DREAM (13 page)

My mouth drops at Gideon’s words, and Misha’s face pales.

“Anything else?” Gable asks too calmly.

“For the moment, yes.” Gideon crosses his arms and stares his brother down.

“Well, let me enlighten you about something.” Gable continues in the same tone as his relaxed pose. “What I do with or without Dream’s pussy is none of your concern, and if you speak about her like that again, I’ll be sure to show I haven’t lost my touch at all. As for Jacob, you may need to be reminded who put him where he is today. Shall I refresh your memory?”

“No,” Gideon quickly answers.

“I don’t know what your problem is, Gideon, but fix it, and fix it now.”

Gideon’s eyes briefly flick to me and then back to Gable. “I don’t trust her. I don’t trust, Dream.”

I gasp. How can he not trust me? What the hell have I done to him?

“I’m well aware of your concerns with Dream, but she’s my wife, and I trust her. That’s all that matters.” Gable defends me.

“Does it?” Gideon yells at him. “Not all of us are hiding behind spousal privilege, Gable. She’s Ulrich Jackson’s daughter. Did you forget who her father was?”

I’m not breathing. Who is my father? He was a good man who may have made some financial mistakes, but that doesn’t change who he really was. They’re talking about me as if I’m not sitting three feet from them, and I hate it.

“Again, I’m well aware of whom Dream’s father was and the deals I made with him. I’m not hiding behind anything.”

Deals? What deals? Our marriage is the one deal he made, isn’t it?

Gideon holds up a finger. “One crack in your foundation and your empire will fall.” He points to me. “She’s going to be your downfall.” He holds firm in place, still pointing his finger at me, before he finally walks away from us.

“Misha,” Gable doesn’t move from his position. “I don’t think we’ll need you tonight.”

“Okay, Mr. Butler.” Misha bustles from the room.

I’ve not moved from my seat or, I think, taken a breath since Gideon got ready to leave. I’m still staring at the back of Gable’s head.

I’m trying to process everything that just happened in front of me. Gideon and I don’t get along, but I didn’t realize that he didn’t trust me. His statement shouldn’t shock me. I don’t fully trust him either.

My curiosity turns to my dad and Gable’s comment about Jacob. What is Gable not telling me? Is he hiding behind our marriage and the fact I can’t testify against him in a court of law? Is he doing something illegal with Jacob? Has he before?

Gable clears his throat, facing forward on his stool, and finishes his drink in one gulp.

“I’m going to take a shower, and change into something more comfortable.” He stands and kisses my cheek. The smell of bourbon and the coolness of the liquid burn my cheek.

I open my mouth to say something, anything at this point, but nothing comes out. I watch Gable leave me alone in the kitchen.

I’m at a loss for words, and I can’t think. What the hell is happening? If someone had told me six months ago this is where I would be right now, I would have laughed in their face. Now, look at me.

I rub my temples and think about what steps I need to take. I like Gable. That’s been established already and I know he cares for me. Hell, we both wanted to have sex last night in the bathroom, so I can check off sexual desire off the list of trust, too.

I don’t trust Gideon or Jacob. There’s something there I can’t pin down, but I know it’s something. The only reason I took Jacob’s contract was because of Gable and Gideon is his brother so I know I’ll be around him a lot.

Then there’s my dad. I have never doubted my dad or his work, but now I’m wondering if there’s more to this story that I’m getting. What deals were he and Gable involved in? Do they involve me or JE?

I need answers and I need them now. I leap up from my stool and head to Gable’s bedroom. I sit on the edge of the bed and wait for him to finish in the shower. He’s going to talk to me and he’s going to do it now.

I don’t have to wait long. A few moments after entering the bedroom, Gable steps out of the bathroom. His white towel tucked securely and low on his hips. His blonde hair is slicked back.

“Dream.” He nods at me and walks over to his dresser. “Something I can help you with?”

“We’re going to talk,” I inform him.

“We talked this afternoon. What do you want to discuss now?” He opens the drawer and pulls out a pair of black boxer briefs.

“Gable, I’m not playing right now.” I raise my voice. “We’re going to talk and we’re going to do it now.”

“May I get dressed first?”

“Of course, but we’re going to talk.”

“I know.” He gathers his clothing items and changes in the bathroom. A moment later he steps out in black silk pajama bottoms and a black t-shirt. “Let’s talk, Dream.” He goes to his side of the bed and rests his back against his pillows and headboard. I turn around and sit cross-legged on the bed facing him and my back on the footboard.

“I want the truth, Gable. No more bullshit.”

“Ask your questions and I’ll answer them truthfully.”

“How do know Jacob?” Let’s start there.

“Jacob and I grew up together. He was actually one of my best friends throughout school. I went off to college and he went his way.”

“Criminal activities?”

“Yes. He wasn’t very good at it, though. He kept getting caught.” Gable chuckles.

“What changed?”

Gable grows serious and looks away from me. I don’t think he’ll answer the question and I’m close to letting my anger unleash and yell at him when he turns back to me.

“It changed because he started working for me.”

“I don’t understand.”

“When I got out of college, I didn’t have any job offers. I was a bad kid and even though I had straightened my life out a bit, it still hung over my head. I needed to make money and I did that by doing
favors
for people. When I would go out on these jobs, I started taking Jacob with me. I was like his mentor. A couple years later, after I had saved up a lot of money, I started Butler Corp and Jacob took my spot doing
favors
.”

My mouth is dry. My brain instantly goes to the worst scenarios thinking Gable is some sort of Tony Soprano. He can’t be. Gable is nice, kind, and good-hearted. I can’t see him hurting someone or even…killing them.

“Is that why Jacob flinched today in the office?”

