Some of the men follow as he escorts me outside. The car is now positioned just in front of the door. He must have left to get it almost immediately after we split. I bite so hard into my bottom lip it starts to bleed, but I stay stoic.
“I will send the message to the Dragon that you were cooperative,” Dean says as we stop behind the car. “I am sure he will look kindly on that.”
Opening the trunk, he gestures inside. I shake my head, pulling to try to free myself from his grasp. But he's holding me too strongly. His history as an Army Ranger means his body is trained to exacting standards. He's larger, stronger, and more powerful than I am. If my hands weren't cuffed, I would fight back. But as it is, I'm helpless.
He pushes me into the trunk and closes the door. I hear him say good night to the men and get in behind the wheel.
Chapter Fifty Dragon
Six years ago…
It was finally time.
For months, he lavished Ariella with everything. He introduced her to the life he built for himself and watched her revel in it. She was perfect. Everything he could ever have imagined, and even more. She still kept him captive. She had an effect on him like no one ever had, and it didn't lessen, no matter how long they were together.
If anything, it only grew stronger. The closer he got to this moment, the more he fell for her. For all that he had resisted at first, now he was willing to give himself over completely. He wanted her as his wife, the mother of his children, the queen of his empire.
Over the last several weeks, he had been making preparations. The house was the most important. He couldn't find one readily available that was good enough for her. But when he found one with an acceptable foundation, he bought it and immediately hired the professionals who had the skill to create exactly the home he envisioned for them, and the motivation to get it done quickly.
It was finally there. Every detail exactly what he wanted it to be. He couldn't wait to show her. There was just one more thing he wanted to add. A surprise he hadn't even shown to those closest to him.
He waited all day, excitement and anticipation filling his belly. But it wasn't all happiness. His men still pushed back against it, questioning whether he was sure about this decision.
“I don't want to hear any more about it,” he said. “This is what I want. And I always have what I want. You know that by now. I want to live with Ariella, and this house is the perfect home for us.”
He wanted everything to be a surprise for her, and he didn't want to spoil it by having the driver bring her to the house. Instead, he arranged to close the club for the evening. For all except the two of them. He would meet her there, then tell her he had a surprise for her.
She was waiting at the bar when he arrived. Just like the first time he saw her.
He was alone when he walked in. The men weren't needed, so they stayed outside, ensuring no one came in. As soon as he saw her that night, he knew he couldn't wait. He reached into his pocket and took out the diamond he’d designed for her.
Before he could say anything, the door opened, and Kenton ran in.
"Sir, stop," he said.
Dragon turned around to face him.
"What do you think you're doing?" he hissed.
"You need to leave," Kenton pleaded. "You need to go now."
"I'm not going anywhere. I'm here to be with Ariella."
"Sir, that's just it. She's not who you think she is."
Everywhere he went, people noticed him. She noticed more than he knew.
He heard the click behind him, and he turned slowly.
She stood with her gun in both hands, pointed at his face. His hands went up, the diamond dropping to the floor as the back doors to the club smashed open, and officers streamed in. He hit the ground, and she slowly lowered her gun. As the officers dragged him to his feet, he watched someone hand her a jacket to slip over her chest.
FBI.
Chapter Fifty-One
The ride down the uneven, bumpy dirt road seems like it takes forever, but it's probably only a few minutes. The car stops, and I roll over to prepare for the trunk to open. It does and I glare up at Dean.
“I swear to god, if you ever pull shit like this again," I spit.
"It got you out of there, didn't it?" he asks.
Another car door closes, and I run for Sam. He scoops me into his arms for a tight hug.
"Did you really need to put her in the trunk?" Sam asks.
"They were watching," Dean explains. "It wouldn't exactly look convincing if I put her in the front seat with me and offered her a Slurpee and a Slim Jim."
"They're always watching," I say, the phrase making my skin ripple. “How did you know that would work?”
“A guess,” Dean shrugs. “I went into the office. I found ledgers and a couple of documents that don't exactly make The Order look good. They already saw you as valuable. They would believe you had already been claimed by somebody else.”
“You are lucky as hell that worked out,” I tell him. I look at Sam. “Is White on the way?”
“Yes,” he says. “As soon as Dean called me, I called them and the Bureau.”
I nod. “Good.”
"You need to tell me what's going on. Why did you come here?" he asks. "And why didn't you want me to come with you?"
“I needed you to stay near the police station in case I had to call and have you look at my web. I came here to prove my theory was right.”
“And was it?”
“I think so,” I say. “There’s still investigation to be done to make sure everything
