Steal My Heart (17 page)

“Hmm…? Thought what?” he prodded cruelly.

She squeezed her eyes shut, feeling the stubborn drops roll down her cheeks, and hating herself for it. She caught her bottom lip between her teeth, unable to look at the stranger in front of her.

“Don’t forget what this is about,” he said harshly. “Or who makes the decisions here.”

She faced him, her watery eyes boldly comprehending. “Forgive me. I was mistaken. I thought you might have a heart.”

“I don’t. I would caution you to remember that.”

She turned and walked into the bathroom, praying her numb legs would remain steady enough to carry her there.

CHAPTER SIX

Maggie closed her tired eyes and pressed her head into the supple leather seat of Gabe’s car. She’d slept fitfully last night and had awoken with an aching back and limbs that felt plegic and stiff. Her eyes were underscored with puffy crescents, and it was an effort to draw up her protesting lids. Gabe hadn’t slept next to her last night, and she’d felt strangely bereft. Since yesterday, their verbal communication had been minimized to obligatory exchanges. She still didn’t fully comprehend the reasons behind the sudden change in his demeanor, but she had enough fuel for her own anger and decided not to press him.

Her thoughts revisited the worries that plagued her. When would this be over? Would she survive unscathed? What would happen to Gabe once this was over? The research? She wondered if she had enough information to go to the authorities. She knew Cane Howard was the man who was behind this, but she had no proof. She couldn’t just wage such an accusation without evidence. Perhaps she should contact Victoria Rollins.

“I don’t know what’s going through that head of yours, but forget about it.” The familiar command filled the small interior of the car. Gabe kept his eyes on the road, but the frown marring his forehead said his thoughts were elsewhere.

She let her gaze rove over him again. Faded blue jeans hugged his lean, powerful thighs. He had on a dark gray button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up his forearms. She was so used to seeing him in black jeans and a black tee that she couldn’t help but stare. She was wearing her washed sweatpants and a tee from the small selection of clothes he’d given her.

She peeled her dry tongue from the roof of her mouth and uttered a scratchy reply.

“I just want this to be over, Gabe.”

She heard him take a deep breath and blow it loose as she turned her head to stare out the window. They’d been on the road for some time and were now ziz-zagging through heavy traffic congesting the New York University campus. The sun had decided to make an appearance today, and shimmered gold on the colorful crowds that idled in the streets and the vendors hawking their wares. Students walked in tight knots of laughter and kinetic energy, and Maggie recalled her days as a student there almost a decade earlier.

Gabe pulled into a spot near the small square park surrounded by sheets of tall prewar buildings and chunky brownstones proudly displaying the purple flag of the University. They walked in silence, Gabe’s tall form with his backpack slung over his shoulder dwarfing almost everyone around them, and she had to suppress her annoyance at the frequent ogling and feminine giggles that erupted around him.

She crunched her forehead, puzzled when they stopped and turned into the tall square building she remembered as the student library, but followed dutifully behind him. They followed a queue of students into the building and made their way across the expansive checkered lobby to the elevators. The doors slid opened and they entered with two women who made no effort to suppress their fawning admiration of Gabe. Maggie watched, appalled as one woman winked at him and shifted her posture to display her more feminine assets. The other one smiled slyly, then covered her mouth and whispered something to her friend. They giggled profusely, darting disdainful glances in her direction. They then made a leisurely perusal up Gabe’s body and swapped more whispers.

Maggie rolled her eyes
. Hello! I’m right here, standing not three feet away from you!
She wanted to yell. From her and Gabe’s proximity it was obvious that they were together. She just didn’t get women sometimes. She was also angry at the emotions their behavior provoked. She had no claim to him and shouldn’t want to scratch their eyes out. But she did want to…badly. She glanced up at him and saw the corners of his lips twitch, and she seethed even more because it was obvious he found the situation entirely amusing.

