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Heels & Handcuffs - Club Gold Trilogy 32
Bella. I stood in front of the mirror, studying my reflection with new eyes. The woman looking back at me was both familiar and strange. I knew that face—the green eyes, the freckles scattered across my nose, the natural wave in my dark hair. But there was something fundamentally different about her now. I looked different. Not physically—though I'd gained some healthy weight since moving in with Alex and Nick, my cheeks fuller, my eyes brighter—but in my expression, my posture, the way I held myself. My shoulders were back instead of hunched. My chin was lifted instead of tucked down. My eyes met their own reflection directly instead of skittering away. I looked free. The realization brought tears to my eyes. This was what freedom looked like. Not just freedom from Marcus's control, but freedom to be myself without apology, without fear, without the constant vigilance that had defined my existence for so long. "You're beautiful," Nick said from the doorway, his voice soft with
Heels & Handcuffs - Club Gold Trilogy 31
Alex. I woke to sunlight streaming through the windows and Bella still asleep between Nick and me, her face peaceful in a way I'd never seen before. No nightmares last night. No startled awakenings or fearful trembling. Just deep, restful sleep. Marcus's arrest had lifted a weight from all of us, but especially from her. My phone buzzed on the nightstand—Morrison calling at 7 AM couldn't be good news or bad, just information. I carefully extracted myself from the bed, trying not to wake Bella, and stepped into the hallway to take the call. "Greyson," I answered quietly. "Alex. Wanted to update you on Castellano's situation." Morrison's voice was professional but I detected a note of satisfaction. "He's being held without bail. The judge agreed he's a flight risk and a danger to Ms. Hart." "Good. What about the charges?" "We've got him on multiple counts of stalking, harassment, assault, and making terroristic threats. The DA is also looking at kidnapping charges based on Ms.
Heels & Handcuffs - Club Gold Trilogy 30
Bella. My hands were shaking as Marcus approached, but I forced myself to stand tall. To not cower or flinch. To meet his eyes without looking away. Every instinct screamed at me to run, to hide, to make myself small the way I'd learned to do during those terrible years. But I was done making myself small. I was done letting fear control me. He looked different than I remembered. Thinner, harder, with dark circles under his eyes and a manic gleam that sent shivers down my spine. His expensive suit hung loosely on his frame, and his usually perfectly styled hair was disheveled. This was Marcus unraveled, Marcus without his carefully constructed mask of civility. This was the monster I'd been running from. And looking at him now, I realized he was just a man—a broken, dangerous man, but still just a man. Not the omnipotent force I'd built him up to be in my nightmares. "Hello, little bird," he said, his voice dripping with false sweetness that made my stomach turn. "I've missed you
Heels & Handcuffs - Club Gold Trilogy 29
Nick I watched Bella walk toward Marcus through the night vision scope, and every muscle in my body was coiled tight, ready to spring into action at the first sign of trouble. My heart was pounding so hard I could hear it in my ears. My hands gripped the edge of the maintenance shed so tightly my knuckles had gone white. Everything in me wanted to run to her, to put myself between her and the monster who'd hurt her, to eliminate the threat once and for all. "She's doing great," Alex murmured beside me, though I could hear the tension in his voice. We were hidden behind a maintenance shed, close enough to reach her in seconds but far enough that Marcus wouldn't spot us immediately. Close enough to protect her if things went south, but not so close we'd spook him before the FBI could get their evidence. "I hate this," I said through gritted teeth, watching Bella's small figure approach Marcus's darker silhouette. "Every instinct I have is screaming at me to get her out of there." "
Heels & Handcuffs - Club Gold Trilogy 28
Bella. The panic room was silent except for the sound of my breathing. I sat on the cot, hugging my knees to my chest, trying to control the trembling that had taken over my body. Sarah stood by the door, alert and professional, but even her presence couldn't chase away the fear. Marcus was in the building. The man who'd terrorized me for years, who'd broken me down piece by piece until I barely recognized myself, was somewhere in this building. Hunting me. *I'm not that person anymore,* I told myself firmly. *I'm stronger now. I have Alex and Nick. I have protection. I have options.* But my body didn't seem to believe my mind. I was shaking, my breath coming in short gasps, my heart racing like I was already running. "Ms. Hart?" Sarah's voice was gentle. "Your breathing—I need you to slow it down. You're hyperventilating." "I can't," I gasped. "He's here. He's going to—" "He's not going to do anything," Sarah said firmly, kneeling in front of me. "Look at me, Bella. Look at
Heels & Handcuffs - Club Gold Trilogy 27
Alex. I stood at the window of my office, watching the street below with hawk-like intensity. Somewhere out there, Marcus Castellano was planning his next move. And every instinct I had screamed that it was going to be soon. "You're going to wear a hole in the floor," Nick said from the doorway. "He's out there. Close. I can feel it." "I know. I feel it too." Nick moved to stand beside me. "Sarah's got the building locked down tight. He can't get to her, Alex." "Can't he?" I turned to face my brother. "He got close enough to deliver that package. He knows exactly where she is. And now he's desperate, which makes him unpredictable." "So what do you want to do?" "I want to hunt him down and end this myself," I said, the words coming out harsh. "I want to make him understand that Bella is ours, and touching what's ours has consequences." Nick studied me carefully. "You're more worked up about this than I've ever seen you about anything. Even more than the Yamamoto deal that almo
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