He turned his head to look at Mr. Johnson. “Thank you.”
It was like a bucket of cold water. Her head was still swimming, but she figured out that their kiss had been for the benefit of their small audience, not something that had affected him the way it had affected her.
“Collect your things,” he said. “We’ll leave shortly.”
She nodded dumbly, not looking at anyone. It was starting to hit her that she had placed her future into the hands of a man with far more power than her mother’s strident urging for her to win prize money or Mae’s dictatorial demands.
Gabriel was master of everything he touched, including her. She had used up all her bravado yesterday—and played every card she had. Since then, she had actually discarded and folded a few. She had deactivated most of her insurance policies and had no doubt he would be able to hack into his own system within days. Then what would she be? Useless again.
And once again in a foreign land without a friend in the world.
At least here, she had her feet planted. The moment she left, she would be at his mercy.
Maybe she should stay, she thought with a wild rush of cowardice, hand shaking as she pushed her few things into a bag. Then she stared at the paltry evidence of her life here. With force of habit, her hand went to the front of her skirt, but failed to find the patch pockets where she kept a smooth stone she had found in the garden years ago.
It was on the night table and she dropped it into the bag.
Would the fish miss her throwing a handful of crumbs into the pond each morning? Would anyone miss her once she left here?
Gabriel was at the front door, seeing the men out. She went along to Mae’s office where she started to unplug the laptop, but checked first to see if he had made any progress breaking in.
Not that she could tell. She confirmed that this week’s payroll figures had been entered by all the department heads, then double-checked them and ensured the balances were available to cover it before she hit the keys that finalized the process.
Then she clicked over to market numbers. The announcement about Mrs. Chen’s hospitalization might have caused a sell-off if the news hadn’t been accompanied by the identity of her surprise grandson taking over. That had caused a rush to buy into some of her ventures, sending their value jumping several points.
Eight years of hard work and Luli hadn’t made anywhere near the profit for Mae that Gabriel had by the simple act of connecting his name to Mae’s.
She touched the power button, shutting down in disgust.
“What are you doing?” The butler’s accusatory tone made her jump.
“I—” Did she have a guilty conscience? Very much so. “I’m packing.” She wrapped the power cord around her hand and dropped it into her bag.
“Not that, you’re not!” He puffed up with indignation. “You take nothing.” He came across and tried to grab her bag to see inside it.
She backed up a few steps, distancing herself from his aggression. “Gabe—Mr. Dean is taking me to New York.” She couldn’t bring herself to tell him they’d just gotten married. “I need the laptop to keep working.”
“You don’t work.” He made it sound as if she’d never lifted a finger in her life. “Were you on your knees when he said you could go with him? Slut.” He sounded like one of her preteen fellow contestants.
“If this is about last night, I’m sorry.” He felt tricked she supposed. “I misunderstood about dinner.”
“You’re not sorry. You wanted to make me look foolish. You were always trying to be Mrs. Chen’s little pet and now you want to be his. Out. Now.” He grabbed her by the arm.
Luli squeaked out a noise, so shocked at his getting physical, it took her a moment to dig in her heels and struggle against his hold.
“Let me go!” she cried.
He did—in a whirl of movement so fast she wound up clutching her hand against the thick fabric of her jacket’s lapel, trying to keep her heart from leaving her chest.
Gabriel stood before her instead of the butler, but he was bent over and the butler was flat on his back on the floor. Gabriel’s hand was pressed to the man’s throat, turning the older man dark red.
“You will leave,” he told the butler, switching his grip to the front of the man’s shirt and yanking him to his feet as he straightened. “Now.”
Swaying in shock, the butler clutched a protective hand to his wheezing throat and hurried from the room.
Gabriel shot his cuffs and adjusted his tie, eyes ashen as he stared at her. “We’re leaving.” He jerked his head for her to precede him.
* * *
Luli was still dressed like a seventy-year-old woman, but Gabriel didn’t tell her to change. He just wanted away from this place.
He was furious over what had just happened. He had nearly killed the man—who was in his fifties and no match for Gabriel’s deadly training. It hadn’t even been self-defense. The butler had been rude and rough, but Gabriel didn’t think his intention had been to physically hurt Luli, only to force her from the house.
Even so, a haze of bloodlust had blinded him. He had acted on instinct and was still disturbed by his brief loss of control. Why had he reacted so strongly? He would intervene in any situation where someone was being bullied, but he wouldn’t commit homicide.
The primal male in him had been roused by a threat to his mate, was the problem. His ears were still ringing from their kiss. He had meant to keep it a chaste peck, but her lips had been so soft. He had lingered, enjoying the tremulous way her mouth flowered open against his. Nothing had prepared him for the impact when she pressed into the kiss. A bolt of pure lust had jabbed through him, tightening his arms around her.
The rush of blood when her soft curves had collided with his frame had left his groin throbbing with the beat of his heart. It had been all he could do to set her back from him and keep an impassive look on his face when he’d wanted to snarl at the men to leave so he could consummate their marriage right then and there.
He was used to being pursued by women. It was a game where he allowed himself to be pounced upon and played with and always walked away when he grew bored.
This situation with Luli was entirely different. He had thought last night, when he had talked her into this marriage, that he had secured the perfect partnership. He could have the sensual wrestling he enjoyed while everything he valued—including detachment from the sort of emotion that weakened lesser mortals—would be protected.
Then he’d tasted a depth of passion unlike anything he’d ever known. It roused a beast that had reacted to the butler’s manhandling with atavistic violence.
“Why have you never stood up for yourself with anyone here?” His tone was thick enough with leftover rage she flinched, expression defensive.
“What would I say? Make accusations that would get me thrown out with nothing? He wasn’t wrong.
