Beautifully Broken (The Broken Series Book 2) (33 page)

“Madame
Stone, this isn’t a good time,” Rafael exclaimed as he caught up with me.

I
huffed out a small breath. “Rafael, please stop calling me that. We’re friends,
practically related. I’ve told you before to call me Kristine.”

Rafael
grabbed my shoulders. “Kristine, please don’t push him. You don’t want to hear
what he has to say.”

My
eyes widened, then narrowed. “What is it, Rafael? What is it he’s planning to
say?”

Rafael
shook his head. “Nothing good. He still blames himself, and he’s worried he
can’t keep you safe.”

I
gently removed his hands from my shoulders. “I’m losing him, Rafael. I can feel
him slipping away more each day. I have to talk to him… to tell him I love him.
He needs to know that I don’t blame him. We need to work through this together,
not apart.”

Rafael
peered deep into my eyes, then slowly nodded. He didn’t say another word as he followed
me downstairs. He stopped just outside the door when I entered Michael’s
office.

My
heart pounded as I approached the desk. Rafael’s warning was still ringing in
my ears. “Michael, we really need to talk.”

He
continued sifting through his paperwork. “Not now, Kristine,” he replied
dismissively. He refused to look at me.

I
studied him while quietly standing my ground. Michael had lost weight. Dark
shadows filled the hollows under his eyes. His mouth was set in a thin line,
and pain still marred his handsome face. “Then when, Michael?” I asked softly.

He
set the paperwork aside. “You should leave,” he noted quietly. His eyes captured
and held mine.

My
eyes filled with tears. There were so many things I wanted to say, but
Michael’s message was clear. I turned and walked away.

“I
mean for good,” Michael clarified.

My
eyes met Rafael’s as he stepped inside the door. He reached for my arm.

I
turned around to face Michael. “What did you say?” I whispered fearfully.

His
eyes were two bottomless pools of pain. “You should go back home, Kristine. You
aren’t safe here.”

I
took a step toward him as he rose from the chair. “This
is
my home,
Michael. This is our home. I belong here with you.”

He
walked to the front of the desk. He shook his head sadly as he sat on the edge
of the desk. “No, you don’t. I never should have brought you here. You aren’t
safe, Kristine. I can’t keep you safe.”

I
closed the distance between us, grasped his face in my hands, and waited for
his eyes to meet mine. The second they did, I spoke. “I don’t care, Michael. I
don’t care that I’m not safe. I have never been safe. Do you hear me? Never! I
love you, Michael…
seulement toi.
I want to be with you. If they kill me
tomorrow, I won’t care… as long as I’m with you!”

“
No!
”
Michael roared. He wrenched my hands from his face. “I won’t allow it. I don’t
want you to be in any more danger. I love you too much to lose you too. The fear
of it is already killing me.”

“We
can work through this, Michael, but we have to do it together. Our love is
strong enough to endure even this,” I pleaded. My entire body trembled as I
began to cry.

Tears
streamed down his cheeks. He grabbed my face and kissed me roughly on the lips.
“Go,” he rasped.

I
took a single step back and fell to my knees. I tried desperately to rein in
the tears as I reached for his shin. “No, Michael, please don’t make me go. I
love you. My arms ache because you aren’t in them. I can’t breathe without you.
I need you, Michael. Please, Michael, I am begging you to let me stay.”

“Go.
Now!” he yelled more forcefully. “
Leave me!
” he screamed.

I
curled in on myself as I began sobbing. There wasn’t a part of my body that
wasn’t broken in that moment.

Strong
arms wrapped around me as Rafael drew me to my feet and crushed me to his
chest. “You are a fool, Michael. You will regret this day. Mark my words,
brother. This will prove to be the biggest mistake of your life.”

I
sobbed hysterically as Rafael walked me back to my room. Twice I tried to break
his grasp so I could return to Michael. Each time he stopped and held me. He
whispered soothingly in my ear as he encouraged me toward the bedroom. The pain
in my chest worsened with each step that increased the distance between Michael
and me.

