Page 13 of Time Out

But Hudson is.

His face softens. “I’m not mad. I’m protective.” He holds out his arms, and I stand, still a little unsure. “Come on,” he says, and I go to him, settling into his thick, solid chest.

It’s like coming home.

“You’re like a big ole protective Great Dane. I’m partial to Black Lab’s myself but I could be swayed…”

“Oh, is that so?” He half snarls, turning my face up to look at his serious eyes. “No one gets to see you dressed like this except me, you understand? This is for Daddy only.”

I nod.

And then I hear it.

Laughter.

Hudson turns, his body turning hard, anger boiling in his eyes.

A gathering of six men stand in the doorway to the kitchen, nodding and chuckling, rubbing their chins or their hands together.

Hudson growls.

He really growls. Bares his teeth.

But they aren’t so quick on the uptake because one of them whistles.

Not a good idea.

“Daddy.” I whisper before thinking and I see all six sets of eyes go round.

His eyes soften for a second before he levels them all with a step forward and a glare. “Which one of you motherfuckers is disrespecting my daughter?” Silence greets him, and if I thought his face darkened when I made him angry, that was nothing. “You dumb fucks laughing at me then? Huh?” He turns his hands up waiting. “All the sudden no one knows how to talk? Get the fuck out of here and spread the word, any of you or anyone on your crew set their eyes on my daughter again, I’ll twist yourballs off and staple them to the tree out front. Now, get the fuck back outside, I’ll be there in a minute.”

He starts their way, and I don’t know who these people are, but I don’t want to see any balls stapled to a tree because, that’s gross. I’m also pretty sure that would lead to Hudson going to prison for a very long time.

And despite the fact that he kidnapped me last night, the thought of losing him has a panic wrapping around my throat, choking me.

My prince charming. My billionaire. That’s what I hoped for. Is that what I got?

Part of me wonders whether that’s all he is to me, a meal ticket, a way out. But if that’s true, then why do I feel like I want to run to him with all my fears and happy moments?

Why do I feel like I’d follow him anywhere, even if he was just one of those workers and not a man that could probably buy a private island and a jet to get us there with barely a blip on his financial radar.

He growls, but I place a hand on his shoulder, lowering my voice. “I’ll go inside,” I murmur.

“Please don’t.”

I reach up on tiptoe, and put my lips against his. The men think I’m his daughter, so that must seem pretty strange, but one thing I’ve come to realize: I don’t care. I’m happier right now than I’ve been in my life before, and nothing can possibly spoil it.

“There are going to be workers around,” Hudson says. “I’ll get them started, then I’ll come find you. You stay on this end of the house, not where there’s construction. Anywhere through that door is okay.” He points to the door to the hallway where he brought me into the kitchen. “There’s construction and demo going on, so I don’t want you near any of that. Or the workers.”

He gives me a hard stare and I swallow, nodding.

“Okay, Daddy.”

“That’s my girl.” He almost cracks a smile. He’s the most handsome man I’ve ever seen. “That pussy is going to learn how to take care of me today. Now, scoot, before I bend you over and take that cherry right here.”

When Hudson finds me again, a couple hours have gone by. I’ve been back to the bedroom, brushed my hair, put on a pair of his boxers and then explored a good portion of this amazing house but mostly, I’ve been day dreaming in an enormous, sprawling ballroom with a polished parquet floor, drooping chandeliers and marble busts that look like they could be genuinely Roman or Greek, but they have to be modern copies, right? As he walks in, I’m just testing the center of the dance floor, because it feelssoft.

“It’s sprung,” he says as he stands and watches me. “It was made to the same design as one in the UK.”

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