Fallen Angel (The London Ruthless Series Book 2) Read online

  ‘But why is it any business of hers? You’re forty years old for Christ’s sake. Why is she even bothered what you do?’

  ‘Well, it was more that it’s your baby. And you and I … well, you know. She feels like you took advantage of me.’

  I laughed out loud. ‘Are you fucking kidding me?’

  ‘Of course, I told her it wasn’t like that. But you know what she’s like?’

  ‘What exactly do you want from me?’ I asked with a sigh.

  ‘I need somewhere to stay. I had to leave my temping job because I’m constantly tired,’ she groaned as she rubbed her bump. ‘I have no-one else to turn to, Gabriel. And this baby is half your responsibility.’

  I clenched my fists at my sides. She had a fucking nerve preaching to me about responsibility. ‘I’ll provide for the baby if it’s mine.’

  ‘I know you will, and it is,’ she said with a smile.

  ‘But you can’t stay here. What happened to the house?’ I asked her, referring to the half a million pound house she got in our divorce.

  ‘I had to sell it. I couldn’t afford to run it on my own.’

  ‘So, why didn’t you buy somewhere smaller?’

  She shook her head. ‘I tried, but I had bills to pay. I couldn’t find a decent job. It’s not like I had an endless supply of money. I had expenses to cover.’

  I gritted my teeth. I remembered all too well how quickly she used to burn through money. I’d known she wouldn’t have been able to afford to keep our huge house herself, but she had demanded it in the divorce, and in the end, I’d handed it over just to be rid of her. She hated to work and she refused to do any jobs which she considered beneath her. So, it wasn’t surprising that she’d blown the lot and had nothing left.

  ‘Well, you can’t stay here. This is mine and Samantha’s house,’ I told her. Samantha may have left, but if I had my way, it would be a very temporary arrangement and she’d be back in my arms and my bed before the end of the week.

  ‘But I have nowhere else to go, Gabriel,’ she said as her bottom lip started to tremble.

  ‘A friend of mine has some properties,’ I lied. The properties were mine, but I didn’t want her knowing that. ‘There’s one without a tenant for the time being. You can stay there until you find somewhere more permanent. But you’re going to have to find another job eventually. I’m happy to cover what I can, but you’ll need to start providing for yourself too.’

  ‘No-one will employ a pregnant woman,’ she sniffed. ‘And then once the baby comes, I won’t be able to work. I’ll have my hands full as it is.’

  I frowned at her. She was as unlike Samantha as anyone could possibly be. I wondered how I had ever fallen for her. It seemed that all of the things that I’d once found attractive in her – those huge blue eyes, her neediness, her dependence on me, were now complete turn-offs. Samantha Donovan had ruined me for any other woman.

  I checked my watch. It was almost eight o’clock. ‘You can stay here tonight. I’ll have someone move you into the flat tomorrow.’

  She nodded. ‘Thank you, Gabriel. I knew you would come through for me. You’re a good man.’

  I leaned back against the counter. I don’t think a good man was how most people who knew me would describe me. And I certainly didn’t feel like one right now. Not when I had broken Samantha’s heart. Maybe what I actually was, was a mug!

  ‘Let me show you the spare room,’ I said.

  Jennifer followed me up the stairs and I opened the door to the guest bedroom. ‘You should find everything you need in here,’ I said before stepping back and out of her way.

  She placed a hand on my arm and squeezed lightly. ‘Thank you, Gabriel. I really appreciate this,’ she said with a flutter of her eyelashes. I rolled my eyes and took a deep breath.

  What the fuck was I letting myself in for?

  I lay in bed with my hands behind my head and wondered how my life had turned to shit in a matter of hours. I wondered what Samantha was doing right now. Was she sitting at her father’s kitchen table, telling him what a complete bastard I’d turned out to be? Or was she lying in bed, thinking about me too, and wishing she was here instead?

  I was relieved I hadn’t had to face her father earlier. He’d been my best mate and my business partner for the past eighteen years. I had promised him I would never hurt his daughter, and I’d fucked that up royally.

