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I roll my neck to break the tension from her threat to leave me. Maybe I won’t be teaching her ass to drive, after all.
Quickly changing the subject, I start asking her questions. Questions I already know the answers to, but most girls enjoyed talking about themselves. “What did you study in college before you dropped out?”
She hums, looking out the window, “Child psychology.”
“Because of your past?” I know there are boundaries. Things I shouldn’t do, shouldn’t ask, but I was never one to stay within the lines.
She nods, swallowing thickly. “You have people who love children and want to help them, but as someone who has seen some unqualified therapists, I realized that, yes, they wanted to help, their heart was in the right place, but they could never truly understand unless they’ve been through it. And me, well, I’ve definitely been through it, not all of it, but enough to want to help. To understand their feelings without reading a textbook. To give them tools and advice that would not be considered ethical but nonetheless effective.” She shrugs. “I wish I had someone who understood me growing up. An adult who got it and didn’t brush it off with an unsure smile.”
I pounder what she says, an ache in my chest I can’t seem to rub away. This beautiful woman, with a tattered heart and a sewn-together soul, has been through so much that would break most people, but she took it and wove it into something beautiful. I don’t tell her, but being a therapist is probably out of the cards for her future. Somehow, I know she already knows that. The car drifts to a silence as we continue the drive through the city. The lights bouncing off the water like twinkling stars.
I think about everything at play. What I have to do. The secrets I have to keep. The surge of possessiveness that had me putting a tracker on her phone. The exact reason I was able to find her at a park no one under fifty visited.
Sighing, I turn on my signal to take the crawling mountain up to the secret Library of Nobility. Only with the approval of the elders am I able to bring her here. The show will still be filmed but won’t reveal too much of the place. No real sense of direction as to where it’s located.I couldn’t imagine bringing her anywhere else. She isn’t impressed by skyscraper restaurants that overlook the city. Boats that have the most beautiful views of the ocean as we eat atop it. Restaurant so exclusive you have to wait a year for reservations, and the cost being most people’s life savings. But this library? It will have her melting into me, or maybe, have her forgetting I am even here as she gets lost in another time between the bookshelves.
* * *
RAYNE
Sometimes with Branson, and trust me I know I shouldn’t feel this way but… it felt like he was going to kill me. Like why else are we driving up a deserted road in the hills of mountains? Even the cameraman had switched off his camera and is busying himself on his phone. I even tried to catch his eye in my visor mirror, which he swiftly avoided. It was looking sketchy from my perspective.
We drive until we get close to one of the mountains. Greenery and orange clay hold the structure of it. I shift uncomfortably, looking at Branson as he rolls down his window. I hear a churning noise before a machine rises from the ground next to his window. It is slim and a deep gray. It opens a slot, and Branson leans out as a scanner flashes a blue light into his eyes. Curious, because obviously I have never seen anything like this besides in movies, I lean up so I can get a better look. After scanning his eyes, it beeps before another compartment opens and a sharp needle peeks out. Branson puts his hand out the window, the needle pricks his finger, and a small spot of blood rises to the surface. The needle sucks it up before both compartments in the machine close and it begins to sink back into the ground, a green light flashing from it as it descends.
“Ah… where exactly are we?” Was that a tremor in my voice?
“You’ll see.” He flashes me a predatory smile as he drives forward, curving behind the mountain and going into a tunnel that opens at the bottom. Lights flicker on, illuminating a road that twists and turns as we reach a parking lot. All the while, my brain short-circuits and my mouth hangs open.
We come to a stop. Branson kills the car as I continue to gape, and the cameraman climbs out, grabbing his equipment as my door swings open. Branson fixes his watch, the iced-out metal flashing off the parking garage lights. His suit is a midnight black that matches his raven hair. His dress shirt is white, the top three buttons undone, as always, and his Cuban chain is peeking out. His rings flash as he holds a hand out to me. Taking it, he helps me out of the jeep.
My heels click against the concrete as we walk to a solo black elevator. It opens with the code Branson types on the keypad, the cameraman slipping in behind us. Walking in the elevator, I expect it to be like every other elevator, with shiny mirrors as walls, but instead, every inch is a glass wall. Exposing raw orange rock and roots all around us. Pressing a button, a list pops up. The Library of Nobility at the top, listing each level as it entails what's located on each floor. My heart stops as excitement builds up inside of me, threatening to explode. If I could do a little happy dance, I would, but I wasn't trying to embarrass myself with my less-than-stellar dance moves.
My eyes grow round as I begin reading. Level one is history, biographies, memoirs, and I'm sure a lot more but I skip over it because none of that interests me. Level two is different types of fiction of all genres. I make a mental note of that floor. Level three is a definite no from me, seeing as it consists of self-help, poetry, and motivational books. I am not ready to conquer my own demons just yet. Level five… wait.
“Where's level four?” I ask, peering over to Branson, who is leaned up against one glass wall watching me with fascination.
I blush, realizing how nerdy and excited I must look.
He rubs his lip with his thumb, eyes heated and pinning me into place. “Top secret, Darling.”
I nod, totally expecting that as I turn back and read a single word. Romance. One whole floor devoted to my favorite genre to read. This time, I can’t stop it.My mouth gapes open, my smile growing so wide my cheeks hurt as I do, and do a tiny little jump, clapping my hands together.
Branson chuckles as he asks, “What floor would you like to explore first?”
“You brought me to a library for our first date?”
“Um…” He clears his throat and adjusts the cuffs of his shirt. Is he nervous? I smile as he regains his confidence, looking back up to me. “Yeah. Is that not okay?”
“Yes, it's perfect. I just wasn't aware you knew me that well.”
“I know everything about you, Darling.” His words are dark, laced with promise and possessiveness.Making butterflies erupt in my stomach, and my heart… it was a goner.
Looking to the floor to avoid that penetrating gaze, I whisper, “Level five, please.”
The elevator begins moving up, rocks soon turn into rows of books stacked high on elegant, dark wood shelves. There must be thousands of rows surrounding all angles around the elevator. I press my hands and forehead to the glass as if I can somehow get closer. The walls and floors of every level are glass.You can see the mountains through the walls, and the levels of books underneath the floor. It is astonishing. I'd never seen something so breathtaking in my life.
Branson’s hand cups my waist as his other rests above my head, his body pushing into mine from behind. He whispers into my ear, “Every book ever written lies within this library.”
Turning my head slightly, I'm met with his face, barely an inch from it. Our breaths mingle as I swallow. His eyes are hooded as the energy around us grows charged. He looks to my mouth, his tongue peeking out to lick his bottom lip, eyes snapping back to mine as a puff of air escapes between my teeth.
