Page 28 of Rosabel and the Billionaire Beast

I know how you feel about her.

No other threats had come, however. No other reminders or indications of harmful intentions toward Rosabel or me. Not until now.

Maddox had suspected Ulrich had planted the note before he’d gotten arrested. But this?

Furious, I tapped a call to my realtor.

“Buy the house,” I demanded without much other preamble.

Then, I cranked my sports car to life. The engine rumbled, growling as I revved it with my foot on the gas.

Now, the idea to bring her with me to Arkansas wasn’t just urgent—it was wild. Raging. I’d take her to that house in the mountains. Even if Ulrich found us there, taking her away would buy us some time. Not only that, but I could keep her safe better than anyone else. I could ensure nothing would happen to either of us.

I just had to convince her to go with me.

EIGHT

rosabel

I was steppinginto the unknown. Today was the day I’d find a new job. I had to.

After helping Dad bathe and dress, I waited until Sarah arrived before donning my professional attire—my lavender blouse with a pinstriped skirt—and headed into the city. Westville wasn’t huge by industry standards, but plenty of work could be found if a person knew where to look for it.

I decided to stop by New England Staffing and see what they could offer me. Hopefully something in the editing arena. Not only had I studied music during my undergrad at Virginia University—a degree which I hadn’t finished. I’d had to drop out to take care of Dad—I’d also been dab at writing papers and had taken a few grammar classes. I’d make a passable editor at the very least.

It’d been another occupation I’d considered doing from home so I could take care of Dad, anyway.

Hours later, after a few unsuccessful interviews and a hard pass at a place called Javelin Recycling, I returned home, downtrodden and discouraged. Only, Sarah’s gray Dodge wasn’t the only car parked on the street in front of my house.

I froze, staring as I lifted my foot from the gas. I was tempted to veer past, cruise through the neighborhood for a handful of minutes and see if Duncan’s silver Bugatti was gone by the time I got back, but something told me that wouldn’t happen.

Duncan was nothing if not persistent. If he wanted to talk to me, it would happen sooner or later.

I just couldn’t believe he was here. His car looked so out of place, like a metal flower in a field full of wild ones.

He’d never bothered to come over the night I’d managed to pry him drunk from a night club after a deal had gone south; or the time he’d gone on a shopping rampage, insisting on buying me everything I wanted from a department store.

When I hadn’t picked anything and demanded he take me home, he’d only dropped me off at the office. I’d had to arrange for other transportation. Pete had been beside himself with jealousy. He’d been sure something more was going on between Duncan and me, and I’d had to plead my case in that regard more than once.

Duncan had, however, come over the day he’d given me the punching bag I never used. It still hung in the garage where he’d installed it. That had been another sore spot for Pete. Another reason I’d ended things with him.

I’d gotten tired of him jumping to conclusions. He’d been just as bad as everyone else at the office.

I was NOT dating Duncan Hawthorne.

I'd tried telling Pete as much. As far as I knew, Duncan didn’t date. I’d only worked for him for a year and a half, and in that short time I couldn’t remember him taking one woman out. He mostly hung out with his friends.

But that insistence hadn’t been enough for Pete, and I’d gotten tired of my boyfriend not believing me.

I thought of Hawk, Adrian, and Maddox. They stuck with Duncan, but they obviously had a different relationship with himthan he would have on a more personal level. Maybe they really didn’t know him all that well.

His family, however,didknow him. I was surprised they wanted him to come home at all.

I winced and backtracked that thought. That was unfair. His family probably saw another side of him, one that no one else did.

Then again, did Duncan have another side other than his power trip? At this point, I doubted there was anything more to him than shallow, entitled greed.

Slowly, begrudgingly, I pulled into my driveway and shifted into park.

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