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  Brianna was nervous, but no more than she usually was when confronted by a new situation. I reached out and took her hand. She leaned into me, and I felt her relax a little. I brought our linked fingers up to my mouth and kissed the back of her hand before tucking her arm under mine.

  “You’ll be fine. I’m right here.”

  She looked up at me and I saw something on her face that I never had before. Complete trust. “I know.”

  I couldn’t resist leaning down and placing another kiss on her lips before we walked into the hotel, and were surrounded by people.

  Stephan

  The minute we walked inside, cameras started flashing and a reporter I recognized from the Star Tribune made a beeline for me. I knew exactly what he was going to ask before the words came out of his mouth. “Is this your new girlfriend, Mr. Coleman? What’s her name?”

  I smiled because that was what was expected of me. “Hello, Mitch.” Following behind him was a small woman holding a professional-looking camera. “Beth,” I said, nodding at her. As much as I didn’t want to deal with this tonight, the press came in handy when promoting the foundation. It was good to have them on your side.

  Beth lowered the camera from her face and smiled shyly at me. “Evening, Mr. Coleman.”

  “So come on, Coleman, spill. Who’s the lovely lady?”

  Brianna held tighter to my hand at the unwanted attention. I glanced over at her and gave her a reassuring smile before turning back to the reporter. “Ms. Reeves. Mitch. Mitch. Ms. Reeves.”

  “Nice to meet you, Ms. Reeves. Have you and Mr. Coleman been dating long?”

  Brianna became stiff beside me. I knew I needed to get us out of there. “Stop harassing my date,” I said to Mitch with a smirk before turning my attention to Brianna. “And now, if you’ll excuse us, we have a party to attend.” I nodded to Beth before guiding Brianna to the elevator that a hotel employee was holding open for us.

  Once the doors closed, I pulled Brianna into my arms and kissed her temple. “Are you all right?”

  She nodded.

  “There shouldn’t be any reporters in the ballroom.”

  Brianna leaned into me, but stepped back when the doors suddenly opened. I could tell she was somewhat startled. It was probably just her nerves, but I felt the need to remind her to be alert tonight. So before we stepped out and around the corner into the sea of people, I lifted her chin and waited until her eyes met mine.

  “You must pay attention to your surroundings tonight. No daydreaming.”

  She swallowed and nodded.

  I smiled to let her know that I wasn’t upset, took her hand, and led her out of the elevator and into the ballroom.

  The ballroom was filled with people mingling about. I scanned the room until they found Logan. He was on the opposite side of the room talking with a group of people I knew well. Lily was nowhere to be seen, although I knew she was in attendance. I wrapped my arm securely around Brianna’s waist and began leading her in Logan’s general direction. It was a good plan in theory, but we didn’t manage to get farther than a few yards before Mr. and Mrs. Jensen waylaid us.

  After introductions were made, they wanted to know about the foundation. The conversation was pleasant, and Brianna did surprisingly well. She was nervous, yes, but she kept herself focused on the conversation occurring in front of her.

  Mrs. Jensen tried to ask Brianna a few questions to include her in the conversation, but soon realized how uncomfortable she was and thankfully quit. I’d known the Jensen’s for years, since before my parents died. They were good people and very charitable.

  A few other couples came up to say hello and we never did make it over to Logan before we had to take our seats.

  Emily, the hospital’s events coordinator, stood on the small stage to welcome all the guests. She gave a brief overview of the agenda and then took her own seat so that the wait staff could start serving.

  There were six other people at our table. Brianna sat quietly beside me as the servers wove through the tables to set the first course in front of each person. Conversation began with idle pleasantries, as it normally did at these types of functions. I made sure to keep hold of Brianna’s hand so she would feel as comfortable as possible.

  Things continued in much the same way as we moved through each of the seven courses. If someone asked Brianna a direct question, she would answer. Other than that, however, she remained silent. She was doing very well.

