Page 44 of Forever Touched

“No,” Everett replied, looking far from pleased with how this conversation had turned out. “Apologies for the intrusion. I’ll see myself out.”

Mistress curtsied as he left, holding the pose until he firmly shut the door behind him. Slowly straightening, she tilted her head and listened to him leave, hearing far more than I ever could. After a few minutes, the congenial expression on her face twisted into a fierce scowl.

“Thegallof that male,” she spat, her eyes flaring red. “Storming in here and demanding answers like that.Accusingme of sex trafficking you.”

“Was that Prince Everett?” Octavia called in a distressed wail, scurrying toward us in nothing but a bathrobe. “Why didn’t you tell me, Mother? I could have hurried up with my shower.”

Mistress wrestled her anger under control before calmly responding to her daughter, “It wasn’t a social call, dear. The prince still has no idea you exist and probably never will.”

Octavia stuck her bottom lip out.

“But he knows whoStaris,” Georgina said, sauntering into the foyer at a more sedate pace. She was also wearing a robe, clearly still waiting for their escort to arrive. “Sounds to me like he has an unhealthyobsessionwith her.”

She looked me up and down with distaste.

“You are not to go anywhere near him, Adalyn. Do you understand?” Mistress said, reaching out to roughly grab my chin. “If he’s the male in the gold mask who attacked you this morning, then we must all be on our guard. He could ruineverythingwe’ve worked so hard to build.”

Surprised that she wasn’t trying to capitalize on the situation, I dared to say, “But what if he demands a private session with me? I could trap him like all the rest. Imagine the possibilities if we secured him as a client.”

Excitement sparked in her eyes, yet she replied, “Tempting, but trapping a Venturi that powerful is too dangerous. He’s clearly obsessed with you and feeding that obsession could quickly backfire on us. If we let him get too close, he could uncover our entire operation before we’re ready, which would leave us vulnerable. Tell me you understand.”

“I understand.”

“Good.” Appeased, she dropped my chin. “It’s unfortunate that the crown prince has taken an interest in you, but he has no legal grounds to stop you from seeing your clients. We’ll have to be extra careful, though. He might try to attack again when you’re alone, so we’ll need to adjust your schedule for added security.”

My stomach dropped. Was she going to forbid me from driving anywhere by myself? It was my only reprieve. My one tiny slice of freedom. The walls suddenly seemed to close in around me, trapping me more than they already were.Cagingme. Desperation clawed at my throat, but I carefully swallowed it back down.

Things felt extra dark right now, but I was used to living in the dark. Somehow, I’d survive this. I had no other choice.

14

ADALYN

It started to rain just as I left the house.

Sighing in relief, I swiftly locked the kitchen door and hurried toward the garage. The Faircrofts had left only minutes before, staying longer than usual to make sure no one was lurking about the property. Mistress decided not to have Rocky pick me up, but he would be at the club waiting for me when I arrived. Which meant that I had to beat him there before he found Benjamin’s body.

With not a spare second to waste, I jogged to the garage and hurriedly unlocked it, impatiently waiting for the garage door to rise as I scrambled to start the Aston Martin. I punched the accelerator the moment it was clear, and the car lurched forward. Barely out of the garage, though, the car made an awful clicking noise, then rolled to a dead stop.

“No,” I whimpered, jumping out into the rain once more. As I popped open the hood, the rain picked up, dumping buckets on my head. “Great. Just great!”

I paused for a moment to yell at the sky, then forced myself to focus on something I could control. Peering inside the car, I began searching for what needed to be fixed. But seconds later, all the hair on my body stood on end, my senses going on high alert.

Someone was watching me.

I whirled around, gasping when I spotted a tall figure only a few yards away. Not recognizing who it was through all the pouring rainand gloom, my fight or flight instinct kicked in. I reached into my back pocket, but it was empty.

Before I could come up with a plan B, a familiar deep voice called, “It’s just me.”

I sagged against the car with relief, willing my racing heart to slow. “You scared the crap out of me.”

When Everett didn’t respond, I turned to resume my task.

“Back with more questions? I hate to disappoint, but I really was telling the truth earlier.”

He stayed silent for so long that I snuck a glance at him over my shoulder. When I found him inches away, peering down at what I was doing, a startled yelp left me. “Don’tdothat,” I scolded, pushing him back a step without thought. He glanced down at my hand on his chest, then slowly let me inch him backward. With a harumph, I added, “If you’re just going to be in the way, please leave. I’m in a hurry and have no time for whatever this is.”

Still no response.

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