Given to You Read online

  Neil pulled out of her mouth, pushed her back on the bed and slid her thong off her body. Hovering over her, he wrapped his arms around her body, and lifted her off the bed. He moved them to the wall, Kate’s back resting against it with her legs wrapped around him. Lowering her body onto his bone-hard girth, Kate could feel him fill her up. He kissed her mouth, his tongue dancing with hers, as he thrust in and out of her hot wet core. He started trailing kisses down her neck, finding the spot that sent jolts of electricity rippling throughout her body. Kate let out a moan. “Oh, Neil, you feel so good.”

  “Tell me what I want to hear, my beauty.”

  “Only you Neil. You’re the only man I want.”

  His mouth continued down her chest and found its way to her breast. He began licking her nipple at first, then scraped it with his teeth. Kate let out a loud primal sound, on the brink of explosion. Neil continued giving undivided attention to her nipple while his hand made its way to Kate’s mouth. “Suck my finger, baby. Make it wet so I can rub your clit.”

  Kate took Neil’s middle finger into her mouth and began swirling around it with her tongue. Neil pulled it out of her mouth and found his target, setting off intense tremors deep inside of her core. Between the swirling of her nipple and intense rubbing of her clit, Neil sent her over the edge. Kate screamed out louder than she ever had before, as the earth fell away and all that existed was the two of them. Her moaning continued as Neil slid in and out of her, keeping the intensity of her orgasm going. A moment later, Neil came quietly, choking out her name over and over.

  “Kate, I love you so much,” he whispered in her ear. “I can’t wait to be your husband.”

  Kate gently bit his earlobe. “I can’t wait to be your wife, baby. You have made me the happiest woman alive.”

  Neil kissed Kate as he walked her back to the bed, gently placing her on it, and then lying down beside her and holding her in his arms. He stroked his hand up and down her arm, enjoying the softness of her skin, and the afterglow of lovemaking. “I don’t want you to worry about anything. I’m going to triple security. He’s never getting near you again.”

  Kate nuzzled her head on his chest. “I’m afraid that he’s not going to stop until one of us is dead,” she said somberly. “The police still don’t have any evidence linking him to any murders that he has committed. He may not do that much time for kidnapping, especially if he gets a good lawyer.”

  “Well, kidnapping is a very serious crime. Since he intended to rape you, he could go away for life. We just have to find him. There’s no telling where he went and he’s not dumb enough to go back to his apartment. Hopefully, when the police search it they will find some evidence that will get a murder conviction on top of kidnapping you.”

  Kate let out a loud sigh and said, “I was hoping he would be apprehended tonight so I could put all of this behind me.”

  She was exhausted, physically and emotionally. She wanted to go to sleep and wake up in a world where she was safe.

  “I promise we are going to put it behind us soon enough. Right now, you need to get some rest. Sleep tight, sweetheart,” he whispered to her.

  Kate didn’t respond because she was already drifting away.

  Chapter 9

  Roger knew he couldn’t go back to his place. It would be crawling with cops. He’d have to dump his Explorer and hotwire another car. Spotting a car parked in someone’s driveway, he decided that would work for now. Then he realized that it would be better to just take the license plates, instead of the car. He parked down the street and quietly walked back to the driveway with a screwdriver in his hand. He kept a tool box in the back of his SUV so he was always prepared for anything that might pop up.

  When he approached the car, a motion-detector light went off and the owner’s dog began barking. Roger crouched down behind the car as a man pulled the curtains back to look outside. Then the man came out and yelled, “This is private property.”

  Roger made a noise at the back of the car to lure the man outside. Once the man was almost to Roger, he stood up, attacked him and knocked him unconscious. Roger dragged the man to his Explorer, put him inside and drove to a secluded area nearby. Roger put the man in the driver’s seat, dropped his wallet on the passenger’s seat and set the SUV on fire. It would take time for the authorities to determine that the charred body wasn’t Roger’s, giving him time to devise a plan and get Kate back. But if he couldn’t have her, then no one would.

  He obviously couldn’t take the man’s car now, because once the police figured out who was incinerated in his SUV, they would be looking for the man’s stolen car. So he found another one a few blocks away and took it.

  Rose. He hadn’t answered her calls or texts, but it wasn’t like they had broken up. Rose would be surprised to see his bruised and battered face, but she would most likely want to take care of him. Turning right, he headed toward San Diego. He had plenty of time to concoct a plausible story.

  After pulling into Rose’s driveway, Roger looked at himself in the rearview mirror. He was a little shocked. Man, I look like shit. This would definitely garner Rose’s pity, and that’s exactly what he needed right now. When he got to the front door, he knocked loudly, since he knew that her doorbell didn’t work. Rose came to the door a moment later and gasped when she opened it, seeing his face. Her hand went up to her mouth and her eyes widened.

  “Roger, what happened to you?” she asked.

  “I got in a fight with Paulina’s boyfriend,” he said.

  “Come in. I’ll get some ice. Sit,” she said as she pointed to the lounge. “I’ve tried to reach you today.”

  “I know, but I was preoccupied.”

  “Tell me what’s going on. I didn’t know Paulina had a boyfriend.”

