I grabbed the mail from the lobby then headed to my floor. It was mostly bills, and a big fat one for my student loans. But I didn’t feel a twinge of sadness when I looked at the amount I still owed, along with my ridiculous interest that just seemed to only get bigger. My depression over Calloway was constantly at the forefront.

I was pissed at him, but damn, I really missed him.

He’d walked away from me for the second time, unwilling to give me what I wanted. I sure as hell wasn’t going to cave, so we were going to be at this stalemate forever. Soon, he would find the kind of woman he wanted and would forget about me.

I was sure he had women lined up already. Even if they weren’t completely involved in the lifestyle, they would put up with it for a chance to be with Calloway. He was all man, powerful and masculine, with a strong body that made him look like a Navy SEAL. He had the most gorgeous eyes and the sexiest kiss. Sometimes, when I thought about how amazing he was, I didn’t care about all the horrible things he wanted to do to me. I wanted him that much.

But then reality kicked in.

I put my key in the door but realized it was already unlocked. The doorknob shifted loosely, like something inside the mechanism was busted. I pushed open the door and assumed Christopher was already home even though he usually hit the gym after work.

I walked inside and set my mail on the table along with my purse.

“Just as beautiful as the last time I saw you.”

The words moved along my spine, making me tense with impending doom. Adrenaline spiked, and my heart kicked into overdrive once I recognized the threat. I knew that voice anywhere—because I heard it in my nightmares almost every night.

I looked into the living room and saw Hank sitting on the couch, his fingers interlocked behind his head. He wore a three-piece suit, handsome and formidable. He reeked of unstoppable power.

I was scared.

I wasn’t going to lie to myself and say I wasn’t. I was alone in an apartment with this man, and his intentions were quite clear. My hands shook slightly, but I forced them to remain still. In a moment like this, it was essential to appear calm and confident, to make him think I was a stronger opponent than I truly was.

The island separated me from the rest of the kitchen. I discreetly glanced at the knives in the knife block on the counter, but I realized they were all missing.

He’d swept the apartment clean.

Fuck.

“And you’re just as disgusting as the last time I saw you.” I placed my hand on my hip and turned to face him, diffusing the obvious hostility as much as possible. He’d planned this meticulously, making sure I had no weapon to fight him off. I doubted he wanted to kill me—but I knew he wanted to do something far worse.

He grinned like he enjoyed the banter. “So fiery but so innocent. I love it.”

I wasn’t innocent anymore. Calloway had stripped me of my purity.

The thought of Calloway made me wince in pain. If he were here, this wouldn’t be happening. Calloway would protect me from Hank with just a single look. I didn’t need a man to fight my battles, but I was scared and vulnerable. So having him around would have been extremely helpful.

I couldn’t let Hank succeed because I didn’t deserve this. But also because I didn’t want to break Calloway’s heart. If he knew what Hank was about to do to me, he would throw himself off the Empire State Building.

I had to make sure I didn’t lose—for both of us.

“Is there something I can help you with, Hank? Perhaps setting up your Tinder account so you can find a date?”

He chuckled then rose to his feet, towering above me with over six feet of strength. “Why find another woman when I have you?”

The moment he stood up, my body tensed again. The fight-or-flight instinct was kicking in. As he moved closer to me, I knew I needed an escape route. He was too strong for me to fight off alone. The best thing would be to sprint into the hallway and scream for help. Someone was bound to hear me.

He slowly came closer to me, his eyes darkening as he looked me up and down in my tight dress. “You’re looking damn fine today.”

I wanted to spit in disgust. I couldn’t believe I’d ever kissed this man, that I ever got on my knees for him. He pretended to be an angel that wanted to help me, but he turned into the devil instead. Men who preyed on vulnerable people were scum to me—worse than scum.

I had to do something. And I had to do it now. “You know, I find it—” I sprinted to the door without looking back, hoping he was absorbed in my words to give me a one-second head start.

“You think you’re getting away?” His loud voice followed me out the door.

I kicked my shoes off and sprinted as hard as I could, but with lightning speed, he caught up to me.

He grabbed me by the back of the neck and slammed me into the wall, knocking my head against the solid material. “You’ll never get away from me, Rome. When will you understand that?” He covered my mouth with his hand so I couldn’t scream.

I saw stars, and the world spun. His arm hooked around my waist, and he used his strength to press me into the wall.

“I’ve earned the right to fuck you,” he hissed into my ear. “You teased me for so long, after everything I did for you. It’s gonna happen, bitch. Might as well accept that.” He yanked me down the hall and left my heels behind.

I couldn’t let this happen.

Once he got me back into the apartment, the game was over.

