Freya stood her ground.

Charles had enjoyed her attitude when she told him to get it over with last night. She’d meant to tell him yes. Tonight, she had no such notion.

Jaxon was right outside those doors.

She wasn’t alone.

She wasn’t Michelle’s only hope.

“Good evening.” Charles’ smile was slippery. Slimy.

“Hello, Charles.”

“Is it just me, or is something different in here?” Charles paused, glancing around.

“They vacuumed, if that’s what you mean?” She couldn’t so much as tell where the blood had splattered on the pale carpet. It was uncanny. And still damp in places.

“No... There used to... Wasn’t there a chair? Here?” He took a step back, almost walking into the wall.

“Haven’t seen it.” She shrugged.

“Huh.” Charles frowned.

Why did Charles care so much about a chair?

The chair, along with Donny, had vanished. Not that she missed either. Her only interactions with Donny prior to today had been short. He’d talked about her, not to her. He’d held her down while Yuri poured something down her throat. She might as well have been cattle to him. At least Yuri spoke to her, though maybe she’d have preferred a little less focus from him as well.

Charles slid his hands into his pockets and wandered closer. Or pretended to wander.

This was a game to him.

She was a game.

Last night, she’d stepped outside of her role. She’d amused him. Caught him off guard.

“What is it you do when you aren’t here? Where do you live?” Freya knew nothing about this man, except that he wanted a woman to marry, break her spirit, and eventually kill her.

“Little bit of this. Little bit of that.” Charles lifted his shoulders.

“You must be successful, if you can afford to have a woman kidnapped and put up like this for weeks.” Freya turned to mimic his pose, staring out the windows.

“It’s not about the money.” Charles peered sideways at her.

“Then what is this about?”

“You ever been on a rollercoaster?” He turned to face her, gesturing with his hands.

“Yes.” Instinct made her pivot, and in doing so take a small step back.

“There’s always that first, big drop, you know?”

Freya nodded.

“Then after that, there’s more drops, maybe some loops, but never anything like that first drop.” Charles’ grin spread across his face and did something weird to his eyes. Something she didn’t like. “I’m looking for that next, big drop. The one that makes my heart pound. I want to laugh. Feel that rush.”

The smile leeched away.

He was some kind of sociopath.

Freya swallowed.

And she was his next target.

“So, this is the cat playing with the mouse?” She managed to keep her voice from wavering.

“No, my pet. You aren’t a mouse.” Charles tipped his head to one side. “You’re better than I expected Yuri to procure. I want to keep you. Would you like that? To be kept? We could...play. Together.”

Freya’s mouth went dry. She wasn’t sure what was worse, being the victim or being asked to help him...do whatever it was he did.

Charles took a step toward her, but her mind was too mired, too shocked by his question to react. He lifted his hand. She flinched away, stumbling out of reach. His lips twisted up into a snarl, and he lunged at her.

Freya yelped and backpedaled around the sofa, but Charles was faster.

He grasped her by the jaw, walking her back across the room until her shoulders hit the wall. His fingers curled around her, digging in. She could scream. Would Jaxon hear her? If he didn’t what would Charles do?

“You will not do that again, understand me? If I want to touch you, I will.” He wrenched her face up, until she had no choice but to look at him. “Now, Freya, marry me, darling.”

“No,” she blurted and shoved at his chest.

The door beeped and slid open.

“What—” Charles frowned at the door.

Jaxon stepped through the door, one hand smoothing down the front of his coat.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” Charles turned to face Jaxon, putting himself between her and safety.

“The proximity alarm went off. I was just checking that everything is okay.” Jaxon glanced from Charles to Freya. There was no flicker of familiarity, only cool professionalism.

“Fuck off,” Charles said.

“Ma’am?” Jaxon glanced at her.

Freya swallowed. Jaxon’s hands were bruised. Her gut said Charles was far more dangerous than he appeared. She needed to protect Jaxon. Charles didn’t want to kill her, not right now. She could power through this.

“F-fine,” she stammered.

“I’m going to talk to Mr. Gabor about you.” Charles gave Jaxon a once over.

“Just doing my job.” Jaxon shrugged.

“Interrupting me is not your job.” Charles took a step closer.

Jaxon and Charles were of a similar height, but Jaxon had wider shoulders and more bulk. But he’d already done so much today. He was tired.

“Everything is fine.” Freya’s voice still wavered, but she got the words out without stammering.

“Shut up,” Charles barked over his shoulder.

