Mine To Hold (21 page)

Control.

“Stop that.” Claire’s voice held a surge of
heat that surprised him.

“Stop what?” Now he was confused. “Getting
you presents? Most women don’t usually complain about gifts.”

Claire gave a hard, negative shake of her
head. “Stop shutting yourself off from me. I could actually see you
doing it just then.” She didn’t reach for the jewelry box. “And I’m
not most woman.”

He knew that fact too well.

He opened the jewelry box. Offered the
diamond bracelets to her.

Claire’s breath caught. “Those are
beautiful.”

The diamonds caught the light, shining even
more. Very rare, the natural blue diamonds had cost him a
fortune—and they were worth every penny that he’d spent.

They were the same shade of blue as her
dress.

The same shade to match her eyes.

“I had the bracelets specially made for you.
I’d hoped they would be here sooner.” He put the jewelry box down
on the table. Reached for her right hand. His fingers slid over her
wrist as he pulled the ribbon away. “You won’t need this anymore.”
He took out one of the bracelets. The diamonds were surrounded by
gold, a tight band that would slide over her wrist and hold easily
in place.

He slid the first bracelet around her wrist.
It fit her perfectly.

Then he removed the second ribbon from her
skin. He eased the other bracelet into position around her
wrist.

The bracelets were savage in their beauty.
The blue diamonds gleamed, and the gold cuff design of the
bracelets gave the jewelry a harder, sensual edge.

“Noah…”

His head lifted. He stared into Claire’s
eyes. “I don’t want you to ever feel self-conscious again. Those
scars don’t define you.”
They just prove you’re stronger than
death.
He stepped back. “We need to hurry downstairs. I
should—”

“Thank you.”

I don’t want your thanks. I just want
you.
He straightened his tux. “There will be a large number of
photographers and reporters in the hotel tonight, so you need to
prepare for their questions.”

Her fingers slid over the bracelet on her
left wrist. “Am I supposed to be your assistant tonight? Or your
lover?”

The question caught him off-guard. “You’re
both. I thought I made that clear.”

Her fingers kept stroking the bracelet.

I want to see her in those bracelets and
nothing else.

By the end of the night, he would.

“You don’t fuck your employees,
remember?”

“You’re more than an employee.” Soon,
everyone would know that.

He offered her his arm. “Time to go.” There
would be no going back after this.

She touched him lightly. Her body pressed
against his. The woman smelled delicious.

Her fingers curled around his arm. “I don’t
know what you’re planning, but I’m worried.”

“You shouldn’t be.” He caught her hand.
Lifted it to his lips. Pressed a kiss to her knuckles. “I want you
to trust me.”

“I do.”

The instant words seemed to slam into him.
Noah forced a smile. “Then you have nothing to fear.”

***

The packed hotel ballroom had Claire’s knees
knocking together. Energy filled the air. Laughter and drinks were
flowing freely.

And it sure seemed like reporters were
everywhere.

Claire and Noah had barely gotten past the
gleaming, marble steps in the ballroom when the first set of
reporters closed in.

Sure, the men were in perfectly cut tuxes and
the women wore glittering gowns, but Claire could see the avid
gleam in their eyes and—

“Noah York…” A redhead murmured as her lips
rose in a smile that never met her eyes.

“Jennifer.” He inclined his head.

“Are the rumors true?” she asked. Then
Jennifer directed her stare at Claire. “Are you the infamous Claire
Kramer?”

“Jennifer Swan sort of…manages the main
gossip pages in town,” Noah said to Claire as his finger stroked
down her arm. “And, baby, being called ‘infamous’ is a good
thing.”

Wait, had he just called Claire ‘baby’ in
front of all those people?

“Then the stories about the two of you being
an item are true?” Jennifer demanded as she inched closer.
“Interesting. Claire, how do you feel about—”

“Claire’s my fiancée,” Noah said, and his
voice seemed to carry all the way across the ballroom. “So, yes,
Jennifer, we’re an item.” He gave the group of reporters a wide
smile. “And feel free to print that in the papers.”

Cameras flashed then.