  The servers came around to remove the desserts, and I noticed a few of the ladies getting up, heading toward the restrooms. I was just turning to ask Brianna if she needed anything when I noticed a woman with long, dark brown hair get up. I recognized Gina instantly. If Gina was here, that meant so was Daren. I wasn’t sure how that would go over with Brianna.

  Brianna

  There were so many people. All the men were in tuxedos, just like Stephan. The women wore beautiful gowns like mine. They were all moving and talking around me. The servers were also weaving in and out of the tables holding trays of food and drinks. Every time one came close, I cringed. I was trying to stay calm, even though it would have been so easy to panic.

  Everyone he had introduced me to so far seemed nice enough. Even the reporter downstairs had been pleasant, albeit pushy to find out who I was.

  Some of the other guests sitting at the table with us had tried to talk to me during dinner, but I really didn’t know what to say. I knew they were curious about me, just like the reporter, but it wasn’t something Stephan and I had discussed. He wanted me to be his submissive, that was clear to me, but what I was to be to him in public was a mystery.

  The servers had just come to remove the dessert plates from the table when, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that a few people were beginning to get up and move around. I wondered if that meant we would once again be getting up to mingle. As I turned slightly in my chair to face Stephan, I noticed his posture had stiffened and I immediately went on alert. Something was wrong.

  Stephan’s eyes were locked on something on the other side of the room. Every muscle in my body wanted to get up and run. Or hide under the table, at least. I knew that if he was anxious, then I should be as well.

  Somehow, my thoughts had gotten the better of me, and I must have lost my focus. I felt strong hands on either side of my face. His warm breath was at my ear. “Calm down, Brianna. Everything is fine,” he soothed.

  I closed my eyes and concentrated on him. His warm body was so close to mine. It felt nice.

  My eyelashes fluttered back open, and I found his heated gaze upon me. I’d seen that look before from him, but never in public. It was the look he had so many times when we were sitting in his chair after a long and involved talk. Although, I hadn’t comprehended the look for what it was in the past, I was beginning to understand it. He wanted me. Not just sexually, but in every way.

  It should have frightened me. It did frighten me, but this was Stephan. I trusted him more than I had ever trusted another person.

  We sat frozen in that position for what seemed like hours. It was Emily walking behind the microphone again that broke the spell, or whatever it was, between us.

  For a very long time, everyone sat at the large round tables and listened to a man by the name of Robert Carmichael. He talked about the hospital, and what had happened over the last year. I tried my best to follow what he was saying in case Stephan wanted to talk about it afterward, but it was rather hard to follow when he started talking about statistics I didn’t understand. Finally, Mr. Carmichael took his seat and a group of musicians gathered in the far corner.

  There was movement all around us, and I noticed that Stephan was anxious again. His eyes were searching the room. It was obvious there was someone here he did not want to talk to, or maybe he didn’t want them to see him at all. Or was it . . . me? I had no way of knowing.

  Stephan turned to me and took hold of my hands. “Do you need anything? Lily is coming this way and she can escort you to the l
adies’ room if you wish?”

  I thought about it for a moment. Since I had no idea how long we would be staying, I nodded. “Yes. I would like that.”

  Just then, Lily appeared between us. “Wasn’t the food just delicious? Oh, Brianna! You look beautiful. That dress is perfect. Isn’t it perfect, Stephan?” She beamed.

  “Good evening, Lily,” Stephan smiled. When he looked back at me, it was with an intensity that made me a little nervous. “Yes. Brianna is breathtaking in her dress.” He paused and turned back to Lily. “You have amazing taste. Thank you.”

  I looked up at Lily then. She was practically bouncing on the balls of her feet. “You shouldn’t doubt me,” she said with a sly smile on her face.

  “Never,” he said with a smile of his own. I knew they had a friendship, and a kind of history, but I didn’t like the feeling I got in my chest when I saw them talking like this. It was the same feeling I’d gotten when I saw them holding hands in the living room.

