“Have you finished putting those bids in a presentation for my meeting with Jace and Ash?” Gabe asked from across the room.
Mia glanced up to see him staring at her, warmth and tenderness lighting his eyes. Yes, he’d definitely changed in his actions toward her. He’d become more…human. Someone she believed could love her in return.
“Just finishing up,” she said. “There are spots for the other two bids. As soon as I receive them, I’ll input the information.”
Gabe nodded approvingly. “We’ll make our selection this week. It’s possible that I’ll need to return to Paris closer to Christmas. Would you want to go?”
That was another thing that had changed with Gabe. Before, he’d never asked her what she wanted to do or if she wanted to travel with him somewhere. He told her where he expected her to be. She hadn’t had a choice in any of it.
Now? Now he never demanded. Though she could often discern what he wanted her decision to be, he never made it for her.
“I’d love to go to Paris at Christmas,” she said, excitement squeaking in her voice.
He smiled, relief welling in his eyes. “I’ll make our arrangements and I’ll include an extra day so you can see anything we missed the first time.”
If she’d felt ridiculously spoiled before, it was to the point of absurdity now. He was a complete dream. So very attentive to her needs. Responsive to anything he perceived she wanted or needed.
It was an experience she thoroughly enjoyed. She savored every gentle touch, every look of concern, every attention to exacting detail where she was concerned.
Gabe’s phone rang, and he answered. She realized quickly it was his mother. His entire demeanor changed when he spoke to her.
He’d likely be a while. He and his mother had been talking more and more lately as she navigated the tricky waters of her reconciliation with Gabe’s dad. She relied heavily on Gabe for emotional support.
She checked her watch. It was past lunchtime and Gabe had been busy all morning. She doubted he planned to take a lunch break at all and work on through until his afternoon meeting.
Making a decision, she rose and collected her purse. Gabe looked up, his eyebrow raising in question as she started toward the door.
Lunch, she mouthed. I’ll bring you back something.
He nodded and then slid the phone down his chin so his mouth was free.
“Wear a sweater, Mia. It’s cold out. There’s a chance of snow, so be careful on the sidewalk.”
She smiled, heartened by his concern. She went back to her desk, pulled on the warm sweater she kept there for just such occasions. Then she blew him a kiss that made his eyes gleam.
When she stepped outside the building, an excited thrill raced up her spine. She could positively smell snow in the air. There was a brisk chill and moisture with that gray overcast sky. Perfect holiday weather.
She practically danced her way down the block toward the deli where she and Gabe often had takeout. She loved this time of year. Loved the change in seasons. And she always looked forward to Christmas.
With Thanksgiving a mere week away, many shops were already decorating their windows with Christmas lights and displays.
She hugged her sweater tighter as a gust of wind blew over her. She ducked into the deli and placed her to-go order.
Five minutes later, she collected the plastic bags and pushed her way through the crowded interior to step back onto the sidewalk. A raindrop hit her nose, and she picked up her pace as light drizzle began to fall. She hadn’t thought to bring an umbrella. She’d only planned to be a few minutes.
Figures it would start raining now. It couldn’t have waited the five minutes it would take her to get back to her building?
She had her head down as she rounded the corner to the front entrance of Gabe’s office building when she ran smack into another person. She dropped one of the bags and she bent, apologizing as she picked the food back up. Hopefully it would all still be intact. As she rose, the person she’d run into was still standing there.
Nausea curled in her stomach when she got a good look at the man’s face. Charles. The man who’d assaulted her in Gabe’s Paris hotel suite. There was no way it could be a coincidence that she’d run into him outside the office building.
She took a wary step back and he grasped her arm, pushing her out of the way of pedestrians and against the stone of the building. She was still several feet away from the entrance. Her gaze automatically took in her surroundings as she pondered the best way to escape Charles’s grasp.
“Don’t touch me,” she bit out. “Gabe will kill you for this.”
Charles’s face twisted into a snarl. “Thanks to your overreaction, Gabe went off his hinges. He’s trying to cut me out of the deal entirely. He won’t do business with me, and that’s going to hurt my ability to do business with others. I need this deal, and you fucked it up for me.”
“I fucked it up for you?” she yelled. “You stupid fuck wad. You assaulted me! And I fucked it up for you? You’re a dick!”
“Shut the fuck up!” he hissed, pressing in closer, his grip tightening on her arms.
“Back off,” she warned. “Get the hell away from me.”
His grasp was tight and cruel, and she knew it would leave marks. She only wanted to get the hell away from this asshole and return to Gabe. Where it was safe. Where he’d never allow anything to happen to her.
Rain sluiced down her face, and she blinked to clear her vision. It was cold and only growing colder as wetness permeated her clothing and hair.
“You and I have something to discuss,” he snapped. “I want inside information on the bids. I know you have access to it. My only shot is to be able to come in substantially lower than my competitors so that HCM doesn’t have a choice but to go with me. I may lose money in this deal, but it sets me up nicely for the future. I need this deal to happen, Mia, and you’re going to get it for me.”
“You’re out of your mind! I’m not telling you jack. Gabe would kill me and so would my brother. I won’t betray either one of them, especially not for a dickhead like you. Now get out of my space or I’ll start screaming the block down.”
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” he said in a low voice.
He shoved his phone at her, the display screen jumping before she could bring it into focus. She gasped, horrified by what was on the screen. This wasn’t happening. It could not be happening!