Chapter 15 - The Shield
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Mark was completely paralyzed by terror. The arrogant extortionist had evaporated, leaving behind a whimpering, broken man who finally realized he had picked a fight with a monster.
“I understand,” Mark choked out, tears of genuine panic spilling from his eyes. “I swear. I’ll leave. I’ll never come back.”
James held him against the stone for one more agonizing, terrifying second, ensuring the message was permanently etched into the man’s soul. Then, he simply opened his hands.
Mark collapsed into the snow, gasping for air. He didn't look back. He scrambled to his feet and sprinted wildly down the street, disappearing into the gray morning fog as fast as his legs could carry him.
The heavy, iron-wrought gates of the estate slowly clicked shut automatically behind him, sealing us inside.
I stood shivering in the snow, clutching my wrist, the adrenaline crash hitting me so hard my knees buckled.
James spun around instantly, the lethal predator vanishing in a microsecond. He rushed forward, catching me before I hit the ground, sweeping me up into his arms as easily as he carried Chloe.
“Are you hurt?” he demanded, his voice thick with raw, unprotected panic. He looked at my wrist, his jaw clenching as he saw the faint red marks beginning to bruise my pale skin. “I should have killed him.”
“No,” I sobbed, burying my face in the warm, solid expanse of his chest. “You protected us. You protected her. It’s over.”
He carried me all the way back up the long driveway, through the grand front doors, and set me down gently on the plush sofa in the living room. He didn't call for the staff. He went to the kitchen himself, retrieving an ice pack, and knelt on the floor in front of me, gently applying it to my wrist.
“He is never going to hurt you again, Grace,” James vowed, looking up at me, his dark eyes burning with a fierce, absolute devotion. “I am going to have my legal team file an ironclad, permanent restraining order. I will hire a private security detail for Chloe’s school. You will never have to look over your shoulder for the rest of your life.”
I stared down at the billionaire kneeling on the floor, applying ice to my bruised wrist. He had limitless power, endless wealth, and a world of elite women at his fingertips. Yet here he was, treating me like the most valuable thing he had ever held.
“James,” I whispered, my voice trembling with a truth I could no longer hide. “Why do you love us so much?”
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He looked up, his hand gently cupping my cheek.
“Because before I met you and Chloe in that restaurant,” James murmured, leaning forward until his forehead rested against mine, “I had a mansion, an empire, and a fortune. But I was completely, utterly alone in the dark. You brought the light back, Grace. You gave me a home.”
