Dominated: The Enforcers 2 (The Enforcers Series) (10 page)

Evangeline sat across the island from Drake, watching as he enjoyed the dinner she’d prepared. Her cheeks had warmed to the point of discomfort when he’d praised her efforts effusively after sampling each of the courses.

When she’d tried to be dismissive by explaining it was a simple meal of baked chicken with herbed rice, scalloped potatoes and vegetables, he’d scolded her and told her there was nothing simple about her cooking such a wonderful dinner for him.

At times like this, Evangeline allowed herself to venture into dangerous territory and fantasize about cooking dinner for Drake every night. Of him coming home to the smells of a home-cooked meal and of her trying out new recipes on him.

Telling herself to live for the moment and not allow herself to be hurt by assuming she had a tomorrow was fruitless. There was little point in chastising herself for her dreams because she lived them, lived in them, every single day. If the day came that Drake no longer wanted her, then all she would have left of him were the memories that she made while still with him, and she was determined to make the most of them.

“Silas said that Maddox was taking me shopping tomorrow,” Evangeline said lightly. “He mentioned a function you intended to take me to and that I should pick out something appropriate for the event. But he didn’t know which event you had decided on, so he wasn’t sure what exactly would be appropriate for me to wear.”

Drake’s eyes flickered a moment and then he grew pensive. Then he reached for the briefcase he’d discarded earlier when he arrived home. He drew out three cards, all addressed to him, and laid them out on the bar so Evangeline could look at them.

“I’ve narrowed it down to three possibilities,” he said with indifference. “I thought I’d let you select which one you’d prefer to attend.”

Evangeline reached for the ornately scripted invitations and carefully read each.

“I’ll wear a black tux, no matter which you choose, so feel free to select anything you feel would go well with what I’m wearing.”

Evangeline outlined the one that announced it was a kickoff to the holiday season at Carnegie Hall with her finger.

“I love the holidays,” she said wistfully. “What exactly is this one for?”

Drake took the invitation from her and then handed it back.

“It’s a fund-raiser for the NYPD. Proceeds will go to an organization for widows and children of police officers killed in the line of duty and also to a separate organization to benefit officers wounded in the line of duty and their families as well while they are recovering and aren’t back on active duty yet.”

She looked up at him in surprise. “Are you a contributor to these two charities?”

Her heart leapt in her throat because he was presenting her with the perfect opportunity to ask him questions she’d been wanting to ask but had been holding off. Now that the chance had landed right in her lap, she was nervous and worried over what his response would be.

He nodded indifferently. “I contribute to a number of local causes. I
have an entire staff who oversee what charities I donate to. They ensure that the charities are on the up-and-up and that the funds are distributed in accordance to what is advertised.”

“Do you often go to these functions or do you usually just write a check?” she asked.

Drake looked uncomfortable for a brief moment. “I rarely attend them. I let my staff handle all requests for donations and I have an organization set up where the money comes from.”

“But I assume everyone knows you own that organization?” Evangeline persisted. “Otherwise how would they know to invite you personally instead of sending an invitation to the organization?”

She had each invitation turned up so that Drake’s name and address were visible.

He nodded.

“So why are you—we—going to one now if it’s not something you usually like to do?”

“I want the world to see you on my arm,” he said, his voice gruff with possession. “It’s only fair to warn you in advance, Angel. All eyes will be on you and me. One, I rarely make an appearance at these events, and two, I never appear with a woman on my arm. I imagine you will make quite the stir.”

Her eyes widened and her pulse accelerated.

“I don’t want you to concern yourself over the matter,” he soothed. “My men will attend with us and will encircle us at all times. No one will get through them to you. No one will speak to you unless you invite them to.”

It was the perfect opportunity. The question was on the tip of her tongue and yet she bit her lip, not wanting to ruin such a perfect, intimate evening. One in which Drake had just said that he wanted to show his claim on her to the world. Something he said he’d never done with another woman.

Was she really going to ruin something this perfect?

“Angel, what’s bothering you?” Drake asked, his gaze resting intently on her features.