  Before I could dwell on my thoughts any longer, Stephan asked Lily if she would mind escorting me to the ladies’ room. She agreed with a level of excitement that didn’t fit the situation.

  I stood, not really wanting to leave him, but knowing that I should. He reached out and brushed his fingers against my arm, sending little prickles across my skin where he’d touched. Then the next thing I knew, Lily’s hand was in mine and we were weaving through tables.

  The bathroom was tucked into a corner not far from where we’d entered the big ballroom. It was huge. All the walls had a very subtle design on them. There were fresh flowers on the counters. It looked more like a private bathroom in someone’s home rather than something you’d find in public.

  Lily gave me instructions to wait for her just outside the entrance when I was done, before she disappeared into a stall. There were a few other women there but I didn’t know any of them, so I found an open door and quickly shut it behind me.

  It didn’t take me long, and it didn’t feel right to linger around the sinks waiting for Lily, so I did as she instructed and walked out to wait in the hallway. There were people out there, too, but none of them seemed to notice me, which, in my book, was a good thing. I didn’t like it when people stared at me.

  As I stood there waiting, I started to think again about Stephan. I couldn’t explain, even to myself, how I felt when I was near him. Or when I wasn’t near him, for that matter. Like now, all I wanted to do was see him. Touch him. Have him touch me.

  It made no sense. Why did I feel this way? What did it mean?

  Then there was my fear of all those same things. I knew he wanted to do things to me. Even though I knew that would include sex—which scared me on a level all its own—I also knew there would be more to it than that. How much more I didn’t know, but more.

  I felt like I must be insane to even consider giving him what he wanted. However, I’d tried more than once to imagine leaving him, and I couldn’t. And although the thought of him doing those same things to me made me want to cry, what Ian had done to me had not killed me. I’d survived. It couldn’t be worse, could it?

  Moisture began pooling in my eyes. I tried to will the tears away. It would not look good if I returned to him like this. He’d know I’d been crying. I didn’t want to have to explain why.

  I briefly wondered where Lily was, but I knew I hadn’t missed her and she wouldn’t have gone back to the table without me. Suddenly, I felt hands grab my arms. I could feel the aggression in them, and I froze. Air rushed past my ears as I was pulled around a corner and then pushed up against a wall.

  When I looked up, I saw the same man who had been in Lily’s office. Karl.

  Karl was dressed in a tuxedo just like Stephan. The look on his face was anything but friendly. He wore what could be considered a smile, but was more like a sneer. His body leaned into mine. I tried to stay perfectly still.

  Hot breath hit my face as he closed all polite space between us. “Finally, I get you alone. I’ve been waiting all night for just the right moment.”

  Panic was seeping through my limbs. I was trying to fight it, trying to push it down and away so I could think. That would be what Stephan would want me to do.

  But, I couldn’t. Already it was harder to breathe.

  Desperate, I tried to turn my head to the side, hoping that someone might see me and come to my rescue. There was no one.

  Karl grabbed my chin and jerked it back into place, so I had no choice but to face him. His hands were cold. Hard. They reminded me of Ian’s hands. Stephan had never touched me like this.

  “No one is going to save you,” he said matter-of-factly. He leaned in and ran his tongue from my jaw to my temple. “Besides, this is what you like, right? You like a man that takes control. Hurts you.” His hand let go of my chin only to clasp my neck, pushing Stephan’s collar against me so hard that I was sure it would leave a mark.

  “Please,” I gasped. “Please.”

  I could feel the tears streaming down my face, but it only excited him more. He pushed me up against the wall with his body while his other hand came to my hair and jerked my head back. His mouth was on mine with brutal force.

  Then he was gone.

  At some point, I must have closed my eyes. When I opened them again, I saw two men who obviously worked for the hotel pulling Karl to his feet. Instead of releasing him, they were practically carrying him against his will to the elevators on the other side of the lobby. It was only then that I noticed the man kneeling on my other side.

  The man was handsome, although currently he looked very concerned. “Are you all right, ma’am?” he asked.

