One Good Reason, page 19
“But why would Sean’s brother want to hurt me?” She asked me one night while we curled up on the couch. Erin was asleep, and it was late. The house was quiet, and we sat together in the dark.
“Maybe he wants to finish the job for his brother.” I stopped to think of the possible reasons. “Maybe, he thinks we had something to do with his death, and now he sees us together, and he wants revenge.” I stroked her arm and kissed the top of her head.
“Do you think he’s watching us?” She tilted her head to look up at me.
“I don’t doubt it since we don’t know his identity.” I gathered her closer into the nook of my arm. “Just always know your surroundings.”
“I have been, it’s making me paranoid.” She pressed her ear into my chest. “I can feel and hear your heart beating against my ear.” She pressed deeper. “It’s my favorite noise in the world.” She listened then she asked me to take her upstairs and make love to her.
“Why not right here?” Just the thought of sex with Natalie made me hard, instantly.
“Because security guards are everywhere on the property and there are no blinds on the windows.”
“So they’ll watch.” I liked the thought of someone watching me fuck the woman I loved.
“You don’t mind someone watching.” She sat up to face me.
“No, it makes me hot.”
Natalie sat considering it for a moment and then she stood up and stripped off her clothes. She undid my pants and helped me shimmy them down to my ankles. With her hand, she held my erection and stroked it. A small drop of come appeared, and she sucked it from my tip. I lifted my shirt over my head and reached for Natalie. “Baby, I need to be inside you, now.”
She straddled my legs and with her hand guided my cock inside her. She grabbed on to my shoulders and moved up and down on my erection. I held her hips and watched as my cock moved in and out of her. She quickened her pace, I could see the first hint of her orgasm, and then she released it. Her body lost in pleasure, saying my name, gripping her fingers into my skin. I pulled her hips down deeper on my cock and pushed my hips up which brought on my release. I yelled out her name, and I heard it echo through the house. She dropped her head between my neck and my shoulder trying to catch her breath.
I wrapped my arms around her body and pulled her close. I wanted to keep her with me always and to protect her and love her and let no one hurt her again including myself.
Chapter 19
“Natalie, I will be a little late tonight. I’m meeting Gregory for a drink.”
“Gregory? Why? I thought you hated him.” She asked.
“No, I don’t hate him, I hate him pursuing you. I don’t even want him looking at you.”
“Noah! You sound ridiculous.” She giggled.
“Call it what you like, but I mean it.” I’d beat him if he ever tried to hit on Natalie again. Gregory knew very well, as did anyone who spent a second in our company that Natalie was mine, yet, he still insisted on testing the waters. He’d send her a text out of the blue asking her how she felt and if she needed anything. He wouldn’t just shut that door and keep it closed.
“So why meet him for a drink?”
“He has business venture he wants to run past me, but I won’t be late.”
“Okay, Noah, be careful.” I knew what she meant when she told me to be careful. These days when Natalie and I were apart, we felt unprotected. The lingering fear that hung over us left us feeling vulnerable unless we were with each other.
I hung up the phone and grabbed my keys. I said goodnight to my secretary and headed out. Ever since Erin’s accident, I hadn’t felt comfortable using my driver. Not because I feared to get into an accident, but because I wanted my car in case I had to be somewhere quickly.
I plugged the bar’s address into my GPS and drove. Gregory picked a bar in a remote part of the city.
When I arrived, I walked in and looked around, but Gregory hadn't arrived. I texted him, and he texted me back.
He was on his way, so I sat and ordered a scotch. A few minutes later, a woman sat down next to me. She had that familiar hard look wearing too much makeup and the smell of too much cheap perfume I became used to after years of fucking escorts.
“Hi there.” She said as she sat way too close.
“Hi.” I moved away and looked at my watch.
“Waiting for someone?” She breathed out.
“Yes.” I was in no mood for small talk.
“A friend.” She asked with a questioning tone.
“Nope. I wouldn’t call him a friend.” I looked at my phone.
