“Amazing, and I wanted to thank you for that. The food was out of this world. It’s almost not fair how you can be so good with horses and cooking.”
She brushed her shoulders off. “Thank you. I figured I could help Blake out with his last night with you. I have to say though, it doesn’t look like either one of you are happy about this situation.”
I glanced over her shoulder at Blake, who’d just walked outside with my bags and the case with his grandfather’s guitar in it. “We don’t have a choice. I have to go.”
“No, you don’t. You can always stay here.”
Sighing, I shook my head. “If you only knew.”
“If I only knew what,” she placed her hands on her hips, “that you’re Hadley Rivers?”
I froze. “How did you know that?”
She chuckled. “It was quite easy to figure out. You look just like her, minus the makeup, and I caught you singing your songs when you thought no one was listening. Plus, I know what Blake does for a living. When word got out that you were in protective custody, I put it all together.”
“You didn’t tell anyone did you?”
“Are you kidding? I care about Blake and I admire what he does. I would never jeopardize this for him, or for you.” Her gaze landed on Blake. “I’ve never seen him like this before. He loves you.”
“And I love him, but it doesn’t change anything. I still have to go back to California.”
She snorted. “Why? I’m pretty sure celebrities don’t always live in Hollywood. You could stay here and still travel.”
“Robert’s coming,” Blake called.
Sucking in a breath, I heard the car come down the driveway. “And I would’ve, if he’d asked me to stay. But that hasn’t happened.” All night, we’d made love to each other, and all night, I waited on him to ask me to stay. That was what hurt the worst. I thought he would; especially after he told me he loved me. The words never came.
Tyla pulled me into a hug and squeezed. “He might not have said it, but he wants it. He’ll come to his senses.”
A tear fell down my cheek. “I hope so, Tyla. I truly do. Maybe one day, I’ll see you again.”
“You will.”
Taking a deep breath, I let her go and slowly walked up to the front of the house where Blake stood. “I guess this is it,” I said, forcing a smile.
He pulled me into his arms, burying his nose against my neck. “Call me when you get home, so I know you got there safely.”
I nodded. “I will. Be careful on your mission.”
“Always am.”
As soon as he let me go, I jumped back in his arms and kissed him hard.
At first, he opened up to me, but then he pulled away and rested his forehead to mine. “You’re not making this easy.”
“Neither are you,” I whispered.
“Hadley?” a voice called.
What the hell? I jerked around to find my father in the driveway beside Robert. “What are you doing here?” He stood there dressed to perfection, in his crisp gray suit and his white hair expertly coifed. My father was worth millions and his appearance reeked of it.
He cleared his throat. “I came to see you home safely.” He turned and threw a glare to Blake. “Mr. Evans, I seem to recall paying you to keep her safe, not to take advantage of her.”
“Wait, what?” I turned back to Blake. “What is he talking about?”
Jaw tense, he returned my father’s glare. “I would never take advantage of your daughter, sir. So don’t come to my house threatening me. You want your money back? Take it, I don’t give a flying fuck about the pay.”
Robert held up his hands. “All right, that’s enough. I’m sure there’s an explanation for all of this, but it’ll have to be settled at another time. We have a plane to catch. Blake,” he said, extending his hand. “It’s good to see you again. Thank you for keeping Hadley safe.” Blake nodded and shook his hand.
“Hadley, it’s time to go,” my father commanded.
“In a minute,” I growled, anger boiling in my veins. I pushed past Blake and he followed me to the side of the house, out of my father’s sight. “Care to tell me what’s going on?”
He unclenched his fists. “Yeah, your dad’s an ass.”
“I know that already. What about the money? How much did he give you?”
Sighing, he lowered his head. “Ten million.”
Mouth gaping, I almost choked on my words. “Is that the only reason you agreed to let me stay?”
“Yes.” When I tried to walk away, he grabbed my hand and pulled me into his arms. “Don’t walk away from me, Hadley. I admit, I didn’t want you here in the beginning, but you knew that. I don’t care about the money, I care about you. That’s why I haven’t touched a cent of it. The money isn’t what I fell in love with.”
I sagged in his arms and let the tears flow. “Then keep it. I’m sure you’ll find something to do with it.” The horn beeped and I stepped away. “I have to go.”
Blake reached for my hand, but I pulled back. “Don’t leave like this, Hadley. What do you want me to say?”
“I can’t be the one to tell you, you’ll have to figure this one out on your own.” Turning on my heel, I walked straight past my dad and into the car. Real life wasn’t like the movies. I thought for sure he’d scoop me into his arms and beg me to stay. Instead, he let me go and I watched him disappear behind the cloud of dust from our car as we drove away.
“It’s good to see you again, sweet pea,” my father announced.
Huffing, I turned away from the window and glared at him. “You didn’t need to be rude to Blake. He didn’t use me for the money.”
He sighed. “I know, but getting involved wasn’t a good decision on either part. Nothing can come of it.”
“Why? Because he’s not a celebrity? What does that matter?”
“You’ve been through this before and I don’t want to see you get hurt again. You need someone who can handle the press, and what it’s like to be in the public eye. Nick can do that and I know he cares about you. We’ll just keep your relationship with Mr. Evans a secret.”
I shook my head. “No, Dad. I love Blake and I want to be with him. Once he’s done with his mission, he’ll come for me.”
He blew out a sigh and ran a hand over his weathered face. “Honey, don’t you see? He can’t be with you and keep his job. What kind of undercover detective would he be if he’s in the spotlight? Everyone would know his face. He’ll have to give up his career. And even if he was willing, would you let him? He’d resent you in the end.”
I glanced at Robert and he nodded. “It’s true. Blake won’t be able to do his job if he’s with you. But it’s a decision he’ll have to make for himself.”
Could I let him give up everything to be with me? I knew the answer, and it felt like a kick to my gut.
Blake
One Week Later
“What the fuck, Evans? You almost killed him,” Mason barked.
I slapped handcuffs on the sick fuck we’d been tracking and dragged him to his feet by yanking on his neck. His face was a bloody mess, but the bastard deserved it after raping and strangling two women because they wouldn’t go out with him. I wanted to kill him.
“I still can,” I snapped back. “Maybe I should cut off his dick and see how he likes that.” The guy whimpered and I smacked him across the head. “Shut the fuck up! Hope you enjoy being raped and mutilated in prison because that’s exactly what you’re going to get.”
Mason drove us to the station and I happily tossed the fucker through the front door. If he didn’t get out of my sight immediately, it wasn’t going to be long before I did something I’d regret.