She looked at Dorian again. “How long is she going to be staying?”
Staying? Where the hell am I?
Dorian shrugged. “I’m not sure yet. Could be days, weeks, hell, who knows, months?”
She listened attentively until he finished. Once he did, she looked straight at me. “I’ll make the necessary arrangements.”
A soft smile came to Dorian’s face.
“Thank you,” he began, nodding at her. “I don’t know where I would be without you.”
Ainsley smiled at him in return. It seemed formal, polite. Immediately after, she turned her attention to Kendrick.
“Are you ready?”
Kendrick nodded. “Yes.”
Then, almost as quickly as she entered, Ainsley passed by me without so much as a word. Marching right by Kendrick, she continued towards the exit. He followed close behind, and then they disappeared.
Once they had, another woman made her way inside and closed the door behind her, locking it. She was fit and square jawed, looked to be European -- maybe Russian. Whatever she was, her expression was serious and focused on me. I snapped my head towards Dorian.
“What the hell is going on? You can’t keep me here.”
Dorian lifted his arm and made a motion with his hand like I needed to calm down. I bit my lip. His charm faded right then, for sure.
“Take it easy,” he began, lowering it again. “You are going to be staying with me, here. This is my home.”
He paused just long enough to reach down towards the floor. His arm disappeared beneath the surface of his desk which blocked my line of sight. The next thing I knew, he produced the metal case, swinging it up and over the edge of his desk before placing it in front of him.
I wasn’t even thinking. When I saw it I wanted to get away, get as far away from it as I could. Staggering to my feet, I backed away from his desk, turning towards the door of the office.
“Come sit down,” Dorian said, pointing to my chair. “I’ve already told you that you won’t be going anywhere.”
Ignoring him, I took off running before the Eastern Bloc chick stepped in front of me, blocking my exit.
“Get out of my way, lady. I’m warning you.”
The woman crossed her arms at her chest. Shaking her head, she nodded her chin in my direction.
“Go sit.” She growled, her accent sharp. Russian, definitely Russian.
I frowned at her. “Go to hell!”
I kept walking in her direction, determined to open the door and get out. She didn’t waste any time. With blinding speed, she grabbed me by the wrist and pulled my arm behind my back, pinning me against the wall before I could say a word.
The pressure she applied caused a sharp sting of pain to radiate down my arm.
“Ow!” I winced. “Let go of me!”
I felt her shift positions behind me, pulling my forearm higher up the middle of my back and sending the pain to new heights. Gritting my teeth, I cried out.
Dorian stopped her with a stern tone. “Oksana…”
No sooner did he speak her name than her death grip eased. The woman moved away from me and took her position by the office door again. I reached up towards the shoulder she’d yanked behind me and rubbed it, moving the joint in a small circle. Glaring at her, I turned in place until my eyes met Dorian’s.
“Tempest, that is my personal assistant, Oksana.”
My eyes darted towards her. Thin lipped, she nodded in my direction, her face expressionless while Dorian continued.
“She grew up in a military household… Three brothers, all Russian special forces. They were protective of their little sister and taught her well. You’ll have to forgive her instincts.”
When he finished speaking, Dorian pointed towards the seat in front of his desk. “You are making this more difficult than it has to be.”
Crossing my arms in front of my body I rubbed them with the palms of my hands while I made my way back to the chair before sliding into it. The cold feel of the leather sent a shiver down my spine.
I looked at him.
He broke eye contact with me just long enough to look at the case. Placing his hand on top of it, he rubbed the smooth surface, tracing it back and forth with a series of strokes.
“Tempest, I know you’re afraid.” He stopped and looked at me. “But I’m telling you, you don’t have anything to worry about. I’m not going to let anything happen to you. You’re safe with me.”
Leaning back in the chair, I frowned at him while he continued.
“For now though, there is business to conduct. Until it’s completed you won’t be going anywhere or talking to anyone. The less you know about everything that’s happening, the safer you’ll be.”
I scoffed at him. Was this guy for real?
“What makes you think I want to be anywhere near you? You kidnapped, blindfolded and brought me here against my will. Not only that, but there’s the inconvenient fact that you’re a killer!”
From behind, I heard the sound of Oksana’s heels clacking in my direction. She circled around the back of Dorian’s desk while I finished my thought.
“Don’t you think someone saw what happened? You know, grew suspicious? I have friends, family… They are going to want to know what’s happened to me.”
The truth was I didn’t have many friends, but I did have my father. Still, none of it seemed to matter to Dorian. His expression hardly changed.
He gestured towards Oksana. “All of the people who work for me are incredibly loyal, Tempest. No one knows you are here in my home and no one is coming to look for you. The fastest way for you to get your old life back is to do as you’re told, when you’re told.”
I shook my head in disgust.
Oksana looked down at Dorian. “Would you like anything to eat, sir?”
Dorian waved her off at first, but then turned his attention towards me. “Do you want something?”
“No.”
Dorian looked at Oksana again. “Not now. Maybe later.”
Her face softened with a smile. I didn’t think she had it in her. Oksana turned and walked away, going towards the back of Dorian’s office and disappearing around a corner. Once she vanished, I looked at Dorian. He sat there, his hands folded comfortably in his lap.
“As you can see, there’s no sense in struggling or fighting. You should do what you can to relax. It will make your stay here much more enjoyable.”
I leaned into the chair, pressing my upper body into it.
“Enjoyable? Would you enjoy being kidnapped?”
Dorian ignored me. Instead, he reached for the cuffs of his white dress shirt and started to roll them up. When the tan skin began to emerge, I bit my lip.
Hard.
Anticipation took hold of me. He slipped his fingers underneath the soft fabric and began to curl it upward, one inch at a time. Rugged musculature and deep striations ran down the length of his forearm, riveting my attention.
I sat there staring like a wide-eyed puppy. I swear, I couldn’t help myself.
He finished the first one and after I got an eyeful, I used the last of my sorely depleted strength to look away, focusing on the office decor instead.
In every direction, the trappings of success filled my gaze.
Whoever he was, whatever he did, there was little doubt he was successful at it. Eventually, I looked towards a large bank of windows, which extended floor-to-ceiling. Beyond that, there wasn’t much to see, and by that I mean outside. It was dark. Only the subtle orange lighting of the grounds came into focus.