  Jennifer was asleep in my spare room. I’d get some of my employees to set her up in one of my empty properties tomorrow, and get her out of my house. Whether she was carrying my baby, or not, I couldn’t have her here. I couldn’t bear to look at her and be reminded of what I’d done.

  I glanced at the empty space in the bed beside me where Samantha should be and felt a jolt of pain through my heart.

  I had fucked everything up. The hurt on her face when Jennifer had dropped her little bombshell was etched into my brain. I kept replaying it over and over in my head and each time I did, it made me feel sick. I wondered if she would ever forgive me. And if she did, how would we ever learn to navigate this new dynamic in our relationship. I was going to be the father of another child before ours would even be born. How the hell would that even work?

  It was clear from my conversation with Jennifer that she wanted me to be involved. It was even clearer that she expected me to pay for everything for her and the baby from here on in. Not that the money bothered me. If the kid was mine, I’d be happy to pay.

  But what would I do about Samantha?

  I was desperate to talk to her. I contemplated driving over there and forcibly removing her from Sebastian’s house. I imagined walking into her bedroom, throwing her over my shoulder, carrying her down the stairs and putting her into my car.

  If only I could.

  I'd have to grit my teeth and wait until she was ready to talk to me, as much as that killed me and went against every instinct I had.

  I was used to taking what I wanted when I wanted it. But I couldn’t do that with her. She belonged to me and I would never let her go, but she was too stubborn and strong-willed to allow me to bully her into a decision. Besides, I loved her too much to force her to do that.

  Chapter 3

  Samantha

  I looked up at my dad as he handed me a mug of hot chocolate. I counted eight tiny marshmallows floating on top of the brown, frothy liquid and I couldn’t help but smile.

  ‘That always used to make you feel better when you were a kid,’ he said before planting a kiss on my head and sitting on the sofa next to me. ‘So, tell me what the hell is going on? You said Jennifer is pregnant and it’s Gabriel’s baby?’

  I nodded as I tried to stop the tears from overwhelming me again. All I seemed to do lately was cry and it was bloody annoying. ‘She says it’s his, and I suppose she’d know?’ I replied with a shrug.

  ‘But he would never … Not with her,’ my dad shook his head.

  ‘Well, he did. He admitted it.’

  ‘So, he cheated on you?’ he frowned.

  ‘Well, it was when we’d broken up, so, technically no,’ I sniffed. ‘But it feels like he cheated on me, Dad. And with her, of all people.’

  ‘I know, love,’ he said as he wrapped an arm around my shoulder and pulled me towards him. ‘He’s a fucking idiot.’

  ‘Well, I won’t argue with that,’ I said, forcing a half-hearted laugh as I wiped a tear from my cheek.

  ‘What are you going to do, love?’

  ‘I honestly don’t know. I don’t even have the flat any more …’

  ‘Well, you can stay here for as long as you like. This is your home, Sam. And my grandchild’s home too – for as long as you both need it.’

  ‘Thanks, Dad.’

  We sat in silence for a few moments and I took a sip of my hot chocolate.

  ‘You know I’d be happy to kick his fucking arse if you want me to?’ my dad said suddenly. He looked at me and flashed his eyebrows, no doubt trying to diffuse the tension.

  ‘Thanks, Dad,’
I smiled. ‘But, I don’t think that will be necessary. And I don’t expect you to choose between us either. You don’t have to give him a hard time because of me. I know he’s your family too.’

  ‘A hard time? He’ll be lucky if he gets off with just a kick in the nuts, love.’

  I leaned against him, and nestled my face against his chest. He always smelled of his favourite Chanel cologne. He’d worn it for as long as I could remember, and I still found the smell comforting.

  I knew he was joking about kicking Gabriel in the nuts. Humour was his way of trying to handle the intensity of the moment.

  The whole situation was going to be almost as painful for him as it was for me and I had no idea how any of us were going to get through the next few days.

  Every time I thought about Gabriel, and Jennifer, I felt like the air was being squeezed from my lungs. I kept hoping that he was going to call me and tell me it had all been a huge mistake.