“Sir, I’m going to have to ask you to leave.” Jaxon tipped his chin up, just a tad.

“Are you certain you want to make that mistake?” Charles asked.

“I’m not the one yelling at our employees. Anyone can see she’s scared. My job is to protect my boss’ interest.”

“What’s your name?”

“Wilson.”

“Well, Wilson, I’ll see you again soon.” Charles flicked Jaxon’s lapel and side-stepped him out of the door.

Jaxon turned, crossing the threshold.

Freya wrapped her arms around herself and placed her back against the corner.

Holy...

She’d thought for a second...

She sucked down a deep breath.

“Hey.” A warm hand closed around her upper arm.

Freya jumped and stared up at Jaxon’s green-gold eyes.

“Oh, my God.” She leaned into him, burrowing her way under his sport coat.

“He’s gone, but I need to go back to the desk. Thomas or Yuri will probably come up and chew me out. You have the phone?”

“Yes.”

“Okay, sometime after two or three, if you don’t see me, text, okay? I’ll catch you up on whatever happens next.” Jaxon kissed the top of her head, gave her a little squeeze then let go.

She didn’t want him to leave, she wanted to barricade the door and stay in here with him. But she couldn’t.

Freya paced the room, glancing at the door on occasion.

Part of her wanted to crawl into bed and lock the door, only none of the rooms had doors. The better to not bar entry to someone like Charles.

What if he changed his mind and tried to kill her?

Would Jaxon be there again?

She still couldn’t imagine that he was here, trying to save her. It was surreal, and yet if she’d ever had an issue with a club patron, Jaxon was the person she went to. He was a good guy. A protector. And now, he was there for her.

To think, the guy she should have gone on a coffee date with a few weeks ago was now her sole protector. At least she’d picked a good one, finally.

Jaxon kept his eyes on the screens, watching Charles.

He was heading straight for Thomas in the main hall, which meant Yuri was likely not on the premises. And Charles knew it. Jaxon filed that bit away for later. He still needed to find out where the elevator went, besides the three floors on the blueprints.

One of the benefits of having the security monitors in front of him was being able to see Charles’ conversation with Thomas. He appeared more irritated than angry, which could bode well for Jaxon. Or not. Who knew?

Charles was a paying customer and Jaxon the hired muscle. Usually Jaxon wouldn’t like his odds, but given the way the day had played out, he was willing to bet this wasn’t a cut and dry situation. Yuri needed men. Jaxon had proven himself by doing what was asked of him, and the other guards were giving him a wide berth. Fear could be useful in a situation like this.

After a short, one-sided conversation, Thomas escorted Charles out to the back lot. Once the customer was gone, Thomas made a B-line for the VIP entrance.

Here went nothing...

Jaxon was gambling, had been since he set foot in the place. Would it pay off? He hoped so.

Thomas topped the stairs, locked eyes with Jaxon and sighed.

“What the hell did you do?” Thomas sounded tired. Annoyed. Maybe a little pissed, but Jaxon had pressed his luck at the right time.

“The door beeped, I opened it, and when he didn’t come out, I stepped in. He had his hands around that woman’s throat.” Jaxon gestured to his neck. He and Freya had agreed on the same story, or at least close enough that it would pass muster. “I asked him to leave.”

Thomas groaned and rubbed his face.

“Was that the wrong thing to do?” Jaxon asked.

“Whatever happens in the Queen’s Nest, you don’t intervene, okay?” Thomas dropped his hands. “That’s a very valuable customer. In the long run, it’s not a big deal, but don’t do it again, okay?”

“Got it.”

“Club’s closing up soon. You need anything, or are you good here for the night?”

“I could use a refill on the coffee, and if the kitchen is open, I’d take whatever they can make.”

“I’ll send someone up.” Thomas reached into his jacket and drew a gun from one of two holsters. “Here. I didn’t see you packing anything.”

“That’s not necessary.” Jaxon drummed his fingers on the desk.

“Insurance. Just in case.”

“I don’t use guns.” Jaxon shook his head. After what’d happened with Shelby, he’d gone to the range with Ian and learned real fast he didn’t have what it took to make a shot.

“Don’t be stupid, take it.”

“I’d prefer not to. I’m good enough with my hands.” Jaxon spread his fingers, palms up.

“Your hands can’t stop a bullet.”

Thomas pulled out the desk drawer and placed the gun inside.

Jaxon grimaced. He knew his limits, and guns were not for him.

