Page 24 of Protected By Her Daddy

“Money fills your pockets, but it doesn’t fill the loneliness,” I murmur.

Wren’s gaze lifts to mine, and for a moment, it’s as if she sees straight through me. Something passes between us, something heated and powerful.

She clears her throat. “I should, uh, go back to my busy routine of resting and reading and let you get on with your work.”

I watch her retreat to the living room, her phone clutched in her hand.

Alone in the kitchen, I allow myself a moment to breathe, to think, to plan. Classes, safety, a future for Wren, it’s all on me now. And as much as I want to wrap her in my arms, safe from the world, I know I must also let her spread her wings. Balancing protection with freedom won’t be easy, but for Wren, I’d walk on a bed of nails through hellfire.

With the bun reduced to crumbs on the countertop, I leave her engrossed in her reading to attend to some calls that can’t wait.

By the time dinner rolls around, I’m back with her, and she has a pensive look that means trouble on the horizon. I sit across from her at the table, watching her push the food around her plate until it’s a wilted mess.

“Hey,” I say softly, trying to draw her out. “What’s on your mind?”

She looks up, a storm brewing in those sapphire eyes. When she sets down her silverware, I know everything is about to change.

“What happens when I’m fully healed? What happens when you realize I’m not worth the trouble?”

Her question floors me. I reach across the table, grabbing her hand, gripping it a little too tightly. “I told you this once, and I’ll tell you again. You can stay as long as you want. You could never be trouble, Wren, not in a million years.”

She blows out a shaky breath. “But I am because… I haven’t been completely open with you about what happened that night. The night I ran away from home.”

My eyes narrow on her. “Go on.”

She pauses, biting her lip. “Gregory wasn’t alone when I got back from studying at the library. Jerry, his so-called business partner, was at the house.” Her voice hitches before she sucks in a deep breath and continues, her eyes pinning me to my seat with their vulnerability. “Gregory told me it was time for me to repay him for taking on Mom and me. That he and Jerry had a buyer who was prepared to pay a lot of money for me. Jerry said I should be thankful that Gregory didn’t auction me off long before I was legal. They planned to sell me to someone for…” She trails off, the weight of her unspoken words hanging in the air.

Fury burns in my gut as I ask calmly, “Did they touch you? Hurt you?”

Wren wraps her arms around herself as if she can ward off the world’s evil with the gesture. “Jerry hit me, pinned me against the wall, grabbed my throat.” She winces as if remembering the pain and fear.

“Do you know Jerry’s last name?” I ask calmly, fighting the red haze threatening to consume me.

“Prescott.” Her eyes are glossy with tears as she looks at me, the full horror of her past laid bare. “They’re trafficking women,” she whispers, her slender throat bobbing as she swallows. “I was so scared, Gabriel. So scared.”

Fury ignites. The chair clatters to the floor as I surge to my feet and drive my fist into the wall. Wren visibly flinches, and I instantly regret it, but the wrath simmering in my veins won’t be quelled. “I’m sorry, but I can’t let this go, Wren. I won’t give them the opportunity to come near you ever again.”

I swear right then and there that I’ll burn the world down before letting anyone harm a single hair on her head. But, fuck, this goes so much deeper than I imagined. Frustration surges inside me. So far, our search for Gregory Sanchez has come up empty. And now another fucker needs to die along with him.

“Do they have any reason to come after you?”

She shakes her head. “I can’t believe I’d be worth their effort unless”—she shivers—“unless they’re still determined to deliver me to their buyer. But even if they somehow find out where I am, they’d be crazy to come here, especially now I’m under your protection.”

“I’ll find them,” I vow. “They’ll never be able to hurt you again. I promise.”

“What are you going to do?” she asks, her voice trembling.

“Whatever it takes,” I growl more viciously than I intended.

My knuckles throb from the impact with the wall, but the seething anger clawing at my insides drowns out the pain. I pace back and forth, trying to leash the beast raging within me.

“Please be careful. I can’t lose you.”

Careful? I’ll be as careful as a tornado tearing through a trailer park. No man will ever touch her on my watch. That’s a promise carved into my soul. She’s mine, and no way in hell will I allow Gregory or Jerry or any other low life to lay a finger on her.

“Gabriel…” She stands, reaching out a hesitant hand. Her touch is light on my arm, but it grounds me instantly. “You’re scaring me.”

Seeing the concern in her eyes threatens to unravel me, draining some of my anger. “The thought of anyone hurting you…” I shake my head and take a deep breath, trying to rein in my temper. Wren needs my reassurance, needs to know she’s safe. That I’ll never let anything like that happen to her again.

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