Rafael
sat me on the couch by the fireplace before disappearing inside the bathroom.
He returned with a glass of water and a small pill. “Please take this,
Kristine. It will help.”

I
didn’t bother asking what the pill was. I didn’t care. I would have let him
shoot heroin in my arm as long as it would have numbed the pain. I was still weeping
when I fell asleep.

Rafael
rubbed my shoulder. “The jet is ready, Kristine. You need only decide where you
want to go.”

My
eyes flew open. I wondered how much time had passed, then realized I didn’t
care. “I want to stay here. Please don’t make me go,” I whimpered.

He
held my hand in his as he gently shook his head. “We need to leave, Kristine.
Do you want to go back to DC?”

My
heart clenched at the thought. “No,” I said weakly. I sluggishly turned the
possibilities in my head. “Take me to Great Falls. I want to see my cousin,
Lexie, in Great Falls.”

“That’s
in Montana?” Rafael clarified. He tucked his arm under my knees and lifted me
to his chest.

“Yes,”
I mumbled as the sleeping pill dragged me back under. “Montana.” It was the
last word I spoke in Paris.

The
sleeping pill wore off just before the wheels touched down in New York. We
walked through customs. Then Rafael nudged me toward a Starbucks so we could grab
coffee, a couple of sandwiches, and some pastries for the second leg of the
flight. I had no interest in eating, but I gladly nursed the coffee. I took another
sleeping pill when we re-boarded the plane. I wondered if the two would just
cancel each other out, but the sleeping pill won out in the end.

By
the time the jet landed in Great Falls, I was awake but still feeling the
blissful detachment from my body that sleeping pills tend to induce. I stared out
the window at the snow and wondered if the maid had packed any clothes that
would be appropriate for Montana.

Rafael
must have read my thoughts. “He had a million dollars transferred into your
checking account. You can purchase anything you need.”

I
was too exhausted to be offended. “I don’t want his money,” I choked on a sob.
“I want him.”

“I
know,” Rafael whispered, “but he wanted to make sure you were provided for,
that you would have everything you need.”

“I
need him,” I persisted in a small voice.

“I
know,” Rafael repeated as he wrapped his arms around me. “He needs you too. He
just doesn’t know it yet.”

Cold
air rushed over me as the door to the jet opened. I shook miserably. “I don’t
want to go.”

Rafael
ran his hands down my arms as he tried to warm me. “I’ll come with you. You
aren’t in any shape to drive, and I want to make sure you get to your cousin’s
house.”

I
peered out the window again. The sky was growing dark. “I don’t even know if
she’s home, Rafael. What time is it?”

He
glanced at his watch. “Just after five o’clock.” He stood and helped me up.
“Your cell phone won’t work here, do you remember her phone number?”

“Not
her work number, but she should be home soon,” I responded softly. I squeezed
the pilot’s hand when we reached the front of the plane.

Rafael
led me down the cold metal stairs and onto the tarmac. His breath formed clouds
in the freezing air. “I’ll get a rental car. That way we can wait in the car until
she gets home from work.” He nudged me toward the airport as he gathered my
luggage.

Warm
air blasted us as we entered the tiny airport. I ducked inside the bathroom
while Rafael paid for the rental car. I splashed water on my face and tried
smoothing my hair before joining Rafael at the rental counter.

He
wrapped his arm around me as we walked outside to the car. “I’m sorry I didn’t
think to purchase coats when we were at the airport in New York.” Rafael tucked
me into the passenger seat before shoving the luggage in the trunk. He cranked
up the heater as soon as he joined me in the car.

My
teeth were still chattering when he pulled in front of Lexie’s house. I
breathed a sigh of relief when I saw her kitchen light on. “She’s home.”

Rafael
slid the car into neutral and set the emergency brake. “I’ll get your bags,” he
replied as he stepped from the car. He left the engine running.

I
yanked the keys from the ignition and ran to the back of the car. I reached for
his arm. “Aren’t you coming in?” I asked worriedly.

