Page 33 of Controlled

“But if Gregor is dangerous…”

“Go home, Bella. That’s where you need to be.”

I was surprised she was dismissing me, but I could tell she had something else on her mind. “O-kay. Just be careful.”

As Marcia narrowed her eyes, lifting her head once again to glance in my direction, she tried to smile. But there was no doubt she was terrified of what Gregor could do. I backed out, smiling back at her and heading down the hallway. I continuously paid attention to the sounds and my surroundings, certain Gregor would suddenly confront me for invading the space. There was nothing, no other sounds, no mysterious noises of any kind.

But then moment I rounded the corner, I bumped into a hard body.

“Shit.”

The hard shove almost drove me into the wall. “Jesus. Jonas. What the hell are you doing here?”

He gave me the same dopey grin I’d seen a half dozen times. “I forgot my iPad yesterday. You know I can’t live without it. The question is, what are you doing here? And what the hell happened to your face?”

I rubbed my hands on my jeans before touching my cheek. “Just a scratch. I went to see my mother. And I had to drop off a check I was handed last night. A beautiful donation.”

“Oh, fantastic.” He kept the grin then cocked his head. “Your mother was agitated?”

“Yeah, not sure why.” He’d been the first person I’d told about my mother. He’d allowed me to cry on his shoulder more than once, telling me everything was going to be alright. I wasn’t certain that was the case.

“Oh, girl.”

“It’s okay. I’m sorry I ran out last night. You never told me what happened at the dinner with your parents. Out with it. Come on.”

“Shit. It was one of those… festive dinners. Dad was in rare form, talking about his conquests in business and his future in politics.”

“And you?”

He nodded. “My profession came up, which is why I left after pretending to go to the bathroom.”

“Ugh. That bad.”

“Yeah, what happened to you? I looked and you were rushing out the back door.”

“I went by but didn’t stay very long. I just… I wasn’t feeling very well.”

“Uh-huh. You’re a terrible liar. Let me guess. Creed Saint showed up to the party. Right? I don’t like that guy hovering around you. And the damn flowers? What did he think he was going to accomplish, seducing you?” When I didn’t say anything at first, he reared back. “Ah, shit, Bella. Please do not tell me you went out for a drink with him.”

“You were listening in on the conversation.”

“Hell, yes, I was. I told you that guy is bad news. I even asked Daddy dearest about him last night before things got out of hand.”

“What did he say?”

“He glared at me like usual before grilling me on how I knew him. After I lied through my teeth, he mentioned he was once on a case when his office tried to bring down all three brothers. I think it was all about their father’s disappearance. Anyway, they couldn’t get anywhere because the evidence suddenly went missing. However, to this day everyone does believe there are multiple bodies buried on the estate Creed inherited. I got the feeling my father had more than a run-in or two with the family.”

“Ugh.”

“Yeah, a black mark on the office for not managing a conviction. Anyway, good old Dad told me to keep my distance at all costs. I’m telling you to do the same.”

I nibbled on my lip nervously as we walked toward the main practice room that had a perfect view of the street below. I found myself gravitating inside. I wanted to see if I was out of my mind or right that I’d been followed.

“So Creed wanted to spend time with you. That’s why you’re acting all weird.”

I laughed but the sound was hollow. “He did but he helped get the donation and nothing more, so it was okay. Now, about the ugliness at dinner and no, you’re not getting out of telling your best friend.” I could tell he wasn’t buying a single thing I said about the merciless man. I still had the creepy crawlies. What if Gregor was watching from the shadows? What if Creed was standing outside waiting for me?

Jonas rolled his eyes. “It was typical, at least at first. My mother was over the moon with compliments and my father had his phone out all through dinner. Then he announced during dessert that my days as a dancer were over and that I’d been sponsored to go to law school. And that he wasn’t going to take no for an answer. After that, the typical jabs at my chosen profession and my sexuality began.”