Yeah. He was about to get what he wanted. But he was now realizing that what Eva wanted was more important.
She wanted her friend. She wanted the familiar. She was in a tough place, had shit coming at her from every angle, and her only option was a man she was angry with. A man who’d lied to her. A man who was still lying to her, by omission, only she didn’t know it yet.
Holy Christ.
He rubbed at the burn behind his sternum. Goddammit, why couldn’t he hand her care over to Alek and be done with it? Regardless what Vasily thought, Alek was more than capable of protecting his cousin, even in his current state.
He considered what that might look like.
And killed the idea in the next second. Hell, if Vasily called him right then and demanded he hand Eva off to one of the boys, no way would Gabriel comply. No fucking way. She’d made the mistake of giving herself to him last night. She’d gifted him with her innocence. Her trust—that he’d already damaged.
Unfortunately for her, and despite all the reasons he shouldn’t, that meant he was keeping her for as long as he could.
† † †
Eva looked away from the blaze of possession darkening Gabriel’s green eyes. She didn’t want him looking at her like that. As if she were his. She didn’t want to feel as if she were his.
Did she?
So fucking torn, she ran her finger over the screen on her phone, tempted to try Nika’s cell again. But she didn’t want to appear any kookier than she already did to Quan, who’d only minutes ago sat there quietly watching her frantically redial Nika’s number almost a dozen times. She’d quit when she’d heard Gabriel coming back from his time-out.
Why had he done that? Stormed out in the middle of their conversation. Because he’d been angry that she wasn’t following his orders?
Quan had neither confirmed nor denied her suspicion. Which, aside from his easy companionship, was something she liked about him. He hadn’t talked about Gabriel behind his back. Instead of gossiping, he’d simply helped her from the counter and over to the table, saying she might as well get comfortable.
Now she had to eat crow and accept Gabriel’s offer to stay at the hotel. She didn’t have a choice in the matter. She wasn’t stupid enough to insist on staying here with a broken window and busted alarm system allowing easy entry into her house. She shuddered and closed her eyes.
She had to face the facts. Something was going on, she was somehow involved, and she needed answers. And after her intruder’s warning, there was no longer any doubt in her mind that Gabriel could offer some insight.
She held off asking for it just then, selfishly afraid of what the truth might mean. Was it business related? Something about her job? Or was it personal?
At least one thing she was certain of, even though he’d lied to her, Gabriel wasn’t out to physically harm her. And while his deception still stung, it was getting harder and harder to hold a grudge when he was here seeing to her safety. Making it so she didn’t feel so damn alone in the world.
“Eva. You’ll come to the hotel with me because it’s the safest place for you. You see that, right?”
She raised her head from where she’d rested it on her folded forearms. “Yeah. Okay.”
“There just isn’t—What?”
She hid a smile. “I said okay. I’m not an idiot. And I’m not going to endanger myself by being stubborn. Since Nika isn’t picking up, and I’m certainly not going to panic my mom’s friends by calling them and telling them about this. I could always get a room at another hotel, but I’d just stay up all night, shitting my pants over every sound. So…you’re it.” She dragged herself to her tender feet and laughed in a tight burst. “God, that’s pathetic, isn’t it?”
Both men stood, Gabriel coming to her while Quan went to the cabinet under the sink to take out the dustpan before leaving the room. Sweet guy.
“If we were in New York, would you have more options?” Gabriel asked as he skimmed his thumb over her mildly throbbing cheekbone.
She nodded. “Sure. I’d call Caleb. If for some reason he wasn’t around, I’d call one of my friends from school.”
“Then you know it’s all in the circumstances. You’ve been back in Seattle for days, after being gone years. It isn’t surprising your ties