by J. S. Cooper
“I’m not thinking of him.” I shook my head.
“Why are you here with me, Evie?” He sighed and played with my hair. “Why did you come here?”
“I told you why.” I sighed and looked at him. “Maybe I was an idiot, but it’s too late for me to have any regrets.”
“Why did you cry earlier?” He asked softly as he undid the handcuffs.
“I don’t know.” I looked away from him. “Maybe at the loss of my innocence.”
“You were a virgin last night?” He looked skeptical.
“No.” I laughed slightly. “No, I wasn’t a virgin, but I also wasn’t someone who had one night stands. I don’t normally go from bed to bed.” I stared at him. “But I can’t say I would blame you if you didn’t believe that.”
“My sister died of a drug overdose.” He sat up and crossed his legs as he changed the subject.
“Oh?” I sat up as well and brushed my hair out of my eyes. Was this why he’d gone quiet?
“I didn’t know she was on drugs when she died.” He ran his hand over his head. “I mean, I knew she’d done drugs. I thought she was clean when she died. I thought I’d helped her.”
“How did she die?” I asked softly.
“How did she die?” He repeated my words softly. “She died from drugs. A broken heart. Desperation. She lost her way.” His voice dropped. “Sex, drugs, and rock and roll. Not always in that order and not always fun.”
“I’m sorry.” I grabbed his hands and rubbed his palms in mine. As we sat there in silence, I realized how odd this moment was. I was sitting naked with a man I’d met the day before, comforting him. Though that wasn’t the oddest part. The oddest part was I felt like I was meant to be there. The oddest part was my whole being felt like my life had been building up to this moment and this man. This man I’d never met before yesterday.
“You ever feel like one moment in your life defines you? One moment will change the path of your life forever?” He sighed, and I nodded. I knew exactly what he was talking about. “My sister’s death was that moment. When she died, I vowed I’d be a different person. I vowed I wasn’t going to let society dictate the way I lived my life.”
“Is that when you went to work for Grant?”
“Grant’s not the man you think he is.” He looked into my eyes. “He’s not the guy I thought he was.”
“We should leave. We should report him.” I said earnestly. “We don’t have to stay here. You don’t have to work for him.”
“I can’t leave, Evie.” He shook his head. “You can’t leave. Don’t you understand?”
“Understand what?” I exclaimed. “I don’t understand what you want me to understand.”
“You don’t get to just come here and leave. Grant chose you for a reason.”
“What do you mean?” I shivered and pulled my hands away from him. “I’m not with Grant anymore.”
“You came here with Grant.” He sighed. “He has a plan for you.”
“What plan?”
“It’s not for me to say.” He shook his head and stood up. “I should go.”
“Where are you going?” I whimpered, not wanting to be left alone.
“You trust me, right?” He pulled me up towards him and kissed my lips.
“I think so.” I kissed him back softly.
“I can’t just change how everything operates, Evie. There’s a plan in place. Grant is the one who makes the decisions.”
“But you said I was with you now.”
“He won’t touch you again.”
“What will he do then?”
He looked at me silently and then turned his head to the side.
“Is he going to do to me what he did to Eugenie?” I grabbed his head and turned him to look at me. “Just what have I gotten myself into, Tyler?”
“Do you want to leave?” He bit his lower lip. “I can let you go now. I can let you run away.”
“But what about everything?” I asked slowly as he ran his fingers down the valley between my breasts.
“Everything like what?”
“Eugenie. The truth. I could tell from the look on your face you didn’t know about the letters or that Eugenie was being given drugs.” I stared at him as his face contorted. “We shouldn’t let Grant get away with this.”
“I don’t know what happened with Eugenie.”
“Don’t you want to know the truth?” I took a deep breath. “I don’t want this—”
“Are you prepared for what happens if you stay?” He cut me off and pulled me towards him urgently. “This isn’t a game, Evie. This is real. There’s a possibility that...” His voice trailed off and he shook his head. “No, you should leave. I want you to leave.”
