couldn’t be found, then he would go further. Everyone had a cell phone with a camera these days, and they had computers. No matter how remote a place was, there was alwayssome sort of technology. It didn’t matter how safe or protected she felt, I would find her. That was a given.
Fifty-three minutes after he hung up, Hadrian returned my call and proved my assumptions correct. “Faraway Inn,” he said. “Address 659, Yvera Drive. Room: 47. It’s just outside of Danover. Seedy. Cheap. She was smart. There’s no security footage. It’s one of those places businessmen fuck their STD-riddled and questionably gendered hookers. I had to hack the front desk’s computer system. Easy enough, but?—”
“Thank you. I’ll return the favor,” I said, interrupting him as I steered the sedan off the highway and followed the new path set by the GPS. With that, I ended the call and stomped on the gas.
So fucking close.
Just under thirty minutes later, I was pulling up outside the Faraway Inn—a stretched-out, two-story building half hidden by an old factory that likely hadn’t been used in over a decade.
She’d had her few hours of freedom, but that was all about to come to an end. Fury simmered as I turned off the car. My long legs ate up the distance between me and the grimy door—one with no peephole or window for her to see who was at the door. After three sharp knocks, I waited.
“Who is it?” Angel’s voice was sharp, mistrustful.
I inhaled sharply. “Open the fucking door, Angel,” I ordered through the thin wood.
“Gaven?” Her voice grew closer. “What are you doing here?”
“I’ll tell you … as soon as you open the door.”
There was a pause, and then, “I don’t know if I should,” she admitted. Smart girl. She had to know I was angry.
My fist landed against the door and I laughed, the sound low and anything but amused. “I assure you, sweetheart,” I said, “if you don’t open this door for me of your own free will, when I do get to you—and I will, make no mistake—you’ll regret it. Now, be a good girl and open the door before I kick it in.”
More silence followed my threat and I was preparing for what I would have to do to break the door down when finally, I heard the tremble of the chain lock unhooking.
Wide eyes peeked out from the sliver of the door Angel opened, coated in shock, a hint of anger, and more than a little fear.
Good,I thought.She should be afraid.I looked forward to more of it, but first … it was time to deal with my wayward bride.
I smiled wide, all teeth filled withpromise. “Hello, Angel.”
Chapter 11
Angel
The charming façade had fallen away, revealing once again the true Gaven Belmonte, and this time the greedy monster was here for me. My heart pounded a rapid beat in my chest and sweat slid down my spine as I took a careful step back. His eyes followed the movement forcing me to freeze in fear that he would give chase.
“Gaven…” I stumbled away from the door as it swung inward and he stepped into the dark interior of the shitty motel room I’d rented for the night.How the hell had he found me so fast?I’d been careful. I’d only used cash. I’d caught the first bus I’d been able to. I hadn’t even really planned—thinking that if I planned too far ahead then he could predict my movements. Yet here he was. I swallowed roughly. “I-I can explain,” I started.
“No.” He shook his head at me as he reached up and unbuttoned the single button holding the lapels of his suit coat together. “No more talking, Angel. You’ve lost the right to speak.”
“Excuse me?” He shut the door behind him and flicked the lock back into place. My heartbeat picked up speed. More sweat coated the back of my neck.
Gaven shrugged out of his coat before tossing it across the room as if it wasn’t thousands of dollars worth of designer material. My eyes trailed the path of the black suit jacket before reluctantly and nervously returning to the beast that stalked forward. With a yelp, I stumbled backward and slammed into the wall as he came down over me.
He snatched my hands up and slammed them both over my head, holding them in place at the wrist with one of his while his free hand reached up and gripped me by the throat. My widened eyes turned upward and I met the gaze of my soon-to-be husband. His nostrils flared and his eyes were ablaze with dark fury as he glared down at me. His face was shadowed like this, making him appear even more sinister, and his hair was in wild disarray as if he’d run his fingers through it several times instead of its typical slicked-back style.
“Do you know what a man like me does to those who betray him, Angel?” His question filtered into my ears as he leaned forward and the softness of his breath touched my neck. A shiver stole over me.
I gulped. No. I couldn’t let him have this kind of control over me. I needed to be stronger than that. Inhaling, I bucked against him. The attempt to force him a step back, however, did nothing. It was as if I were trying to shove a brick wall.
“Stop it,” I snapped.
“No.” A gasp escaped me as Gaven’s response was quickly followed by teeth sinking into my earlobe, biting down hard. Blood rushed up through my body and dispersed into my limbs. So fast, so suddenly, that it filled my mind with horror. Yet, deep inside, I couldn’t deny I felt something else too. Excitement.
The sharp pain of Gaven’s bite made another part of me soften. My thighs rubbed together as wetness leaked from between them. I closed my eyes as the pain blossomed and I feltit as something wet dripped onto the top of my shoulder.Blood? Had he bitten me hard enough to draw blood?
I didn’t get the opportunity to look. Gaven released me for a split second, but in the next breath, he dragged me away from the wall, turning and lifting me off of my feet. Fear erupted within me and I jerked against his hold, struggling within his arms as I shoved the flat of my palm up his chest and into his jawline. “No!” I screamed. “Stop!”
