Frowning, I leaned back in the limo seat, putting a hand on my knee. “What’s the problem?”
She didn’t waste any time responding. “What do you think the problem is? Having her here is the problem. Kendrick is right. I don’t get the importance of keeping her around. She’s just a distraction and…”
I cut her off. “Don’t meddle in my affairs.”
“Your affairs are my affairs. You need start remembering that!”
With that, we both took a breather, pausing before the conversation got completely out of hand.
“Look, I’m tired, you’re tired. If it wasn’t absolutely critical that I had to go out of town for the past few days, I would have handled this myself. I wouldn’t have asked you to deal with it unless it was absolutely necessary.”
“Mmm, hmm.”
It was obvious she was still aggravated but there was nothing I could do about it at that time. “We’ll discuss it after dinner tonight.”
“No,” she replied, zero hesitation in her voice.
“What do you mean ‘no’?”
“I can’t make it to dinner, something has come up.”
The response made me suspicious. “Are you sure you’re not just angry with me?”
“I know you think the world revolves around you, Dorian but no, I’m not angry, I just have something more important to do.”
I shook my head at her defiant attitude. After all these years, you’d think I would be used to it by now. “Okay then, are you sure it has nothing to do with how you feel about Tempest being there?”
“No. You are just going to have to trust me.”
Not long after, we hung up. I’d be back at the estate in a matter of minutes. Whatever was going on with Ainsley would work itself out. It always did. In the meantime, I sat up in my seat, fixing my tie and straightening my suit coat.
I couldn’t wait to lay my eyes on her again.
Since the first time I saw Tempest, I’d wanted to get her alone. Now that Ainsley wouldn’t be there, it would make my job much easier. After arriving at the estate and exiting the back of the house, I looked towards the veranda.
Even from a distance, Tempest looked incredible.
Fuck. I felt my cock pulse between my legs.
After taking a second to collect myself, I headed towards her, each step bringing her beauty into clear focus. My determination to have her set my blood running hot through my veins. Approaching the table, it took all of my strength to not grab her and take her right there.
“Been waiting long?” I asked.
The green dress she wore hugged every inch of her, accentuating her curves and teasing me with an eyeful of cleavage. Tempest looked up at me and shrugged.
“Does it matter?”
I would have had to be an idiot not to see that, in spite of looking incredible, she was uncomfortable. The look on her face… It’s like this was the last place she wanted to be. After talking with Ainsley, I knew Tempest wasn’t happy about the situation, but this was way worse than I’d expected.
She’s just not getting it.
I made up my mind right then and there she would understand I’d move mountains to help her, protect her, and if need be, kill for her. I’d make her understand all of these things –– if only I could get her to listen.
No shit, I made multimillion dollar deals as easily as I comb my hair, but no transaction I’ve ever closed has vexed my powers of negotiation like this woman.
I sat down at the table. Even though she probably didn’t want to hear it, she looked gorgeous. Her eyes never left me, but it wasn’t like she was looking at me –– more through me, like I wasn’t there.
“You’re looking much better, well rested. How do you…”
Tempest snapped her upper body forward, banging an elbow down on top of the table and pointing at me.
“Well, you see, that’s the funny thing… When you’re being drugged, it’s really easy to be well rested.”
When she finished talking, she leaned back in her chair and dropped her arm into her lap, glaring at me.
I shook my head. “It was a difficult decision, but I had to do what the doctor recommended. After all, it was in your best interest at the time.”
“I am getting really sick of everyone doing things in my best interest. No one, not your goddamn doctor and certainly not you, know what’s in my best interest!”
I raised my arms to my chest, crossing them in front of me. If she wanted to rant, I decided to let her get it out of her system. She didn’t waste any time.
“And speaking of my best interest… How am I supposed to pay my bills when I can’t even go to my job? What the hell did you do?”
Now wasn’t the time to get into any of that. I cleared my throat to make my point, but before I could, Tempest raised her hand and showed me her palm.
“Save your breath,” she said, shaking her head. “I don’t want to hear any more lies from you. I just want to know when the hell I’m going to be able to get out of here. With any luck, I can throw myself on the mercy of my shift manager and pray that it’s enough.”
She let out a ragged exhale.
Nodding, I reached up and placed my palms on the table, standing up immediately after. “You don’t have to worry about your job. I promise.”
She looked away from me, obviously irate. I walked around the table, stopping next to her and looking down.
5
Danger Ahead (Tempest)
Seeing him again made me so much angrier than I’d expected. The frustration, the not knowing, the lack of control -- it was all coming to a boiling point.
And now, here he stood, right next to me.
Before long, his scent drifted in my direction, permeating my senses. I hadn’t seen him since the first night I was there. Even though I hated to admit it, even though I was furious about everything happening to me, seeing him again made me…
Ache?
Now, with the aroma of his masculinity tempting me, I felt a sensation triggered deep inside. It sent an unexpected shock through me, racing into my core and straight to my…
Ugh. Why couldn’t I control myself? Why didn’t I want to?
Dorian’s hand appeared in front of my face. Turning my head, I looked up into his eyes. In spite of my venom, he’d remained calm. In a strange way, I found it reassuring.
He wiggled his fingers. “Come with me.”
I hesitated.
“It’s okay,” he continued. “I promise you’ll love it.”
With reluctance, I decided to do as he asked. Reaching up, I placed my hand in his. His palm was rough and worn from effort. Strength permeated his fingers, bringing me to my feet with ease.
Once I stood, he let go, and I wondered how a man who wore a suit and tie all day had the hands of an iron worker. We exited the veranda and began to walk down a path leading towards the back of the estate.
We hadn’t been walking for long when Dorian reached inside of his pocket and pulled out a small device, about the size of a keyless remote control. With a press of the button, the lights around the property began to turn off. All of a sudden, it was pitch black – I could hardly see a foot in front of my face.