Free Recaptured Dreams by Justine Dell Page A

still focused. Her intense gaze bore down at her mother and grandmother, and she had a rush of adrenaline.
    “I’m sorry to disappoint,” she said decisively, “but in case either of you haven’t noticed, I am an adult, and my life’s direction shall be solely based on what I want to do. The lesson you shall learn right now is that I have my own mind, my own body, and my own free will, and I shall do as I choose.”
    Sophia threw her napkin down on the table and walked away from their stunned expressions. She felt a dash of freedom, something she had wanted for such a long time—and surely she’d just made Anne Marie pee her pants.
    With her brave words echoing in her ears, Sophia went in search of Xavier.

Chapter Seven
    X AVIER S TEPPED O UTSIDE the glass doors that separated Hansom Hall from the rest of the hotel. He made his way through the lobby, not sure what to do. He couldn’t just leave the function, but he needed a minute…a breather. So instead of storming to his car and driving away, he wandered the Victorian hallways of the hotel, stopping at the Grand Staircase. And grand it was. It had been a long time since a sight, or a color, stopped him in his tracks. The bold red walls were contrasted by huge pillars topped with cathedral arches. The curvature of the stairs drew his attention up to enormous windows, bright blue and red floral carpeting on the steps, and intricate details in the stone. Breathtaking.
    But not near as breathtaking as Sophia. He ignored the Hotel Guests Only sign and climbed the first set of stairs, stopping on the first landing to peer out of the molded glass. He sagged against the limestone window sill, wishing for a miracle.
    He’d always ached for Sophia in only the way a man in love could, but a part of him knew his dream to hold her for an eternity might never become a reality. And after seeing her there—flanked on both sides by the very people who’d gone to great lengths to keep him at bay—he realized getting to her would be harder than he’d imagined.
    The quietness surrounding him didn’t help to clear his mind. He shook his head. He couldn’t let it end like this. Tonight she’d been a few footsteps from his arms, but it had still felt like they were oceans apart.
    He’d seen the spark of recognition in her eyes as she looked over his dress for the auction. She’d seen the past. She’d felt it. Of that, he was certain. And seeing her reaction to the dress created from a memory of her brought back so many others, ones he’d hidden inside, kept under lock and key, so as to not let his emotions rule his life. It stirred a craving within him he’d tried to ignore for so long because he’d didn’t know if he’d ever get the chance to set it free, a deep and powerful need to have her with him, in his bed, night after night. A need to see her smiling up at him. To see her laughing and enjoying his company. He just needed her with him.
    He withheld a growl. Who was he kidding? His emotions had always ruled his life. He’d built his company to show the world what a determined poor boy could do, to prove his worth to those who’d never believed. To remember her.
    And now she was right there, just out of his reach.
    If he went back into the ballroom and stormed over to her table, there was no doubt he would be rebuffed by her family and hauled away from her by security. He didn’t want to cause a scene, but if he took a risk, perhaps he could get Sophia to speak to him…alone. He needed to know if she felt what he felt, or if he’d imagined everything the night before.
    A gentle, feminine cough caught his attention, and he half-turned to glance down the short flight of stairs. When he saw the tall silhouette of a woman in a curve-hugging gold and chartreuse dress and hair black as night, he blinked, certain his mind was playing tricks on him. She stalked toward him, stopping at the first step. The air was squeezed out of his chest as he realized she had come to