Page 31 of Buying Angel

I turned to Nico. “But what about Vincent? How are we going to get past him? If Hudson’s here, he will know he took me. What if he sends the Russian mafia after us? He could get them to kill us all.”

I was starting to have a panic attack and hyperventilate. I could feel the sweat starting to seep from my pores and the tears forming in my eyes as I shook uncontrollably. The next thing I knew, two strong arms came around me and started to rub my back. Then I heard his soft, tender voice next to my ear.

“Deep breaths, Rosa. I will answer all those questions, but I really need you to calm down. Breathe deeply. In…out…in…out. La mia bella Rosa.”

I could feel myself starting to calm, his body so close to mine, feeling so good. The last few words were just a whisper, but I was sure he called me his beautiful rose, but I couldn’t be sure. My heart ached to be with him, but I was supposed to be with Hudson. However, the more time I spent with Nico, the more I was falling for him. I took one last deep breath and pulled out of Nico’s embrace.

He looked down at me, smiling. “Are you okay now?”

I nodded my head, still unsure of my voice.

“To answer your questions, don’t worry about Vincent. I can deal with him if I have to. As for how we are going to get out of here, that is all arranged. In a few short minutes, Vincent will be safely in dreamland, and I have arranged for a power cut to get out of the building without being seen. As for the Russian mafia, that is the least of my worries. Now, we don’t have that much time, so I really need you to start packing.”

I gave him a smile and another nod and walked back into my bedroom. I emptied my small case that I had used for my weekend with Hudson, and started to grab the things I would need for a few days. I got enough clothes in the case for nearly a week, and then picked up my bag to put more personal items in. I grabbed my phone, passport, and everything else I needed and placed it in the bag.

Nico walked over to me and placed his hand on my shoulder. “Is that everything you need? If you need anything else I can carry it for you.”

“No, that’s everything. All the rest has been bought by Vincent, and I don’t want it.”

I looked down at my hand and saw the ring that he had bought me when we got engaged. I had taken it off for the weekend, but put it back on just before I walked into the building. I pulled it off my finger and placed it on my dressing room table, next to the jewelry box that contained all the other items that Vincent had bought me.

Well, all except one. I opened the box and pulled out the small box that contained the last things I owned of my mom’s. I looked down at the box as the tears started to fall from my eyes and watched as a hand came over mine.

“We need to get ready to go, Rosa. Hudson just messaged me. He is back at the car. Do you have everything now?”

“Yes.”

My voice sounded meek and shaky. I hadn’t been like this in months, not since the last beating I’d received from Vincent. I placed the box in my bag and went to pick it up.

Nico instantly took both bags and held my hand. “Don’t let go of my hand. It’s about to get very dark here.” He sent a message on his phone, walked over to my door with me in tow, and unlocked it. “Are you ready?”

I nodded my head. All of a sudden, the room was plunged into darkness. I gasped at the sudden loss of my sight. I felt Nico squeeze my hand and could just make out his silhouette in front of me.

“Don’t worry. I’m not going to let you go. This is part of our escape plan. Just stay close and nothing will happen to you.”

I allowed Nico to guide me out of my bedroom. Although it was pitch black, my eyesight was starting to adjust, and I could make out the door out of the apartment in front of us at the end of the corridor. We headed out of the apartment and closed the door behind us. The landing was bathed in a soft glow from the emergency lighting. We headed for the fire exit and down the stairs.

My heart was racing as I wondered if Vincent would suddenly appear behind us, racing down the stairs to stop me from finally escaping him. I could feel myself starting to panic again, even with Nico’s hand in mine, guiding me down the stairs. Nico must have realized, because as we reached the next landing, he stopped and turned to me.

“It’s okay, Rosa. I promise everything will be fine. We only have a few more flights to go down, and then we will be able to go and meet Hud. He’s waiting for us both. Please calm yourself for me.”

He leaned toward me and pressed a soft kiss to my cheek. My panic was instantly replaced with butterflies in my stomach. If only I could have both of them, my life would be complete. I’d have my sir to look after me in the bedroom, and my sweet protector in Nico, who would never let anything happen to me.

I took a deep breath and spoke. “I’m good now. Let’s go.”

I was far from good. My head and heart had both turned to mush at this slight gesture of caring for me. I wasn’t sure how I was going to survive being in the same house as both of them for any long period of time.

We continued down the fire escape and soon found ourselves in the underground parking lot. Nico led me out through the side door, and there I could see the car that had taken me back to Club Lust earlier.

We walked up to the car and were greeted by the driver, who took my bags from Nico. He opened the door for me and helped me get into the car. As soon as I got in, I was immediately pulled into Hudson’s side. I snuggled into his side and looked across to see Nico had gotten into the back of the car with us. He was facing me with the sweetest smile on his face.

“All go well, Nico?”

“Of course, Hud. Did you really expect any less of me? The electricity should be back on just as we are taking off, and that pill you gave Vincent should keep him out of it for most of the night and some of tomorrow. By the time he wakes up, we will all be safely at home.”

I looked between the pair of them as they spoke. How could they say we would be safe when we were staying only a few miles away from Vincent’s apartment? He was bound to find us sooner or later, and my bet was that it would be a lot sooner. As we started to pull away from the apartment building, I felt Hudson press a kiss into my head before he started to speak.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you what was going on today. We needed it to be a surprise, which from the look on your face earlier, it was. Before you ask your next question, we aren’t going back to my brother’s house. We are heading home to New York, and you are coming with us. That is, if it is what you want. I can arrange for you to go anywhere in the world, but I would hope you might like to come home with me.”

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