I ignored the blinding pain from my skull and mustered up energy from every inch of my body. I threw my head back hard, striking him right in the nose. It probably hurt me more than it hurt him. But pain was better than being pinned onto my bed while he fucked me like he owned me.

I grabbed his arm and twisted it behind his neck. I kicked his knee, forcing him to fall to the ground. I grabbed his head and slammed my knee into his face, this time breaking his nose and making blood stream everywhere. “I’ve earned the right to kick your ass, bitch-face.” I shoved him into the wall just the way he’d shoved me, making sure his skull collided with the molding along the side.

He fell to the ground but didn’t lose consciousness. He rolled out of the way, getting blood everywhere. It soaked into the carpets and streaked along the white walls. He managed to grab my foot then twisted it painfully, forcing me to fall to my knee with a painful thud.

Instinctively, I threw my elbow down onto his wrist, making him cry out in pain. He immediately released my foot and pulled his hand into his chest, cradling it like it might be broken.

The elevator at the very end of the hallway beeped as it approached the floor. The doors were about to open, and my neighbors were going to save me. They would take one look at Hank, me, and the blood then call the cops.

Hank gave me a terrifying look. “This isn’t over, baby.” He got to his feet and ran to the stairwell at the opposite end of the hall just as the doors opened.

I would have chased him, but I couldn’t move. I was exhausted from the battle and in immense pain. My foot hurt, but I was certain it wasn’t broken. My head throbbed with the worst migraine of my life.

“Rome!” Christopher sprinted down the hallway until he came to my side on the floor. He spotted the blood and the bruises on my face, and without asking any questions, he figured out exactly what had happened. “Let’s get you to the hospital. I’ll call the police on the way. Can you walk?”

“Yes…” I got to my feet and felt dizzy. But I refused to show weakness even though I wasn’t sure why. I needed to walk away from the battle as the victor, not the defeated.

Christopher scooped me into his arms and carried me back to the elevator, leaving my shoes in the hallway. Somehow, he managed to pull out his phone and press it between his neck and shoulder. The elevator carried us to the lobby as he made the call. The operator’s voice came on the line. “9-1-1. What’s your emergency?”

“I’m calling to report an assault.”

* * *

After a day at the hospital, I learned I had a concussion, bruised ribs, and a lightly sprained foot.

But other than that, I was in good shape.

It could have been worse, so I counted it as a blessing.

Christopher got the police involved even though I knew it wouldn’t go anywhere. They investigated the apartment and the scene in the hallway, but once Christopher accused Hank of being the culprit, they created other suspects, criminals and felons that lived within a two-mile radius. Apparently, Hank had a solid alibi—he was taking counsel with a client. His client, two cops, and even a judge insisted he was with them at the time of the crime.

So he was immediately ruled out.

Christopher was pissed, but I wasn’t surprised. How do you take down the face of New York City? How do you get him to pay for his crimes when everyone covers for him all the time? He had too much leverage and too much power over far too many people.

Christopher called in sick for me, saying I had a nasty case of the flu. I was grateful he didn’t give them the truth, because if Calloway knew, it would be bad news.

I was in the hospital for three days before they released me. I was good as new, with the exception of my foot. Sometimes it hurt to walk on it, but only slightly. I knew it would get better as time went by. It was just a matter of being patient.

Christopher and I hadn’t talked much over the past few days. He was too angry to say a single word. I could tell he was about to explode at any moment, and then his words would rain down on me like fire.

The door to the apartment had been fixed, and the hallway was as good as new. One of the neighbors moved out after they heard about the attack, obviously too afraid to live anywhere near me.

Not that I blamed them.

It felt good to be home again, but it also didn’t feel like home anymore. Hank had sat on one of the couches and hid all our knives under the sink. Just the fact that he was ever there made it seem less cozy.

Christopher grabbed a beer from the fridge and sat on the couch, looking just as angry as he did three days earlier.

“Thanks for taking care of me…” There were no words to express my gratitude. He took time off work to stay at the hospital with me. When he asked if he could call Calloway, I said no. And he’d respected my wishes.

He drank his beer and said nothing.

I sat on the other couch, knowing the conversation was coming. We had to talk about this. It was obvious Christopher was working up to it, his jaw clenching and unclenching. “The cops aren’t going to do anything about this because they’re absolutely worthless. So, we need to do something.”

“I’m out of ideas,” I whispered. “I’ve taken him on countless times in the past. I know I can hold my own in a fight—”

“You’re missing the point, Rome. You shouldn’t have to live like this.” He slammed his beer down, making the table shake with force.

“I know…”

“No woman should have to feel like prey every single day of her life. How can the justice system fail you like this?”

“It’s not the justice system’s fault. It’s Hank’s.”

“Same difference,” he snapped. “The guy owns all the cops in this city. It’s fucking ridiculous.”