  “Well, they just recently met, but the guy is a little crazy. He talked Paulina into taking Jacob up to Big Bear, but once they were there, Jacob called me. He was upset and asked me to go get him. Things turned ugly and we ended up in a fight.”

  “Maybe we should go to the hospital so you can get checked out.”

  “No, nothing’s broken. I’m just cut up and bruised.”

  “Well, where are Paulina and Jacob right now?”

  “They’re still in Big Bear. She wouldn’t come back with me. It’s a huge clusterfuck,” he said, reaching out for her hand. She guided him to the living room and they sat down on her sofa. Rose placed the ice on some of the swelling on his face.

  “I was hoping I could stay here with you for a couple of days. I need you, Rose.”

  “Of course, you can. You can stay with me as long as you like.”

  Roger smiled. This was going to work out great.

  “I’d really love to take a shower and get some rest,” he said.

  “Anything you need is yours. You know where everything is, so help yourself. Are you hungry? I can make you something to eat.”

  “Thanks, baby. I knew I could count on you. Some food would be awesome.”

  After a few minutes, sitting with the ice on his face, Roger got up and headed toward the master bedroom. Once he closed the door behind him, he took out his phone and called his foster mom.

  “Mom, it’s me,” he said. “I need your help. I’m going to need you to send me some money.”

  “Roger, are you in trouble? Why don’t you just come home?”

  “I can’t because the cops are looking for me.”

  “I see. Have you done anything that you can’t come back from?”

  “I don’t think anything that the cops think they have on me will end up sticking, but I’m not sure,” he said. “I’m in love with a woman named Kate and she thinks I kidnapped her. I just have to convince her that we belong together, get her back, and that will make everything with the cops go away.”

  “How do you plan on convincing her?”

  “I haven’t gotten that far yet, Mom. But I’ll figure it out soon enough.”

  “Where do you want me to send the money?”

>   Roger rattled off Rose’s address and told his foster mother to send a check made out to cash. She said she would overnight it to him on Monday via FedEx, which was just the relief he needed. He couldn’t go back to his place to get anything, and he was going to need supplies if he wanted to get Kate back.

  Roger got into the shower and washed his face gingerly. Neil’s flashlight and fists had caused some major damage. Fury began to rise in him at the thought of his Kate being with another man. When he found her again, Neil would pay with his life and Kate would pay by watching him die. Roger knew better than to leave loose ends and leaving Neil alive had been a costly mistake. If he had followed his own rules, he and Kate would be together right now.

  Roger’s thoughts returned to Kate’s beautiful body. He had been anticipating fucking her all day and his plans had been ruined by her asshole boyfriend. Rose would have to stand in for Kate tonight. He hadn’t been that rough with Rose, but tonight he was going to give her a fuck she would never forget.

  Roger turned off the water, got out, and began toweling himself dry. Rose called from outside the door. “Roger, I had Chinese for dinner,” she said. “I hope my leftovers will be okay.”

  Roger opened the door and stood before Rose. He was stark naked and ready for action. “Actually, I am hungry for something other than food,” he said, picking Rose up and throwing her on the bed.

  Before Rose could speak, Roger had pulled off her yoga pants and panties. She squealed as Roger plunged into her. He didn’t pull out all of his usual stops to please her. Tonight he just wanted to fuck her for his own pleasure. He wasn’t in the mood for foreplay or pillow talk. He had to fight the urge to rip her apart limb by limb because she wasn’t Kate.

  But having Rose around had benefits, so he pushed his homicidal thoughts out of his mind and just continued slamming into her. Rose wasn’t responding to him in her usual way, and he assumed an apology would be in order when he was done. When he finished, he rolled off of her and said, “Hmm…needed that. Sorry for being so selfish tonight.”

  “That’s okay, it seems you were in need there, Roger,” she said. “You can satisfy me later.”

  Like he cared about satisfying her. He had learned a long time ago though, that if he wanted a woman in his bed more than a couple of times, he had to make it worth her while. Pleasing her was just a means to an end.

  Chapter 10

  It was very early in the morning and Kate began tossing and turning, mumbling, somewhere between sleeping and waking. She was wandering through the dark forest at dusk, not certain where to turn. The chill in the air felt unnatural, ominous, and heavy somehow. Running past the trees, she strained her eyes to find something recognizable. Everywhere she looked she saw shadows. The rustling of the leaves in the wind sounded like inhuman whispers calling out to her, taunting her. The trees seemed to be reaching out to grab her and she scraped her skin running past one. She kept thinking that someone or something was calling her name, but when she looked around, no one was there. Something evil was lurking nearby but she couldn’t pinpoint its source. A feeling of doom covered her like a blanket and suddenly she realized that she could hear someone following her. His footsteps crunched the leaves that had fallen to the forest floor, but she couldn’t see him. She continued to run, fearing for her life, but all she could see before her were endless trees. More and more trees towering over her. The person chasing her was gaining on her and she fell onto the leaf-covered ground. When she tried to get up, she realized that she was naked. She attempted to cover herself with her hands, but she could still feel the cold air and chills as they ran through her body. Looking up, she grasped that her assailant was upon her and she wasn’t going to get away. He had captured her; her body trembled. He had a knife in his hand. It was dripping with the blood of his many victims and just as he was going to attack her, she was awakened by her own screaming.

