The Billionaire’s Rebellious Lover (The Maxfield Brothers Series Book 2) (10 page)

T
he woods
behind the park were less picturesque and more dense and overgrown. There were three cabins erected out there, but they weren’t easy to get to. It had been years since Daisy had been out here and from the looks of it; the paths haven’t been maintained at all.

She followed the narrow dirt path and soon passed the first two cabins. Vandals had gotten to them and busted out the windows. Her stomach twisted as she imagined Gabe lying hurt in one of these vermin-infested structures.

“He’ll probably get rabies,” she muttered. “This is ridiculous. Who the fuck kidnaps people these days? What’s wrong with simply threatening them on the Internet and calling it a day?”

Swearing, she realized that she chose the wrong path and ended up crashing through the brush. Brushing dirt and leaves off her jeans, she looked up to see two of her men sitting in front of the third cabin. Actually, she realized, they probably weren’t her men any more. They were Jordan’s. Had she ever had any kind of control over her section?

She called out to them as soon as they saw her. “Morning, guys. I’m here to have a little talk with Gabe. Jordan said ya’ll have been out here all morning, so I brought you some breakfast.” She pulled out the two thermos cans and some snack bars.

The men looked at her suspiciously “You know about Gabe?”

“I didn’t until Jordan called me. I’m not in love with the idea, but what’s done is done, and we need to use this to our advantage.” She waved the snack bars at them, and they grabbed them eagerly. She waited until they were drinking deeply from the thermoses before giving them a smile and going inside.

Gabe was sitting on the bench leaning against the wall. She was relieved to see that at least he wasn’t tied up. “Gabe. Are you okay?” she asked softly as she knelt by him.

Chuckling, he raised his head and stared at her. “Really? I’m imprisoned in a cabin in the middle of nowhere. What part of that makes you think that I’m okay?”

“Of course you’d make a big deal about this,” she snapped.

“A big deal?” he bit off and shook his head. “What are you doing here, Daisy? Are you here to demand that I change my company or die? I’m curious about what happens if I choose death. Is Nathan next? Then Stephen? How about Duncan or Angie since they actually have controlling interest in the company? Why me instead of them?”

“Keep your voice down,” she hissed as she peered out the window. The guys outside were shifting around uncomfortably. She estimated that it would only take a few more minutes before they started running to find a place to relieve themselves. The herb mixture she’d included in their drinks was designed to give them instant diarrhea including a tremendous amount of painful cramping. She’d only wished that Jordan were one of the recipients instead of those two.

“Why? Your men outside there seem to think that it’s about time you acted like you belonged to Restore Eden.”

“No,” she growled. “I’m telling you to shut the fuck up so I can bust you out.”

Gabe snorted. “Oh good. So you’re going to play the hero so I’ll do whatever you want. Is this a gender swap thing? Isn’t it usually the men who rescue the damsel in distress and sweep them off their feet?”

“I don’t think the women usually give the men this much trouble,” Daisy grumbled. The guards out front stopped fidgeting and began running for the hills.

“That’s what you think,” Gabe said.

“For once in your life will you do as I ask? Jordan is crazy, and I can’t guarantee your safety unless we get the hell out. We can’t go back to the park because he’s waiting there, so we’re going through the woods.”

Gabe stood unsteadily, and she reached over to grab him. He swayed and looked down at her. “This isn’t a trick? You didn’t have anything to do with this?”

“I wanted to change the world, but I hadn’t planned on doing it illegally. I can’t do much of anything from behind bars.” She helped him out the door.

“What did you do with the guards?”

“Gave them the runs. It should keep them occupied for a while, but we probably only have about a twenty-minute start before Jordan comes looking for us. He still doesn’t trust me.”

The dirt path narrowed then ran out completely after a few yards, and they stumbled into dense woodland. After walking for about an hour, she finally sat down. “Okay. Nathan is supposed to track us down with my phone.”

“Nathan, huh?” Gabe grunted.

She gave him an annoyed look. “He’s the one who realized that you were missing.” Reaching inside her pocket, she found nothing but another snack bar. “Shit.”

“What?”

