Bluegrass State of Mind(79)

“And then Chad asked me, ‘Mason? Not McKenna Mason?’ and I was like, ‘Oh my God, you know McKenna?’ What a surprise it turned out to be to find your boyfriend from D.C.” Turning to Will she asked, “Did you know Kenna had a boyfriend slaving away in D.C.?”

Chad hadn't taken his eyes off her yet. The cold, calculating sneer he was trying to pass off as a smile was only turning more predatory as he ran his eyes up and down her body, pausing at her breasts for a moment before traveling on. “It seems that these past couple of months have done wonders for you, sweetheart.”

Kenna managed to drag in a breath and then remembered, He’s coming. Danielle tried to warn her, but she was in such a state of denial she had thought someone was coming after Danielle.

She felt Mo shift next to her. She watched as he pulled himself up to his full height and a mask of impenetrable royal snobbery was placed on his face. “I don’t believe we've met. I am Sheik Rahman and this is my place.” With a flick of his wrist, he indicated the house around him. “Well, one of my places.” The elitist tone froze the almost feral smile on Chad’s face and finally made him break eye contact with her.

“Chad Taylor, I lobby for special interest groups in Washington. I believe we have….”

“Excuse me, I see someone more important I need to talk to.” Without looking at anyone in the group, Mo walked away and into the crowd. Kenna watched where he was headed and almost felt a little relief when she saw he was headed straight to Ahmed.

Will patted her hand. “Royalty, you never know what they are going to do. I do believe this is our waltz, my love.” With a territorial stare at Chad, Will turned to her. “Shall we?”

He was offering her a lifeline, a means of escape, and she took it. He escorted her to the dance floor and swept her elegantly into the waltz. As Will spun her around the dance floor, she saw Whitney and Chad move to the edge of one side of the dance floor. On the other side, she saw Mo and Ahmed with their heads together. She caught a small gesture Mo made in Whitney and Chad’s direction.

“So, are you going to tell me what’s going on? With that reaction of yours, I don't believe he’s your boyfriend. Don’t think for one minute I'm upset about that. However, I am upset you were keeping something from me that obviously upsets you. I'm here to share your problems, Kenna. I love you. All of you, even your problems.”

Kenna couldn’t stop the nervous laughter that bubbled up, “Then I hope you love me a lot because this is a whopper.”

“Kenna, I'm here for you. I love you and nothing will change that. Trust me.”

“Okay, the quick version is after my birthday in February, my best friend, Danielle, and I went back to my office late at night to get some papers. The senior partners hold a poker night once a month that local and national VIP’s, such as judges and senators, attended. Chad had been with me at the party but said he had to meet a senator in D.C. and left early. Danielle and I drove back to the office. While she was changing her shoes and looking for her keys, I went to my office. I heard a lot of noise from the poker night but just ignored it till I heard a scream. I snuck down the hall and hid in a cubicle to look into the conference room. There was a stripper on our table, and I thought everything was fine. I was about to leave when she screamed again. I looked in and saw Chad knock her onto the table and rip off her top. She was crying and screaming. No one was doing anything. Chad then said he won at poker, so he was going first, and the rest could have her when he was done with her. He was going to rape her, Will. He did rape her. But the worst was standing there knowing the girl was about to be gang-raped by some of the most prominent men in the state and country, and I couldn’t stop it.”

She felt Will’s arms tighten around her. “What happened next?”

“I called 9-1-1 and reported the rape in progress. Then I grabbed a stapler, marched into the room, and hit Chad on the head with it.”

“That’s my girl,” Will chuckled.

“My boss lost it. He told Chad he’d deal with the girl, but Chad had to deal with me. He then attacked me. He pinned me against the cubicle, ripped my clothes, and hit me some. He was saying things such as how he was going to teach me how to behave like a proper girlfriend. Of course, I broke it off during this and told him I hoped he met a nice man in jail to become his new bitch. He raised my skirt to rape me. That’s when Danielle shouted for me to hurry up.” She took a deep breath to calm herself.

Will stopped dancing, “Did he, um, did he manage....”

“No.”