She closed her eyes briefly and then licked her lips. “Is what you do so very dangerous?” she whispered. “Security was extremely tight before . . . I mean when we first met. And then now, after that . . . night . . .” She swallowed, and before losing her nerve completely she pushed ahead. “You said you did and said all those horrible things that night to protect me. Because you said it would put me in danger for anyone to know what I meant to you or that I meant anything at all. But then you changed your mind and said you wanted everyone to know about me. That it would be the best way to keep me safe. That if everyone knew how important I was to you, no one would dare try to hurt me. And yet you’ve tripled security. I can’t leave the apartment without an entire contingent of men. What is it that you do, Drake? I know you own a club and that you own an entire building in Manhattan that you selectively lease out to other businesses. You own
this
building, don’t you?” she asked hesitantly.

He gave a clipped nod.

“Surely that wouldn’t account for the need for the amount of security you employ. What else do you do exactly?” she asked nervously.

His gaze was full of warning when he looked at her. “Don’t ask questions you aren’t prepared to hear the answer to, Angel. You don’t need to worry about what I do or who I do business with. It will never affect you. Never touch you. All you need to focus on is pleasing me and in return I’ll spoil you and lay the world at your feet.”

She opened her mouth to respond, but he reached across the island and laid his hand atop hers and squeezed it, lacing his fingers securely through hers.

“Let it go, Angel. For me, let it go. Can you do that for me?”

He looked almost . . . vulnerable. There was a plea in his eyes that connected deep.

“Yeah, Drake. I can do that for you,” she murmured.

And in that moment, she realized exactly what the decision she’d just made meant. She should feel guilty. This wasn’t the person she’d been taught to become or the person she’d ever thought she would be, and yet she felt nothing but relief when she saw the warmth and approval in Drake’s eyes. His own relief over her not pushing him for answers he was uncomfortable giving her.

And then he got up and came around to where she sat across from him and pulled her into his arms. His lips melted over hers in the sweetest of kisses.

“So am I taking my angel to Carnegie Hall?” he asked as he pressed his lips to her brow.

She smiled. “I’d like that, Drake. And it’s for a very worthy cause.”

He smiled back and then lifted her into his arms and carried her toward the bedroom.

“In that case, I’ll make a substantial donation in your name in addition to the one my organization makes. You’ll be in great demand, Angel. You’ll have everyone vying for your attention.”

She snorted indelicately as Drake dropped her onto the bed with a small bounce.

“More like your money,” she said. “I won’t have anything to do with it.”

He covered her lips with his, kissing her long and sweet. “That’s where you’re wrong, Angel. No one can possibly be in your presence more than a few seconds without falling in love. You already have every one of my men twisted around your little finger.”

“And if there’s only one man I want twisted around my little finger?” she asked breathlessly.

His eyes gleamed as he undressed her with gentle, loving hands. “It’s probably a safe bet to say he’s already firmly wrapped around every part of you he can get his hands on.”

And then he made long, sweet love to her. Over and over into the first shades of dawn, he brought her to the heavens and she knew without a doubt that no matter what else happened from this day forward, she’d made the right decision in not pushing Drake for answers as to his business practices.

Maybe that sealed her fate and perhaps it would doom her to go down with him, but she couldn’t find it within herself to regret a single moment of her time with Drake.

He’d promised her that he would protect her with his life. That his men would protect her with their lives and that no part of his business dealings would touch her or affect her. And she believed him.

Because she loved him.

Evangeline came slowly awake and realized she was sprawled atop Drake, stark naked and weak as a kitten from all the times he’d made love to her through the night. She let out a contented sigh and his response was to rub his hand up her spine and then down her arm.

“Is my angel all right?”

She rubbed her face against his chest and thought if it were possible she’d be purring right now. “Mmm-hmm.”

His chest vibrated with his chuckle and then he tilted her head back and kissed her warmly.

“I have to get into the shower, baby. I’m late and I have an important meeting. Maddox has already called to say he’ll be over in an hour to take you shopping.”