Dread washed over her. “I left my phone in the bag, which is in the cabin.” Looking around the woods, she started when she heard the sound of twigs snapping. In a hushed voice she added, “Jordan will already be out looking for us. We can’t go back.”

“Then we keep moving. You’re an environmentalist. Tell me that you know these woods like the back of your hands.”

“We’re right by the city. As long as we keep walking in a straight line, we’ll hit the edge of the woods eventually. It’s not like we’re in a national forest that goes on for miles.”

Gabe stood, and she was pleased to see that he was steady on his feet. “How are you feeling?”

“My ribs hurt, but other than that, I’m fine. I’d like to kill your friends, but I guess that can come later. Kidnapping is a crime, Daisy. I am calling the police on them.”

She knew that he was right, but she couldn’t help but feel despair wash over her. Everything that she had achieved recently would be ruined. When the news hit that Restore Eden was back to its old ways, nothing she did would matter anymore. All the good would be completely overshadowed by the fact that the organization she belonged to was run by a bunch of extremist idiots. But Gabe could have been seriously hurt. He
had
been seriously hurt, and if they didn’t get to safety soon, there was no telling what Jordan would do next.

“I know,” she said softly. Her shoulders slumped in defeat. “Gabe, I’m so sorry about this. You have to understand that I didn’t intend for any of this to happen. I really thought that my section wanted the same as me, and that I could use Restore Eden’s resources for good. If I had known…” she trailed off.

He looked at her strangely. “It’s okay, Daisy. It’s not your fault. You see the good in people.”

For a moment, she stared at him. Despite everything, he was still trying to make her feel good. Her lips parted, and all she wanted to do was lean into him so he could wrap his strong arms around her.

“We should get going,” she said abruptly. There was no point in fantasizing about things that would never happen. “Jordan is probably too stoned to track us, but the more distance that we put between us and him the better. Let me know when your ribs start to hurt, and you need a break.”

“I’ll be fine,” he said. They walked in silence. Daisy did her best to keep them in a straight line, but the more she tried to visualize how the park looked on a map, the more she realized she had no idea how big the woods were. The park and camping facilities were only situated along the outskirts, and as the woods got denser and denser, she worried that they could end up wandering for days.

“I need a rest,” she said finally as the sun started to set. She leaned against a tree and slid slowly to the ground. The bark bit into her back, but she didn’t care. Her legs and feet were sore, and she was exhausted. Gabe looked like he could still go for another few miles.

He sighed and looked around. “Are we lost?”

“We were lost the moment we left the cabin. I thought if we walked in a straight line that eventually we would hit the city, but I don’t have any idea how big these woods are. I’m sorry, Gabe. I don’t think we’re going to find anything before nightfall.

She shivered, and he sat down next to her and put his arms around her. “Cold?” he whispered in her ear. She was dressed for the sunny Californian days, but the nights could be chilly. “We can rest for a bit, but we really need to find some place to take shelter for the night. I imagine there are plenty of mountain lions and bobcats in these woods.”

Mountain lions? She didn’t even think about that. She was going to get them both killed. If she had the energy, she would have cried.

His stomach grumbled, and she reached into her pocket and pulled out the stale granola bar. “Last meal?” she said jokingly as she handed it to him.

He ripped the foil off and broke the bar in half. Shaking her head, she pushed it away. “I’m too anxious to eat.”

“You say that now, but in a few hours you’re going to be hungry and cranky. Believe me; I do not want to be stuck in these woods with you when you’re cranky.”

She laughed hollowly and took her half. Biting into it, she winced. The damn thing was stale and crumbly and tasted like cardboard.

“Nathan probably told you, but as environmentalists go, I didn’t actually spend all that much time outside as a kid. My parents were all about the comfort of the indoors. It wasn’t until a fishing trip with a friend when I saw how littered the waters were that I wanted to get involved. I felt sorry for the fish.”

“Sorry for the fish? I can see that. Before my mother died and Duncan threw his heart and soul into the company, he took us camping. Stephen tried to be the bold and brash one. He wanted to go hunting and fishing, but we didn’t really need to do any of that, we always had plenty of food packed with us. And Nathan used to get so upset when Stephen would talk about killing animals. I guess that’s where his passion for saving the environment grew from. I guess you two have quite a bit in common.”