“What about Grant?” I really wanted to say, but what about us?
“What about him?”
“Won’t he ask where I went?”
“I can deal with him.” He pulled me towards him and hugged me tight. “There’s a woman who once told me, ‘You are what you are, and you only are if you do, and if you don’t do, then you’re nothing.’”
“What?” I frowned, confused by his words.
“There’s nothing more important to me than you leaving here safely.” He stroked the top of my head. “Unless you think you can handle staying.”
“What do you mean?”
“If you stay…” He paused. “There are things you might have to do.”
“What sort of things?”
“I don’t know.” He grabbed my hands and pulled me towards him and whispered in my ear, “There are things you might have to do which might make you uncomfortable.”
“What?” I asked, and I felt his hands digging into my side hard.
“Don’t move,” he whispered. “He’s back.”
I didn’t need to ask who. I froze as I heard the door open slightly. The room was dead quiet as we all stood there waiting for someone to speak.
“Someone found her wings.” Grant’s voice was husky, and I heard the rustle of chains in his hands. I stood there next to Tyler and shivered as his grip tightened.
“Can we help you, Grant?” Tyler’s voice sounded stiff.
“I thought we could all play a little game.” Grant walked towards us. “What do you say, Evie?”
“What?” I turned around slowly, trying to cover my body from him, and he laughed.
“Why are you being modest?” He frowned. “It’s not as if I haven’t seen it.”
“Grant.” Tyler’s voice was angry.
“I know you’re not getting angry at me.” Grant snapped and held his chain up. “I found her, Tyler. She’s mine.”
“She doesn’t want to be with you, Sir.” Tyler took a step towards Grant.
“Let’s play a game and see.” Grant smiled at me. “What do you think, Evie?”
“What game?”
“We’re not playing any games.” Tyler took another step forward.
“Why not?” Grant’s smile dropped. “You never minded the games before. In fact, I thought you quite liked them.”
“What games?” I asked again, my head feeling heavy. I was so confused and a part of me was questioning what Grant was saying. What did he mean that Tyler had liked the games?
“We can go in the hot tub.” Grant said. “Tyler likes the hot tub, don’t you Tyler?”
“Fuck off.” Tyler growled.
“Should you really be talking to me that way, Tyler?”
“Evie found some letters.” Tyler said softly. “Letters written by Eugenie.”
Grant’s eyes narrowed, and he stared at me. “What did they say?”
“What did you do to her?” I said loudly. “What are you trying to do to me? Why won’t you let me leave?”
“This is a game.” Grant frowned. “This is just a game.”
“A game where she can’t leave?” Tyler grabbed my hand. “Why did you—”
“Where are the letters?” Grant looked around the room.
“I want to
know what happened to Eugenie!” I screamed out in frustration.
Both men turned to look at me. I stood there, and I could feel my body regaining strength and power. “What the fuck is going on here?”
“You want answers?” Grant said softly.
I nodded.
He smiled for a few seconds and then took a step towards me. “What else do you want, Evie?”
“Excuse me?” I said, my breathing coming hard.
“What else or who else do you want?” His eyes surveyed my body, and I could feel my nipples hardening involuntarily. Why was my body still reacting to him?
“Grant.” Tyler’s voice was husky as he stood next to his boss. He looked at me then and surveyed my naked body in silence. I stood there frozen to the spot, my heart racing and my head spinning. Both men were in front of me, looking at me with questions in their eyes. All of a sudden I didn’t know which way was left and which way was right. The room felt a lot smaller and a lot darker. All of a sudden both men suddenly appeared a lot larger and more dangerous than before. As I looked back and forth at Grant and Tyler’s faces, I wasn’t sure which one to trust. Could I trust either of them? Was this all just some elaborate game and plan to them? Was I really safe with either of them? My head pounded as I stood there thinking about everything I knew. I really had no reason to believe either of them had my best interests at heart.