“Are you married?” She rubbed my forearm, but I pulled away.
“Engaged.” I looked towards the front door still no sign of Gregory.
She looked down at her cell when it binged. Then she moved closer. “What’s your name?”
“Noah.” I didn’t bother asking her name.
“Don’t you want to know mine?” She rubbed her hand across my back.
“No.”
She took a sip of her drink then leaned into me. “You don’t remember me, Noah.”
I studied her face. What the fuck was this chick up to? “No. Should I?”
“I bet Natalie would recognize me.” She moved away from me.
“How do you know Natalie? Who the fuck are you?”
Her ominous laugh cut through me. Then I realized what was happening.
“Who the fuck put you up to this?” I jumped up, grabbed her by her arms and shook her. “What the fuck is going on?”
Her depraved eyes sent chills up my spine as she threatened me. “I’m one of your whores, and now I’m your worst nightmare.”
I grabbed my keys. “It’s Gregory! Tell me! It’s that fucking asshole!” I dialed my cell and listened to the ring on the other end.
She took a sip of her wine and then looked at me. “He paid me more for this job than you ever did to fuck the living shit out of me.”
Everything stopped. I frantically ran from the bar to my car. Natalie’s phone kept going straight to voicemail. I sped through the streets to get home. I called my security team. “Tom, where’s Natalie?”
“She’s in the house,” Tom answered confusion sounded in his voice.
“Are you sure?” I yelled into the phone.
“I’m looking at her car as we speak. You sound frantic.”
“Please check. I’ll wait.”
I waited for him to come back on the phone. He took too long. I was almost home, and I would find out for myself.
I sped up, parked the car but left the engine running as I jumped out. There was a car I didn’t recognize parked in my driveway. I barged into my house. I knew something was wrong when I saw my security team checking the property.
“Natalie!” I yelled out once inside the house.
“Sir, we’re up here.” One guard called from upstairs.
I took the steps three at a time. Three guards stood in my daughter’s room. Erin and Pam sat on the bed crying. One guard questioned Pam.
I ran over to my daughter and scooped her up in my arms. “Erin, honey what happened?”
She was sobbing and hyperventilating. “Honey calm down and breathe. Breathe baby.” I wiped the tears from her face and cradled it. “Tell Daddy what happened. It’s very important, honey.”
Between sobs, she spoke. “That man from the Gala came here and locked us in the closet.”
“What about Natalie?” I drew her face closer to mine.
Still sobbing, “I don’t know. Daddy, he was rough with her.”
“Erin, stay with Pam, I need to help Natalie.” I frantically looked around the room. I didn’t know where to start. How could I find Natalie?
The guards gathered around to update me on what they knew. I heard sirens and voices downstairs. We were just about to walk out of the room when Erin yelled out.
“Daddy, wait! Natalie wanted me to tell you about our game.”
“What sweetheart?” I asked.
“We played Kangaroo.” Her voice was low. “Call Natalie.”
“I tried calling her; she didn’t answer. I don’t think she has her phone on her, honey.”
“Sure she does.” She was sniffling and wiping at her nose.
Everyone stopped and turned back into the room.
“Erin, how do you know Natalie has her phone on her?”
“Because right before that mean man came into the house, we were playing the Kangaroo game.”
“The what game?”
“Natalie hides things in that big funny elastic waistband on her jeans because her belly reminds me of a Kangaroo’s pouch. And right before he came in, she hid her phone, and I think the television remote and gummy bears may be in there too.”
I whipped my head around to the guards, and simultaneously we all said, “Track it.”
Chapter 20
Natalie Hill
“Now hide your phone.” Erin came running towards me with my cell. She already had me hide the remote for the television and a small bag of gummy bears. I snuck the remote out when she wasn’t looking but I kept the gummy bears to eat later.
“Okay, but I don’t think I can fit anything else,” I said as Erin handed me my cell and I continued to wrap and fold it in the elastic waist of my maternity jeans.
Just then, the doorbell rang.
