Page 35 of Now and Forever

Chapter 13

Gisele

It was a little after one the morning when I came back home. Upon entering my bedroom, I quietly made my way into the closet to change. Instead of wearing my usual favored selection of robes to sleep in, this time I opted for a nude cotton slip. Sharing my bed with Jared required extra precautions. After that mortifying ordeal, I wasn’t going to leave it to chance.

Dinner with Wyatt was actually quite fun, unexpectedly so. He kept his word and acted like a gentleman all throughout the evening. I admitted, it shed a different light on him. Like I said before, if he weren’t Blair’s brother, maybe I wouldn’t have reservations about dating him. It was just as well; the man was notoriously known to have women everywhere. If Jared was wicked, Wyatt was ten times worse than that. He left litters of broken hearts everywhere. And after this painful ordeal with Jared, I’d be a complete idiot to run into another man’s arms who could potentially hurt me just as badly. Maybe even worse.

Barefoot, I guardedly walked into the bedroom. Through the darkness, my eyes took a while to adjust. Jared was in bed, appearing to be asleep with his hands behind his head. My heart skittered at the majestic sight of him spread out like a king. His large muscular frame and chiseled abdomen made my specific organ quiver.

Don’t be a continuous lovesick idiot. Shut down your damn vagina, Gisele. Lock it down, or he’ll mock you about it in the morning. Do you really want to be shamed for a second time?

I shook my head, quite disgusted at myself.

Averting my eyes from the sleeping man, I concentrated on rounding the bed until I reached my side. I didn’t realize I’d been holding my breath until my head rested on a pillow and I had successfully positioned myself without waking him up. With my back facing him, I shut my lids and focused on stabilizing my heart rate. It took about five minutes or so until it began to normalize. Slowly but surely, my mind began to drift away.

I was a hairsbreadth away from nodding off into a deep slumber when his strong arms wrapped around me, pulling me against his hard body. His scent and warmth enveloped my senses immediately. I froze while I waited for him to say something, but no word came. His hot breath caressed the back of my neck. One arm rested under my chin; the other held my hip. There was nothing sexual about it. It was as if he were expressing his apology through comfort. He uttered no words, but I knew he was wide awake.

What ran through that exceptionally brilliant mind of his?

At this point, I wouldn’t even dare try to comprehend his actions. After all, if I dared attempt to, I’d go mental. Therefore, I kept still until sleep finally caught on. The last thought that crossed my mind was, Jared would forever remain an enigma to me.

* * *

I woketo the strange sounds of metals clashing. The sharp, screeching commotion raised the hairs on the back of my neck. Sleepiness escaped me, replaced by something foreboding.

Hurriedly, I darted towards the balcony where the sounds largely came from. My breath caught in the back of my throat when I watched in horror as I located Jared, gripping two katanas in each hand as he fought with a man wearing full Japanese armor. Their shiny weapons glimmered against the rays of the sun. Jared only wore loose black pants—bare-chested, barefooted, and not much else. He had no ounce of protection if the damn sword found a vulnerable spot to cut him. He’d be dead in a heartbeat.

Without thought, I rushed out the door. I didn’t even use the elevator as I scampered to the stairs before bolting towards the French doors that led to the garden. I sprinted towards the men, past caring that the grass felt wet underneath my soles.

“Stop!” I bellowed with everything I had, noting the vicious look on Jared’s face, as if he were out for blood as he blocked the other man’s sword; it made me quake with fear inside. They were in the middle of a grueling battle, and the sound of their swords along with the adrenaline rush probably made it impossible for them to hear me. I was ready to jump on the Japanese suited man if he kept on fighting him. Where was security, anyway? So much for hiring the best of the best. So, I dared to step farther into their domain, merely a few feet away from them, determined as ever. “STOP! Please, STOP! You’re going to hurt him!”

This time, they heard me.

Both men paused, halting mid-air. Jared’s sweat trickled all over his face, his torso, as he deeply frowned and glanced towards where I stood.

“Gisele?” Jared huffed out, frowning, seeming confused.

My lethal gaze landed on his opponent. “You better put that down!” I irrationally commanded, and he spun to face me, pierced his sword into the ground, and took off his mask, exposing a middle-aged Japanese man. Then he held his left palm up vertically while the other bunched together before connecting them both and gesturing in a graceful bow.

“Miss Weber,” he uttered with great respect in his voice.

“Gisele, calm down. I’m merely working up a sweat,” Jared grumbled. An obvious sign of an amused smile crossed his face.

Working up a sweat?While seconds away from getting killed? What is wrong with him?

“Are you serious?” Highly embarrassed, I couldn’t even come up with an apology. I glared at Jared and his idiotic smile. I began to redden, immediately feeling like a complete moron. “Why can’t you be normal for once!” I muttered before I harrumphed out of the garden and retreated back indoors.

Who in their right mind would whack swords around without some sort of armor? Did he have a fucking death wish? It sure looked like it. The man didn’t give a damn if he died. I really should stop caring. When would I learn?

Feeling like an absolute fool, I trudged towards the hallway, too heated to realize that Jared had somehow caught up to me before I took the stairs.

“Gisele!”

I stopped, and ever so slowly, I turned to face him.

His hand held both swords, and he was still chuckling at my mad behavior. His impressive chiseled abs glistened with sweat, and those gorgeous cerulean blues danced with glee.

My breasts ached, my body acutely responding to him. Not now, damn it! I scolded my treacherous body, but to no avail.

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