Chapter 9
Sunday morning arrives, and for early October there’s far too much light in the room for my liking. But then, my eyes are more puffy and sensitive than usual. And the reasons why come flooding back. I breathe deeply, fighting down the tide of emotion. I roll over, not really expecting to find Bryce still abed this long after dawn, but he’s there nonetheless, awake and contemplating the ceiling, one arm tucked under his head.
He turns his head to meet my gaze and gives me a small smile that doesn’t reach his eyes.
“Good morning, sunshine,” I greet him, attempting my own half-hearted smile.
He rolls toward me, stroking along my arm with his free hand. He leans in, touching his lips softly to mine.
“Hey, gorgeous,” he replies. “How’d you sleep?”
My instinct is to assume I didn’t sleep well after yesterday’s events. But I realize that I actually did. I slept hard, and for a long time. And had not a single nightmare. I’m struck dumb, as nightmares were such a constant companion for so long as I went through these last months. But they’ve stopped. And it occurs to me that that’s been true since I’ve shared a bed with Bryce.
“Surprisingly well,” I admit. “How about you?”
He strokes my face gently and smiles sadly. “I always sleep well next to you,” he replies. “Oh.” He looks as though he remembered something, and he rolls to reach the nightstand on his side of the bed. He pulls something out of the drawer and turns back to me, something tucked inside his large hand.
“What’s that?” I ask warily.
Bryce smiles, much more openly this time. “It’s a gift. For you,” he replies. “I’m not usually one to remember this kind of thing, but this is different. We’re different. Because one month ago today, you changed my life forever.” He lays his palm flat to reveal a small, black velvet box.
And the girlie girl inside me wants to squeal with excitement. But I settle for an eager grin. “Oh, baby, you didn’t have to do this,” I chastise him. I didn’t even realize the date, or think to commemorate such a thing, but I know he wouldn’t want me to feel self-conscious.
“I know,” he allows. “But because you’re not the type to expect it, it’s all the more reason to give it to you. I’d give you the world if I could, Sera.”
I snuggle up next to him and press my lips softly to his. “You’re my world, Bryce Hoyt.”
He kisses me passionately for a moment before pulling away gently. “I’ll just take these back then, I guess,” he replies airily, leaning back to put the box back on his nightstand.
I playfully smack his chest. “You’ll do no such thing!” I admonish him. “Gimme.” He laughs and hands me the box.
I open it gingerly, part of me wanting the anticipation to last, like I’m a little girl at Christmas again. But the reveal is just as satisfying. Even in the dim daylight, light bounces off the dazzling square gem earrings. They are delicately beautiful in their simplicity, and absolutely breathtaking.
“Diamonds?” I ask in shock.
“Diamonds,” he confirms. “Though they’re still not half as gorgeous as you are.”
I don’t even have words to express to him how thoughtful he is, how sweet, how wonderful. So I put the box on the nightstand behind me and show him instead.
After breakfast, I’m sitting in my favorite chair, wrapped in a blanket and sipping coffee. Bryce sits at my feet, leaning against the chair and reading a book. It’s such peace after the chaos of the day before. But I still turn the day over and over in my mind, looking for clues. I also spend a considerable effort trying to think of ways to end it. But I come up wanting.
“What if we went somewhere?” I ask abruptly, breaking the quiet. Bryce slips a bookmark into his book and closes it onto his lap, turning to look up at me.
“Where?” he counters.
“I don’t know,” I admit. “Just away. For a while. So they can’t find me. Until enough time has passed, and they just stop trying.”
Bryce sighs heavily. “I’m all one for a good vacation, but I can’t just leave for long periods of time, Sera,” he replies. “I have a company to run. And you have a job here. We have lives here.”
“You’re right. I just don’t know what else to do. But after yesterday, the thought of just going on with my life as usual seems impossible. I feel like I’d only just stopped looking over my shoulder,” I explain, tears welling in my eyes. I wipe at them angrily.
Bryce climbs to his knees, taking my face in his strong hands. “I’m going to do everything in my power to keep you safe,” he says, looking me squarely in the eye. “Know that.” He pauses, looking somewhat hesitant to say what he’s thinking. “I’ve started my own investigation. I am going to get to the bottom of this, no matter what it takes. But it’s going to take time. And it will be dangerous. And while I don’t want us to be apart, if you’ll feel safer away from here, I can make arrangements.”
My mind swims with questions, but moreover the suggestion that I leave him is unbearable, and I feel the need to shut that down first and foremost.
“I don’t want to leave you, either,” I respond.
A look that’s half pained and half adoration crosses Bryce’s face. “I figured you’d say that,” he replies. “And part of me wants to get you away from all this. But the thought of you being somewhere I can’t be, where I can’t protect you …” I press a finger over his lips and shake my head.
“Stop worrying,” I say. I remove my finger from his mouth and pull his face to mine. When I kiss him it’s full of sorrow and angst, but most of all love. Always love.
The next morning I have two guards accompanying me into work. And they don’t leave for the day like Tristan normally would. The new guard takes a desk near my office while Tristan takes a desk near reception. It’s all been cleared through Charles, but I’d asked that nobody else be told the details. Needless to say that doesn’t stop the office gossip. Especially as the new guard, Marcus, follows me around silently all day, never more than ten feet away.
