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Prologue – Blair

“What you did was irresponsible, Blair. What if someone kidnapped you?”

Without intending to, I rolled my eyes at my father. He was so angry that his face was turning a dangerous shade of red as he shook his finger at me and yelled.

“Father, I’m a grown woman. There’s no logical reason I can’t go to a bar with my friends like every other person my age does.”

In the back of my mind, I realized how ridiculous it was that I was defending myself to my parents like a naughty child.

“If you wanted to go to the bar, you should have taken your security detail with you. I can’t believe they didn’t realize you were leaving the office.”

Truth be told, I’d given them the slip by leaving the building wearing a disguise. How was I supposed to pick up an anonymous stranger in a bar with two hulking bodyguards following me around and demanding to see people’s IDs? Those guys were the ultimate cock blockers. Well, in my case, pussy blockers.

My father continued to lecture me, my mother standing sentry at his side, not saying a single word, though she communicated her disappointment clearly with her expression. She agreed with him – she always did – but she was content to let him play the heavy. I should know, we’d been through this enough times over the course of my life.

My mind went to something my friend Katy said to me tonight at the bar.

“It’s ridiculous to be under constant surveillance, Blair,” she’d told me. “You can’t live your life like that. You might as well be locked in a tower like one of those old fairy tales.”

Unlike my other friends, Katy actually came from an uber wealthy family, so she understood the risks we faced. Risks that my parents had blown up into a full-blown paranoid fantasy. Sure, I understood their reasons, but I wasn’t a defenseless baby anymore. I had money and brains and years of krav maga training. I knew how to protect myself.

Then I remembered something else that Katy had been saying to me for months. I’d been dragging my feet, knowing it would upset my parents, but I was mad enough now that I couldn’t wait anymore.

“Mother, Father, I think it’s time I moved out on my own.”

Both of my parents froze in shock. I’d never mentioned moving out before, never even thought about it until a few months ago, but the more I thought about it, the more I knew it was time. Past time. I mean, what woman my age lived with her parents? It was ridiculous. I had plenty of money to live on my own. Besides the wages from my job at the foundation I also had a very nice trust fund my grandparents left me. I’d become a billionaire in my own right when I got control of it on my twenty-first birthday.

“What?” My mother spoke up for the first time. “You can’t! It’s too dangerous!”

My parents had experienced some traumatic events that made them intensely fearful for their safety, and mine. They spent almost all of their time in our family home, only leaving for work or the occasional charity event. Anything they needed they brought to the house where they felt safe. We rarely traveled or went out in public, and when we did, everything was carefully planned and orchestrated.

I’d grown up with bodyguards tracking my every move, my only freedom when I was locked in my room or when I managed to give them the slip. They’d even followed me to my classes in school. When I graduated from college and got the job at the foundation I’d put my foot down for the first time and told them they could have the security team wait outside but they were not allowed to disrupt my place of employment.

That turned out to be a good decision. I worked in a huge downtown skyscraper which gave me a lot of opportunities to explore without going outside. The taste of freedom was addictive, but it also showed me that I was living in a gilded cage. I couldn’t keep living this way. My parents might have reason to be afraid, but I’d spent enough time with other people now to understand that I didn’t want to live the way they did.

I wanted to explore. Have adventures. Fall in love.

“You are not moving out, young lady,” my father ordered.

“Yes I am, and I don’t owe you any explanation. I’m moving out and you’re calling off the security team. I want to live like a normal person.”

“You’re not doing that,” he said stubbornly.

“It’s not up to you. Now if you’re done with your little lecture I’m tired. I want to go to bed.”

I stomped up the stairs to my bedroom suite, fully recognizing that my dramatic exit was more reminiscent of a spoiled teen instead of a grown adult. I flopped on my bed, grabbing my phone to text Katy an update.

Blair: Sorry I left so soon. I didn’t mean to ditch you guys.

Katy: When I saw your goons walk into the bar I knew you’d bug out. It’s not like you can have any fun with them hulking around behind you.

Blair: Yeah. My parents were livid. I’ve had enough. I need a change, so I told them I was moving out.

Katy: You did? I’m so proud of you.

Blair: I’m sure they think I’m bluffing.

Katy: Are you?