  How could my world have completely fallen apart in the space of a few short hours?

  Chapter 4

  Samantha

  I closed my laptop and leaned back in my chair with a sigh. I’d managed to distract myself all morning by burying my head in my work, but now I was feeling hungry and if I didn’t eat regularly these days, I started to feel incredibly nauseous.

  I wished that Nick was here. Nick Cook was my best friend of fourteen years, and my business partner. He was also the one person I felt like talking to. He was one of those people who always seemed to know the right thing to say.

  Usually, if either of us needed to chat or had a problem, we’d walk through the park to the local coffee shop and talk everything through. By the time we got back to the office, we’d usually solved our problems, or at the very least felt better about them.

  Not that I thought that a walk through the park, a coffee and a brownie could solve this particular problem, however it would certainly help me to talk things over with him. But Nick was off on a week long holiday with his two kids.

  I rubbed my temples and let out a long breath. Maybe I’d just nip to the newsagents and get myself one of their pre-packaged sandwiches? Then I could get stuck back into work before I started to think too much about how my life had been turned upside down.

  ‘Everything okay, Samantha?’ I heard a voice ask.

  I looked up to see our junior partner, Simon Hardaker standing in my doorway. He had only worked for us for six months, but he had settled in well. He was quiet and shy and had a nervous energy about him, but he was good at his job and he seemed to care about our clients.

  Gabriel was always claiming that Simon fancied me, but I always dismissed him. He lived with a woman, and although he claimed she was his flatmate, the way he talked about her made me think he’d at least like something more, if there wasn’t more already.

  The memory about Gabriel blindsided me. If I wasn’t completely distracted by something else, he filled my every waking thought.

  I blinked back a tear. ‘Yes, I’m fine, thanks, Si,’ I lied.

  He walked into my office and sat down in the chair opposite my desk. ‘Are you sure?’ he asked softly. ‘You look a little …’

  ‘A little what? Like I’ve been dragged through a hedge backwards?’ I asked with a faint laugh. I’d spent half the night crying and had about two hours sleep. All of the carefully applied make-up in the world couldn’t hide that.

  He looked down at his hands. ‘I’m sorry, I didn’t mean …’ he trailed off.

  ‘No need to apologise. The truth is, I’ve had better days. But I’m fine.’

  ‘I’m sorry for whatever it is that’s bothering you anyway. Can I get you anything? I was just about to nip out to grab a sandwich.’

  ‘Actually, do you mind if I come with you? I could so with some fresh air?’ I said.

  It would do me good to get out of this office for half an hour. My back was starting to ache from sitting at my desk all morning.

  Simon’s cheeks flushed pink and I couldn’t help but smile. He was so shy.

  ‘Of course not. Are you ready to go now?’ he asked.

  ‘Yes. Let me grab my coat.’

  Half an hour later, I was back at my desk with a chicken and avocado sandwich and a bottle of freshly squeezed orange juice. It had been nice chatting to Simon, but it wasn’t the same as talking to Nick. I didn’t know him well enough to talk about anything more personal than my favourite films, or work. It transpired that he loved the film, Pretty Woman, almost as much as I did.

  I’d mentioned I was staying with my dad for a few days and then he’d told me all about how his own father had never been around when he was growing up. His mum had got pregnant at sixteen, and there had just been the two of them until she’d died a few years earlier.

  I hadn’t felt able to open up to him in the same way though. I still found it hard to trust people, despite the fact that he was such a nice guy. But a twelve year marriage to a sadistic sociopath who tried to kill me had left its scars, and they ran deep.

  I was about to take a bite of my sandwich when my office phone rang. I glanced at the display and noticed it was Beth, my receptionist.

  ‘Hi, Beth,’ I answered.

  ‘Hi, Samantha. There’s a Mr Lewis on the phone asking for you. Are you free or shall I take a message?’

  I put my sandwich down. I could wait another five minutes. ‘No, I’m free. Put him through.’

  ‘Thanks, will do,’ she said and then I heard her put the phone down and the other line was transferred to me.

  ‘Hello, Samantha Donovan speaking,’ I said.