“Let’s see what Evie wants, Tyler.” Grant’s voice was low, and he had a snarl on his face as he stared at me. In the moment, he looked very much like the wolf Tyler had called him.
“What I want?” I swallowed hard as he reached out and touched my shoulder. I took a step back, and Tyler took a step towards me and touched my other shoulder. I felt both of their hands massaging me, and I melted a little inside.
“What do you want, Evie?” Tyler’s voice was rough, and he wouldn’t make eye contact with me. I felt his hand slide down to my lower back, and I froze and turned to look at him. He finally turned towards me, and I could see a look in his eyes. I knew from his look that this wasn’t a part of his plan. This wasn’t something he wanted to happen.
“What do you think I want?” I asked softly and froze as Grant’s hand moved to my ass and squeezed it softly.
“I know what I want,” Grant whispered in my ear, “and I think you want it too.” His finger slipped between my legs and ran up my butt-crack lightly before going back down and rubbing me between the legs. My body reacted immediately to his touch, and I trembled for a few seconds before stepping back.
“Don’t.” Tyler stepped forward and pushed Grant back. “Don’t touch her.”
“But...” Grant frowned, and Tyler grabbed him and they left the room.
My body was trembling in shock as I realized how close I’d come to being in a situation which left me breathless and confused. I quickly grabbed the clothes I’d been wearing before Tyler had given me the sexy underwear, and pulled them on. I heard Grant and Tyler arguing as they walked down the corridor, and I stood in the doorway and waited for them to be out of sight.
There was no doubt in my mind now. I wanted to leave. I didn’t care what connection Tyler and I had. This was just a little too much for me. I was finally coming to my senses, and I knew this was not the place for me to be. I didn’t even care about finding out how Eugenie had died. I was past the detective mode stage. I could still feel Grant’s fingers between my legs as Tyler massaged my lower back. I’d been this close to doing who knows what. I felt like I was going out of my mind. And I needed to leave.
I was running down the corridor to find a way to escape when I heard the footsteps coming back towards me. “Shit,” I muttered to myself and opened the door to my right. I ran inside the room and looked for a place to hide. I saw a closet and ran towards it quickly and opened it quietly, got in, and stood there with my heart beating fast. I kept the door slightly ajar so I could try and see what was happening. I felt like I was going to have a heart attack or a panic attack, I was so scared and confused. And then they stopped right in front of the door. I watched Tyler and Grant standing there looking at each other furiously, and I closed my eyes. If they came into this room, I’d be found. If they came into this room, I would be the wolves’ dinner.
Chapter 43
“Why did you touch her?” Tyler’s voice was angry. “What were you thinking?”
“I thought you wanted us to test her, to see how far she would go.” Grant’s face twisted. “Isn’t this the test?”
“This is different.”
“I don’t know what’s changed.” Grant blinked.
“You don’t need to know, Sir.”
“You’re overdoing it now, Tyler. There’s no need to call me Sir.” Grant looked annoyed.
“That’s how a driver would address his boss, is it not?”
“I’m not your boss.”
“You know our arrangement, Grant.”
“It just feels weird.” He sighed. “I don’t know. I think we should just let her leave. She’s finding out too much information.”
“You gave Eugenie drugs?”
“What?” Grant swallowed.
“Her letters say you gave her drugs.”
“It was...” Grant sighed. “I didn’t even know Eugenie wrote any letters.” He bit his lower lip. “Why did you tell Evie about her anyway?”
“That was a mistake.” Tyler clenched his fists. “But that’s why she has to stay.” Tyler’s voice was hoarse. “We can’t have her knowing too much. What if she found something else and didn’t tell me?”
“I don’t think this is a good idea.” Grant sounded angry. “I think we should just let her go.”
“I’m not done with her.” Tyler’s voice was loud and in control, but I could hear his anger. “And what I say goes, remember?”