Gable shrugs. “It’s possible. He knows I can be dangerous at times.”

“Did you hurt people?” My voice is a whisper, scared for the answer.

“Yes.”

“Did you ever kill anyone?”

“I won’t answer that.” Gable shakes his head, and in my heart, I know that means yes.

“Why doesn’t Gideon trust me?”

“I told you before, Dream, Gideon doesn’t like change.”

“He said I’m your downfall; what did he mean?”

Gable takes a deep breath and looks away again. I know he’s thinking hard about his answer and it’s causing his jaw to pop under his beard.

“All right.” Gable scoots over to the middle of the bed and crosses his legs. He pats the middle of the bed in front of him. “Sit here.”

I cautiously move to where he wants me.

“I’m going to lay everything out right now. Then you can make the choice to stay or to go. However, you need to remember that I’m telling you this because I trust you and not because of some law where you can’t testify against me. Are we clear?”

I nod and I clasp my hands together to stop them from shaking.

“I’ve done a lot of things I’m not proud of. I’ve told you this already. I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my life, and I’m trying to turn it around, now. My parents raised Gideon and I to be good kids, but we grew up in a tough neighborhood and didn’t have the luxury of growing up in a big mansion and with lots of money and opportunities. I went to college because I received a scholarship, but after that, I had nothing and I needed to make money. That’s why I did what I did.

“When I started Butler Corp, I had high hopes for it. I knew that I could make something of myself that didn’t involve anything illegal. The problem was I wasn’t making any money. I couldn’t get Corp off the ground. I finally figured out that people wanted security guards, bodyguards, and protection. I could do that, and I knew friends that would too. That’s when I met Ulrich.”

My eyes go wide. He knew Dad all those years ago.

“Ulrich had you and he wanted you to be protected.” Gable stares at me for a reaction and then it hits me.

“Leo.”

Gable nods. “Leo works for me. He was older than I was when he started working for me all those years ago, but he had a military background and is sharp as a tack.”

“You said ‘works’.”

“He’s still on my payroll.”

I don’t know how I feel about this. I’m not even sure where he’s going with this.

“Ulrich helped me a lot. When I gave him Leo, he began to refer his friends to me and then things began to roll. He helped me more than I could ever repay him.”

“But he wouldn’t take the money you offered him,” I answer him.

“No, he was proud and was convinced he could turn it around because you were about to come on board with him. He put all his faith in you, Dream.”

“However, he bargained me to you.” I shake my head, looking away from him.

“That’s not entirely true,” Gable whispers.

“What?” I whip my head back to catch the sadness in his eyes. “What are you talking about?”

Gable rubs his hands hard against his face and then through his hair, before dropping them back into his lap. “I want you to listen to everything I’m going to say before you jump to conclusions.”

I can’t tell if I’m breathing or not, but my heart is pounding so hard in my chest that it’s causing my ears to ring.

“Your father praised you every time we spoke. He put you on pedestal that not even God himself could reach. I had to meet you and that’s why I went to Tally. Leo divulged a little bit of information about you and I watched you for a while. I went back to your dad and begged him to let me give him the money to save JE, but he said no.

“When I heard of your father’s passing, I knew you didn’t know about JE. Ulrich told me he hadn’t told you. I knew it was going to be a huge blow to you, and I didn’t want that to happen to you. I felt a connection to you and I couldn’t let any harm come to you. I was able to get Leo and Mr. Nickerson on board with the story and the contract. I was your last option and I knew you would take the money. Plus, with you staying here, I could keep you safe.”

The tears are searing my cheeks as they slide down my face.

“I fell in love with you. That’s why you’re here.” Gable’s last confession is the one I can’t hear.

I jump from the bed. My entire body is shaking like a leaf in the wind trying to stay rooted to the branch. Gable’s a liar and a con.

“Dream.” Gable comes towards me, but I stick out my hand.

“Don’t,” I yell at him. “Don’t you dare come near me.”

“Listen to me. I did this for you. I know how much JE means to you and there was no other way for you to take the money.”

“This is why Mrs. Stones didn’t know, because you made it up.” I scream louder at him.

“I fell in love.”

“I don’t want to hear that. You’re a fucking stalker, a liar, and you’ve basically kidnapped me. You fucking ass.” My throat burns from the strain I’m putting on my vocal cords.

I can’t be in the same room as him. I spin on my heels and race out of his room. I don’t wait for the elevators and almost fly down three flights of stairs. I run as fast as my legs will take me to the kitchen and search for my phone.

I dial the only number that’s on my speed dial.

“You get your ass over to Butler’s mansion right now and you better be here in two minutes.” I scream at Leo. I’ve never talked to him like that before. Leo has always been there for me. He’s like an uncle to me.

“Let’s talk, Dream.”

I don’t even turn around when Gable comes into the kitchen as I throw my phone in my purse.

“We’re never talking again.”

“Dream, please. I love you.”

“Oh my God.” I face him. “You don’t love me. You’re just a sick fuck that thought it was okay to play on my emotions after burying my father. A man you claim to owe a debt to because he helped you.”

“I did it for you. I swear I was never going to hurt you.”

“I hate you. I’ve never hated anyone in my life, but I hate you.” There are no more tears, only rage that beating through my like a drum.

We stare at each other, and a moment later Leo comes blasting into the kitchen, panting. I already know what I’m going to say to him.

I pick up my purse and walk right up to Leo. “You’re going to take me home and then you will leave and never come back.”

Leo’s face falls. “Dream, I swear—”

“Shut up,” I cut him off. “I don’t want to hear whatever lies Gable Butler is paying you to say. I was supposed to trust you, but I promise you that I’ll never make that mistake again. Now, take me home.”