“Smile, Claire,” Noah whispered. His lips
brushed over her ear. She felt the sensual lick of his tongue
against her.

Claire smiled.

And, just like that, with his one,
earth-shattering announcement, she and Noah were the center of
attention in that ballroom. Everyone was looking at them.

Some people were smiling. Some were
whispering.

Claire wanted to vanish.

The crowd closed in tighter.

Noah climbed up a few steps, pulling her back
up with him. Then Janelle was there—and she had a microphone in her
hand. She offered it to Noah.

Noah planned this.

Now Claire knew why he’d wanted her to wear
the perfect dress. His fiancée had to be perfect.

“On the first anniversary of this hotel…”
Noah sounded so smooth and polished as he addressed the crowd
around them. “It only seems fitting that I get to share news that
has made me the happiest man on earth.”

Liar, liar.
She hated it when Noah
lied.

He lifted her hand into the air. The blue
diamonds around her wrist caught the light and seemed to shine even
brighter. “Claire Kramer has just consented to be my wife.”

Applause shook the ballroom.

Noah laughed. “And I want you all to
celebrate with us. Bring out the champagne!”

And, at his order, the champagne flowed. As
if they’d been waiting for that cue—and Claire suspected they
had—waiters bustled out with dozens and dozens of champagne flutes.
The champagne was distributed quickly.

She even found a flute placed in her
hand.

Dazed, Claire’s gaze shot around the room.
She saw Drake in the back, leaning against a broad, white column.
Like pretty much everyone else, he had a champagne flute in his
hand. He lifted it toward her.

Trace Weston stood beside him. Trace had his
hand around Skye’s shoulders. Skye stared back at Claire. Did the
other woman looked worried?

Do I look terrified?
Because Claire
sure felt that way.

Everyone was lifting up their flutes as they
toasted to her and Noah. Noah had freed her hand when he took his
own flute of champagne.

He offered her a grin. “To my future wife,”
Noah said, the microphone catching every word he uttered. “Claire,
I always want you to be mine.”

Their glasses touched lightly, and she knew
what he’d just done.

The reporters. The people. The public
display.

The killer had gone quiet, and Noah thought
to draw him out again with show.

“Always mine,” Noah whispered and his lips
took hers.

***

Claire was running, and she knew it. Noah was
surrounded by a throng of well-wishers, and it had been hard, but
Claire had managed to slip away from the crowd.

And she was now dashing for the exit as
quickly as she could.

“You didn’t tell me you were planning to
marry Noah.” Skye slipped into Claire’s path. She was smiling, but
her eyes flickered with concern. “Congratulations. I hope you’ll
be—”

Claire caught Skye’s hands. She brought her
in close, as if she were hugging the other woman. “I didn’t know
this was going to happen. He never asked me to marry him. This is
all some plan of his.”

A plan that was ripping her apart. Noah
didn’t know how long she’d actually dreamed of having a life, a
husband who loved her.

He didn’t know how hard it had been for her
to stand there while he pretended they were the perfect couple.

She eased back from Skye, but made sure to
keep that terrible, fake smile on her face. In case others were
watching. And they were.

Skye’s gaze searched hers. “What plan?” Skye
whispered.

“He’s putting us in the spotlight. I think he
wants the killer to come at him again.”

“So Noah can catch the guy.” Skye was
gorgeous in a black dress that fit her like a glove. “But he’s
pulled you into the cross-fire, too.” Anger roughened her
words.

“I was always in the fire.” That danger was
nothing new. She’d been hunted since she was sixteen, in one way or
another.

She eased away from Skye. “I just…I need to
be alone for a few minutes.” Then she’d get her control back. She’d
stop feeling as if she were about to break apart. But when Claire
looked around the ballroom, she saw Trace striding toward them. And
Noah had pulled free of his throng and he was closing in, too.

“Buy me just a few minutes,” Claire said.

Skye nodded.

Claire rushed for the doors. A few more
steps, and she’d head outside and be able to breathe for a bit.
She’d suck in some air on the balcony, pretend that everything was
fine, and she’d be okay.