As I started towards the door, a security guard opened the door and stuck his head in. “Mrs. Westlake, you have a visitor.”
The security guards assumed I was Noah's wife and in the usual fashion, Noah never corrected them. “Who is it?”
“A Gregory Reed.”
“Oh, yes, you can let him. He’s a friend of Mr. Westlake.” I reassured the guard.
The guard opened the door fully and there stood Gregory. “Gregory, I thought you and Noah were meeting at some bar,” I asked confused why he was here when he should have been with Noah.
“Oh, Shit! Did I get this all confused?” He continued to walk further into the house. The security guard closed the front door with him on the outside leaving Gregory and me alone in the hallway. Gregory walked towards me with open arms. I hesitated at first, not sure if a hug felt appropriate, but Gregory left me no choice. I was in his arms in a bear hug within seconds and then something changed. He squeezed me so tightly that it hurt. I tried to push him away but his hold on me was more than my strength could handle.
Then it changed.
I felt a blunt object jabbed into my pregnant belly and his mouth on my ear.
“Bitch, if you fucking scream I will kill your baby right here.”
I didn’t scream, but I squirmed trying to break away from his grip.
“That’s right, you fucking tease, you know what you need to do. Now be a good girl and tell that little girl it's time for bed.” I looked him in the eyes, and it was as if they changed. They were darker, more intense, evil. “And act like you and I are best friends.” He jabbed the gun deeper into my belly. “You understand.”
“Yes.” He released me and shoved the gun in the waistband of his pants.
“You fuck this up and I will kill you all.”
I lumbered towards the family room. Gregory stayed close enough to me I felt his breathe down my skin. When I got to the family room, Pam and Erin eyed Gregory and me, suspiciously. “Pam, can you take Erin upstairs and put her to bed.” Pam looked confused, so I quickly lied to protect them. “Gregory and I have grown up business to discuss.”
Pam reached for Erin’s hand and they walked away skeptical. Before they were out of sight, Erin yelled out to me. “Will you tuck me in Natalie?”
Gregory abruptly answered for me. “Yes, she’ll be right behind you.”
Gregory waited until Pam and Erin were out of sight then he spoke in a low, angry voice. “So this is what will happen and any misstep and I’ll kill all of you.” He used his gun and pointed towards the couch. “Sit.”
I did as he said.
“In five minutes we will walk upstairs where you will take the masking tape I have in my jacket pocket and tape up their mouths and their hands behind their backs. I’m going to lock them in the closet and then you and I will sneak out through the back of the house. I will not tape up your mouth until we are off the property so if you try to do anything stupid I will kill you and your baby instantly.”
Tears welled up in my eyes and I shook my head. “Why, are you doing this, Gregory?” The windows in this room had no blinds, so I hoped that a guard would catch Gregory brandishing his gun.
“Why, you have the fucking nerve to ask why. My brother is dead all because of you and your fucking lover.” He used his gun to scratch the stubble on his chin. “I’ve been watching you before you even took this job, and though it made it much harder to get to you, I knew the reward of killing you and hurting the man responsible for my brother's death would be that much greater.” He came closer to me and got right in my face. “And now, you’ve sweetened the pot with this.” He jabbed my pregnant belly with his gun. “Now, let’s go.” Gregory waved towards the hallway with his gun. “And act normal in case someone comes in the house.”
I walked into the foyer and up the stairs. When I arrived at Erin’s bedroom door, Gregory grabbed me and barked out instructions. “When you go in, act quickly, tell them not to yell and do as I say so that no one gets hurt.
“Can’t we just leave them be and sneak out the back.”
“NO! I need enough time to get far away from here. Now, do as I said.” He pointed the gun further into the skin of my belly.
I opened the door while Gregory stood back in the hallway. “Erin, honey, Pam, please listen carefully to me. First, don’t scream, but we are in danger so you must do as I say. Gregory wants me to tape up your mouths.” Erin cried and Pam turned white. I showed them the tape and as I approached them, Gregory came up quickly behind me and grabbed the roll of electrical tape from my hands.