His
eyebrows knit together. “I don’t know if that is such a good idea. Wouldn’t you
prefer to be alone with her?”

“Rafael,
don’t make me say goodbye to you too. Not today. Please stay. She has two guest
rooms,” I pleaded as tears slid down my face.

His
eyes softened as he grasped my face and wiped my tears with his thumbs.

The
gesture reminded me so much of Michael, I burst into tears.

“Okay,
Kristine. I’ll stay, if your cousin approves, but only for one night,” he
relented.

“Thank
you,” I whispered hoarsely. I wrapped my arms around him and hugged him tight.
“For everything.”

He
pulled the luggage from the trunk. The floodlights turned on just as we reached
the driveway.

Lexie
flung the door open. Her long dark hair streamed behind her as she ran through
the snow in her bare feet. “Oh my God, Kri! I thought it was you, but I didn’t
know how it could be. Oh my God, you’re here. You’re really here!” She threw
her arms around me, knocking me down in the snow.

Lexie
and I would have stayed that way for hours, blond hair tangled in brown, holding
each other and crying in the snow, but Rafael intervened. “Kristine, please.
You need to go inside where it’s warm. You are shaking terribly. You’ll get
sick if you stay out here.”

I
saw the storm in Lexie’s eyes when she heard him speak. I could see her draw on
more than two decades of Karate training when her eyes went black.

I
grasped her shoulders. “Lexie, he’s not Michael. This is Rafael, Michael’s
brother. He’s my bodyguard. He’s just here to help me get settled. Please, I
want him to stay.” I glanced up at Rafael as he lifted me from the snow. “Just
one night, Lexie.
Please?
” I pleaded as I turned back around.

Rafael
tucked me against his side before offering his hand to Lexie.  

Her
eyes narrowed when she took his hand. “I don’t know what is going on here, but
you better not have any ill intentions toward my cousin. I’ll kick your ass if
you do.”

Rafael
smiled at her fierce protectiveness. “I assure you, I don’t.” He tugged gently
as he pulled her from the snow.

Lexie
brushed the snow from her scrubs. “Then you can stay.”

Lexie’s
husband, Nate, pulled into the driveway. He strode determinedly around the monster
size truck. He hugged me long and hard before Lexie introduced him to Rafael.
Nate’s jaw clenched when he learned Rafael was Michael’s brother, but he didn’t
hit him. I admired the restraint, especially coming from Nate.

Lexie’s
eyes followed Rafael from across the living room as he wrapped me in a blanket
and sat me on the couch. She was on the phone ordering pizza from Dominos.

Rafael
left the house briefly to retrieve the luggage. Lexie showed him to the guest
rooms.

Nate
built a fire in the fireplace before opening a bottle of red wine for Lexie and
me. He handed Rafael a beer.

Rafael
looked longingly at the wine, but he accepted the beer. “Thank you,” he
responded politely.

For
some reason that made me laugh.

Everyone
looked at me. Their expressions betrayed their concern that I might finally be
losing it.

I
smiled weakly. “It’s nothing. I just… I didn’t realize Rafael drank beer. I
thought he preferred wine.”

Rafael
smiled. It was the first full-on smile I had seen in weeks. “I don’t mind beer,
but you’re right, Kristine. I prefer wine.”

“Like
Michael,” I mused.

He
nodded. His smile faded as his eyes met mine. “It is not the only area where
our tastes align.”

I
ignored the warning that thrummed through my veins. I was too exhausted and
overwhelmed to respond.

Rafael
sank into the chair next to me. My cousin joined me on the couch. Nate exchanged
Rafael’s beer for a glass of wine before taking their dog, Annie, out to the
backyard.

“Why
are you here, Kri? I was going to fly out to see you in two days,” Lexie noted
softly.         

I
sighed as tears welled in my eyes. I wondered if tears ever ran dry. “Michael
insisted I leave. He didn’t think he could keep me safe.”