Thomas tapped his knuckles on the desk and glanced at the Queen’s Nest door. He seemed to consider something, his lips twisting into a hard line. Whatever it was, he wasn’t sharing it with Jaxon. Thomas left and Jaxon tracked his manager’s path through the building.

Overall, it’d been a quiet night with the public. There were still many hours to go until Jaxon could get some shut eye.

Half an hour later, the last chefs on duty in the kitchen brought up a meal and a new bag of coffee. Jaxon continued to wait until Thomas locked up the building and all the lights were off.

It was just Freya and him now. But it paid to be cautious.

Then Jaxon waited another twenty minutes, whiling away the time by brewing some coffee.

He’d intended to wait half an hour, but fuck it. It’d been a long day.

Jaxon poured two cups, put it on the tray with the food he hadn’t yet touched, then let himself into the Queen’s Nest.

Half the lights were off, but the windows let in enough light from the outside that he could see.

“Jax?” Freya peered through the door on his left.

“Hey, did I wake you?”

“No, I’ve fake slept through a few of Yuri’s visits is all. Is everything okay?” She padded into the room wearing a big, fluffy robe.

Jaxon’s hand throbbed. He bit back the urge to curse and set the tray on the little table on the other side of the room.

“Fine. Everything’s fine.” He turned, and Freya was there.

The city lights bathed her skin in a soft, ethereal glow.

She’d always been beautiful to him. Out of his league. And then she’d talked to him, and he’d known he didn’t have a ghost of a chance with her. It didn’t stop him from seeking her out.

Freya studied the tray, a little wrinkle on her brow.

This was stupid. He shouldn’t have done this. She probably didn’t really mean it...

“Do you not get a break at this place?” She sighed and sank into the other chair. She touched the cup closest to her. “For me?”

“Yeah.” He shrugged out of his coat.

“If the circumstances were better, this could almost be our coffee date.” She wrapped her hands around the cup and smelled it.

Jaxon swallowed, doing his best to ignore the heat crawling up his neck.

Freya dropped her head and drew circles on the table with a finger.

“Sorry. That was out of line,” she said.

“No. It wasn’t. I was just kicking myself for being that obvious.” He slid into the other chair.

The awkward nerves inside him didn’t care that this wasn’t a coffee house date. Freya was here, and so was he. The setting didn’t change anything for him deep down.

“Did you find Michelle?” Freya asked.

“Not yet, but my... People are looking.” He needed to get Donny’s phone to Zach still. With any luck, it would help them find Michelle.

“How did we get here, Jax?” She leaned forward, elbows on the table.

“You mean, all of this?”

“Well, I don’t mean this building.” She chuckled.

“Right. Sorry.” Jaxon sipped the bitter coffee.

Telling Freya anything was a risk. A calculated one. How much was too much?

“Do you know what it is Yuri does?” Jaxon asked.

“He... Makes fantasies reality. And not in a warm, fuzzy kind of way.” Freya glanced away.

“You sort of met Shelby. Yuri was hired to...help a guy recreate history. His history. This guy used to be in love with Shelby’s mother. He thought he could have what he wanted with her, with Shelby, now that...she is the right age. Or something.”

“Nice and fucked up, I see.”

“That appears to be Yuri’s specialty.”

“Why me? How did he know who I was?”

“I’m not sure he did.” Jaxon stared at the table top. “Shelby said that the other people who were taken for that scene—I guess you’d call it that—were just party people. They were somewhere, drank or took something, and woke up there. Could be it wasn’t intentional. We don’t know.”

“Who is we?”

Jaxon opened his mouth, then shut it. Again, how much should he tell her?

In her shoes, he’d never say a word.

But what if they had his cousin, Andre? What then?

Jaxon didn’t think he’d roll over on anyone, but Andre was someone who’d been there for Jaxon at the darkest moments of his life. They were family. If it came down to it, Jaxon would do anything to make sure Andre kept breathing. He was better than Jaxon, by far.

“What’s wrong?” Freya asked.

“I’m...trying to decide how much I can tell you,” he said slowly. He didn’t like admitting the truth, but there it was.

“You’re trying to help me.” She frowned.

“Yeah, but what if Yuri finds out someone is helping you? What if he threatens Michelle?”

“Oh. Yeah. I see your point. Best not to tell me, then.”

“It’s not that I don’t trust you.” He reached across and took her hand. “I actually understand the choice. If I were in your shoes and I had to roll over on a friend or lose my cousin... I can’t honestly say what I’d do.”

