The Unforgettable Ex (Captured by Love Book 5) (Volume 5) (7 page)

“No, don’t speed up,” Gavin said hurriedly. “You don’t want to alert him that you’ve noticed you’re being followed when the streets are dark and quiet. Where are you now?”

She read the street name of the intersection she was passing.

“Make a right on the next street.”

“Okay,” she answered, less nervous with Gavin directing her. “I’ve just made that right turn.”

“Are your doors locked?”

“Yes.”

“Good. The nearest police station is still a few minutes away, and he might make a move before you get to a busy road. So for now, let’s see if we can lose him, okay?”

“Okay.”

“Good. There’s a set of lights up ahead. Before you get there, pull over at a spot where you have plenty of space to drive off even if he tries to crowd you. Keep your engine running and watch what he does through your mirrors without being obvious. If he looks like stopping next to you, even in the slightest, drive away fast and turn right at the lights.”

“I can see the traffic lights further down. And there’s plenty of places to pull over safely.”

“Okay, do it. When you’ve stopped, turn off your headlights and turn on the interior light in your car so he can see your movements. Hold the phone against your ear, and nod and pretend you recognise a particular house from across the street, like that’s your destination. Hopefully, whoever’s following you won’t make an aggressive move if he thinks help will be there quickly for you if he tried to do something. But keep an eye on whether he’s intending to stop next to you or not. Remember to drive off if he is. Got all that?”

“Yes.”

“Good.”

She carefully eased the car to a stop and did as Gavin had instructed. “Okay, I’m smiling now, nodding at the pretty house across the road, and looking like a dumb idiot who’s oblivious to being followed by some mad person.”

Gavin chuckled.

“He seems to be driving at the same speed,” she said, watching the other car from the corner of her eye. “He just drove past... it’s a black sedan, a Toyota, and the number plates are covered in mud, even though the rest of the car seems clean. And now he’s turning left on the next street. I didn’t get a good look at the driver.”

“Turn off your internal light, then do a U-turn now, quickly, without turning your headlights on. Then turn left at the first intersection. I’ll tell you when you can switch your headlights back on.”

She did so, keeping an eye on her rear-view mirror. “I’ve turned left and there are no cars behind me.”

Gavin continued to direct her until she reached a busy major road.

“I think I’ve lost him,” she said with relief.

“Good. Now, I want you to drive into the city and stay in a hotel—maybe the Sheraton. Stay on the phone while I call them and book a room.”

She frowned. “Why is that necessary?”

Gavin sighed heavily. “I don’t know what they know about you. I don’t want to take the chance of you going home and finding someone’s there waiting for you.”

Her jaw dropped. “Are you serious?”

“I’m not trying to scare you, Tash. And yes, it’s probably overkill, but I don’t want to take that risk. Please just trust me on this. Hold on.”

She opened her mouth to protest further, but Gavin was already talking to someone on another phone. He booked a suite under his name, and gave instructions that a Natasha Garrett would be there in a few minutes to check in. Why a suite? A regular room would have done.

“You heard all that, right?” Gavin said, getting back on the line with her.

“Yes. But why can’t I just go to Carter’s or my parents’?”

“You’re almost in the city. That’s closer than Carter’s or your parents’.”

“But I’ve already lost my tail.”

“Tash, please don’t argue with me. Just get there, please. I’ll join you shortly.”

Her heart skipped. “You’re going to join me in the hotel?” she said breathlessly.

“Yes. You need security, and I’m it. There’s no one I can call at the last minute that I trust well enough to do a good job of it, apart from Carter. But he’s got something else on tonight, so the only acceptable choice to watch over you is me.”

“But... what about Molly?”

“She’s gone home.”

“Right.” Was that good news or not? Nah. Perhaps Molly just couldn’t stay the night. That didn’t mean they hadn’t already had sex—

Ugh! Don’t go there, you idiot!
She couldn’t help but let out a ragged sigh.

“It’s not what you think, Tash,” Gavin said softly.

She bit her lip, not trusting herself to speak lest she made a fool of herself.

