Elijah: The Boss's Gift Read Online Free PDF Page B

He was giving her what she always wanted out of life.
    She put her clothes in with the ones Mindy demanded
she buy. What did he think of her apartment? Did he think she was a slob?
    Stop it, Cherry.
    He knew a great deal of her life because of that file
he had, but he didn’t know everything.
    She put the books into a sack for her to take back to
the library. Grabbing a jacket from the back of the door, she went back to the
stairs. She saw Elijah waiting for her. In his hand was the bag she kept with
her at all times. He’d seen it contained everything of importance, purse, ID,
keys, everything that a woman needed to function. Marcel had given it to him
when he’d handed her over as a gift.
    “Here.”
    “You’re giving me back my stuff.”
    “I’m going to do something that I’ve not done in a
long time.”
    “What’s that?” she asked, putting the bag on her
shoulder.
    “I’m going to trust you. I’m giving you a better life
than you can find yourself.”
    Cherry stared at him. “I’m not going to go running.”
His threat about Marcel was all she needed for her to stay in one place.
    “Good.”
    She followed him out to the car.
    “John, this is Cherry. Cherry, this is John.”
    Shaking the man’s hand, she offered him a smile. What
else was she supposed to do?
    “Cherry’s going to need an escort to and from college.
I want you to handle everything, John.”
    “Will do, boss. It’s nice to meet you.”
    Smiling back, she climbed into the back of the car.
Elijah sat in the front.
    “Take us to the library first.”
    She couldn’t help but look at Elijah. He was so in
control. It seemed strange to her to have a man so in charge. He’d not forced
himself on her either. For the first time in her life, she was around a
gentleman.
    Cherry inwardly snorted. She doubted there was
anything gentlemanly about him. Elijah was a male used to getting what he
wanted. If he really wanted her for sex, he’d take it without any questions
asked.
    He assisted her when she took the books back to the
library. They were not late, so she didn’t have to worry about a late fee.
    Elijah took her hand, taking her to the nearest
bookstore. “Order everything you need. Don’t argue.”
    Opening her bag, she pulled out the list of books that
were associated with her course. The cashier ordered the titles, and Elijah
pulled his card out, paying for everything without batting an eye.
    He stayed in the car as it pulled up outside of her
college. She hadn’t made any friends in the time she’d been going. Cherry found
it hard to trust people easily. In her time she’d come to see that people were
only interested in her for what they could get out of it themselves. She
refused to put herself through that kind of pain.
    “I’ll see you later,” she said.
    “Yes.”
    Cherry closed the door, glancing back at him. What was
it about him that pulled her in? She wished she knew the answer.

Chapter Four
     
    One month passed, and Elijah had grown used to Cherry
in his life. Mindy was constantly talking about her. His daughter had grown
close to Cherry. He liked spending time with both girls. Not that he could call
Cherry a girl. She wasn’t even close to being a girl. Cherry was all woman, and
that was a problem to him. In the month that she’d been in his life he’d not
visited any of the women who took care of his needs. None of them appealed.
    None of them were Cherry. He hated that truth.
    He sat in Ecstasy with Henry and Caleb. They’d talked
business and were enjoying a drink. Marcel had more product than usual in a
shipment and needed delivery. Henry and Caleb were in on the deal, as were
several others that Elijah knew. Both men had met Cherry. Neither of them knew
what to say about her. In truth, Elijah didn’t know what to make of Cherry.
    She didn’t put up a fight when he made a suggestion.
Cherry did everything he asked without argument. She took Mindy to school
before going to college. John stayed with her