“You’re welcome, baby,” he says huskily, holding my gaze, and I know he feels it too—this deep, inexplicable pull we have toward one another.I don’t know if it’s chemistry or something else, but it ties us together more securely than any rope.
The clanging of the plane door opening snaps me out of whatever spell I was under.Startled, I step back, grabbing the shawl so it doesn’t fall.Julian gives me a look that promises a continuation of what we started, and a shiver of anticipation runs through me.
“Is it okay for me to go down?”Rosa asks, and I turn to see her waiting impatiently by the open door.
“Sure,” Julian says.“Go ahead, Rosa.We’ll be right there.”
She disappears through the exit, and Julian steps closer to me, making my breath catch in my throat.“Are you ready?”he asks softly, and I nod, mesmerized by the warm look in his eyes.
“In that case, let’s go,” he murmurs, taking my hand.His big, masculine palm engulfs my fingers completely.“Your parents await.”
The carthat takes us from the airport to my parents’ house is a long, modern-looking limo with unusually thick glass.
“Bulletproof?”I ask when we get in, and Julian nods, confirming my guess.He’s sitting in the back with me and Rosa, while Lucas is driving, as usual.
I wonder if the blond man resents this trip for taking him away from his Russian toy.The last I heard, the interpreter was still alive—and still held prisoner in Lucas’s quarters.Julian told me that Lucas assigned two guards to watch over her in his absence and make sure she’s all right.Apparently, he doesn’t want anyone else to have the privilege of torturing the girl.
That whole situation makes me sick, so I try not to think about it.The only reason I even know as much as I know is because Rosa refuses to leave it alone, constantly begging me to ask Julian for updates.Her strange obsession with Julian’s right-hand man worries me, even though I’m coming to the conclusion that Rosa was right about Lucas having zero interest in her.Still, as much as I don’t want her to get involved with him, I also don’t want her to be heartbroken—and I’m afraid things are trending in that direction.
“Are you sure your parents don’t mind us coming so late?”Rosa asks, interrupting my thoughts.“It’s almost nine in the evening.”
“No, they’re really anxious to see me.”I glance down at my phone, which pings with yet another text from Mom.Picking it up, I skim the message and tell Rosa, “My mom already has the table set.”
“And they don’t mind me tagging along?”She chews on her lower lip.“I mean, you’re their daughter, so of course they want to see you, but I’m just the maid—”
“You’re my friend.”Impulsively, I reach across the limo aisle and squeeze Rosa’s hand.“Please stop worrying about it.You’re not imposing.”
Rosa smiles, looking relieved, and I glance at Julian to see his reaction.His face is impassive, but I catch a glimmer of amusement in his gaze.My husband is clearly not worried about imposing on my parents so late in the evening.And that makes perfect sense.Why would something like that faze him when he unapologetically abducted their daughter?
This should be an interesting dinner indeed.
“Nora, honey!”As soon as my parents’ door swings open, I’m enveloped in a soft, perfumed embrace.Laughing, I hug my mom and then my dad, who’s standing right behind her.He holds me tightly for a few moments, and I feel his heart beating rapidly in his chest.
When he pulls back to look at me, there is a sheen of moisture in his eyes.“We are so glad to see you,” he says in a low, deep voice, and I smile up at him through my own veil of tears.
“Me too, Dad.Me too.I really missed you and Mom.”
As soon as I say that, I remember that I’m not alone.Turning, I see that my mom is looking at Rosa and Julian, her smile now stiff and unnatural.
I take a deep breath to prepare myself.“Mom, Dad, you already know Julian.And this is Rosa Martinez.She’s my best friend on the estate.”I invited Lucas to join us for dinner as well, but he refused, explaining that he’s part of the security detail tonight and needs to remain outside.
My mom nods cautiously at Julian.Then her smile warms a fraction as she looks at my friend.“It’s nice to meet you, Rosa.Nora told us all about you.Please, come in.”
She steps back to welcome them, and Rosa walks in, smiling uncertainly.She’s followed by Julian, who strolls in looking as cool and confident as ever.
“Gabriela.It’s so good to see you.”Giving my mom a dazzling smile, my former captor leans down to brush his lips against her cheek in a European gesture.When he straightens, she looks flushed, like a schoolgirl with her first crush.Leaving her to recover, Julian turns his attention to my dad.“It’s a pleasure meeting you in person, Tony,” he says, extending his hand.
“Likewise,” my dad says, his jaw tight as he takes Julian’s proffered hand in a white-knuckled handshake.“I’m glad you were finally able to make it out here.”
“Yes, so am I,” Julian says smoothly, releasing my dad’s hand.I notice red finger marks on his hand where my dad purposefully squeezed too hard, and my heart skips a beat.However, when I sneak a glance at my dad’s hand, I realize with relief that there’s no corresponding damage there.
Julian must’ve forgiven my dad this small act of aggression—or at least I’m hoping that’s the case.
As we walk toward the dining room, I steal covert looks at my husband’s handsome profile.Having my former captor in my childhood home is beyond strange.I’m used to being with him in exotic, foreign locations, not Oak Lawn, Illinois.Seeing Julian in my parents’ house is a bit like encountering a wild tiger in a suburban mall—it’s bizarre in a scary way.
“Oh, honey, you’re so thin,” my mom exclaims, eyeing me critically as we enter the dining room.“I knew you wouldn’t start rounding out with the baby yet, but you look like you’ve lost weight.”
“I know,” Julian says, placing a hand on my lower back.His touch both warms and discomfits me, coming as it does in front of my parents.“With the nausea, it’s been tough getting her to eat well.At least she stopped losing weight.You should’ve seen her four weeks ago.”