“I have to hang up so I can update the police,” Gavin said. “I’ll see you soon. Just get to the hotel as quickly as you can, okay?”

“So you do think that whoever tried to follow me is involved in a criminal matter that you’re helping the cops with?”

“Yes.”

A thought hit her. She scrunched her face, reluctant to bring up the topic, but she had to. “Gav, what if someone’s following Molly on her way home too?”

“I doubt there was more than one person who was watching my place.”

Her brows furrowed at the lack of concern in Gavin’s tone. “How can you be sure?”

“Don’t worry about Molly. I’m sure she’s fine.”

“If she does need help, I suppose you’re gonna have to go to her, huh?” She slapped her hand on her forehead. Why, oh why, did she have to ask him that question? What was wrong with her?

“No,” Gavin answered quietly. “If Molly needs help, someone else can attend to her. I’m not going anywhere but to
your
hotel room so I can keep
you
safe. I have to go now so I can be there sooner rather than later, okay?”

“Okay,” she answered, her eyes watering from his caring words. Ah, damn it. Just when she thought she’d been wrong, he had to say something that raised her hopes up again.

She let out a swooning sigh when the line went dead. His words proved that he and Molly weren’t serious. That was all she needed to know.

And she might as well admit it. She was looking forward to spending time alone with Gavin—in a five-star hotel suite. If there was one thing she wanted above all else, it was to win him back. Perhaps the events of tonight was a gift to enable her to do just that?

She gulped. She’d gone to Gavin’s place tonight to try to figure out if she still had the power to seduce him. When she’d discovered that just opening herself up to the possibility of getting back together with Gavin had awakened her libido almost instantaneously, she had irrefutable proof that Gavin still held the key to her heart and body. No point hiding from that again.

Well, she wasn’t planning on being alone for the rest of her life. So if Gavin was ready to move on from Amber, why not throw herself into the mix of girls he could choose from? No one cared about Gavin as much as she did, so wasn’t this the perfect time to remind him of that?

Yes. She’d hate herself if she didn’t take the chance.

G
avin took several deep breaths as he rode the elevator up to the suite he’d booked. His fear of Natasha being on Austin and Biggs’ radar was contained for the time being, but the excitement at being alone with her tonight was not.

He simply hadn’t been able to help the longing that had hit him when he’d learned from Carter just a few minutes ago that Tash had been talking to the girls about their past relationship. He doubted she would have discussed it with their friends if she hadn’t been thinking of him lately, especially since she’d been so adamant about not telling anyone about their old romance.

The ardent look she’d given him the night she’d broken up with Leo still constantly floated in his mind, and now this. It was filling him with hope that she was attracted to him again, and all that hope was making him yearn for her with greater passion.

But he still had to keep his hands off her. Even Carter had told him not to forget that.

Well, he’d been able to hide his feelings for five long years, so surely he could manage it again tonight. If only his head would quit flashing vivid images of a naked and beautiful Natasha to him...

Why the hell couldn’t he stop thinking about the last time they’d been in a hotel room together? That was years ago, and tonight’s circumstances were so far removed from the celebratory night they’d shared back then.

He’d have to ask Tash to lock the bedroom door tonight while he crashed on the couch, just to remind himself that she was still off-limits. With the way he was feeling, he didn’t know if he could keep his distance if she so much as looked at him with affection or desire.

He held the room key card against the reader, then pushed the door open, aware that his heart was dancing in anticipation of seeing her.

“Tash?” he called out. There was no answer, so he walked to the bedroom. It was empty. Where was she?

“Tash!” he said louder, nerves jangling as he yanked the en suite bathroom door open.

“Gav! Hi!”

All breath left his body.

“I thought a bath would relax me after my adventurous drive here,” Natasha said, smiling up at him.

She was having a bubble bath, but heaven help him, there weren’t enough bubbles to hide her sexiness from his rounded eyes. And why the hell was he still staring? He should look away. Now.

“You’re safe here tonight,” he said with a croak, forcing his gaze to her face.

“I know. I trust you.”

He inhaled sharply. What would she say if he let on that everything about him was urging him to strip right now and join her in that damned tub?

