Forty four

GABRIELLE POV.

Tender hands trailed through my hair, their effect calming, and it was like I was a kid again, resting my head on my father's lap while he petted my hair and told me a bedtime story... it wasn't him that calmed me now, it was Blake Moreno, my Angelo.

He'd taken the cuffs off but I couldn't will myself to move, to breathe... To do anything.

The memory of that night wasn't supposed to affect me anymore, but I've been on the edge lately and Blake attacking me without warning made it feel like I went back in time, where I was beaten and held down, the face of my assailant unknown, but he had been cruel, too evil for me to forget in a hurry. It had been years, but it still hurt, the memory of that night made me feel as if I was drowning.

Maybe if I knew the man and had him killed, I'd have felt better.

I shut my eyes, the quiet room amplifying the sound of my breath mingling with those of Blake's. The situation was embarrassing, I wasn't one to allow myself to appear weak,