“I told you, Christopher.”

He shook his head and looked at the ground. “Unbelievable…”

“I know.” I felt terrible for putting him through this, for stressing him out with worry over me. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t you dare apologize, Rome,” he whispered. “It’s not your fault.”

I was still sorry anyway. I was sorry I took Hank’s help on the street that afternoon. I was sorry I got Christopher mixed up in this, making him so upset that he wanted to break everything inside the apartment. Believe me, if I could’ve made Hank go away, I would’ve. But this was just a game to him. He would keep playing until he won.

“I think we should tell Calloway.” He interlocked his fingers, his head bowed toward the floor.

“What?” Calloway was the last person we should involve. “I’m not seeing him anymore, Christopher.”

“I know you aren’t. But I think he could help us.”

“Help us how?” By murdering Hank? I could do that just fine on my own.

“Calloway is powerful. He’s done more for this city than everyone else combined. His rehabilitation program has put more ex-cons to work and kept them out of jail than any other federal program. Every judge, lawyer, and city official knows exactly who he is. If it’s Calloway’s word against Hank’s, I think Calloway stands a fair chance. And even if he doesn’t, Hank would be afraid of him.”

“Why?”

“Because he’s huge. His arms are the size of my head.”

I wouldn’t admit to anyone that Calloway made me feel safe. Whenever I stayed at his place, I felt untouchable. “I’m not bringing him into this. He’s not my boyfriend anymore. I’m sorry that you’re involved with this at all. I can just move out—”

“Shut up, Rome,” he snapped. “I’m not trying to hand you off to someone else because I can’t handle it. I just think getting him involved would help. He might have an approach we aren’t considering. This guy knows a lot of people—including those from the underworld.”

If I told Calloway what was going on, he would explode. He would destroy everything he built by doing something stupid. I wouldn’t be surprised if he grabbed my things and forced me to move in with him, like a bear dragging his cub back to the den. “No.”

“Why?” he hissed. “Give me one good reason why.”

“He’s. Not. My. Boyfriend.” Calloway was just a man from my past. We worked together, but I wouldn’t consider us to be friends. My problems weren’t his problems—not anymore. “Christopher, we’ll figure this out on our own.”

“Like hell, we will,” he hissed. “We have no defense against this guy. Even if I got a gun, I couldn’t use it against him. I would be thrown in jail for murder instead of hailed as a hero for saving my sister.”

“I know…but he’ll lose interest eventually.”

“After he rapes you,” he hissed. “And no, we aren’t letting him get his way. He’s a fucking brat that never learned a single lesson in his life. He’s scum.”

“He can’t do this forever. One day, he’ll get married and have kids.”

“Who knows how long that will take. In the meantime, we’ll walk on eggshells for the rest of our lives?” He shook his head, rage brewing in his eyes. “I’m not living like that, Rome. And you aren’t either.”

Christopher had every right to be frustrated, so I let him vent all his anger. “We’ll figure it out one way or another. But I don’t think getting Calloway involved is the answer. It’s you and me. We can do this.”

He dragged his hands down his face in anger.

“Christopher?”

“What?”

“We’re in this together, okay?”

He finally nodded, releasing a sigh. “Yeah. Just you and me.”

* * *

My bruises were pretty much gone, and the blue color could easily be hidden with makeup. My foot was better, but I wasn’t able to wear heels just yet. I could wear flats around the office for a day or so without anyone asking questions.

I lay in bed but couldn’t sleep despite how exhausted I was. At the hospital, I slept like a baby because I knew Hank couldn’t get to me. But now that I was in the apartment, a place he’d already broken in to, I didn’t feel safe. Christopher slept across the hall, his bedroom door opened so he could hear the sounds of the apartment, but that still didn’t chase away the fear.

My phone vibrated on my nightstand then the screen lit up with a message.

From Calloway.

I know I should leave you alone, but I’m worried. My assistant told me you’ve had the flu for three days. I just wanted to check on you.

My eyes burned with tears at the words, wishing I could tell him everything that had happened to me lately. I missed sharing my life with him, telling him about the ups and downs. I didn’t just miss him as my lover, but as my friend. The worst is over. I’ll be back in the office tomorrow.

I’m glad to hear that. You must have caught it when we were under the bridge earlier this week.

I remembered that day better than any other. He somehow broke my heart for the second time. Yeah. Maybe.

I’ll let you go to sleep.

I didn’t want to go to sleep, not in this tainted apartment. I wanted to lie against his hard chest, feeling at peace because no one could reach me. I wanted those strong arms to wrap around my body. I wanted him to look me in the eye as he made love to me. Tears bubbled until they formed drops and slid down my cheeks. Letting out the grief didn’t make me feel better—just worse. Good night.

Good night, sweetheart.