  There was nothing but silence on the other end. I waited for a few seconds. ‘Hello?’ I repeated.

  Nothing.

  I put the phone back in its cradle. Mr Lewis must have been cut off. No doubt, he’d call back when he could.

  I picked up my sandwich and the smell of avocado hit me suddenly. I felt a wave of nausea rush over me. I leaned back in my chair, closing my eyes and taking deep breaths until it passed. It seemed avocado was now another thing I would no longer be eating.

  Chapter 5

  Gabriel

  I walked up the steps of Sebastian’s house and rang the doorbell. I hadn’t slept all night wondering how I was going to fix this whole situation with Jennifer, and more importantly how I was going to explain what happened to Samantha. I had been the biggest dick on the face of the earth to jeopardise what we had together.

  I couldn’t lose her.

  I wouldn’t.

  She belonged to me and she always would. If she would just let me explain, then she would see that she was the only woman I loved and no matter what happened, her and our baby would always come first.

  A moment later, Sebastian answered the door. He glared at me, his face full of anger. ‘She’s not home,’ he snarled. ‘And even if she was, I wouldn’t let you anywhere near her.’

  My heart sank through my chest. I was desperate to speak to her. I’d tried phoning her dozens of times since last night and she had ignored every call.

  I shook my head. ‘I’m sorry, Seb. I fucked up. You have every right to be pissed off with me.’

  He folded his arms across his chest and glared at me. ‘Pissed off? I’m fucking beyond pissed off, mate. You promised me you would never hurt her. I trusted you to look after her.’

  I nodded because he was right. ‘I know, Seb. I’ve let you down. But even worse, I’ve let her down, and I will never forgive myself.’

  ‘Jennifer though, Gabriel? What the fuck where you thinking?’

  I looked at him. My best mate who had supported me through every stupid decision I had ever made in my life. It killed me that he couldn’t through this. ‘I wasn’t thinking, mate. I was fucking destroyed. I was heartbroken – and she was just there.’

  ‘You’re a fucking idiot!’ he barked at me and I just nodded again, because I couldn’t disagree with a single word he was saying. ‘Now, I appreciate the irony of me lecturing you about fucking about
with other women, when I can’t make it work with anyone, but, Gabriel, this is you and Sam. You were so fucking happy.’

  ‘I know.’

  ‘You had everything you ever wanted, and now my daughter is back home with me and I had to sit up with her for most of the night while she sobbed in my arms.’

  That statement felt like a knife twisting in my heart. ‘She was crying all night?’

  ‘Of course she fucking was!’

  I swallowed. I felt like shit. Deservedly so. ‘If I could just talk to her. Has she gone to work?’

  ‘Yeah. But, if you want my advice, give her a bit of space. You know how stubborn she is. She’ll talk to you when she’s ready and not before. If you keep pushing her, it will only take her longer to come around.’

  I frowned at him. I was losing my mind here. I didn’t have the luxury of time.

  ‘I know it’s not what you want to hear. And I know it’s not how you’re used to doing things. But you know her as well as I do, and so you also know that what I’m saying is right.’

  I stuffed my hands into my trouser pockets and kicked the step in frustration. He was right but that didn’t make it any easier to deal with. ‘Fine. I’ll give her a few days to cool down. But you’ll let me know how she is, won’t you? Her and the baby? If there’s anything at all she needs?’

  ‘Of course I will. And despite you breaking my daughter’s heart and being a complete fuckwit to go anywhere near your ex-wife, I’m rooting for you. I know how much you love her, and how much she loves you,’ he said with a brief nod of his head.

  ‘Thanks, mate. I really appreciate that.’

  ‘But I can’t let you in, because she’ll kill me. So, piss off,’ he said with a smirk.

  ‘Duly noted,’ I replied before turning around and walking back to my car.

  As I was about to pull away from the kerb, my phone started ringing. I pulled it out of my pocket, hoping it would be Samantha. I sighed when I saw Scott Thomas’s name flashing on the screen instead. He was one of my employees and I’d left him in charge of moving Jennifer into an apartment earlier that morning.