She almost gasped in surprise when he eased closer to her, leaned over and started to nibble on her earlobe
. Oh. My. God
. The sensation sizzled all the way down to her toes. She stopped herself from melting long enough to shoot the flabbergasted ladies a broad stupid grin. And she didn’t care one whit that they glared daggers at her and seemed outraged by their behavior. She wanted to say,
“Yeah, that’s my ear he’s nibbling…MMYYY ear, and it feels amazing. And he’s yummy. He’s got a fabulous body with a large deliciously curved—”
But the elevator doors opened, and Gabe took her hand and pulled her behind him.

“Good-day, ladies,” she said instead, smiling brightly.

Once away from the sordid company, Maggie took a deep calming breath. She was still smiling smugly when she noticed Gabe had stopped walking and turned to her. She raised her lids sheepishly and met his puzzled expression. He was giving her that odd look of his, but his dark eyes were sparkling, and his lips were tilted in a handsome grin. He
tsked
softy, giving his head a slow shake, and she cringed on the inside. She knew she shouldn’t have stooped to the level of the women in the elevator, but they just pissed her off.

“Maggie, you blow them away,” he said softly and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

Really? Oh please, go on…

A slow smile dragged across her face and a languid warmth cycled through her. She continued beside him when he resumed his stride and had to bite her lip to suppress the silly grin that kept wanting to make an appearance.

The floor that they were on was practically deserted. Maggie flexed her fingers, her nerves starting to vibrate with angst. She twisted her head left and right.
Was this where they were meeting Cane Howard?

Gabe let his eyes scan the room, wondering at his best vantage point. Square desks were assembled in the center of the massive room, surrounded by rows and rows of deep book shelves. They walked past a bank of shelves toward a large window overlooking the park, and he deposited his backpack on the floor next to the window. He stared in silence at the activity in the park. From their height and distance, the pedestrians in the street and the students enjoying the sunny park appeared to be small indistinguishable beings milling about. Some lounged on the grass, others sat on benches, and some used the park as a thoroughfare from one class to the next.

He could also see a few adjacent buildings and two street corners clearly from where he stood. He reached into his backpack and removed a pair of binoculars. Placing his eyes against the rubber eyecups he scanned the park and the adjacent buildings, turning the wheel to adjust the central focus. Beside him, he could sense Maggie’s frown.

“What are you looking at?”

“We’re going to watch a play.”

“What?” she inquired, and he lowered his nocs and turned to her.

“The play’s the thing, wherein I’ll catch the conscience of a king.”

Maggie shook her head vigorously. “Why are you quoting Hamlet to me?”

He smiled, impressed, and could tell she was confused by his cryptic words. He raised the nocs to her eyes, and adjusting them, directed her vision towards an adjacent building. He heard her soft startled gasp, and he swiveled her head towards another building. She gasped again and grabbed his wrist, lowering the apparatus from her face. He watched her blue eyes grow round with fear and confusion.

“Are those men holding guns?” she asked in disbelief.

He nodded solemnly. “Snipers.”

Her face paled. “For you?”

He nodded again, raising the nocs to his face. He spied the top window in one of the buildings. The man dressed in all black was barely visible, but the long barrel of his weapon could be seen clearly, especially since he’d made the mistake of positioning himself against the sun. The rays winked off the barrel and telescopic scope of his long-range rifle. Gabe swept the streets below and at the corner caught a man idling leisurely, too leisurely for Gabe’s comfort.

“Oh God, Gabe. What are we doing here?” He could hear the rising panic in Maggie’s voice, but his attention was drawn elsewhere. “Besides, Prince Hamlet was trying to make King Claudius feel guilty and expose himself for a murderer. This is different entirely! We’re in danger!”

He half listened to her, but stood stock still, training his lens on the north east quadrant of the park. He watched a man in a fitted bone colored suit amble towards a bench. The man flicked open the button of his designer jacket, sat back on the seat, and casually hooked his ankle over his knee. His dark hair was slicked back on his head, and his clean shaven face held absolutely no expression. Gabe knew though that he must be pissed, he’d already been waiting quite a while. Gabe had never met Cane Howard in person. This was to be their first face to face. Everything else had been handled through Harry, on the phone, or electronically. But he looked just as he did in his media photos. Middle aged, surgically handsome, smugly confident, and very dangerous.

