Trust (23 page)

He wagged his finger at me before turning and grabbing his duffle ba
g. “Next time I’m tying you up.” Opening the duffle bag he grabbed some clean bandages. “Disobedient little wife,” he grumbled under his breath, causing me to laugh despite the stinging pain in my leg.

“Before I redo your leg, I have something for you.”

I grinned. “Don’t suppose it’s another Subway sandwich, because that would really hit the spot right now.”

Laughing, Lance shook his head. “That can be arranged, but not this time.” Pulling a velvet
-covered jewelry box from his duffle he sat next to me on the bed and passed it to me. “We can get new ones if you don’t like them.”

“Al
l right.” I wasn’t sure why, but my hands shook ever so lightly as I flipped open the box to reveal two platinum wedding bands. It struck me as if a blow to the chest just seeing them. Up until this point everything from being captured to falling for Lance to escaping seemed so surreal, like it was a nightmare/dream, but it struck me now – this was for real. “Really?”

“Well, considering we’re married it wouldn’t look right if we weren’t wearing the bands.”

A small part of me was disappointed; I’d always hoped for the romance. But then again, this was a different life and considering the situation I could hardly ask for more than what he could do. We were running for our lives, romance was hardly a priority.

“You don’t like them?” I looked up into his concerned eyes and felt like a royal shit for feeling so selfish. He saved my life, saved the lives of the women I’d considered sisters
even though it put his whole plan in jeopardy. I knew I was being petty.

“They’re beautiful.”
I looked down at the rings again and fingered the woman’s band – my band. “This whole month has been so hard to process. It’s like overload. You know?”

Lance nodded. “I understand.” He took the box from me and removed the female band. Taking my hand in his he waited for my nod
of approval before slipping the wedding band onto my ring finger. Following his lead, grabbing the male band, I took his hand and slipped it on. We laced our hands together and for a moment I found myself hypnotized by the way the metal of our bands shone under the dim motel room lighting.

Exchanging the rings seemed to drive it home for me. He was mine as much as I was his. Looking back up and into his eyes, I was shocked to see this was one of those rare occurrence
s when I was allowed in. He needed me just as much as I needed him – maybe even more so. The demons he was battling within were far above and beyond anything I could have ever imagined.

Chapter 25

“Girl,
I imagined a million ways of getting out of that place, but one of them wasn’t because The Boss’s son fell in love with the virgin cheerleader and blew up the place to save her,” Becca said, leaning against the hood of the older model car Lance had bought for cash for her the previous day.

Cleaned up, in new clothes and with a splash of make-up on
Becca looked just like I imagined she would – like a supermodel, with long legs, slender frame and high cheekbones. She could easily grace the cover of any magazine, it was no wonder they abducted her, she was stunning. Lance had said they usually picked the ones they thought were special, and Becca was certainly that, both in her beauty and spirit.

I laughed. That wasn’t exactly how it went down, but Lance cautioned me from saying
anything about the specifics – just in case they went after Becca and forced her to talk. There was a good chance they would leave her alone, but he said we couldn’t be too sure and I believed him, it wasn’t just my life I had to worry about but his and my parents’ safety as well.

“Wish we could keep in touch.”
Becca frowned as our gazes locked. Tears formed in both of our eyes.

“Me too.” Saying goodbye to
Becca felt like I was saying goodbye to yet another family member. “It feels like I’m saying goodbye to my second sister. Only you understand what I went through, even Lance doesn’t fully understand.”

Becca
looked over my shoulder to see Lance leaning against the hood of a car with Ontario licence plates. He didn’t tell me how he got it and I never asked, there would be plenty of time to find out once we were on the road headed for home…

“You’re lucky to have him to take care of you. I hated him for hurting you, but now
that I know the truth… He’s a good man, I can only hope I find someone one day who would sacrifice his life to save mine. It’s a rare thing, girl.”

I followed her gaze and studied him. He’d told me numerous times that my life would never be the same again, but one day I could be happy once more. I could see that now.
I could see the potential for a future, a happy future.

“Maybe you can come with?”

Becca laughed. “I was never one to be a third wheel and considering the car has Canadian licence plates I assume you all are heading to Canada. I’m more of a southern girl, not much for the cold. And I have unfinished business. It’s time to go home.”