When I talk to Bryce at lunch he has news. Daniel’s trial has been rescheduled for two weeks from today. I frown, wondering if Charles has already heard. If he had, he showed no sign of it this morning, though I may have been too distracted by my own problems to notice. I decide to check in on him again just in case.
Charles’ assistant, Anabelle, waves me past, looking furtively at Marcus as we pass. I knock and wait for Charles’ invitation to enter, asking Marcus to wait outside.
Instantly, I know Charles has heard that Daniel’s trial is, indeed, back on. In the privacy of his own office, his face is drawn, his shoulders slumped. He rises as I enter, and I can’t help but going to hug him.
“Thank you,” he says huskily. He gestures to the chair opposite his desk, which I take.
“It looks like we’re both having a pretty shitty time,” I reply honestly. Charles chuckles drily. I’d given him a high level overview of my situation, but there wasn’t time to discuss it in any depth. And despite my own feelings, I am curious to hear what my mentor thinks of it all.
“I’ve been through much worse, my dear,” he responds. “But you can’t seem to catch a break. How are you holding up?”
“Honestly? I’m terrified. And so over it,” I grouse. “I wish to hell I’d never got involved with the bastard who brought this on me.” But despite my rancor, I don’t really mean it. Part of me still loves Alessandro, even. I’m just so angry.
“I’d love to reassure you that everything happens for a reason,” Charles parries wearily. “But honestly, bad things happen all the time to good people who’ve done nothing to deserve them. Only you can choose how you handle it. Whether to press through and overcome it or succumb to self-pity.” I blush furiously. He’s right, I’m wallowing.
“Well, when you put it that way.” I sigh. “You know me. I’ll get through this. Some days are just harder than others.”
“Indeed,” Charles agrees.
“What would you do, if you were in my shoes?” I ask curiously. His eyebrows shoot up.
“I’d be hard pressed to truly understand what you’re going through, Sera,” he hedges. “But the most important thing is safety. If it were me, I’d do whatever I had to, whatever I could to make myself, my loved ones, safe.”
For the rest of the day, Charles’ words seep into my consciousness. And by the evening, the beginnings of a plan have formed in my head. Realizing how selfish it is to keep everyone else in harm’s way, I know I must remove myself. Go somewhere nobody knows where I am. Who I am.
I could never forgive myself if something had happened to Tristan, even though it’s a known risk of his job. Or, God forbid, Bryce. I can’t even think about that possibility. And with the new investigation he’s launched, the odds are so much higher that something will happen to him. That thought pushes me over the edge, and I know I must disappear.
And while I have the means to do so, I don’t have the connections. And it’s obviously not something I can ask Bryce to help with. I’m sure he’d have the kinds of contacts that could create a new identity under which I could travel, but I’m also sure he’d never let me go alone. And I don’t want anyone to catch wind of my plan, to try to stop me.
Thankfully I have enough knowledge on how to be untraceable online to find the answers I need. So that night I go looking for someone who can get me what I need. It doesn’t take long to find. It takes longer to arrange untraceable payment, actually, and to arrange a way to receive the documents and other items I’ll need without tipping off my bodyguards or Bryce.
But by Friday I’ve managed it, though not without laying out considerable sums of money in the process. As it’s also my birthday, I’ve gone home early under the guise of getting ready for my birthday dinner with Allie, which Bryce will, of course, also be accompanying me to. But my real plan is to finish my preparations. Because once Bryce is asleep, I’m leaving.
I stow my small packed bag behind some boxes in the coat closet downstairs. I don’t take much. I can always buy what I need once I reach my destination, and the less I pack the easier it will be to leave unnoticed, to travel unnoticed.
I take the letter I’ve written Bryce explaining everything and bring it into the bedroom. I settle on placing it in his nightstand drawer, as he rarely uses it. In fact, the only time I’ve seen him use it was when he pulled my “anniversary” gift out of it.
I slide it open. Only one object sits in the drawer — another small, black velvet box. It only takes me a moment to realize it’s probably my birthday present, and that I’ll need to find another place to hide my letter. I start to close the drawer, but curiosity gets the better of me. I set the letter aside and slowly pick up the box.
I hesitate, not usually the type to snoop, feeling guilty for potentially spoiling Bryce’s surprise. But my inquisitive nature gets the better of me, and I open it anyway.
A diamond engagement ring sparkles back at me. Princess cut, just like the earrings, but much larger, and perfectly beautiful in its simple, platinum setting. My vision clouds as tears fill my eyes. And my resolve is hardened knowing I can’t possibly put someone who loves me this much in danger. I close the box and return it to its exact place in the drawer. I decide I’ll put the letter on the kitchen counter as I leave.
I dress carefully for dinner, donning the gorgeous earrings Bryce gifted me. Then silently, I master myself and descend the stairs. I shove all of the emotions the sight of that ring brought up deep back down. I can feel it all later. Bryce will be home soon. And I need to play the delighted birthday girl. The happy girlfriend. If only for just a little while longer.