Becca.I was frozen in place, unsure what to do or think as I stood staring at Katrine. She watched me with a smirk on her face as if she had me right where she wanted me.The last thing I ever expected was to run into her while I was shopping in New York. However, here she was, as if seeing me was the expected. Which it wasn't.New York was so big that you could meet someone once and never see them again. So for her to find me or run into me like this… meant she was following me. Which also didn't sit well.Glancing around, I took in my surroundings to find she was not alone. Two other men were standing nearby, trying to remain hidden, but as their eyes connected with mine, I knew.Son of a bitch, I knew."What is it that you want, Katrine, and why are you following me?"Her eyes shot up as the smile spread even wider across her face. "Honestly, I'm surprised that you even remembered me. I only met you once. Maybe twice, and that was in passing.""Well, I make it
Becca.As soon as I got back to the apartment, Neal waited. His eyes looked at me with nothing but concern, and I knew right away things were not okay. It was obvious he knew something I didn't, and because of that, I was wary of what he would say."Are you going to start telling me the truth about what is going on? We promised each other that we would never hide secrets." I said softly, staring at him.Neal's eyes cast from me down to the ground as he fiddled with his hands, trying his hardest to find answers that I obviously wanted. "It isn't that easy, Becca. I'm not trying to hide anything from you. James came to me not long ago asking if anything should happen to him to protect you. That's what I'm doing.""He told you to protect me, and you didn't think that was something I needed to know?" Guilt filled his expression as he sighed. "It was a conversation between James and me. It wasn't anything that you needed to know. He asked me to take care of you, and of course,
Time seemed to travel fast as I prepared for my journey down to Miami. When Saturday morning came, I was packed; the gifts were wrapped, and everything was ready to go. The only problem was, I wasn't sure now if I was ready to face him.Taking my time, I wandered around the apartment, making sure that I had everything that I needed while Neal was downstairs loading the bags into the vehicle. The driver assured him that he'd be able to take care of everything without his help, but Neal knew how important it was that the gifts were placed safely in the car, considering some of them were fragile.It wasn't that he didn't think that his driver could handle it. Neal was just trying to be sweet and knew how hard I had slaved away to make sure that they were wrapped perfectly.After one last check around the apartment, I grabbed my purse and made my way towards the door. "Are you ready to go?" Neal said with a small smile across his lips as he appeared in the doorway."Yeah, I just di
The flight went by quicker than I thought it was going to, and by the time the wheels of the plane touched the tarmac in Miami, I was ready to see everyone. I couldn't wait to wrap my arms around Allegra and spend much-needed time with her."If you wait here a moment, sweetie, I'll make sure they load everything into the car, and then I'll come back for you," Neal said as he stood and kissed my cheek.Casting my gaze up to him, I smiled with a nod. "Sounds good."Since the moment we took off from New York City, Neal had been wrapped in a fury of emotions. I wasn't quite sure what was bothering him, but I had a feeling it had to do with our trip to Miami in general. I understood he was concerned about the issues revolving around James, but he couldn't let that ruin our trip.These plans were made long before he had told me about the issues with the Russians, and it was my job to show him that we didn't have anything to fear.After all, we didn't do anything wrong.It was Jam
Becca.I wasn't quite sure what to expect when I got up early the next morning, sliding from the bed with the full intention to go see James. Neal had been sleeping when I walked out of the room, but before I could make it to the door, I heard his voice behind me."You're going to see him, aren't you?" he said softly, his eyes narrowing at me. Turning slowly, I stared at his pleading eyes and sighed."Yes, I am," I replied slowly, nodding my head. "He has a right to know, and the sooner I get this over with, the sooner I can be free with you."Shaking his head from side to side he licked his top lip. His eyes cast off into the distance as if he wanted to keep me here but knew that it would only cause an argument. "I don't like this, Becca. I mean, I should have known that you would do this, but still.""Neal, I'm sorry," I whispered. "This is just something that I have to do.""I know," he replied with a sigh. "I just don't like you going alone, unprotected. What if some
Becca.I wasn't sure what to expect when I pulled up outside of the Valentino mansion. Tally was waiting for me inside, but even though I had told her I was coming it didn't stop me from second-guessing what I was doing.Everything that had happened with James kept rattling through my mind. He had acted like a complete asshole, and I should have seen it coming. There was no way he would believe that the child was his when I'd waited this long to tell him.Not to mention I was with Neal.Still, I had hoped he would at least let me speak.Stepping out of the car, I made my way towards the front door. Before I could knock, the door swung open, and Tally stood staring at me with a grin spread from ear to ear."Becca? Oh, my God! It's so good to see you."I was shocked. The woman who stood before me did not look like the Tally I knew. Instead, she looked like a soccer mom. She was no longer adorned in the designer clothing she had loved so much. Instead, she was in simpl
Becca.A whirlwind of emotions ran through me as chaos consumed James's home. The wood shattering echoed around me in slow motion as glass broke and screaming consumed the home. Men in black clothing came through every entryway, and it was obvious that they weren't friendly by the way they pointed their guns at us.I wasn't sure what was going on, but as I gained focus, I realized I was in trouble. Tally was screaming, yelling, fighting, and doing everything that she could. However, I was tossed aside quickly. My shoulder hit the counter before I slid to the floor, wincing in pain. The voices that were speaking and shouting were in another language and my mind just couldn't wrap around what was going on.I had not the slightest clue what would was happening, but as I slowly regained my focus, I watched as a large, burly man had his arms wrapped around Tally, who was fighting as she kicked off the floor, screaming and jumping up and down like a wild caged animal trying
Neal.The moment James called me, I wasn't quite sure what it was that he wanted after the conversation we had previously had about Becca. However, my heart absolutely shattered when he told me that Becca had gone to his house and people had broken. She was once again implicated in something because of James, and my hatred for him grew even more. I understood very well that she might have been carrying his child, but it didn't excuse the things that he had done and the shit that he had gotten himself into.Now, because of him, there was a chance that she could be hurt or even killed. Pacing around the living room, I grabbed my keys, ready to go after her to go to James's house to save her if I had to. The problem was, I didn't expect Allegra to come home like she did. As soon as she stepped through the door and saw me, she dropped her bags on the floor and stared at me with hesitation. "Why are you crying? What happened?" I hadn't even realized tears had been falling do