Page 5 of Billionaire Bodyguard

It was for my sister and Booker. While I’d been captive, she’d met a freaking royal heir, her proverbial prince charming, who was the second son of the ruling family of Zenderland and thirdin line for the throne of the small European principality. She’d married him right after the rescue four years ago.

I’d been collateral damage then, and I was collateral damage now.

No one really wanted me. Not Rod. Not some proverbial dissidents, wanting leverage with the Zenderland monarchy. And not the bodyguard who was stuck watching my ass, day in and day out.

Of course, he didn’t watch my actual ass.

Closing my eyes, I drew up my knees, tipped my head back against the door and took deep breaths to ease my anxiety. Every thought rattling through my thoughts sounded like a bunch ofwoe is me. And I really wanted to kick my own ass.

Mostly, the situation just pissed me off. I was stuck, bound in place and unable to do anything about it. Today, I’d just needed to get out of here, to escape the nightmares still taunting me, even into waking. Four years out from the terror and the memories remained as vivid as they were yesterday.

Even now, hours after leaving bed, my throat constricted with the memory of the chain tight around my neck, choking me while I fought my captor or shivered from the bone-deep cold that had been a constant ache.

“It’s not real. It’snotreal,” I whispered, rubbing a hand hard over my neck and swallowing. “It’s not real. He’s in prison. He can’t hurt me. He can’t touch me. He can’t…”

My lips snapped shut, teeth grinding. I would not speak of what he’d done. The people around me didn’t know. ExceptAdler. He’d taken me to the doctors who’d secretly treated me. And my legal team and the authorities knew. Talking to them about Rod’s upcoming trial had likely brought on last night’s nightmare.

Four years later and I’d have to face him again because his lawyers had successfully appealed to have his murder trial separated from the assault and kidnapping charges—and because the judge knew Marigold’s case would be high profile, mine had been separated from hers, as well. In the coming weeks, I’d have to take the stand and come face-to-face with him for the first time since his trial for murdering my mother.

I hadn’t witnessed it, but he’d taunted me with it, threatened me with the same, while he’d had me. I’d been glad to see him convicted. She hadn’t been a good mom or really even a good person, but she hadn’t deserved to be murdered because she’d stood in a stalker’s path.

Huddled against my door, I shuddered as my brain spiraled into dark thoughts. My breathing grew choppy, bile burning in my throat. I swallowed hard and clenched my fists as I stared blindly across the room.

Adler had no idea Ineededto leave the penthouse to escape the specters that haunted me today, exactly four years since that unspeakable day when Rod had grabbed me on my way home from school.

Black pinpoints danced in front of my eyes, and my chest ached.

Damn it! I’d been holding my breath again.

If he doesn’t hear me breathing, if I don’t move, maybe he’ll forget I’m here.

The sound of a belt clearing its loops. A scream clawing into my throat—

No!

Damn it, no! I wasn’t falling into a flashback!

Gritting my teeth, I brutally pinched the skin on the inside of my elbow to bring me back to the here and now. Focusing on the pain loosened the grip of my past, pushed away the clouds for a moment.

Heaving a breath, I lurched to my feet and yanked off the jacket and light sweater I’d put on this morning. Not caring that I was in jeans and a blouse, rather than workout gear, I strode over to the treadmill stationed near the big glass windows that bordered the length of one bedroom wall. From there, I could see a huge swath of Central Park and nearby city buildings. I could see the trees blooming, spring bringing the world back to life, the tiny people scurrying from place to place on the streets and sidewalks, the tourists on carriage rides.

The world was visible from my gilded cage, but I’d hardly notice a bit of it while I ran until I forgot anything but the relief of exhaustion dulling my thoughts. I wouldn’t feel except for the ache of my bones from the repeated jar of my feet hitting the track and the weakness in my muscles from running miles but going nowhere. And maybe, for a little while, I just wouldn’tfeelat all.

Four

Adler

“Fucking hell,” I muttered under my breath, my eyes glued on Linzey’s delicious ass as she took off toward her bedroom after tossing around another dose of her mouthy attitude. My fingers flexed, my desire straining against the iron hold I kept wrapped around it.

One of these days, I’d snap. Faster than she could gasp outNo, I’d turn her over my knee and spank the brat right out of her.

This episode wasn’t about brattiness, though. After four years, I recognized her patterns. I knew it was about the meetings she’d had to go to, reliving the past, and her subsequent nightmares.

Linzey was having a CPSTD episode. While it didn’t look like what was shown in books, television and movies, she was suffering the effects which changed her moods and emotions as fast as lightning splitting a tree. She thought I was oblivious to her emotions. I wasn’t. She just chose not to talk to me.

So even if I wanted to take her in hand, more than anything, I couldn’t. She was under my protection. Off limits. And dare I say, my job.

She didn’t have to be.

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