“Well, that’s a pretty uncomplicated question and easily-answered. I just simply want you; you and you alone, nothing else.” His caramel eyes twinkle with knowing inches before mine, letting me digest all of this information.
Confused thoughts run rampant throughout my brain. I search his eyes hovering so close, looking for any ray of genuine kindness lurking in their depths, but seeing none. I can’t let panic or confusion prevail; I’ve got to keep my head on straight and not freak out. Maybe I can negotiate strategically; he reeks of intelligence, so he’s got to have reasoning skills.
“I don’t understand. If it’s money you want, my father will work something out. He truly will.” I blink hard, shaking the fear from my mind, keeping my thoughts focused. “He is a very influential man. He’s to be feared, and not to mention the fact he’ll make sure you pay with your life for kidnapping me,” I plead with a confidence I don’t have. “But really, I am nothing special, not enough to want to steal anyway. I mean, really...please...just let me go. I won’t say a word to anyone; I promise.”
A frown forms across his lips while he shakes his head, and he lets out an audible sigh. “Princess…my sweet princess, I am a man who makes thoughtful and calculated decisions, not hasty ones.” He starts stroking the back of my neck. “I’m a very smart man, and I’m shrewd enough to know who I want, what I want, when I want it, and how. You, my dear, have been a long time coming and were properly planned for.”
I’m stunned at that comment. He’s been planning for me? This does not sound good. I try one last, futile attempt and speak as demurely as possible. “Not to say you’re not a smart man, a really astute man, but I’m rather high-maintenance. You see, I have to live with a very restrictive diet. I’m gluten-free and lactose-intolerant, and really, that mess is so outrageously expensive. So very expensive, it’d be cheaper for you to let me go.”
“What the fuck is gluten-free, Nick?” Travis pipes in, asking with his brows furrowed.
Nick breaks out with subdued laughter. He ignores Travis’ question, keeping inches from my lips. “Yes, Princess, I already know of your dietary needs, and I have made the proper accommodations for your arrival.” He nods his head toward the food tray Travis is holding.
My mouth drops open in incredulous disbelief, and my eyes widen with building anxiety as I glance between the two men. Freak-out mode engages within me, and I find some inner strength. “You’ve been stalking me? You’ve planned this all out? Wh-what?” I want answers, but I’m too flabbergasted to ask anything more. “I don’t understand. What are you guys planning on doing with me?”
“Well, that all depends on you, now doesn’t it?”
His cryptic answer provokes me to raise my voice in frustration. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?” I have no idea why they’d want Travis to train me to be a sex toy for this bigger dick here beside me. Oh, and if I’m naughty by Nick’s standards, I get to be tied to his salt-something-or-other? Holy hell! They are both insane! Suddenly, my eyes spark with unleashed fury.
“Language, Princess,” Nick scolds sternly, gripping the back of my hair. “I won’t tolerate you speaking to me that way. What it means is if you do exactly as you’re told, there will be rewards, but if you fight and defy, there will be punishments. It’s that simple.” He pauses, searing my eyes with heated energy. “Let me also clarify, because I can see you wondering behind those pretty blue eyes of yours, just how long you’ll remain in this relationship of ours.” He shrugs indifferently. “You’re my forever. I’ve wanted you from the first moment I laid eyes on you. I’ve been watching your every move for years, strategically planning.”
Strategically planning? Relationship? “What business is it that you have with my father to make you do this?” I ask, fighting through the arctic shock of his previous statement. Who does this? What kind of person plans with painstaking calculation to rob another of their freedom? A narcissistic, selfish bastard is who. I could understand if I was a celebrity being stalked, or someone of great importance, but I’m just a simple nobody, a young adult wanting to finish college, get married, and have a family.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Yes…yes, you do.”
He shakes his head and continues like he hasn’t heard my argument. “I can see I have given you quite a bit of information to absorb.”
That’s a huge understatement, Nick, very perceptive of you. Lying bastard.
“I can also imagine you have quite a few questions running through that pretty little head of yours. Travis can answer most of them, but in due time and only as I see fit.”