Anger flooded his blood, sharp and destructive, and he had to persuade his heart rate to slow to a tolerable pace.

“And like Prince Hamlet, I’m trying to expose a murderer as well.” His voice was slow when he finally responded, measured. “Not exactly by the same methods, but equally so by observation. Besides, this man is incapable of feeling guilt.”

Gabe took a deep breath then scanned once again. Well, looked like the king had planned a surprise for him. He’d thought as much. This king clearly had no conscience. For all of his protestations, this was a clear set up. He dragged the back of his hand across his mouth, the taste of disgust bitter on his tongue. He had a few surprises of his own in store for Mr. Howard.

He watched a while longer, then noted that Cane checked his watch and spoke into an ear piece. A corresponding movement occurred three benches down from him. Moments later, Cane’s placid features were disrupted by an angry scowl. He stood and walked away at a hurried clip, yelling into his ear piece. The man on the bench followed close behind.

“Gabe, we have to get out of here. I can’t believe that we’re up here discussing Shakespeare!”

Maggie tugged on his sleeve and he lowered the binoculars to stare into the most expressive eyes he’d ever seen. Anxiety caused her pupils to dilate and gray flecks exploded through the blue. Fear was evident in her pinched forehead, and a slight tremor had taken over her limbs.

His internal antenna started humming and abruptly he pulled her into his arms. His lips crushed urgently against hers, smothering her feeble protest. He’d claimed her mouth with a cruel urgency, but as he felt the subtle yielding of her lips, his intensity lessened, and he swept his tongue into the moist heat of her mouth. His lips covered hers, gliding and tasting, rubbing and devouring. He struggled to resist the drugging effect as his senses reached out around him, searching for the source that had tripped his internal wire.

Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye he spied an embarrassed student standing by a far bookcase. His reddened face and owlish eyes evidence that he’d inadvertently stumbled upon them and was trying to figure out a way to depart without notice. Gabe allowed his hands to rove over the generous curves of her butt, and grabbing his fill, he pulled her pelvis into his burgeoning erection. She gasped against his lips, but he continued to kiss her and flex his hips into her. His peripheral vision caught the student, who’d apparently decided they’d be at this for a while, and he inched backwards out of the room.

Gabe pulled away, needing to take a few deep breaths. He stared at Maggie who seemed slightly dazed and confused. Her body was still trembling, and he knew that fear was mingled with her arousal.

He wanted to hold her and tell her everything was going to be okay.
Soon, Maggie,
he promised silently, and pulled her back into his arms.
It will be over soon.
One way or another, he would see her safely back home. He held her head against his chest as she circled her arms around his waist, and he realized that he needed her comfort as much as she did his. He’d been going through hell ever since they’d left the farmer’s market yesterday afternoon. When she calmed, he inched away and crouched to pack his nocs.

“Are we leaving?” she asked, relief weaving through her words.

He looked up at her, his head tilted to the side.

“I was to meet with Mr. Howard, and I intend to do so.”

He could tell that the explanation he’d given her still had not quelled her fears, especially as they’d headed out the back door of the library and hailed a yellow cab. She kept nibbling that delicious bottom lip nervously. They made it to the restaurant sooner than he’d expected, but that gave him time to prep his plans
and
confront his fear. Reluctantly leaving her at the coffee shop next door, he slipped into the back of the restaurant. He’d again given her strict instructions; he’d gazed deep into her eyes and she’d promised she wouldn’t run. On the car ride into the city, she’d been pensive. He was sure she’d been plotting something. Gabe blew out a shaky breath. He had no choice. He couldn’t examine his fears now. He needed to focus. He blew away another breath and got into position.

The press had reported that the illustrious tycoon, Cane Howard would be making a speaking engagement at the Carlton House Restaurant at three pm to a group of young investors. By four o’clock the restaurant was at its maximum capacity, and the noisy din of the boisterous crowd could be heard from the street. Martinis and bottles of expensive whiskey were served in copious amounts, and the exclusive chef flown in from Paris could be heard in the back yelling murderous threats in French to his underlings.