Page 25 of Reckless Love

I was an idiot to ever think this would work.

And I was an even bigger fool for forgetting that Wick had a habit of derailing my life regardless of our marital status.

Tears blurred my eyes as I slapped the button for the elevator. As soon as the doors parted, I ran inside. I white-knuckled the rail as I patiently waited for it to descend the nearly fifty floors.

When the doors opened into the lobby, I ducked my head and hurried for the building entrance.

“Good evening, Mrs. Forrester,” Cliff greeted as he pulled open the large glass door. His expression faltered. “Are you all right, Mrs. Forrester?”

“I’m fine,” I whispered, wiping at the tears starting to fall again.

“May I call you a car? Or call Mr. Forrester?” Cliff followed me onto the sidewalk, looking concerned.

“No. I’m fine,” I repeated, hating how my voice broke.

“Mrs. For?—”

I pulled up my hoodie and quickened my pace. “Goodnight, Cliff.” I seamlessly merged into a crush of people walking between streets, losing myself in the bustle of the city.

Walking without a purpose, I soon saw the wrought iron gates that framed the southern edge of Central Park. Using one of the many paths that twisted into the city’s largest park, I released a shaky breath and slowed down.

The sounds of the city, of cars and people, muted the deeper I walked into the park. The sun was starting to set, and other than a few cyclists and joggers, I was mostly alone.

It wasn’t long before I recognized the path I’d subconsciously chosen as one that led to my favorite spot in the park—Belvedere Castle.

As a little girl, my parents, and then my grandparents, had brought me there for picnics. I’d run around the castle like I was its princess, gripping the stone walls to peer out to the park and all the people below.

I lengthened my strides as the castle turret came into view. The gray stone was worn and weathered, but it felt like coming home.

Rounding the corner of the path that would cross the 79th Street Transverse, I heard the yipping of a dog and someone shouting.

“Please! Catch her! Stay, Gigi!”

Turning, I spotted a blur of white puff zipping toward me. I knelt and clapped my hands to get the dog’s attention. Its tiny ears perked up as it ran, a bright pink leash trailing in its wake.

Gigi jumped at me with an excited bark, and I closed my fingers around the leash as her owner’s shape materialized from the darkness.

The lamplight behind me flickered on, illuminating the area with a golden glow as I looked up at the owner with a smile that instantly fell when I realized I knew the person coming toward me.

The leash slipped from my hands and Gigi scampered away, and it was all I could do not to follow her.

“Well, if it isn’t my trouble making assistant,” Mr. Covington sneered. “Was ruining my career not enough for a whore like you?”

I straightened and started to back away. “Mr. Covington, I had no idea?—”

“Lying little slut,” he spat, lunging forward and grabbing my wrists.

I glanced around, but all I could see was Gigi’s leash disappearing as she went over a hill. “Your dog?—”

“Fuck the dog,” he snarled. “It would seem I have my hands full with another bitch this evening.”

Fear surged in my veins as I realized I was on my own. Even if I could break free, my best shot was to run for the transverse where cars were cutting through the park. With my luck, Mr. Covington would catch me and shove me into oncoming traffic.

“Please—”

“Shut up!” he roared, dragging me toward a copse of trees.

I opened my mouth, ready to scream. As soon as I dragged in a breath, he clamped a sweaty hand over my mouth while shoving my back against a tree. My spine hit the trunk of the tree with a crunch that I felt from my ass to my shoulders. Air whooshed from my lungs.

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