“Bitch, give me that.” He quickly taped up their mouths and then had them fold their hands behind their backs and continued to wrap them with layers of tape.
Erin and Pam sat there crying, confused. He shoved them into the closet. Erin made eye contact with me and I tried to give her a reassuring look.
Before Gregory shut the closet door, I ran past him, gave Erin a kiss, and whispered in her ear. “Honey, tell daddy how we played the Kangaroo game.”
As I tried to give Erin another kiss, Gregory dragged me out of the closet causing me to fall to the floor. “Get up Bitch.” He yelled as he slammed the closet door.
I scrambled to my feet. Gregory pulled me by my shirt and threw me towards the bedroom door. My body slammed into the closed door. I turned around to face him and he came up on top of me pushing his body into mind. He grabbed my chin and squeezed my face together. My teeth cut into the insides of my cheeks. The pain had me seeing stars.
“When we step out of this room, you act normal or I will kill you and anyone who gets in my way. Do you understand?”
I couldn’t speak because of the way he clamped my mouth together, so I shook my head.
He opened the door to the hallway, stepped out using my body as a shield and checked in all directions. There was no one around, so he pushed me forward. I walked towards the top of the staircase where he grabbed me. “Wait.”
He looked down to make sure it was clear and then we proceeded.
Once down in the foyer he wrapped his arm around my back in case any of the guards were watching. “Smile Bitch.” He said through his teeth. He directed me towards the back door. “Where do the guards stand in the backyard?”
“They move around in the back.”
“Okay, when we go outside I want you to act casual. Follow my lead and if we run into one of them, we’re to act like two old friends enjoying each other’s company. When they are out of sight, we are going straight back and walking until we hit the pavement. I have a car parked on the other side of the woods.”
I did as he said. There was one guard off to the side but I waved to him as Gregory and I continued to stroll through the backyard. As we approached the end of Noah’s property, Gregory restrained my hands behind my back and covered my mouth with the tape. He clenched onto my shirt and dragged me through the woods. I stumbled a few times and once on the ground, he kicked me to get me back up on my feet. When we reached the road, I saw an old Honda parked on the shoulder near a bunch of bushes.
Gregory opened the back door. The back seats were down and he yelled at me to get in the trunk. I climbed in the back and struggled to fit myself into the cramped space. He then pushed the seats back into upright positions. Rolled up in a ball, squished into this small space, I prayed. I prayed that Noah would return home and Erin would tell him about the Kangaroo game. If he knew I had my phone on me, he could track it. Then a horrifying thought crossed my mind, what if Gregory killed Noah before he came over to the house? I was about to have a panic attack when I heard a phone ring.
A woman’s voice answered. Gregory had her on speakerphone. I listened to their conversation.
“Do you have her?” She asked.
“Yes. What about him?” Gregory asked.
“He just left.” She answered.
He was alive. Now I could only hope that Erin knew what I meant when I mentioned the Kangaroo game. To occupy my mind and get an idea of how far we traveled I counted. When we finally stopped, he got out and slammed the door. I braced myself for what came next but nothing happened for some time. I don’t know how much time had past when he finally took me from the car but when he hauled me out of the trunk, he was out of breath.
Gregory ripped the electrical tape from my mouth and dragged me onto the pavement. He walked behind me towards a motel door with the number eleven on the outside. He opened the door and once inside he shoved me forward onto the bed.
I landed on top of my belly and then rolled onto my side. With my hands taped behind my back, I found it difficult to stabilize myself.
He climbed on the bed and got in my face and spoke about the heinous things he would do to me before he killed me. “You fucked my brother up good and now I’m going to fuck you up.” He roughly stroked the side of my face with his hand, shoved his tongue down my mouth, and shoved his other hand between my legs. I tried to squirm and push him away with my shoulders but he tightened his grip between my legs. My resistance only angered him more, and he pushed me flat on my back. I felt more vulnerable in this position because now I lay on top of my trapped hands.
