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She blinked at him, shaking her head at her sudden, overwhelming need to sleep. She probably shouldn’t have eaten such a large breakfast.
“Eve, you know that I care about you more than anyone else in the world?”
“Yes, of course.”
“I would never do anything to hurt you.”
A stronger wave of drowsiness was followed by comprehension, quick and brutal. Hurt washed over her, the betrayal almost crushing her. “What did you do, Gideon?”
“Sweetheart, you are in massive danger. I had no choice.”
“No!” Her voice was thickening, and she could do nothing to stop it. Forcing herself to concentrate so she could get out the words, she ground out slowly, “You have no right. You took away my choice.”
The last words came out as a slur, and she slumped forward. She vaguely recognized that he caught her before she could fall into her empty breakfast plate. Darkness threatened, and when she felt him lift her in his arms, she struggled to let him know exactly how she felt. Even to her own ears, the words sounded garbled, but she had to say them. “Never…forgive you…for this.”
“I know that, my darling. But I’d rather have you breathing and hating me than the alternative.”
Those words followed her into darkness, but her last thought was the knowledge that she would never trust him ever again.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
A cloak of guilt covered Gideon as he grabbed the go bags he’d prepared and then scooped Eve into his arms. The helicopter should be on the roof by now. It would be a short flight to the airport, where they would board a plane for the safe house. When he’d seen Ash in San Juan a few days ago, he’d asked him to get one ready. He hadn’t had it in his mind that he would have to drug and abduct her. He’d thought that once she recovered, they could spend some time alone with each other.
They were going to do that, but not in the way he had hoped.
She would be unconscious for a few hours, giving him a chance to get settled in the house. When she woke, the fireworks would begin. Without a doubt, she would hate him. Even as the drugs pulled her into oblivion, she had made sure he knew how she felt. Eve didn’t hold back when she was angry, but this was so much worse. She had forgiven his years of betrayal only for him to betray her yet again. There would be no forgiveness this time.
As he carried her to the elevator that led to the roof, he reviewed his next steps. Eve’s safety was first and foremost, but that didn’t negate the other things he planned to do. Whoever was after the royal family had an agenda that far surpassed just killing off a family. This country was in peril. Someone wanted to destroy it from the inside, take it over, and then who the hell knew what else they would do?
Iris Gates had knowledge of this, and there was a part of him that wanted to hunt her down and shake the information out of her. Did she know who these people were?
Nodding at the pilot, Gideon settled Eve onto a seat and buckled her in. Sitting beside her, he buckled his seat belt, put on his headset, and then pulled her close so her head nestled against his shoulder. “Let’s go,” he said into his mic.
As the helicopter lifted off from the ground, he watched the castle below him and heard the words of the man who lived there and ruled the country. You have to take Lina away. Before this is over, she may be the last remaining Wellingsley. You have to protect our future queen.
That wasn’t the biggest reason he had taken her away. These people, whoever they were, would not stop until every member of the royal family was dead. They would relentlessly pursue Eve. So no, he had not just taken the possible future queen away from Ile de la Lune to save her. He’d taken the woman he loved above anyone else in the world away to keep her alive.
It wouldn’t matter to Eve what the reason was, she would never forgive him either way. But he’d told her the truth. He’d rather have a living, breathing Eve Wells hating his guts than a dead one.
The flight was a short one, as he’d called in some quick favors to charter the private plane. It was waiting at the airport for them and would take them to their destination. The flight plan would reveal a completely different location. No one, other than the pilot and Ash, would know where they were.
Eve was as safe as he could make her. The problem would be when she woke and threatened to kill him. But he would cross that bridge when he had to.
It took less than three minutes to transfer an unconscious Eve, along with their bags, from the helicopter to the plane. Two minutes after that, they were in the air again, this time on the private jet. For the first time in hours, Gideon finally felt the slightest amount of relief. Eve was safe.
Now the real work would begin.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
She woke in increments. The bed beneath her felt like she was sleeping on a luxurious cloud. The faint scent of vanilla surrounded her, and she inhaled one of her favorite fragrances. When a sharp pain tugged at her ribs, she grimaced and tried to ignore the discomfort. Wanting to return to the lovely feeling of luxury, she burrowed deeper into the softness. She felt so safe, so comfortable.
The soft tinkling of a piano played somewhere, and a smile flitted across her face. Gideon was playing Debussy’s “Clair de Lune.” The lovely piece held both melancholy and beauty, its haunting notes fluttering through the air like the petals of a delicate flower. He was such a gifted pianist, and she didn’t get to hear him play nearly enough. When they—
Awareness jarred her to full alertness, and her eyes popped open. This was not her bedroom. The décor was lovely but quaint, almost old-fashioned. Her bedroom at the castle was more modern, sleek.
Sitting up, she took stock, already knowing but barely able to accept what had happened. Gideon had drugged and kidnapped her.
Her go bag sat on a wooden chest at the end of the bed. Refusing to allow fury or grief to take over, she went to her feet. The aches and pains of yesterday’s assault were felt in every step. She glanced down, not surprised that Gideon had changed her into her favored sleeping apparel, a tank top and sleep shorts. If he was bold enough to drug and kidnap her, what would a little stripping matter?