But she didn’t make it to the balcony. A
man’s hand snaked out and caught her arm, and Claire opened her
mouth to scream.

“No need for that,” Drake said as his hold
tightened around her. “You know you’re safe with me.”

He pulled her behind one of the huge,
towering columns that lined the outskirts of the ballroom. He caged
her against that column, and he lifted her left hand. “There’s no
ring here.”

“No.”

“You didn’t look like a blushing bride-to-be
up there.”

“That’s because I didn’t know I was going to
be one.”

He exhaled. “He should’ve told you.”

Drake seemed to surround her fully then, and,
hidden behind that heavy column, no prying eyes could see them.
“Did he tell you? Did you know what Noah was planning?” It was
her
life. Noah should never have pulled a stunt like this
without talking to her first.

“Hell, no. The guy’s always twisting up the
game.”

There was no anonymity for her now. Her face
would be everywhere. In the papers. On the news. Everyone would
know who she was. Worse, they’d know who she’d been.

“I need to get out of here,” Claire said,
nearly desperate. “Those people—it’s too much. I feel like they’re
vultures circling in for the kill.”

“Because that’s exactly what they are.” He
stepped back, surprising her. Then he took her hand in his.

Claire’s breath eased out.

“Interesting,” Drake murmured.

What?

“Come on. I’ll get you some freedom.” Then he
was guiding her though the ballroom’s back doors. In moments, they
were sliding into the private elevator. “You know, you’re leaving
your fiancé in the middle of your own party.”

A shiver had her tensing. “I’ll go back. I
just need a few moments.”

His hand still held hers.

“You didn’t tense on me,” Drake said as the
elevator doors closed.

She stared at their hands. No, when he’d
taken her fingers in his, she hadn’t tensed. Claire had actually
felt relieved by his touch then.

“Not afraid of me anymore?” Drake queried
softly. “Did you decide that I don’t have a monster inside?”

She pulled away from him. “I know you do.”
But, no, she wasn’t afraid of him.

Maybe she should be.

“You don’t belong in Noah’s world.”

Those words had her blinking in surprise.

“When this is all over, you need to leave.
Run as fast and as far as you can, but be warned, Noah will follow
you.”

“W-why are you telling me this?”

His smile was sad. “Because I like you, and I
don’t want to see you ripped apart by the vultures that always
circle him.”

The elevator doors opened. Claire hurried
out—

And she slammed right into Austin
Harrison.

***

“She wants some time alone,” Skye said as she
put her little ex-ballerina body right in front of Noah. Like she
was going to slow him down. “Give her that time,” Skye ordered. Her
hands were on her hips and a glower was on her face.

Noah started to brush by her, but then Trace
slid up behind his wife. Trace lifted a brow. “I’d suggest you
listen to that advice. I saw Claire’s expression a few minutes ago.
That woman is running scared.”

And that was why he needed to get to her. He
hadn’t told Claire his plans beforehand because he’d known that
she’d balk. But if he introduced her as his fiancée in front of
everyone…
I gambled that she’d stay quiet. That the shock would
keep her at my side.

It had. For a time. But when the shock faded,
Claire had sure run fast.

“She can’t keep running from me,” he said.
She needed to listen to him. He had a damn fine plan in place.

“She’s not running from you. She just wants
to be able to
breathe
without every reporter in the room
watching her.” Skye’s smile was grim. “I know how that feels.”

He sucked in a sharp breath. “You think I
screwed up tonight, don’t you?”

“Yes.” Skye didn’t pull her punches.

His gaze hit Trace’s.

His friend nodded. Dammit. They
both
thought he’d screwed up?

“I am protecting her.” He expected Trace to
get that. “She can’t just keep hiding out at the Towers, waiting
for that asshole out there to make a move.”
He
couldn’t do
that. He’d never been the type to wait for an attack to come. “In
battle, you always take the offensive if you want to—”

“This isn’t battle,” Skye said softly. “This
is her life.”

Shit.

“And do you really think she liked that her
first proposal was a fake one?” Skye’s voice sharpened even more.
“
No
woman likes that.”

He schooled his expression. “Who says it was
a fake proposal?”