  My throat hurt and I reached up to touch it. I couldn’t see the damage he’d done; the only thing I could feel was Stephan’s collar.

  The man—the one I now realized must have saved me from Karl—reached out to me with a hesitant hand. “It looks like he gripped you pretty hard. Maybe we should take off your necklace,” he said, reaching for my collar.

  “No!”

  He backed off immediately. “Sorry. I was just trying . . .” He looked around the hallway. “I’m Cal Ross.”

  I knew the polite thing to do would be to tell him my name as well, “Brianna,” I choked out. My throat really didn’t feel right.

  He nodded. “Do you have a last name, Brianna?”

  “Reeves.”

  Cal Ross was quiet for too long. He had a strange look on his face. “Anna?” he asked.

  I couldn’t speak. I just looked at him.

  “Anna Reeves?”

  When I didn’t answer him right away, he continued on. “You used to come spend the summers in Two Harbors with your dad, right? We used to play together.”

  Then it came rushing back to me. Cal’s father, Neil, and my dad, John, had been best friends when I was little. That had been a long time ago, though. If I remembered correctly, Neil and Cal had moved to St. Paul when I was ten. I hadn’t seen them after that. I hoped that they weren’t still in contact with John.

  “I remember,” I whispered even though it hurt.

  He must have noticed something was wrong. “I’m sorry. Are you here with someone?”

  I nodded, although that hurt, too.

  “Can I . . . ?”

  He didn’t get to finish. There was a squeal off to my right seconds before I saw Lily.

  As she got closer, I saw her face change. I knew she’d seen my neck.

  She knelt down beside me. “I came out of the bathroom and couldn’t find you anywhere. Are you okay?”

  “Yes.”

  It would take a while for my voice to return to normal. I obviously hadn’t fooled Lily.

  “And what do you have to do with this, Ross?” she demanded.

  I saw his back stiffen and he glared back at her. “I managed to get your sleazy CFO off her before he did any more damage.”

  “Karl?” The look on Cal’s face was enough of an answer. She stood. “I need to get Stephan.” He didn’t respond. “Will yo
u stay with her until we get back?”

  “I’m not leaving her,” he said as though that was a foregone conclusion.

  She gave me one last look and then she was gone. I knew I had to say one more thing to Cal before Stephan got there. “May I . . . ask a . . . favor?”

  “Of course you can, Anna.”

  “Don’t tell . . . anyone . . . about me.” He looked confused. “I don’t . . . want John . . .”

  However, that was all I got out before I saw Stephan rushing toward me. He’d had a very similar reaction to Lily’s, but after a slightly hostile look at Cal, he knelt beside me and hugged me. “Did Karl really do this?”

  I nodded. “Yes.”

  I felt him cringe at hearing my raspy voice. He placed several small kisses on my head before resting his cheek on my temple and turning to face Cal. “I owe you a thank you, Ross.”

  “I didn’t do it for you, Coleman.”

  I felt Stephan nod and then he was helping me to my feet. He held me in front of him and took in all the changes in my appearance. His finger gently touched my neck and I knew he must have been tracing the mark Karl had left.

  Two men from the hotel suddenly appeared behind Stephan, and I took a step closer to him. One of them whispered something in Stephan’s ear, but I didn’t hear. I was too busy trying to make myself invisible. He said something back to the man, and he nodded. They walked away as quickly as they’d arrived.

  Stephan turned to Lily. “Would you mind retrieving Brianna’s wrap? We’re going home.”

  Suddenly, I felt a hand that wasn’t Stephan’s on mine. I looked over to see Cal. His face was hard. “You live with him, Anna?”

  Stephan’s body was rigid. I felt his hold on me tighten. I felt worn out. I just wanted to go home. “Yes,” I answered him.

  Lily returned with my wrap before anything more could be said. She looked like she wanted to hug me, but since Stephan wouldn’t let go of me she instead said, “I’ll call you tomorrow.”