Dani couldn't stop shaking. She knew his voice; she heard it in her nightmares. Tate came over the minute Kasper walked away. She couldn't watch Gray and Kasper confront him. It would ruin her reputation. Two exes and whatever Kasper was were arguing over her at an event with Who's Who from Boston in attendance.

"Dani, what's wrong? What's going on?"

She had held onto her secret for years and it was exploding like confetti from a cannon, but the fallout wouldn't be colorful. The only person she ever shared her story with was Marie at the campus counseling center in Boston. It was her shame, and she vowed never to fall prey again.

When Kasper returned without Gray, she worried the large man would hurt Beau and she didn't want Gray to get in trouble. Kasper's normal jovial smile was replaced with a serious, rigid face.

"Doyle, Gray is meeting us in the back." He turned to Dani and reached out his hand. "Come on."

She took his hand and felt a flicker of warmth but not enough to push away the chill that permeated her body.

They traveled through the busy kitchen area into a back hallway with empty kegs and cylinders. Doyle led the way and eventually opened the door to the outside. The frigid air hit Dani and her body shivered. Kasper put his arm around her. Doyle looked at him, and he shook his head. Not now.

Gray pulled the car into the loading dock area and they piled in. Dani spoke for the first time. "Can you take me home?"

"Sorry. Kasper?"

"Not until we know you're safe. Who was that guy?"

"Someone I used to know." She attempted to level off her voice.

"He thinks he owns you."

He did. "I haven't seen him since I was nineteen, but I heard he moved to Boston." She shivered.

Kasper held her tighter. "You're afraid of him and he told us he knows where you live."

She shook her head. "No, he can't. No one knows."

Gray said, "We all know. I'm driving to your house, Kasper."

"I mean no one from Kentucky." She wanted to bite back her words. She opened the door to questions about her family.

Kasper shook his head. "You can stay with us tonight. We'll figure the rest out tomorrow."

"I need some things."

"We have extra toothbrushes."

Doyle looked back at her. "Don't worry, Dani. Percy will take care of you."

Thankfully, she carried her pills with her. It was a habit from when she dated Beau, when she hid them in her handbag.

After the car pulled up in front of the house, Gray stood and opened her door and then Doyle's. "You two can go home to your baby."

"Soon. First, I want to know who this guy is and if he's dangerous."

They crossed the threshold as Gray spoke. Percy looked from Gray to Dani. "Is everything alright, Ms. Danielle?"

She nodded. Doyle put her hand on the butler's arm. "We'll make sure. Dani is spending the night, maybe longer."

"I can't." They ignored her protests.

Percy said, "We'll freshen up Miss. Doyle's room."

She had only used a guest room but had been in Tate's room before. When they reached the parlor, Kasper poured her a drink. "Here. It's brandy." As she sipped it burned, but not like the scotch he drank.

Gray stood with his arms crossed. "Who is he?"

"He's a doctor. I assume at..."

Kasper already had his phone out. "He's a critical care fellow. He went to med school at Chapel Hill and undergrad..."

"In Kentucky. I know I transferred to Boston after my freshman year to get away from him."

"Did he hurt you?" Doyle sat next to her.

She shook her head. "Only with words."

"If he followed you to Boston, he might stop using words." Gray frowned. "I'll have my friends check him out. I can't believe he hasn't dated other women."

Doyle squeezed her arm. "We have to go, but let us help you."

Neither she nor Kasper spoke while the couple stood and left the room. Percy appeared. "Your room is ready. Is there anything you'll need?"

"I'll help her if she does. Thanks, Percy."

He reached out his hand and she let him pull her up. Neither spoke as he dropped her hand and led her up the stairs. He pointed to a door on the third floor. Inside was a lovely room which didn't match Doyle's tastes at all. It looked like a princess lived there with light peach walls and an eyelet bedspread.

"Did your mother redo her room?"

He shook his head. "No, Doyle liked her childhood room."

"I expect posters and beads."

He laughed. "Have you met my mother? If my mother had redecorated her room, it would look like mine, with lighter colors."

"What does yours look like?"

"A hotel room. Come see." He stepped into Doyle's bathroom and out a door on the other side.