She heard something that sounded almost like bitterness in his voice. “What about you?” she whispered. “How did you like those camping trips?”

Gabe looked down at her thoughtfully. “Life with Stephen was something of a competition. If he wanted to go hunting, so did I. But the truth was that I really liked the camping trips. Duncan could only do so much business over the phone before he would lose cell service. It wasn’t as though the campgrounds had wifi back then. Most of the time, it was just us. It was nice to have that kind of attention from him. Stephen wouldn’t be with his friends, so he hung out and joked with us. They were always protective over Nathan, so they’d listen to him spout random facts about nature. It was nice. It was quiet. I guess it brought a sense of peace to me.”

“It probably doesn’t seem nearly as peaceful now,” she said as she finished off the granola bar. “Come on. We probably don’t have much more than an hour of sunlight left. Let’s see if we can’t find some place to hunker down for the night.”

Gabe got up and stretched before reaching down to help her to her feet. “I know it seems helpless, but we’re together. It could be worse.”

“Things must be bad if you’re giving me a hopeful speech,” she said with a tight smile.

He reached over and put his arm around her waist. She had a feeling he thought of it as a brotherly move, but she couldn’t help but shiver with desire. Every time he touched her, she lost all ability to think straight. “You try to pretend that everything is fine, but I know you worry. You have the most genuine smile I have ever seen, and when you fake it, it’s hopelessly obvious. Don’t worry, Daisy. I’m going to find a way to make everything okay.”

Just as she was about to melt against him, he removed his arm and started walking again. With a sigh, she started to trail behind him. She knew that his ribs had to hurt, but he seemed to push right through it. And if he could do it, then so could she. Ignoring the pain in her feet and her legs, she quickened her pace to keep up with him. Controlled breathing and positive thinking, she reminded herself. Gabe’s family had money and power on their side. Even if she and Gabe didn’t find the city, someone would find them.

And hopefully that someone wouldn’t be a jealous and enraged Jordan.

“Now that you’re all back in the same city, how are you guys?” she asked. Part of her wanted to pass the time, and part of her wondered how close Nathan and Gabe were these days.

“It was touch and go in the beginning. Even though I’d worked with my father for a while, we weren’t close. I asked Stephen and Nathan to come back when Duncan threatened to sell off parts of the company, and in the midst of all the drama, we found out just how sick Duncan was. He wanted to blame all his actions on the company and tear it apart, but really, the company was the only bond we had left. Duncan and Stephen are now on good terms. It’s almost strange to say that. We’re all busy. Stephen has a son and his own company, so he’s gone quite a bit, and of course, he’s recently married Angie. Nathan is busy with the architecture and design department, and I focus mostly on real estate, but as Senior VP, I have to keep an eye on everything.”

“Were you and Nathan close growing up?”

He gave her a strange look. “Nathan, huh,” he said softly. “I can’t say that Nathan is the archetype for the younger child, but most of that is because of Duncan. He didn’t get nearly as much attention as he should have, and Stephen was always trying to be like Duncan. It sort of fell to me to be a role model. Nathan actually caught me smoking one day after school. I saw that look in his eyes. He thought I was so cool. And I knew right then and there that I had to be careful. Nathan looked up to me, and I had so little control over my actions. Unless I wanted Nathan to grow up to be like me, I had to stow the rebel streak. I guess I have him to thank for straightening out my life.”

“I’m sure you were a good brother,” she said softly. She had a feeling that Gabe excelled at everything he did.

Without warning, the skies opened up and there was a loud crack of thunder. As the rain fell down on them in sheets, Daisy shrieked.

Gabe grabbed her hand, and they started running. “Where are we going?” she yelled, but it was hard to make herself heard over the pounding rain. Within seconds, she was soaked. As Gabe pulled her along, she looked around desperately for a place where they could take shelter. The sun was barely peeking over the horizon, and under the trees, the light was almost gone.

“There,” he shouted suddenly. She looked and saw a small clearing. She had no idea why they were running towards it until they got closer and she saw the cabin.