Rush

your head on this one. It doesn’t seem like you ever spend any
     time away from him.”
    Discomfort gripped Mia as she stared back at her friend. It was true she hadn’t seen
     Caroline or the girls since the inception of her relationship with Gabe. Not that
     it had been forever, but she and her friends spent a lot of time together, and they
     were used to going out as a group.
    “Club. Friday night,” Caroline said firmly. “I’ll round up the girls and we’ll go
     out and have some fun.”
    “I don’t know,” Mia hedged. She had no idea what Gabe’s plans for her were.
    Caroline’s gaze sharpened. “Tell me you’re not pondering asking his permission to
     go out with your girls. He doesn’t own you, Mia.”
    Mia barely controlled the guilty flinch. Gabe
did
own her. He had contractual rights to her body, her time, her everything. Not that
     she wanted to share that particular bit of knowledge with Caroline. Her friends would
     never understand.
    She sighed, knowing the best thing to do would be to go and spend the evening with
     them. She didn’t want to shut herself off from her friends because when Gabe moved
     on, she’d need them.They were going to be the ones who stuck by her through thick and thin, and if she
     didn’t take care, there would be no one left for her down the road.
    She’d simply have to tell Gabe that she had plans Friday night, and hope to hell he
     was reasonable about it.
    “Okay. Friday night,” Mia relented.
    Caroline’s face lit up and she danced around Mia. “We are going to have so much fun!
     I’ve missed you, Mia. It’s not the same without you around.”
    Mia felt another surge of guilt. It had been her idea for Caroline to move in. Aside
     from the fact that Caroline needed a place to stay, Mia had wanted the company. And
     now she was spending very little time in her apartment or with Caroline.
    “I’m going to go call the girls so they don’t make other plans. Will I see you after
     your dinner tonight?”
    Mia nodded. “Yep. I’m spending tonight here.”
    “Awesome. Tell you what. Don’t eat dessert. I’ll make fudge and get a movie. We’ll
     veg on the couch when you get home.”
    Mia grinned. “Perfect!”
    Caroline made a shooing motion. “Okay, go get ready. I’ll get out of your hair.”
    Mia ducked into her room and pulled out her favorite pair of jeans. Holes in the legs,
     sequined pockets and low-slung hip-hugging. They were her favorite comfort item, and
     she’d worked diligently to make sure they still fit even after three years of owning
     them. No better incentive to keep her weight down than to be able to remain in her
     jeans, right?
    She snagged a cami and an off-the shoulder top, and then went into the bathroom to
     repair her hair and makeup.
    She was looking forward to her night out with Jace and Ash. They made her comfortable,
     and they enjoyed an easy relationship. Instead of one older brother, it was like having
     two, even if Ash flirted endlessly with her. He was perfectly harmless—to herat least. He was lethal to other women, but he was too firmly entrenched in her mind
     as a family member. Gabe was a whole different matter…
    And the more she thought about it, the more she looked forward to her night out with
     the girls. Caroline had it right when she’d said that Mia hadn’t been around since
     she’d taken the job with Gabe. Gabe was…Well, he was an obsession that was all consuming.
     And there was the matter of the contract she’d signed giving up her time to him to
     do with as he wished.
    If the girls knew of that particular caveat, they’d be checking her into an institution.
    She brushed on another layer of mascara and touched up her lipstick, a shiny pink
     that matched her toes, and then she pulled her hair up into a messy bun and secured
     a large clip to hold it in place.
    By the time she made it back into the living room, the decadent smell of chocolate
     filled the air.
    “Oh my God, Caro, that smells divine,” Mia groaned.
    Caroline looked up from the stove and grinned. “I’m even sacrificing the nuts just
     for you.”
    “You are too good to me.”
    Mia perched on the bar stool across the island from where Caroline was cooking, and
     rested her arms on the countertop.
    “So how is work going?”
    Caroline stopped stirring a moment and then reset the temperature before laying the
     spoon to the side. She wrinkled her nose and made a face.
    “Boss is still a dickhead. He spends