Page 452 of Filthy Elites

“My parents know about her.”

“They do?” Evan asks, shocked.

“Of course they do. If she was eighteen I’d be moving her in tonight. Unfortunately she’s not, but I thought it best to warn them that they’d be meeting their future daughter-in-law. They looked into her too, they probably know as much about her as I do,” I say with a shrug.

“Fuck me, no doubt they’ve told my mom and dad. They’ll be expecting me to lose my shit and bring home a girl too now,” Hunter sighs dramatically.

“My dad will be giving me the lecture about how women are only useful on their backs again,” Evan laughs.

Ignoring them, I focus all of my attention on the girl in my arms. I never intended to scare her, I’d never hurt her and I told her that. I assumed she’d be excited to be mine, any other girl at school would be. Her body trembles, even in her unconscious state and I scowl, wondering what I need to do to make her understand. When the gates to my house come into view I allow myself to relax a little. Perhaps this has all just been a little too much for her tonight. A lot has happened in a short amount of time and she’s so sweet and innocent.

I don’t want to take her home, I want her in my house, even if I can’t have her in my bed. A plan starts to form, how I can keep her. She’s right, her mother would, I’m sure, call the police if she failed to return home as expected, but what about if she wasn’t expecting her?

Evan slows to a stop outside the front door to my house and I don’t waste any time, unclipping my own seat belt and then hers before I lift her into my arms and out of the car. Richard, our house manager, opens the door before I reach it and his brow arches in concern at Starling’s prone body. “Could you please show Dr. Harris straight up to Starling’s room when he gets here, please?”

“Of course, shall I inform your parents that you’re home?”

“Yes, please, let them know Starling got a little overwhelmed in the car and fainted. Assure them that I’m having her checked over, but both her and her mother will be staying here tonight.”

“Very good, sir,” Richard says, his old-fashioned, courtly manners making me smile.

“You’re going to bring her mom here?” Clay asks on a laugh as he follows me up the stairs and to the bedroom beside mine that I had decorated for Starling this summer.

“I want her here, and if having her mother here is how I achieve that, then so be it.”

Opening the door to her bedroom, I carry her inside, then close it behind me, shutting my friends outside. Crossing to the bed, I carefully lay her down onto the comforter, pulling her sneakers off her feet and placing them on the floor. I debate stripping her out of the ugly waitress uniform, but decide against it. That wouldn’t be easy to explain to her mother.

Sinking down onto the bed beside her, I run my fingers through her hair. Her eyes flutter open and she blinks, looking up at me as her full lips form anOshape. She stares at me for a long moment, before her eyes roll back and she slumps back into unconsciousness again. My heart starts to beat at a frantic rate, just as there’s a knock at the door. “Dr. Harris, thank you for coming on such short notice.” I greet him, opening the door wider and allowing him to enter. “This is my fiancée, Starling, she got a little flustered in the car and passed out. I’ve been monitoring her pulse, which is steady and strong, but she’s been in and out for a little over five minutes now.”

“Has she come round at all?”

“Briefly for a few moments, then she passed out again,” I tell him.

“Starling, can you hear me?”

Her eyelids start to flutter and she looks up from her position on the bed. As she comes to, she blinks, looking around in shock before her eyes land on me then the doctor. Bolting upright, she wildly surveys the room, trying to figure out where she is.

“Little bird, you passed out in the car, this is Dr. Harris, he’s here to check you’re okay. Your mom’s on her way.”

“My mom?” she asks, pausing frantic eyes on me.

“I called her, she wanted me to bring you home, but when I explained Dr. Harris was on his way, I suggested she come here instead,” I lie. I do plan to call her mom, but not until Starling is settled and the doctor’s done all that he needs to do.

“Where am I?” she asks frantically.

“My house, sweetheart, just stay calm and let the doctor examine you.”

Turning to look at the doctor again, her brow furrows. “You’re a doctor?” He nods and she glances at me warily, before turning back to him. “He’s kidnapped me, please help me.”

Dr. Harris turns his head and eyes me cautiously before looking back to Starling. “Let me examine you first, fainting can be scary and a little disorienting.”

Her eyes keep warily glancing at me, but she nods and her body relaxes a little as she leans back into the mountain of pale-blue-and-white cushions I picked out for her.

Dr. Harris is quick and efficient as he checks Starling’s pulse, takes her blood pressure, then shines a light into her eyes to check her reactions. Draping his stethoscope around his neck, he walks over to where his bag is sitting on top of a console table and I quickly follow.

“Is she okay?” I ask quietly.

“Her pulse and blood pressure are a little elevated, but not to a concerning level. What happened before she fainted?”

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