“I love waking up to you,” she murmured.

“I’m glad, since you’re going to be doing it every single day,” he said with an affectionate tweak to her nose.

He sat up but urged her to get comfortable again in the blankets that he tucked around her. He stared down at her for a moment and to her surprise he looked uncomfortable. Then she realized he was trying to say something to her.

“What do you think about flying your parents here for Thanksgiving?” he asked in a low voice. “Would you like that? Do you think they would like that?”

She sat straight up in bed, her mouth wide open in shock. Then she launched herself at Drake, squealing with excitement the entire way. She hit him square in the chest and knocked him over. He laughingly hugged her to him as she peppered his entire face with kisses.

“Is that a yes?” he asked between her kisses.

“Oh my God, yes! Yes, yes, yes! Oh, Drake, do you mean it?”

She stared down at him, silently pleading for him to have meant it.

“I would never tease you over something I know is that important to you,” he reproached. “You miss them. I see how you light up when they call and also how sad you are when you speak of them. I have the means to bring them to visit you, and I wouldn’t be much of a man if I didn’t do everything in my power to make my woman happy.”

“Oh, Drake. You’re so wonderful to me,” she said, on the verge of tears. “I can’t thank you enough for this. You’ll never know how much it means to me to be able to see them again. You’ve done so much for them already and now this.”

She lost the battle to keep the tears at bay and they slid freely down her cheeks. Drake gently thumbed them away and then pulled her into his arms, cradling her against his chest.

“I want to meet the people who mean so much to you that you’d put your entire life on hold in order to support them. They must be pretty special to you. And as you are special to me, then I think your parents and I will have at least one thing in common.”

She buried her face in his chest to stifle her sobs, but her shoulders shook, betraying her emotion. She curled her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly.

“You are the most wonderful man in the world, Drake Donovan,” she choked out.

“No, I’m not,” he said in a hard tone. “Never forget that, Angel. I’m not a good man at all. I’m selfish and possessive and I’ll do whatever it takes to keep you happy so that you stay with me. That doesn’t make me good. It makes me a self-serving bastard.”

She smiled at him through her tears, utterly unfooled by his gruffness.

“Oh, I can’t wait to tell them the news! Can we call them tonight after you get home?”

He smiled at her excitement and then kissed her before tucking her back into bed again.

“Enjoy your day shopping. I’ll take you out to dinner tonight and we’ll call your parents afterward if you like. I’ll make arrangements for their transportation to the airport and have my plane fly them to the city. I’ll have Silas and Maddox pick them up from the airport and I’ll put them up in a hotel in Times Square. Unless you’d prefer they stay here with us?”

He looked questioningly down at her as he said the last, and she realized just what he was doing for her. He had no desire to have his privacy encroached on by two strangers, and yet he was going to great effort to give her and her parents a Thanksgiving holiday to remember.

“I think they’d love to experience Times Square,” Evangeline replied casually. “We can always have them over for dinner and I can spend the day with them while you’re at work.”

There was a flicker of relief in his eyes, replaced quickly by warmth and approval. He kissed her one last time before heading to the shower.

“I’ll have the arrangements made. No expense will be spared in ensuring their absolute comfort,” he assured Evangeline.

Evangeline lay back on the pillow and closed her eyes, savoring the moment. Everything was so utterly perfect. Tears pricked her eyes again when she thought about seeing her parents for the first time in two long years.

They would absolutely love Drake. How could they not when he went to such great lengths to make their daughter happy?

She hugged herself and dozed, waking only when Drake leaned over to kiss her good-bye and to let her know that Maddox would arrive in half an hour.

She leaned up, the sheet falling to her waist as she hooked her arm around his neck and kissed him back.

“Ah, Angel, how you tempt me to stay home and let business go to hell,” he said, sounding aggrieved.

“Thank you so much, Drake. This is the best gift anyone has ever given me,” she said earnestly.

“You have until tonight to think of creative ways to express your gratitude,” he said in a teasing tone.