  Kate sat up in bed, wide awake from the vividness of her dream, which had jolted her entire being. She couldn’t see his face, but she knew who he had been. Neil reached out for her and pulled her close to his body. Being wrapped in his arms made her feel safe again and her shaking subsided. To think she had almost lost him last night. A few more seconds and Roger might have slit Neil’s throat. Thank you, God, for sparing Neil’s life and me the pain of losing him.

  “Baby, are you okay?” he asked sleepily.

  “Yes, it was just a bad dream. Go back to sleep,” Kate said shakily.

  She closed her eyes and let the warmth of Neil’s body sooth her. She drifted off again, this time in a pure, dreamless sleep.

  The next thing she knew it was nine o’clock, Saturday morning, and she was supposed to go shopping with Charlie. She had so much to tell her best friend, but she didn’t know where to begin.

  She rolled over to snuggle with Neil, but he was already up. She got up, went to the bathroom, then put on the luxurious robe that was hanging on the back of the door. It felt good to have it wrapped around her body. She found him on the balcony with his Kindle and a pot of coffee.

  He looked up at her and smiled. “Good morning, future Mrs. Statton.”

  “Good morning, Mr. Statton,” she responded. “I like hearing Mrs. Statton. That’s music to my ears.”

  “Mine, too, baby. That was a pretty bad dream wasn’t it? You woke up screaming.”

  “Yeah, it was scary. Basically, I was being chased and was caught. You can imagine whose face I saw, and whose knife.”

  “Do you have an appointment scheduled with Dr. Cox anytime soon?”

  “My next appointment is a week from Tuesday.”

  “Well, in light of everything that has been going on, maybe you should see him every week again. At least for a little while. You’ve had so much to deal with in the last few weeks.”

  “I think you’re right. I really need to talk to him. I’ll text him and schedule an appointment for this coming week.”

  “Good. I made a pot of coffee for us,” he said, pouring her a cup. “Do you feel up to sitting out here? We can order breakfast and enjoy the sun.”

  “That sounds great. I just have to call Charlie. I had made plans to go shopping with her today, so I need to cancel,” Kate said, taking her first sip of coffee.

  “Are you okay with cancelling? I didn’t realize that you had plans with her today.”

  “Oh, she’ll understand. Plus, I want to spend the day with my handsome fiancé.”

  “Good, because honestly, I’m not sure I could let you out of my sight yet,” Neil said. “Plus, I did make a few plans for us. We’re meeting with Sadie in the ballroom later and it would be pretty awkward if you weren’t there.”

  “Yes, it would,” she chuckled, amused at her organized man. “You’re lucky that you are so irresistible. What if I had said no to your proposal?”

  “I would have found a way to convince you. I have my methods,” he said, waggling his eyebrows.

  Kate smiled and nodded. “I’m beginning to understand just how persuasive you can be, counselor. I rather enjoy said methods.”

  Neil winked at his bride-to-be and said, “Why don’t I go order some breakfast for us while you call her? I’m also going to take a shower. Of course, you are very welcome to join me.”

  “Very tempting offer, counselor, “ she said. “I just have one problem. My phone was destroyed. I need to use yours.”

  Neil handed her his phone, got up and kissed her on the head before heading back into their suite.

  “I could go for some French toast, scrambled eggs, and fruit,” she said as he walked through the sliding glass doors.

  “You got it, babe.”

  Kate began punching the numbers to call Charlie.

  “Hello,” said Charlie.

  “Hey Charlie, it’s me.”

  “Are you ready to go shopping?”

  “I’m calling to cancel shopping today.”

  “Hang on. Girl, is everything okay? You sound funny and why aren’t you using your own phone?�
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  “There’s so much to tell you,” Kate said. “I have no idea where to start.”

  “Okay, I’m all ears.”

  “Oh Charlie, yesterday started so wonderfully, and then….and then…um…Roger kidnapped me.”

  “What the fuck Kate?”

  “Neil found me. He…he…he got to me before… .” Kate couldn’t finish her sentence. She began crying as she remembered what was about to happen to her.

  “Oh, Kate, he didn’t get to…he didn’t rape you, did he?”

  “No. Thank God,” she said, her voice trembling. “Neil got to me just in time. I was standing before Roger wearing nothing but a thong and Roger was beginning to…”

  Sobs rang out from Kate’s voice again.

  “Oh, Kate, it’s okay,” Charlie cried out, her voice trembling as well. Neil got there before anything happened. He saved you. I’m so grateful that you are okay.”

  “Me, too,” Kate said, regaining her composure. “I really thought that I was going to have to do what he wanted. I was so scared, but I did everything I could to put on a brave front. I just kept praying that Neil would find me and he did.”

  “I can’t believe this. Kate…that must have been terrifying. Please tell me the police have enough to arrest him now?”

  “He got away, Charlie. We have no idea where he is. He got in his truck and left before the police arrived.”

  “Oh, my God, Kate! So he’s still out there? What are the police doing to find him?”