Chapter 47

If Claudia's heart hadn't been ready to jump out of her chest with nerves, she would have smirked at the look of deadly bewilderment on Daniel's face. He was looking around the Victoria Secret shop like he expected there to be a pit of vipers around the next rack. Even funnier was the look on the salesgirl's face. She appeared awestruck by his handsome face and chiseled body, but clearly planned on keeping her distance from his constant expression of instant death to those that approach. This combination would work perfectly for Claudia's plan.
Claudia picked some items off the racks and asked to be shown to a change room. She quirked an eyebrow at Daniel and nodded her head toward the back. Like a good little bodyguard, he went to check the rooms. Only one of them was occupied and the middle-aged woman was clearly not an assassin. He backed off and waved Claudia in.
Claudia went into the room, dropped the armful of frothy items and waited patiently. She didn't remove the pair of jeans, blue long sleeved shirt or flat ballet shoes she wore. A few minutes later the shop girl came back to check on the two women. The other one was just finishing up.
"Actually, I do need a different size," Claudia said, handing over a black lacy nightgown. "I'll take this in a 14 and can you please give these to my friend, Daniel. Ask him which of these he thinks will work for his boss."
The girl looked mortified at the idea of approaching the deadly man standing guard outside the change rooms like a feral dog. Claudia pressed several panty and bra sets into her hands and waved her off. Hopefully the super awkward conversation that was about to take place would keep both of them occupied for a few minutes while Claudia made a swift exit out the back door. She had noticed it before when shopping here, vigilant about her surroundings in case Dante was on her trail.
As she swiftly exited through the fire door she smiled, picturing Daniel looking down at the terrified girl with an expression of disinterest combined with murderous tendencies. She almost wished she could witness that. She only hoped he would take his time before becoming suspicious and deciding to check on her.
Once Claudia was in the alley and the door closed behind her, she ran full speed toward the other end and the entrance to the subway. Luckily for her, she knew the city like the back of her hand. She knew every possible escape route. She hoped for the best, but always anticipated the worst: that Dante, Franco and their thugs would discover her whereabouts. Now, thanks to Tyson King, that possibility was more likely than ever.
And yet, she couldn't bring herself to regret her brief time with the giant, possessive billionaire. She knew there was never going to be a happily ever after for her, but if anyone could make her dream it was Tyson. He had spent the past ten days doing his best to convince her that she should stay with him. His idea of convincing meant he kept her all but locked up in his tower of a penthouse, indulging in her every whim, including hiring instructors to teach her guitar lessons, painting, yoga and pilates. Claudia had quickly discovered she hated yoga and pilates and suspected she nearly got the instructor killed when she described some of the poses the man had made her do.
Claudia had giggled at the thunderous expression on Tyson's face around a mouthful of pasta that he'd made at her request. She had been in the process of explaining what a ‘down dog' was, thoroughly enjoying the way his eyebrows lowered ominously over snapping eyes. The more time she spent with him the more possessive he became. Finally she had said with a gasping laugh, "I'm pretty sure my yoga teacher would be more interested in you than me."
Tyson had rounded the table, shoved her plate out of the way, bent her over the table and fucked her from behind in retaliation for her teasing. Then he had laid her naked in front of the fireplace in the living room and fed her the rest of her dinner by hand. No one did possessive sexy better than Tyson King.
Reflecting on the past week and half spent with her new boyfriend, Claudia realized she was going to miss the big, unpredictable man. Too bad she couldn't trust anyone. Dante taught her that lesson too well. The man had been all charm, good looks and easy money while wooing her. It wasn't until she was well and truly in his pocket that she realized his quick smile hid a vicious temper and that his charm and money were backed by drugs and prostitutes. She had understood, after enduring one of his more nasty drunken rants, that he intended to sell her to his friends for top dollar. She was his beautiful blond princess, relatively inexperienced except for him, she could help him get places by entertaining his competitors and gathering information.
Claudia was smart enough to make her escape the moment she discovered Dante's sadistic plans. She decided to take insurance with her in the form of a USB key with the contents of Dante's hard drive, in case her plan to lay low didn't work and she had to buy herself help. Though a suspicious guy, Dante never once thought Claudia would betray him. She was far too pliable and silent to give him any indication what she would run away from him , not when he could give her any pretty thing her heart desired, and buy prestige in their circle of Miami acquaintances. He hadn't known her true character one little bit. That's one thing she had to give Tyson credit for. He liked to buy her expensive things, but he never once acted like it made a difference to their relationship.?
Ignoring the curious looks that followed her, Claudia pelted toward the subway stairs, virtually flying down them to the mid line. Barely pausing, she swiped her transit card before going through the turnstile. She landed on the platform, gasping for breath, and made her way behind a pillar to wait for a train. She didn't think there was any way Daniel was fast enough to get down here before a train came, but the guy was an eerie combination of intelligence and ruthless determination.
Claudia sighed in relief when a train pulled up. "Excuse me!" she said breathlessly, pushing past a group of midday shoppers. She ignored their grumbles and hopped on the train. Quickly finding a window seat she sat and stared toward the stairwell entrance, silently begging the train to get moving.
The train doors shut and within seconds the train was moving. She was in the process of slumping in her seat in relief when she saw Daniel leap down the stairs. Without pausing, he hurtled toward the nearest train door. As though instinctively knowing where to find her, his eyes zeroed in on her through the window and narrowed.
"No!" she gasped, shocked. She watched, terrified as he tried to force the doors open.