Her eyes narrowed and she cracked an evil smile. “Oh, don’t think I won’t be very, very creative.”

“I can’t wait,” he murmured, kissing her one last time. Then he patted her affectionately on the ass and said, “Better get out of bed so Maddox doesn’t see what only I get to see.”

“As if you have anything to worry about there,” she said, rolling her eyes.

“You don’t think every single man who works for me wouldn’t give his right nut to see you naked?” he asked incredulously.

She groaned and buried her burning face in the pillow. “Oh God, Drake. Stop! I’ll never be able to look them in the face now.”

With a chuckle, he walked out of the bedroom, saying he’d see her later in the day.

Evangeline lay there only a few moments longer, savoring her excitement and the acknowledgment that she was in love with Drake. Looking back, she realized she’d fallen in love with him from the very first. It was why she’d been so devastated the night she’d left him.

Refusing to spend another moment reliving the most horrific night of her life, she slipped out of bed and took a quick shower. She dressed casually in jeans and an oversized sweater and quickly brushed out her hair to let it air-dry while she waited for Maddox to arrive.

She realized she was ravenous after spending the entire night making love to Drake. Hopefully Maddox and whoever else he brought with him on shopping duty wouldn’t be in a huge hurry. Or maybe she could bribe them with breakfast.

Confident that she could win them over with a home-cooked breakfast, she began pulling out the ingredients and in just a few minutes was manning several skillets.

Fifteen minutes later, Edward buzzed to let her know Maddox was on his way up. A short time after, Maddox stuck his head into the kitchen.

“Oh my God, please tell me there’s enough for me,” Maddox said with a mock groan.

“Forget him,” Justice said, walking by Maddox with a shove. “I love you more, so I should get fed.”

Evangeline laughed and shook her head. “Sit down. All of you. Who else is here or is it just the two of you?”

“Jax and Hartley are downstairs keeping an eye on things,” Maddox said.

“Do we have time to eat, then?” she asked anxiously.

“Sugar, if you made enough for us, you can take as long as you want to,” Justice declared.

She grinned. “Give me five minutes and I’ll serve it up.”

Both men plopped onto stools at the bar with such eager looks that she had to laugh. She shook her head as she began dishing up the omelettes, hash browns and fried ham and bacon. After plating everything, she opened the oven to check on the homemade biscuits and decided they were just perfectly done.

She pulled them out of the oven and then dished up several biscuits onto plates for Justice and Maddox. She placed a plate in front of each and smiled at their reactions.

“I’ve died and gone to heaven,” Maddox breathed.

Evangeline settled into a stool across from Maddox and picked at the
food on her plate. It was the first time she’d seen Maddox since that night and she realized she had no idea if he’d gotten into trouble because she’d given him the slip at her girlfriends’ apartment.

Suddenly she wasn’t as hungry as she’d been just earlier, and she pushed her food around with her fork while she waited for the two men to finish.

“Evangeline, what’s wrong?” Maddox asked quietly.

She jumped, startled by his perceptiveness. Then she glanced quickly at Justice, blushing at the thought of having to air this out in front of him. He surprised her, however, by picking up his empty plate and making his way to the sink. Then he sauntered back toward the living room, saying he’d wait for them there.

She glanced nervously in Maddox’s direction, hoping he’d accept her muttered “nothing” as answer enough.

No such luck.

He frowned at her and then to her dismay he walked around to her side of the bar and took her hand.

“What’s bothering you?” he asked bluntly.

He frowned again when he realized how hard she was shaking.

“I’m sorry,” she blurted out. And then she hung her head, no longer able to hold his gaze.

“What the fuck for?”

She flinched at his explosive outburst and tried to pull away, but he gripped her hand tighter and then gently touched her cheek, forcing her to look once more at him.

“Evangeline? What in the hell do you have to be sorry for?”

There was genuine shock and dismay in both his tone and expression.

Her face was on fire and she could have stabbed herself for even bringing the matter up when apparently there had been no need.