~*~*~*~*~

Lance

I’
d never seen someone study so hard in my life. By the time we were coming onto the border that separated Niagara Falls, New York from Ontario, I had no doubt Gwen had every word memorized that was in her new identity file, and mine as well.

“Come on, you got to learn my birthdate Lance. How can a man marry a woman without knowing when her birthday is?”

“Virtually every married man on the face of the earth.”

“Oh please. My father knows my mother’s birthday.”

“I doubt that. I suspect the only way he remembers is because a week or maybe a month before the birthday she starts leaving hints. It’s what women do. That’s the man’s heads up that, oh shit, either our anniversary or her birthday is coming.”

“Shut up.” She laughed, swatting my shoulder with the folder. “We’re newlyweds, you need to know this!” I feign
ed pain as though she had severely injured me, and she rolled her eyes at me.

This felt good. Better than I could have imagined. Normal. Even before I entered my father’s world I’d never had a normal relationship. She’d asked me why it was so easy for me to turn off my emotions and not feel
; if I were to be completely honest with myself it wasn’t hard at all. I’d spent a good chunk of my life feeling hollow and alone.

Growing up I had more than my fair share of women, but I never felt a connection with any of them, and certainly didn’t feel the affection and sense of devotion toward them that I felt for Gwen. I’d never felt the need to protect them at any and all costs, sacrificing myself if needed. I’d never needed their affection in return. With the exception of my mother, all of my relationships had been empty voids
, devoid of emotion. I’d never actually been in love before.

“They’re not going to go into such detail sweetheart. We’re going to pull up to the window, they’re going to ask where we were and what we’re bringing back. We’re going to tell them, most likely pay some duty and off we go. Nice and easy.”

“Does it hurt to be prepared?”

“No. You’re right. But we have everything.”

“What if they recognize me at the border? My picture has been on TV like mad.”

“Won’t matter, you have plenty of legitimate identification that proves you’re indeed Lillian Louise Walters, even if they see the similarities they’ll chalk it up to you just looking like her. Plus you’ve lost a fair amount of weight so your face looks quite a bit different
than the photos being posted.”

She frowned, pulling down the visor and examining herself. “Yeah, I look like a crack whore.”

I took her hand and gave it a squeeze; I hated seeing a frown on her face. From this day forward all I ever wanted to see was smiles on her lips and happiness in her eyes. I’d do anything to make that happen. Some might say I was redirecting my obsession with ruining the organization to one of bringing her happiness. Well, fuck them. There are worse things than having a husband who would do anything in his power to make his wife happy. Her hurt over not being able to go back to her parents nagged at me. It made me feel like a monster for keeping her away, even if it was for her own good.

“What’s wrong?”

Jolted from my thoughts, I glanced over and met her concerned gaze. “I’m fine. Thinking.”

“Oh.” Pulling her stare from mine she went back to studying the files.

We remained silent until we got to the border and took our place in line behind dozens of cars trying to cross. Her body tensed in the seat as she looked out the windshield.

“It
’s okay.” I knew it was fine, the documents were as legit as they come. We even had tax numbers and a tax history. Acquiring the necessary documents wasn’t easy, especially for the two of us and on extremely short notice without anyone from the organization realizing, but with enough money and the right contacts anything is and was possible.

To my relief our customs officer was a female in her mid-twenties. The stars were aligned. She proceeded to ask the routine questions, keeping her eyes glued to me. I gave her the smile I gave women I intended on seducing and it worked like a charm. Always did
, one of the benefits to being blessed with good looks and charisma – I’m not gloating mind you, but simply stating a fact.

When she asked why we had been in the USA I explained we were on our honeymoon,
to which she proceeded to congratulate us and tell Gwen aka Lillian that she was a lucky woman. I corrected her saying I was the lucky one, which got a blush from Gwen and a giggle from the customs officer.

With the brief interrogation over we were waved through.
We were now officially Canadians.

“Told
ya.”

“
Ohmygod, Flirt much?”

A wide grin crept onto my lips as I looked over at her glaring at me, although I noticed the speck of humor in her
blue eyes. “It worked didn’t it?”

She groaned in exasperation. “You’re not going to be one of those flirty fake husbands that I’m going to need to keep my eye on are
ya?”

