Free Burning Up by Marie Coulson Page A

but the way Jared had attacked him, and the fear in his eyes that night as he lay battered and bruised on the floor, gave me hope that he wasn’t stupid enough to come after Lucy or I again. Though, intelligence wasn’t really his strong suit. Jared had screwed him over, and since his attempt to rape me and attack Lucy, Jared had liquidated every business that Felix owned. First he withdrew funding and then promptly bought out the other shareholders leaving him with the majority. It was safe to say that it was only a matter of time before he dissolved everything and cashed in the profits.
    Felix had been plastered all over the media after he filed for bankruptcy. Lucy was immediately moved to a secure location that even I didn’t know the whereabouts of, so Felix was certainly not going to find her either.
    My stomach churned as I thought of Lucy and her growing bump. We’d both come very close to tragedy that night. My uneasiness must have shown on my face as Daniel quickly tightened his grasp on my arm.
    “I promise, you are completely safe.”
    I gave him a weak smile and nodded.
    “Well, we should get going and you …“ He nodded down at Jimmy’s pants, “should get those pants dry-cleaned. Dude, you stink!” Wincing, Jimmy glanced down at his wet pants leg and then back at Daniel. 
    “Oh, yeah. Catch you later. Layla, it was great to meet you.”
    I gave him a smile and watched as he pulled the reluctant poodle inside with him. I turned to Daniel and chuckled. “Poor Jimmy.”
    He shrugged. “He gets paid pretty well for all the shit he has to deal with. Literally and figuratively speaking. So, where to first?”
    I bit my lip and pulled out my list of places I wanted to see while in the city. “ Statue of Liberty ?”
    He nodded and grinned down at me. “Lady Liberty it is. Huh, who’d have thought, small town girl, small town boy both in the Big Apple because of one guy.”
    I beamed back at him as excitement filled my body with adrenalin. “He’s a pretty special guy.” And I meant it. Jared was special, and I owed him a lot. Most of all, I owed him my whole heart, and I was determined to do whatever I could to give it to him.
     
    * * * *
     
    The line for the Statue of Liberty seemed to go for miles. We must have been queuing for at least three hours. By the time we were done, my feet were burning, and I was starving. Daniel, being a true gentleman, offered to carry me all the way back to the car, but I insisted that I was fine. The fact that my feet felt as though I were walking on hot coals was no reason for him to feel obligated to haul my ass around.
    Opening my door for me, he smiled as I slid into the passenger side of the Mercedes. He ran around and jumped into the driver’s side. Holding the wheel firmly, he grinned at me. “So, where to next?”
    I glanced at my watch and was amazed to see it was almost one in the afternoon. “How about lunch? I’m so hungry I could eat a mountain of pancakes right now.”
    His grin widened. “Then I know just the place.”
    We drove for about ten minutes before pulling up at a small diner. It was one of those that looked as though it had been there since the nineteen forties, and its interior almost confirmed my theory.
    Plastered across the walls were pictures and portraits of Hollywood stars from years past. Marilyn Monroe, Frank Sinatra, Ingrid Bergman, Clark Gable, Gene Kelly and Bob Hope, were just a few that I recognized. The tables were wooden with a high gloss finish and it looked kind of pricey for a small diner.
    “This place looks fancy. You sure you want to eat here? I’m just as happy to grab something from the deli by Jared’s building.” I offered.
    Daniel chuckled. “Which one? He has at least eight just in Manhattan.”
    My mouth dropped open. “He owns eight Manhattan skyscrapers?”
    He shook his head. “Skyscrapers? No. High rise apartment buildings? Yes.”
    My stomach dropped and I fidgeted in my seat. “Does he have