"You have adjoining rooms?"

"We had sleepovers all the time."

"When did you stop?"

He frowned. "After she recovered from her assault. I miss her, but she's happy."

"Do you think Jamie and Jonny will have their own rooms?"

"Maybe. It's hard to say." He walked to his closet and returned with a soft cotton shirt. "Here. Go get ready for bed. I'll tuck you in."

She didn't want to sleep alone and shut her eyes to block out the memories of Beau. Maybe if she had told someone about the incident at Walmart, it would have turned out differently. Her family loved him, everyone did.

With her face scrubbed clean and her teeth brushed, she climbed into the bed. The shirt oozed Kasper's scent, and she closed her eyes trying to remember their night together, but Beau's face kept interrupting.

Even after maturing ten years, he still looked handsome enough to fool people into thinking he was a nice guy. The dip in the bed startled her. Kasper laid down beside her.

"Did you love him?"

"At seventeen, I thought I did."

"But you left him?"

"I had to."

"What did he do to you?"

She could ignore his questions, but Beau chasing her had opened the door to her past. "What didn't he do?"

"Tell me." He brushed her lips with his.

The sweet gesture brought tears. "I don't deserve your kindness."

"Sweetheart, you deserve a lot more. Nothing you say will change how I feel about you. Tell me about him."

She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "My freshman year, we were away at school together. We went to the same college because Beau said so."

"In Kentucky?"

"Yes. I had wanted to go to the university in Lexington, but he said it was too big. Maybe it had more to do with him not getting a football scholarship. He was never a standout, even though he thought he was."

"Did you make friends? I loved campus life."

She squeezed her eyes shut. "The weekend of the last football game of the season I convinced him we should have some fun."

"That's what weekends were about."

"We never went out. Usually Beau came to my room because my roommate went home every weekend." He went out on Thursday nights and got drunk, but he tracked her, so if she left the dorm, he knew. She left her phone behind when she ran to Boston.

He propped up on his arm and looked at her. "What happened?"

"He agreed, and I stood with some friends from my dorm. I didn't know them well since I was always with Beau." He was good-looking, so girls were envious of her. "A guy asked me about my grade on the last Intro to Management test. I didn't recognize him from the big lecture hall, but he knew me."

"Because you are gorgeous."

"No." She shook her head. "You can guess Beau didn't like him talking to me." As they laughed about their professor, Beau watched her from across the room. "I tried to walk away from the guy, but he was in the middle of a story."

"You didn't want to be rude."

"No. I remember him talking about our weird professor." Who had a picture of his hot wife in his office. "Beau walked across the room and pushed the poor guy aside and told him to never talk to me. The room went silent."

"The poor guy. I would want to talk to you too."

"Before he turned away, Beau punched him." Keep your hands off what's mine.

"Everyone watched him? God."

She winced. "Then he grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the party. Maybe the worst part of the memory was that I let him." She didn't argue or yell at him.

"The Dani, I know, would put up a fight."

"I never did with Beau. I was too frightened. After that I never went to another party. The humiliation wasn't worth it."

"How did you get away from him?"

"I transferred. I never told him." Or my family.

"You never saw him on trips home?"

She shook her head. "Not until tonight." Because of Beau, she never went home.

"And he never hit you?"

"I said no. Just anger, especially when he was jealous. If I behaved, everything was fine." She shivered.

Kasper held her tighter. "You aren't the same girl. A bully could never control the strong, independent beauty who spars with me. That's what he is."

"I know, but..."

"No, buts. You told me, so his actions aren't a secret. I care about you; my whole family cares."

"It's my problem, not yours."

Kasper kissed her forehead. "Your problems are mine. Any doubt disappeared two nights ago."

"It was just sex." Dani had never experienced sex like her night with Kasper. Seeing Beau reminded her, she would never be free of him.

Kasper's chuckle vibrated on her neck. "Sweetheart, keep telling yourself that."

His mouth sought hers and he tenderly kissed her. Gentleness replaced the urgency and lust from the other night. Tears escaped from her closed eyes.

Kasper held her tightly and promised to keep her safe. In his arms, she fell asleep.

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