Mastered(75)

But she was already regretting it, no matter that it appeared her parents, in particular her father, had given their blessing on the whole messed-up situation. Because she felt the ends holding her together, her life, loosening and starting to unravel faster and faster and her control evaporating under Drake’s dominance. She wondered how she could possibly remain intact under someone as powerful and demanding as Drake, without becoming someone altogether different from who she was. Evangeline.

She might not have much, but she’d always known who she was and where she stood. Now Drake threatened everything. She was so shaken by what had just transpired, and perhaps she’d been too caught up in the whole Cinderella fairy tale that she hadn’t truly comprehended the magnitude of what she’d agreed to.

Or perhaps she’d known exactly what she was getting into and that secret part of herself that had reveled in Drake’s authority had asserted itself and reached out for something she’d been missing, an essential part of herself that would have been denied. She could resist and risk being unfulfilled, thus returning to her ordinary, predictable life. Or she could embrace the unknown but tantalizing life Drake was offering her and perhaps discover who she truly was and what the real Evangeline wanted.





Drake knew Evangeline was upset and off balance when she hastily scrambled from his lap when his phone call to her parents had ended and she’d muttered some excuse about needing to touch up her makeup.

He wasn’t going to call her out on it or remind her that she’d promised to relinquish control to him and that she’d given him her trust. He didn’t want to ruin the night he had planned for her. And it was understandable the way she’d reacted. The more he got to know her and peeled back the delicate layers that made up the woman he now called his, he liked who and what he saw. He was fiercely proud of her. He was asshole enough to admit that rarely had he truly felt respect and admiration for, much less pride in any of the women he associated with, but his angel was on a completely different plane. She was a challenge he simply could not resist, even if he wanted to, and he definitely wanted her, the entire package, and he was anticipating every step in their relationship. He just hoped like hell that she could manage to handle all that he dished out, because he planned to return in equal measure everything she gave to him.#p#分页标题#e#

She was a woman deceptively fragile and naïve looking but with an inner core of steel. And after listening in on her conversation with her parents and then speaking to them himself, he also realized that he’d come to some errant conclusions where her parents were concerned.

He’d been angry. No, not angry. He’d been furious at what he’d considered a case where two people who should have been protecting Evangeline were in fact taking horrible advantage of her. Now, after hearing the obvious love and affection the three of them held for one another, he knew that her parents didn’t like Evangeline giving up so much for them any more than Drake did. It was Evangeline who was determined that she would do everything in her power to provide for the people who’d loved and raised her. Not many young women would put their life on hold indefinitely in order to do the right thing.

Only he had heard the relief in both her mother’s and her father’s voices when Drake had told them she would never work in the pub again and that he would ensure her safety at all times. In retrospect, he was glad he’d muted the phone before interrupting the conversation, because hearing what her parents had said would only hurt her and make her feel the worst sort of failure.

They didn’t want financial help at the cost of their daughter. Yes, they most certainly needed the money she sent them on a regular basis, but they’d rather have Evangeline in school and happy, leading her own life, than tying her future up in her parents, always putting their needs before theirs. They were obviously both guilt ridden and wanted more and better for the daughter they clearly adored. Drake intended to make that happen for Evangeline and by proxy her parents.

Her father was especially concerned because he’d informed Drake, in a tone that could not be mistaken for anything but the warning it was, that Evangeline hadn’t had boyfriends in high school, though plenty of boys came sniffing around. As a result she had little experience and was entirely too trusting. It worried him that she lacked the sophistication of the urbanites in New York City and would be taken advantage of. Yet another thing that Drake and Evangeline’s father wholeheartedly agreed upon.

But it was the last thing her father had said that had rattled Drake’s usually unshakable composure. He’d told Drake that Evangeline kept mainly to herself, shunning relationships, never seeing or recognizing her own appeal. But when Evangeline loved, she loved with her entire heart and soul, and never would a woman be more loyal or true to the man she loved. And that if Drake ended up being that man, he would be the most fortunate man in the world.