I chuckled and shook my head. I didn’t like that she added the term
“fake” to the sentence though. She was teasing of course, but there was an air of truth to it. We hadn’t done this right and she deserved it done right. My mind flashed back to when we first met and she had said she’d hoped for romance and the fairy tale first time, and proposal and marriage and all that went with it. Sure, it was a fairy tale, hence the term, but she deserved so much more than a piece of paper telling her she was married and a back littered with scars reminding her of the first time we made love. She deserved the story.

“You’ve never been to Niagara Falls, right?”

“No.” She sat up straighter in the seat as her eyes began to scan the buildings as we passed by.

“Don’t suppose you want to
play tourist for a day or two? God only knows we both deserve a day to adjust and maybe begin to feel normal again.”

~*~*~*~*~

Gwen

“’bout time you got back, I was starting to think I was going to spend my first night as a Canadian alone!” I leapt from the bed and then grimaced as I landed on my feet and pain rushed up my injured leg. The painkillers Lance had given me helped, normally, but not when I was jumping from beds with the enthusiasm of a cheerleader at a big game.

“Seeing the
falls at night is the best time to see them.” He rushed to me and slipped his arm around my waist, steadying me. “Are you sure you’re going to be able to walk?”

“I’m fine, just
gotta be gentle with it.”

“I can go get you crutches.
I should have done that already.”

“And have you leave me the rest of the night while you look for some, no thanks.”
I flashed him a smile. It hurt, but I’d be fine. “So why don’t you have any bags? I thought you were going and getting something.”

“I was
and did. Come on, let’s go see the falls, they’re all lit up and it’s beautiful out tonight. The perfect night if I’ve ever seen one.”

After slipping on my canvas sneakers we left the hotel and made our way to the falls, which thankfully was only a short five
-minute walk, although the crowd of people was insane. He was right, it was incredible. The falls roared as the water toppled over the side and a spectrum of colours shone through the falling water.

“There’s a lot of people here, someone might recognize me,” I whispered to Lance w
hen he slipped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me into his broad frame.

“They won’t.
It’s night and I think they’re more interested in the falls than us.”

We came to an overlook that gave the most spectacular view of the falls. Looking over my shoulder there was a massive fountain and park area behind.

“This is breathtaking and there’s even a band doing classic rock covers over there.” I pointed to the stage set up, surrounded by tourists. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a romantic setting.” No wonder so many people went to Niagara Falls for their honeymoons. If there was any place in the world for new lovers this was it.

“I’m glad you like it.”

“What are you planning Lance?” Looking up into his eyes I saw a glimmer of… something.

“Well, it occurred to me, you know, once you pointed it out
a few days ago –” he grinned and gave me a wink “– that I hadn’t properly asked you something.” He leaned into me, “And if by some chance people decide to take pictures of this, keep your face away from the cameras so they don’t get a direct shot.”

“Huh?”
I crinkled my nose up at him.
What in the hell was he talking about, why would people take pictures of us
? As soon as the thought came to mind he fell to one knee and my question was answered. I looked around us nervously, as a smile spread across my lips. Several people had already noticed he was knelt before me and more were taking notice.

“Lance?
” I looked back down at him and watched him produce a ring case from the inner pocket of his denim jacket. “People are watching,” I whispered just loud enough for him to hear.

He opened the case to display
an engagement ring in a platinum setting to match our wedding bands. “I know we haven’t travelled the easiest road to get here, we’ve gone through hell, but we’ve survived and we’re standing here together, despite it all. I have no idea what the future holds for us, but what I do know is that for the first time in my life I’m in love. I knew from the moment I first saw you that I needed you in my life. And I knew I’d do anything to make sure you’re safe and cared for.”

The group around us continued to grow in size
, forming a circle around us. As Lance had predicted some had their phones out and were taking pictures; some were recording. I rearranged my hair so it hid my face from the cameras.

“This is crazy.” Despite my words I knew I was smiling like a lunatic. He was giving me my dream proposal.
My heart swelled and I didn’t think I could have loved anyone more than him at that moment.

“What I’m saying is I want you to be my wife not because you have to be, or because it’s the safe option, but because you own my heart. And for the rest of my life I’ll do everything in my power to prove myself worthy of you.”

“Ohmygod!” We may already be married on paper, but that didn’t matter. As I extended my shaking hand to him and he slipped the engagement ring onto my finger to sit beside my wedding band I knew it was for real and that I’d never love anyone so fully and with such intensity as I did Lance.