“I thought I was in charge?”
“You thought a lot of things, Grant. But your time is over. If you want to continue getting paid, you’ll do as I say. Evie stays, and I want you to keep the fuck away from her.”
“She’ll never choose you over me.” Grant sounded pissed. “Especially not when she hears the truth.”
“What truth, Grant?” Tyler’s voice was soft as he spoke, and he looked at Grant with a deadly expression. I wanted to step out of the closet so I could see them better and ask them what this was all about, but I didn’t dare move. Something told me I hadn’t heard everything yet.
“Once she knows you’re the billionaire and not me,” Grant licked his lips, “and once she knows Eugenie was your ex, not mine... Once she knows, it’ll be over for you.”
“And how do you think she’ll find out?” Tyler took a step towards him, and I held my breath. If he looked to the right, he might see me. I knew if he saw me it would all be over for me. I knew he’d see the shock in my face. I knew he’d see that I was devastated. He was the billionaire? He was the one who had dated Eugenie? Why had he been trying to help me escape then?
“I’m going to tell her.” Grant’s voice boomed. “I’m going to tell her it was your decision to keep her here. I’m going to tell her it was you who wouldn’t let her leave.”
I stepped back and put my hand over my mouth in fear. I’d been duped. Well and truly duped, and I had no idea what I was going to do. My whole body froze in fright as I realized I could hear the breathing of another person next to me.
“Don’t scream,” whispered a soft voice. I bit down on my hand to stop myself from screaming, but I knew I was minutes away from collapsing. “You have to be quiet, or they’ll know we’re here,” she whispered ever so faintly. “And if they know you know the truth, you’ll be stuck here forever, just like me.”
“Who are you?” I looked slowly to the right, and my heart stopped beating as I saw her delicate features and blonde hair. I didn’t need her to answer to know who she was. I was hiding in a closet with Eugenie. The Eugenie I’d been told was dead. The Eugenie who had made this madhouse now turn even crazier. I closed my eyes and tried to breathe slo
wly as everything started to fade. All I could think was, ‘What are the two wolves planning to do next?’
Chapter 44
“Your face looks as though you’ve seen a ghost.” Her blue eyes looked at me with a blank stare. And then she touched her cheek self-consciously. “Excuse my lack of makeup.”
“Did you just say your name was Eugenie?” I asked her in shock. Was I going crazy? Wasn’t Eugenie dead?
“Shhh.” She put her finger to her lips and nodded towards the outside of the closet. I stood there frozen, my mind going a hundred miles a minute. What was going on here? She peeked outside the closet and watched for a few moments. “They’re fighting over you.” She made a face, her delicate features looking hard as she gazed back at me. “That doesn’t normally happen.”
“What doesn’t normally happen?”
“Shh.” She frowned at me.
“Are you Eugenie?” I said and looked at her again, my mind spinning. Eugenie was alive and Tyler was the billionaire? What was going on here? I took a step back and felt something scratching my leg sharply. “Ouch.” I exclaimed.
“Shh!” She turned to me with a snarl. “Are you deaf?”
I turned to her and blinked in shock. What was going on here? Why was she being so mean to me? And where had she come from?
“They’re gone,” she said after she’d peeked out of the closet and moved next to me. “Did you want them to see us?”
“What would they have done?” I asked breathlessly, not sure I wanted to know the answer. I pressed my hand to my forehead and took a couple of deep breaths. I felt again like I was in The Twilight Zone.
“What do you think?” She mumbled and played with her hair.
“Um, I don’t really understand what’s going on here.”
“When one is good and one is bad, you—” she said softly, her face looking like she was concentrating on getting the words right, as if she were reciting a nursery rhyme or poem.
“Who’s good and who is bad?” I interrupted her, my mind spinning out of control.
“Did you read my letters or my journal? Do you know who I am?” She frowned, her eyes never leaving my face as she changed the subject.
