Most of All You: A Love Story(55)

I smiled at Dominic again. “You have nothing to worry about. I’m no one’s permanent anything.”

He made a sound that was half agreement, half disgust, studying me as if trying to figure something out. He wobbled slightly, catching himself with a hand on the wall next to me, boxing me in. I met his eyes, refusing to look away, refusing to let him see how hurt I was, how unnerved by his closeness. He ran a finger down my cheekbone in the same way Gabriel had done the other night. Only this time it felt cold, hateful. This time I wanted to knock the hand caressing me away rather than turn into it. I lifted my chin.

“So beautiful … makes a man want to do such stupid, stupid things …” And then he moved in so quickly I was caught off guard. His mouth crashed down on mine, and I made a surprised squeak. His tongue darted into my mouth, and he pinned me against the wall, pressing his groin to my stomach. I almost brought a crutch up to beat at him, but the weight of his words crushed me just like his body was doing.

He only needed you for practice …

You can help me practice being touched by a woman.

I went still, letting him kiss me, letting his tongue invade my mouth and his hips grind against me, not caring. Not caring at all. Or at least that’s what I told myself. There was a crack in the ceiling and I focused on that … my mind drifting.

Dominic’s face was suddenly torn from mine with a wet-sounding pop, and I gasped, brought back to the moment, pressing my back into the wall, trying to rein in my mind from where it had started to wander. I turned my face away, clenching my eyes shut, expecting a blow of some sort.

“What the hell are you doing?” Gabriel’s voice, filled with anger. I opened my eyes, opening my mouth to respond. What was I doing? I … I …

“Jesus, relax.” Dominic was stumbling backward and Gabriel was standing still, one hand fisted at his side, one hand just letting go of the back of Dominic’s shirt. Dominic stumbled a few more steps, tilting forward. “I was just trying to figure out what makes her so damn appealing.”

It took me a second to register that Gabriel had been addressing Dominic, not me.

Gabriel’s chest was heaving as if he was having trouble catching his breath. Before I could even pull myself away from the wall where Dominic had had me pressed, Gabriel slammed his fist into Dominic’s face.

I heard a feminine scream. Chloe had just rushed into the hallway, George following her. Dominic reeled backward, hitting the wall behind him, his nose spraying blood as he yelled out a curse.

“Get out of my house,” Gabriel practically growled.

Dominic looked up at him, an expression of shock and deep hurt passing through his eyes. “Can’t you see what she’s doing to us?” he yelled.

“It’s you who’s doing this to us,” Gabriel shot back.

“Goddammit, Dom,” George muttered, pulling Dominic off the wall and practically dragging him toward the kitchen. Dominic followed George willingly, his hands over his bleeding nose.

Chloe looked between Gabriel and me, her face filled with shock and confusion. She seemed to be weighing what to do. After a second, she turned and followed George and Dominic, obviously having decided it was best to leave Gabriel and me alone.

My heart was hammering, a whooshing sound filling my head. Oh God, how did this happen? Gabriel turned to me, and an agonized look came over his face. He clenched his eyes shut for a second and then opened them. “Eloise …”

His voice made me react. I pulled myself straight, feeling horrified, the situation crashing down on me. Oh God, oh God. “Eloise,” Gabriel repeated, and his voice was a hoarse whisper filled with pain. His bloody fist was clenched at his side. An avenging angel. My heart pounded more harshly in my chest, and for a moment the ache was so intense I thought I might cry.

I shook my head, just needing to get away, away from his tormented eyes, away from the shame, away from the heart-wrenching despair coursing through my body at who I was and would always be. “Please,” I said, not knowing exactly what I was asking for. Time? Space? Distance? Help? All of those?

I turned toward my room and hobbled as quickly as possible to it. I saw Gabriel reach out a hand, but I moved away and it dropped, his head lowering as well. I closed the door behind me, sagging against it, wanting to disappear, wanting just to melt into nothing.

I limped to my bedside table, where I picked up my phone, texting Kayla five words:

Will you pick me up?





CHAPTER FIFTEEN


Let’s not think at all. Let’s just find strength in each other.

Lady Eloise of the Daffodil Fields

ELLIE

The Platinum Pearl looked dingy and worn in the midmorning light. I got out of the backseat of Kayla’s car, where I’d had to sit because her passenger seat was broken and didn’t move back far enough to accommodate my cast, and grabbed my crutches. My leg would be encased in plaster for another couple of weeks at least, but I could already feel that it was knitting together well. I hadn’t taken any pain pills in two days and only felt a dull ache in my ribs.

“You need any help?” Kayla asked, slamming her car door and coming around to meet me.

“Nope. I’m good. I’m practically an expert with these things now.” I held up one crutch before I brought it to the ground, limping to meet her.

As we walked past the Dumpster, I turned my head, not wanting to think about what happened behind it that night that seemed so long ago. It surprised me that it wasn’t the beating that brought me the pang of distress, but the memory of Gabriel’s sweet face above me in the hospital hallway, how beautiful he’d looked.