What Happened After Vegas? (Unexpected Love #2) (11 page)

"If
you ever touch her again, you will be the sorriest man alive. Do you
hear me? Not only will you never work again as a lawyer, but you'll
be lucky if you can walk when I get done. You never touch a woman
without permission, and Rachel is not just any woman. She's my woman.
If you ever come anywhere near her again, I will fucking ruin your
life. I will protect her with every single thing I have, Jake, and I
have way more than you."

Cliff
began to loosen his hold when Jake turned his head to face Rachel.

"You
fucking bitch. You had to find a way to get me back, didn't you? I
got the house and everything we had together, and you got nothing.
You just couldn't let it go, could you? You had to find a way to get
even, so you started fucking my boss. I'm so glad I never gave you
what you really wanted. Now you're too damn old to have that baby you
wanted so badly. You must have fucked him better than you did me. I
don't know what he sees in you. Just so you know, I was fucking her
the entire time I worked there. I fucked her all over our house. I
even took her on trips. The ones you always wanted to go on."

Before
he could get another word out, Cliff pulled back and punched him in
the face. Rachel heard the crack of Jake's nose, as he fell to the
ground like the pile of shit he was. Cliff grabbed Rachel and pulled
her into his arms, as he dried her tears with his hand.

"I
should have gotten here earlier," he whispered into her hair. "I
promised to protect you. He will never have that chance again."

Cliff
wrapped one arm around her and pulled his phone out of his pocket
with the other. He called the police and stood holding her until they
got there. She couldn't stop the tears from falling. All she could
think about was how stupid she had been for never seeing Jake for who
he was. He couldn't have turned into the man he was moments before
she found them that night. When she thought about him holding her
against the wall, she thought about what could have happened. She
looked up to see Cliff looking down at her with sad eyes and felt so
bad for dragging him into her crazy world. He deserved better than
her. Cliff was the most amazing man. His arms held her so tight. She
thought about what he had said about her being his and that he'd
protect her with everything he had. There was no way she could let
him do that. He had to much going for him to be with her. She thought
about all of the horrible things Jake said in front of Cliff. He said
she awful in bed. He said she got with Cliff to get back at him.

"I
didn't know you were his boss," she said. "I never would
have talked to you if I had known. I'm so sorry."

She
was interrupted when two police officers came running up the stairs
with guns drawn. Jake was just opening his eyes when they approached.
One officer stood over him while the other walked into the apartment
where Cliff was holding Rachel.

She
told the police the entire story. They took pictures of her and the
broken picture on the floor. Cliff spoke with them as well. Jake was
so drunk he could barely get off of the floor. He told the officer he
wanted to press charges. Cliff let him know he should think for a
minute before he made that decision. They took Jake with them since
he was so intoxicated. His face was going to be pretty bruised up.
One of the officers suggested that she get a restraining order
started early Monday morning. He didn't think it would take much
since Jake came in uninvited and pushed himself on her. Cliff assured
the officer that it would be done first thing Monday.

Rachel
quickly cleaned up the glass that was broken on the ground as soon as
the officers left with Jake. Through all the commotion and crying,
she hadn't noticed Cliff's hand bleeding.

"Oh
shit!"

"What?"
he asked.

"Your
hand is bleeding," she said, as she took off for the kitchen.

She
came back into the room with stuff to clean his cut and wrap his
hand. Once she had it taken care of, she grabbed a bag of ice.

"It's
going to swell," she said. "Maybe you should go to the
hospital."

"It's
not that bad. I'll take something for it when we get back to my
house. Pack a bag. Make sure you get everything you'll need for the
weekend."

She
looked at him and shook her head.

"Don't
shake your head at me, woman," he said roughly. "You're
going home with me. If that fucker comes back, I'll be in jail."

"I
don't think I should. I'm not sure I'll be good company."

"What
if they let him out? You don't think this is the first place he'll
come. He's not touching you ever again. I let it go when he sent you
the text. You said he was harmless. What he did today was far from
harmless. I don't know what I would've done if he had hurt you. The
thought of him forcing you to kiss him is enough to send my blood
boiling. It's been an emotional evening, and there is no way I'm
sleeping tonight without you in my arms. I need you with me. So, will
you please go and pack a bag. If not, I will throw you over my
shoulder, strap you in my car, and you will wear those clothes or be
naked for the remainder of the weekend. It's your choice."

Rachel
put up her hand to stop him.

"I'll
pack a bag."

She
was back within minutes and they were on their way.

"If
you don't mind, I'd like to just go back to my place. We can do
dinner tomorrow. If you really want to go tonight, we will."

"No,"
she said. "I just want quiet. I want to feel safe. Thank you so
much for believing me and for being there. Thank you for taking care
of me."

"I
will keep you safe. I will do everything and anything to protect you.
I'm taking you to the station Monday to get a restraining order. You
could press charges if you wanted."