“Your cousin might deserve it more than my sister.”

“She’s your sister.”

“Blood doesn’t mean a whole lot. Look at dad.” Freya lifted her shoulders.

“I know a lot about dads who don’t deserve the title.”

“I’m sorry.” She squeezed his hand.

“I’m not saying that to... All I’m saying is, I understand holding onto the family you pick to care about.”

“Tell me about them? Or is that not a safe topic either? I just... I want to talk about something normal.”

“You don’t want to hear about my family. At least not my immediate family.” Jaxon pushed down the turbulent memories. He didn’t have the same kind of anger associated with them anymore, but nothing good came from digging in too deep.

“Have you done any more of those dancing prince videos?” Freya chuckled.

“Oh, God.” Jaxon rolled his eyes. “We did a fundraiser thing at the kid’s hospital.”

“I remember you sharing pictures from that. It’s a good look for you.”

“Thanks.” Jaxon ducked his head. Some of the guys were real hero material. Jaxon just tried to get through life doing the right thing.

“Are you blushing?”

“Nope.”

“Jaxon?”

“Yeah?”

“Thanks for being here for me.”

“I wouldn’t be anywhere else.”

“How much time do we have, you think?”

“Until morning. Probably eight or nine, I bet.”

“Do you have to go out there or can you stay in here?”

“I can stay in here, at least until someone shows up.” He’d already memorized the schedule, but they’d still need to be careful. Yuri didn’t exactly clock in or out.

“I’d like that.”

Jaxon had the craziest urge to kiss her. To take her in his arms and hold her close. But it could just be the music that’d been on repeat brainwashing him. Besides, the last thing Freya would want was someone else pushing themselves on her.

This, being here, was about getting her free. Rescuing both her and her sister.

That was it.

“If things were different, do you think we’d have gone on a second date?” Freya slid her fingers against his.

“I’d like to think yes, but who knows?” Jaxon shrugged. He wanted the first, second and fifth date, but she didn’t know him, who he’d been or anything.

“You know you don’t have to pretend to like me?”

“What?” He frowned.

“I just mean... You don’t exactly seem interested.”

“Wait, wait, wait a second. I asked you out.”

“No. No, I’m pretty sure that was me.”

“No.” He held up his other hand. “I distinctly remember we were standing in the back hall, near the bathrooms. You said something about getting coffee and I asked you if I could buy you a cup.”

“You only asked that after I asked if you wanted to go get coffee.”

“No, you didn’t.” He frowned.

“Yes, I did.” Freya laughed.

“Well, shit. I knew you were saying something, but...” He shook his head. And there he’d been getting himself ramped up to finally ask her out, and the opportunity had fallen into his lap. Or he thought it had.

“I know I can be a little forward. Some guys don’t like that.”

“That’s one thing I like about you. It sets you apart.” Jaxon pushed the forgotten food to the side. “Just so we’re clear, the only reason I was in that hallway was to ask you out.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

“I was hoping you would. And wouldn’t.”

“Why?”

“Just...this last year.” She lifted her shoulders. “I feel like my life has been out of control, and I’ve been reacting.”

“I know that feeling.” Jaxon shook his head. “A year and a half ago, I had a really nasty accident. Tore up my shoulder and spine. Really set me back. It’s like I’ve been in one of those hamster wheels you know?”

“Yes, that’s been me, too.” Freya propped her chin in her hand. “You’ve seemed...happier lately.”

He glanced over his shoulder, more from habit than a suspicion they weren’t alone.

“I went back to school,” he said.

“Really? I was going to start my PhD, but I put it off.”

“Wow. Hey. I’m just wrapping up my undergrad right now.”

“What are you studying?”

Jaxon dropped his gaze to the table.

No one knew he was back in school. He hadn’t wanted to share that information, because he knew what the family would say. That the odds of him being able to finish, to pay for it, were slim to none.

“Right now, I just want to graduate is all.” He shrugged and glanced up at her.

“Okay, well, I’m something of a school junkie, so if I can help at all, let me know. Though you are probably studying something way cooler than dead people.”

“Let’s get you out of here first, then maybe I’ll take you up on that.” He still had a rough semester to go. Having someone who could nudge him in the right direction could be huge.

He needed to keep his head in the here and now. It was great and all to think about what came after, pretending that they could go on a real date, but none of that would happen if the guys didn’t find Michelle.