Total pages in book: 106
Estimated words: 105231 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 526(@200wpm)___ 421(@250wpm)___ 351(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 105231 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 526(@200wpm)___ 421(@250wpm)___ 351(@300wpm)
27
Travis eyed her for a long moment.
There was something in her voice that put him on alert. And he didn’t like the implications of that.
“Did someone tie you up and not release you?” he asked in a low voice.
Caren glanced away and bit her lip. “Not exactly.”
“Not. Exactly?” Yep. He wasn’t liking this at all.
“I was with a man before coming back here to the states. He, uh, well, let’s just say that I thought I knew him. I thought he was amazing and kind and charming. It turns out that he . . . he really wasn’t any of those things.”
“What do you mean? Is he the reason you came back here?”
“Partly. I wanted to feel safe. Not that I truly thought he would come after me or anything. But I just felt this urge to return and to find Lacey. She was the last person I remember really caring about me. Well, who was still alive. I used Grammy’s maiden name when I was working, it just felt safer that way. So he never knew my real name.”
“What did he do?”
“He completely fooled me. Or perhaps I was just a gullible idiot. Either way, I thought I was in love with him. That he was amazing. Kind and caring. Powerful and dominant.” She shook her head. “Turns out he was a complete jerk. In fact, he was a bad man.”
“Bad man?” Oh, he really didn’t like that bit.
“He was never bad to me,” she told him. “Well, not all the time. It’s difficult to explain. I think he was infatuated with me, he put me up on this pedestal. But he could have turned so easily. He could be violent and cruel. As soon as I saw that cruelty, it broke those rose-colored glasses I had been wearing. I realized the man I thought I was in love with wasn’t the same man in front of me. And I told him I wanted to leave.”
“And he just let you?”
“Not at first,” she whispered. “He grew angry. See, did love me. Or what he thought was love. He tried . . . he tried to keep me. And for a while, I thought he wouldn’t let me go. That was . . . scary.”
Scary? He bet it was fucking terrifying. And he wanted to know who this bastard was. And then he wanted to slowly murder him.
“But one day, when he was away, his men took me to the airport and put me on a plane. And I left. I came back to the states and I haven’t been out on assignment since. I haven’t heard from him. I know he’s not looking for me. But I haven’t been ready to go back out into the world until now.”
“You just left?” he asked, surprised. That seemed an odd change of mind.
“Yeah, I thought I was going to have to find a way to escape. I really thought I was a prisoner. After I told him that I wanted to leave, he put a guard on my door. They followed me everywhere.” She put her hand on her stomach as though the memory was making her ill.
He'd kept her there against her will.
“That fucking bastard!”
“I don’t know why he changed his mind,” she whispered. “He worked for . . . a very powerful man. If he wanted to keep me prisoner, he could have. But after he left, I was told to get into a car and his men drove me to a small airport.” She swallowed heavily. “I thought I was going to my death, you know.”
Fuck. Fuck.
Just when he thought that she couldn’t have anything more to tell him that would have his guts twisted in a knot . . . boom! There was something else.
Getting up, he started to pace.
“This is why I wanted to wait to tell you,” she said. “I’ve already piled on too much. You’re going to think that I’m too much work.”
He stilled. Nope. He wasn’t having any of that. Striding over to her, he picked her up and held her against his chest.
“You listen to me, Caren Stanford, you are never too much, understand? No matter what happens, no matter what’s in your background, you are never too much. And I want to know everything that has happened to you or does in the future. Understood?”
“Yeah,” she whispered.
“Good. I’m glad you told me. If you had kept this to yourself then I wouldn’t have been happy.”
“I know. I don’t want to keep things from you. But I also want to make sure you’re happy and safe and healthy, too. And this guy I got involved with . . . he’s a terrible man who works for a very dangerous man.”
“How did you meet him?” he asked.
“I had been taking photos in Tanzania. Such a beautiful place and the people are so kind and welcoming. I’d finished my assignment and I was taking my guide out for dinner as a thank you. This man stopped by our table. He was so charming and sweet. He said that he’d spotted me from across the room and just had to talk to me. In hindsight, I should have taken note of my guide’s reaction. He was terrified.”