Oh. I am embarrassed, caught daydreaming by our hopefully soon-to-be client. This doesn’t look good for me.
“I’m so sorry.” I wrinkle my nose, mortified to no end.Nice one, Savi!
“Don’t be.” He pulls his hand out from under the table and shows me the phone he’s been using to play online poker. I try to hide my laugh; he grins and shrugs. “We all know it’s a done deal, right?”
“I guess so, huh?” I say with a sigh. “I just wish I could get something stiffer.” I point to my glass of pinot grigio. I don’t drink, as a rule, but this dinner is painful. He winks at me before he clears his throat.
“Excuse me, gentlemen, but I need to have a word with Miss Miller.” Before I know what is happening, he pulls out my chair and helps me to my feet, walking me through the dining area and out the front door. He hands the valet his ticket, and moments later I’m sitting on the tan, plush seat of his red Corvette. “Now,” he grins, “let’s see about getting you something stiffer—to drink, that is.” All I can do is nod like a moron.
After a few drinks at a Scottish pub, I decide I should get back before I get in any more trouble with the press. There is only the bartender and a lone man in the corner, but Lord knows they’ll have a field day if they find me in another pub after what happened last night.
“Let me drive you back to your car, at least,” Joe says, standing to shrug on his jacket. He is a handsome man. His gel-styled brown hair and light eyes are a pretty combination. I guess he’s in his mid-thirties.
“That’s not necessary. I can take a cab.”
“Nonsense. I stole you away, so it’s only right I return you too.” He gestures toward the door. “Is your car at work?”
I shake my head as I slip my purse over my shoulder. “A friend dropped me off this morning.”
“Home, then?”
I nod as we walk outside. The ride is nice. He offers more information about his company and asks a few questions about my position.
“So, you’ll fax me those samples as soon as you can?” he asks as I duck down to say goodbye through the open window.
“Yes, I will. ’Night, Joe. Thanks for the fun evening—and the ride.” I walk toward my condo, deciding to grab the necessary file now rather than tomorrow.
I prop myself against the wall in the elevator, tired and anxious about how my day started. The idea of disappointing Dad again is weighing heavily on me. It seems to be a weekly event. Either it’s the media or merely something I say or do around him. God, I really miss my mother! She was so sweet and understanding. She wouldn’t have cared if I wore the wrong outfit to lunch or said the wrong thing during a business dinner. Christ, I’m only human. I never wanted to be a part of the public eye in the first place—never once!
I step out to a quiet parking lot. Luckily, my car is parked close by, as my feet are getting sore in my high boots. I open the trunk, reach for my laptop case, and suddenly sense someone is behind me. I start to turn, but a dark cloth is slapped over my face. A hand covers my mouth so I cannot scream. My feet leave the ground as I’m flung over someone’s shoulder, and something cold and hard strikes my shin. Fear courses through my veins, and the air is forced out of me as my attacker tosses me roughly into the back of a vehicle. I feel the movement as we speed away. I can’t believe this is happening! I am terrified out of my mind.
Someone makes fast work of binding my wrists and ankles. I can make out only shadows around me, and hear male grunts and heavy breathing. Fear has taken over, and I seem to have lost my ability to speak. Someone grips my shoulders, pinning me, while another stretches out over top of me. With all my might, I buck my legs and nail one of them in the crotch. His screech is ear-piercing as he falls back, then I feel the poke of a needle, and everything gets fuzzy.
That’s all I remember from the last day I spoke to my father, my best friend, my coworkers, and since I saw the light of day.