“Could you hand me a towel?” Natasha asked as she started to get out of the water.

“Sure.” He finally peeled his greedy gaze off her and grabbed the fluffy material from a rack above the other end of the tub. He tried to hand her the towel without glancing back at her.

“Thanks. I don’t mind you looking, you know.”

His head whipped back towards her in surprise. Fortunately—or unfortunately—the large towel covered her as she dried herself.

“It’s not like you haven’t seen it all before,” she said in a teasing but shy voice.

“I never want you think I’m anything but a gentleman,” he said lightly, desperate to pretend he hadn’t been affected by her nakedness. But all Natasha had to do was look below his belt and the bulge in his pants would be a dead giveaway.

“I guess I’m gonna have to wear just a bathrobe tonight,” Natasha said, releasing her hair from a bun and combing it with her fingers. “I want to save the clothes I was wearing for tomorrow, since I don’t have any spares.”

He blinked, reminding himself to breathe.

Natasha sidled up to him. “And I’ll have to go commando until I get home,” she whispered with a sultry grin before leaving the bathroom.

He stared at her, his jaw hitting the floor. Had all the nervous excitement made Natasha hysterical? Not that she was exhibiting hysteria, but why else was she flirting like this with him?

He shook his head. There was no way he could allow this to go on or he’d be in deep,
deep
trouble.

“Um, Tash,” he said, stepping out of the bathroom. “Make sure you lock yourself in this bedroom tonight. For extra safety.”

Natasha frowned as she tied the bathrobe sash loosely around her waist. “I thought you’d be staying with me tonight.”

“Yes. I’ll be sleeping on the couch.”

“The bed is big enough for us, don’t you think?” Natasha asked, peering at him through her lashes. “I’d hate for you to be uncomfortable when you’ve paid for this suite. And I really wouldn’t mind if you stayed in here with me, if you know what I mean.” Her fingers played with the collar of her robe.

Damn. That cleavage was going to drive him crazy if he didn’t stop staring. He forced some oxygen into his lungs and shook his head, giving her a small smile. “No. I’d already planned to sleep on the sofa. And you shouldn’t be joking around like this with me,” he said with censure.

“I’m not joking.”

Argh.
He raked his hair. “Tash... it’s not gonna happen. Remember we agreed to never go back there? It was even you who requested it, remember? So don’t do this, okay?” He grabbed a pillow from the bed and headed for the door. The sooner he left her presence, the better for his equilibrium.

Against his will, he glanced back and stopped in his tracks, his heart compressing. He’d caught the hurt on her face before she’d looked down on the floor to avoid his gaze.

“Tash.”

“I just thought it might be a good idea for us to hook up again,” she said, glancing back at him boldly.

His heart jumped in delight and, yes, he wanted nothing more than that. But now simply wasn’t the right time. “You know it’s not a good idea,” he forced himself to say.

“Isn’t it?” Natasha asked, stepping towards him. “Gav, I realised I’m still very much attracted to you, and I don’t want to hide that anymore. That doesn’t mean that I’ll pressure you into a committed relationship if we slept together again. We can take it slow, with no stifling expectations.”

God, he could tell how much courage it took for her to say that, and he felt himself melting like butter. But he only had one answer for her, and he hated himself for it. “It’s just not a good idea.”

Natasha stared at him for a long second before looking away. “Okay. I’m sorry. I’m just a bit crazy from everything that has happened,” she said, her voice cracking. “Don’t mind me. I shouldn’t have brought it up.” She turned and walked towards the window.

He shut his eyes. The pain he’d experienced when he’d broken up with her five years ago had been excruciating. Now, every single cell in his body was starting to throb with the same pain. His whole being was rebelling at the thought of hurting her again.

He should leave the room, but he found himself walking towards her and placing his hands on her upper arms. “Hey.”

“I’m okay,” she said with a forced laugh, refusing to look at him. But her reflection in the window showed she was biting her lip and trying to contain her emotions.

“I can’t, Tash. We can’t,” he said softly, his words driving a knife into his own heart.

She nodded stiffly. “Don’t worry. I understand. I just made a wrong assumption.”