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She wouldn’t let go of his neck, even though somewhere along the way, she had stopped crying. So he pulled her into his arms and carried her like a bride on her wedding day to the bed where he sat down with her on his lap, rubbing her back, and kissing her head, trying to calm her.
There was a pounding on the door, and he tensed, until Jase announced himself, striding in quickly and locking the door behind him. His friend took in the sight of the two of them, and turned out of the bedroom area, coming back shortly with two bottles of water from the mini bar. He handed one to Pax, for Diamond, and popped the lid of the other, guzzling like a man who had just spent a week in the desert.
“I spoke to the police. They have the situation under control, but they’ll want to talk to us all later. They said it could wait a bit.”
“Don’t let them shoot him!” Diamond cried frantically. It was the first coherent words she had spoken.
“Diamond,” Pax stated calmly. “They aren’t going to shoot him. They have no reason to now. But, I’m not sure why you’re defending him. He’s stalking you. It’s one thing to hang out in a tree on the other side of the property line at your dad’s house, taking pictures of strange cars, or Emmy without her make-up, or even us kissing. It’s quite another to look me up online, follow us here, stalk us on a date, and then break a story that puts us on the news and puts your life in danger. He called in a bomb threat this morning, to get us out of the room. Why? What was he planning to do? We don’t know. I’m just thankful that you were quick thinking on your feet, and managed to get the hell out of there. Not only were you in danger, there were one thousand people downstairs scared out of their wits, thinking there was a bomb on the premises while a dozen men in full swat gear and a dozen bomb dogs scoured the place for hours. And your dad thinks this Fitch guy is harmless? These last few days have proven that he is anything but.”
Pax was getting more and more agitated with every word, until finally, Jase stepped forward, putting his hands up in an attempt to stop Pax, and to breathe some sense into the atmosphere of hysteria that the two of them were creating.
His friend took one look at the expression on his face and wisely chose to address Diamond first. “Diamond, Pax has several good points. But, the fact remains, nobody is shooting anybody. He’s still unconscious, and he’s now handcuffed as well. He’s going to jail.”
Diamond’s breathing was labored, Lamaze style as Jason spoke, but her eyes began to look less frantic, and her gaze never wavered from Jason’s face. Pax had never been more thankful for his friend than he was at this moment, and this whole week actually. Maybe Jason was finally growing up and becoming less of an asshole. Or maybe he had always had this side in him, and Pax had never noticed because they had never been in a crisis situation. Either way, as soon as this was over, Pax was treating him to a giant steak and the most expensive bottle of scotch he could find.
By the time Jason stopped speaking, Diamond was breathing normally and sipping from the water bottle that he had given her earlier. Which was good, because she wasn’t going to like what he had to say next.
“Diamond,” Pax began very carefully, taking her chin in his hands, lifting it so that she met his gaze. “I’ve called your father. He’s coming to get you. This isn’t a safe place for you anymore.”
She immediately went on the defensive, attempting to jerk out of his grasp, but he held on tightly, forcing her to listen and really hear what he was saying.
“This situation isn’t getting any better, and I don’t want to have to worry about your safety right now.”
“So, you’re sending me home, genius? That doesn’t make any fucking sense! Home is where Fitch is from! Going back to LA is what started this mess. I’ve been safe and incognito here for four years—four!”
“Fitch is going to be in jail,” he reminded her calmly. “He won’t bother you there anymore.”
“Even better!” she shouted. “He’s not here; he’s not there. I’m safe wherever I want to be and I want to be here with you!”
She was shouting, and cursing at him in a way that normally would have had her flipped over his knee by now, audience or no, but that was over.
“Your dad isn’t taking you home. He’s taking you to the summer home of an associate somewhere back east. You’ll be safe there while this mess dies down.”
“Pax! No! That’s too far away! I can’t go! I won’t go! I need you right now. I’m fine here. You always keep me safe. It’s your job!” she cried.
She was right. It was his job. He had told her that over and over. He had told himself that over and over, and then he had failed.
“I’m sorry, princess. You have to go. It’s for the best.”
His heart broke as a fresh flow of tears poured down her cheeks. She stared at him piteously, as if willing him to change his mind. Finding him unwavering, she got up and ran to the bathroom.
“Pax,” Jason asked carefully, walking right up to where he was still seated on the bed, and speaking in a low voice. “What was that about?”
“She needs to go. She needs to be safe. This isn’t safe for her right now.”
“I get that, but why did it just feel like you handed her walking papers and put her on a plane to the other side of the country? For good?”
“Because I did.”
