chapter two
Olivia
I wake up with a gasp when I suddenly feel a huge hand over my mouth. My eyes snap open. I'm awakened out of a dead sleep and instantly alert, which is odd for me because I'm usually a slow waker. I usually have to blink a thousand times for reality to come crashing back down on me, but my eyes instantly home in on a big, hulking figure.
I relax a bit when I recognize the man hovering over me. Ajax. The felon who works for the old lady next door. He cuts her yard and does various other lawn tasks, and even though my father warned me to stay away from him, there’s something about the big man. I'm not going to say he reminds me of a big teddy bear or a gentle giant because he exudes an aura of danger.
No, it’s something else. I could sense that this man was big and dangerous and scary to other people, but I could also sense that he would never hurt me. I don’t know where I get that impression from, but for some reason, I feel safe with him, and the loneliness in his eyes makes me want to talk to him and let him know that he's not alone in this world.
I don't know everything about his record. All I know is my father told me he's a felon, and he's dangerous, and for me to stay away from him. He didn't give me any details. He didn't tell me what he was charged with or convicted of or how long he was in prison. It couldn't have been too long because the man still looks relatively young. I would place him in his early thirties at most, which is certainly older than me. I'm only eighteen. I just graduated high school, but I'd hardly call a man less than forty old.
And good lord, he’s in amazing shape. He must spend every day he was locked up working out. The man has nothing but bulging muscles underneath inked skin. He's covered in tattoos, and my fingertips always itch to trace them when I'm in his presence, yet I've never touched him, and he's never touched me.
I think he wants to, though. I see the hunger in his eyes whenever I talk to him, and maybe that's part of why I keep talking to him. Maybe it’s the thrill that it gives me, yet I know it can’t go anywhere. Every time he's asked me out, I've declined. Though a part of me wants to see where this can lead, there's that other part of me that's ingrained to listen to my parents. After all, they’re my parents. They have my best interests at heart, right?
Yet I still keep sneaking out of the house to talk to Ajax. Maybe I just like flirting with danger. Maybe that's what gives me the thrill more so than anything else. I don't know. All I know is I can't stay away from the darkly handsome, tattooed felon, and now, here he is in my room with his hand over my mouth.
I go completely calm under his hand as my instincts kick in. I can trust him. I don't know how I know that, but I do. He's not going to hurt me.
I see the surprise flicker through his eyes when I still beneath him. Did he expect me to fight him?
He strokes his other hand over my hair soothingly, and the contact sends tingles throughout my scalp. I want to feel his hands skating over the rest of me.
It's amazing how big yet gentle they are. He shushes me even though I haven't made a sound. “I'm not going to hurt you, honey.”
I don't know why he's here, and I don't know what his plans are, but I believe that. That's why whenever he emits an apology and pulls a needle out of his pocket, my eyes go wide.
My survival instincts kick in then, and I begin struggling. I didn't think he would hurt me, but now I’m not so sure.
“I'm sorry, honey.” His mouth is still moving. He's saying something else, but I don't make out what it is. I'm so focused on the needle. My skin pricks, and as Ajax drugs me with something, the sting of betrayal hurts more than the sting of the needle. I thought I could trust him.
Oh, how wrong I was.
Turns out I should have listened to my father.
***
I wake up slowly. My eyes feel heavy as I blink them, and my vision slowly comes into focus. My brow furrows in confusion when I realize I don't recognize my surroundings.
I sit up quickly as everything comes rushing back to me.
Waking up to Ajax’s hand over my mouth. Him telling me ‘sorry’ as he pricked my neck with a needle.
My head immediately begins to throb, and the world tilts on its axis. I moan and grab my head.
Suddenly, Ajax is right there, steadying me with his hands on my shoulders. He gently pushes me back down so that I'm lounging with my back against the headboard. “Be careful there, honey. Don't sit up so quickly.”
To my horror, I feel my body start relaxing at his voice, but then my mind catches up and reminds me I can’t trust him, that I should be afraid of him.
I yank my shoulder from his grasp, glaring at him. I still feel the sting of betrayal throbbing in my neck. I subconsciously move my hand up to cover it.
“Where am I?” I ask him.
“Someplace safe,” he answers without blinking.
“Did you kidnap me?”
His lips thin at the accusation. “No, I made the decision you’re too afraid to make yourself.”