She sucked in a deep breath and focused her stare at the area over his right shoulder.

“I’m sorry for sneaking out on you the way I did that . . . night,” she whispered. “I hope you’ll forgive me and I hope you didn’t get into trouble because of what I did.”

His mouth fell open in sheer astonishment, and then his gaze became stormy and black with rage. She shrank back but he pressed more firmly into her space and grasped both her shoulders in his hands.

“Look at me, Evangeline,” he ordered fiercely. He waited until her gaze slowly swung back to him and then his eyes softened. “You have
nothing
to apologize for, for fuck’s sake. Christ, tell me you haven’t been avoiding me all this time because you were worried I was angry with you.”

She shrugged. “I wasn’t sure. I mean, I didn’t know. It was horrible. I wish that night had never happened.”

To her further dismay, tears slid down her cheeks, leaving a hot trail over her skin. Maddox moved his hands from her shoulders to cup her cheeks, using his thumbs to gently wipe the moisture away from her face.

“Listen to me, sweetheart. No one and I mean not a single one of us is angry with you. We were pissed as hell at Drake for what he did, even though we understand why he did it. But never once did we think any less of you. In no way did you deserve what happened that night, and no one knows that more than Drake. He was unbearable until he found you again and brought you back home. But, honey, listen to me. If he hadn’t gone after you, if he hadn’t decided to close ranks around you and make the threat known that if anyone tried to hurt you in any way, they’d be one dead motherfucker, then one of us would have. Do you understand that? We will never let anything happen to you.”

She gave him a look of complete shock and bewilderment. “But, Maddox, you barely know me! I’m not worth ruining your relationship with Drake over.”

“Bullshit,” he said rudely. “You’re everything to Drake but apart from that? You’re important to us. You’re important to me. I’ve never had a sister and I won’t lie to you and say I view you solely as a little sister
because I’m pretty sure my thoughts could never be considered brotherly and I doubt they’re legal in most states between siblings. But if I ever had a little sister, I’d like to think she’d be just like you.”

His face swam in and tears clouded her vision once more. Then she threw herself into his arms and hugged him tightly.

“Thank you,” she whispered in a choked voice. “You have no idea how much that means to me. I’ve never had anyone but my parents and then my girlfriends here, and now . . . well, I don’t even have them.”

Her mouth turned down and her lips trembled as she said the last.

“You have us, Evangeline,” Maddox said gently. “And I’m pretty sure Silas squared away whatever shit you have twisted up in that head of yours yesterday.”

He was looking pointedly at her and she flushed again. “You know what he said to me?” she squeaked.

He chuckled. “Well, not in exact words. He didn’t give us a play-by-play. That’s just not Silas’s style. He’s not much on words. I believe his exact statement was, ‘I’ll let her know whatever fucked-up shit she has going on in her head is just that. Shit.’”

Evangeline groaned.

“He’s right, babe,” Maddox said pointedly. “You were thinking some fucked-up shit and that’s not cool. So I want us to come to an agreement that whatever fucked-up shit you’ve been thinking ends now. You get me?”

She sighed. “Yeah, I get you.”

He gave her an approving smile. “That’s my girl. Now, you ready to go do some shopping?”

“Oh my God,” she said in panic. “I have no idea what I’m supposed to get! Drake is taking me to some policemen’s benefit at Carnegie Hall. He said he’d wear a black tuxedo and I could wear whatever, but I don’t want to screw this up, Maddox.”

She sent him a pleading look.

“He never goes to these things. He told me that himself. But now he
not only wants to attend, he wants me to go with him. What if I embarrass him?”

“Whoa, honey,” Maddox said. “First of all, you will never embarrass him. Drake doesn’t give one fuck about what anyone thinks about him, and trust me, if anyone tried to say anything bad about you in his hearing, he’d take apart the asshole with his bare hands. Provided he could get to them before I did. Secondly, I happen to have excellent taste in women’s clothing and know what looks good on a beautiful woman such as yourself. I won’t let you buy anything that doesn’t make you look like a million dollars. Deal?”