"I
just want him out of my life," she said. "A restraining
order will be fine. I agree that I need one. I never thought he would
do something like what he did tonight. I was so afraid he was going
to hurt me."

"That
will never happen. He's out of your life. I promise you that."

Cliff
pulled into a long drive. It was just beginning to get dark. The lawn
was perfectly manicured. It was beautiful. His house came into view,
and Rachel gasped.

"Your
house is gorgeous. I love the wrap around porch. The flowers are so
pretty. Did you plant them?" she asked.

"No,"
he said. "I work so much. I have the landscaping done for me."

"I
miss gardening," she said. "I used to do so much. It was
like therapy. I don't have anywhere to plant at the apartment. The
feel of the dirt in my hands was always soothing to me. Watching what
I planted grow into a beautiful garden always made me feel so good."

Cliff
walked around to open her door for her. She stopped him from taking
her bags.

"You
need to rest your hand," she said. "I can carry them."

"I
hope you're not disappointed," he said, as he opened the door to
his house. "It's just me here. I can't see having ten bedrooms
for one person. Then I'd have to have more staff to take care of it.
This way I only have one housekeeper. She cooks too."

"You
said she lives here," Rachel said.

"She
does," he answered. "On the other side of the house is a
small apartment. She lives there. Her name is Rose. She's only in the
main house from nine until six. If I need something after that, I
call her and she comes over."

Cliff
gave Rachel a tour of the house. It was large compared to what she
was used to. She was kind of relieved that it wasn't ridiculously
huge. They stopped in his room to put her bags away. She was
impressed with his king size bed. It looked so comfortable.

"Do
you mind if we order dinner? I told Rose I was going out for the
night. She didn't cook anything and went out with some friends. I
really don't want either of us cooking tonight."

"That
sounds perfect."

He
pulled her into his master bathroom, turned on the water in his
jacuzzi tub, and poured in something that smelled fresh and summery.

"Why
don't you take a bath while I order food. I think you'll feel better
after you wash the evening away. Are you in the mood for anything in
particular?" he asked.

Rachel
couldn't help the smile that crossed her face as she thought about
what she was in the mood for. Cliff closed his eyes and laughed.

"Believe
me," he began. "You are so getting that, but not until
after you've eaten and I've taken something for this hand. I'm not as
young as I used to be."

"I'm
so sorry about that."

Her
smile left just as quickly as it came.

"Don't
be," he said. "I'd do again in a second. Take your bath.
Food won't be here for a bit. I'll see you downstairs."

Cliff
walked out of the room. Rachel looked at herself in the mirror and
fought back the tears that threatened to fall. Her hair was a mess
and she looked exhausted. She quickly removed her clothes and slid
down into the warm, relaxing water. With her head back against the
tub, she closed her eyes and soaked up her surroundings, as she
thought about the amazing man that saved the day. Rachel couldn't
understand how someone that supposedly loved her at one point could
be so mean. She had never seen Jake act anything like he had earlier.
If Cliff wouldn't have shown up, she wasn't sure what would have
happened.

Rachel
opened her eyes to cliff standing above her with a smile on his face.
He had lost the suit and was wearing sweats and no shirt. Damn was he
hot, she thought.

"I'm
sorry," she whispered. "I must have fallen asleep."

"Don't
apologize for relaxing and enjoying the water. I could get used to
seeing you like this. I came to tell you dinner was here. I'll get
our plates ready while you get dressed."

"No,"
she said. "Let me do it. Quit using your hand. I'll be out in
two minutes."

Cliff
closed the door behind him to give her privacy. Rachel quickly dried
off and walked into his bedroom. She didn't feel like unpacking her
bag while the food he ordered got cold. He needed to eat hot food
after everything he had just went through for her. She opened his
dresser and found one of his t-shirts. Quickly, she slipped it over
her head and headed downstairs to the kitchen.

The
plates and silverware were out on the counter. She opened the bag and
scooped food out onto the dishes. When she turned around to grab some
napkins, she jumped when she saw him standing behind her.

"I'm
sorry," he laughed. "I was just admiring the view. You look
much better than I ever could in my t-shirt, especially with no
panties. I'm thinking I should have thrown you over my shoulder
without you packing a bag. I'd be able to see you like this all
weekend."

Cliff
walked up and put his arms around her. Her hands instantly went to
his bare chest, as she traced his muscles with her fingers.

"You're
not so bad yourself in those sweats with your naked chest. Is it bad
that I've hoped those pants would fall from your hips more than once?
How do you have time to look like this? I don't think staying like
this all weekend sounds bad at all."

He
leaned in and rested his forehead against hers. She could feel strong
emotions in the air between them.

"You
okay?" she asked.

He
nodded but didn't speak.

"We
should eat," he whispered.

He
pulled away slowly and moved to pick up the plates. She grabbed
quickly in front of him to get them first. He got them drinks and
followed her into his dining room.