by Cee Smith
We cut across the gray marbled floors, Hailey's shoes clipping against the stone as she walked double time to keep up with my long strides. Hailey’s head turned in the direction of a waiter carrying a tray with tall flutes of fizzing champagne.
“We won't be drinking alcohol tonight. Would you like something else? Perhaps sparkling water?”
“Maybe later.” Her eyes landed on the four-string-quartet that had begun playing a jaunty tune. A few couples inspired by the music drifted out to the parquet dance floor and were swept away by the notes that floated through the crowded room.
“Come,” I said pulling her closer to the band. Her fingers laced with mine, clutching me nervously as I guided us onto the dance floor.
“Dominic—” she hesitated at the perimeter of the floor, pulling back as if I were asking her to jump off a bridge with me.
“Really? Of all the things that have happened tonight, you're scared of this?” This woman was confusing. I released a chuckle and shook my head before continuing, “Don't worry. I've got you.”
I gave another tug, and she fell into my chest. I swept her away before she had a chance to second-guess herself. We waltzed around the floor, and I struggled with leading while simultaneously trying to stamp out the desire that smoldered beneath the surface. She was so graceful—the way her body moved against mine. Her gentle hand clasped with my own, while the other held me close.
Her glittering eyes watched me intently as I spun her around.
“You had no reason to be nervous, so why did you hesitate to dance with me?”
“It's been a long time since I've danced. My dad used to practice with me, before he took my mom out to fundraisers. I'm surprised you wanted to dance. You don't really strike me as the type.”
“I'm not really, but when in Rome...plus it doesn't hurt that I have a beautiful woman on my arm.”
“Is he here yet?” she asked breaking eye contact with me for the first time since we'd been on the dance floor. She looked around the room as if she knew who she was looking for. My hand that had been holding her hip moved to her chin, realigning her eyes to mine, “That's not how these things work. Typically, the biggest deals are dealt with last, and the biggest deal for Sampson is with Callas Enterprises.”
“Oh.” I couldn't read what she was thinking. Her face was a perfect mask of indifference.
***
“Robert.” My voice was light as I reached my CEO with my palm outstretched to meet his. He was just wrapping up a conversation with a couple of gentlemen that faded into obscurity with my presence.
“Dominic. Thanks for making it out tonight. I'm sorry to interrupt your time off.” I hadn’t seen Robert since before taking leave, and it surprised me how much I missed being around him. He was slightly younger than my father’s age, but he treated me like an old friend as opposed to a son.
“Don't worry about it. I'd like you to meet someone. Hailey, this is Robert Moore, CEO of Callas Industries. Robert this is Hailey—”
“Good evening. It’s so wonderful to meet you.” I was glad Hailey cut me off because I hadn't even thought about using a fake last name for Hailey, and I very well couldn't give her real one. That would send up all kinds of red flags.
“It’s a pleasure meeting you, Hailey. Here, let me introduce you to my wife. Honey, honey?” Robert tapped the inside of Connie's elbow, disrupting her conversation with another couple behind us. Connie swung around, the royal blue chiffon of her dress hugging her ample curves. She patted her updo—a nervous quirk I'd seen her do at many functions throughout the years.
“Oh, Dominic, it's so good to see you. Who is your lovely date? My god, you look beautiful, dear, simply beautiful.” Connie's animated voice chattered on, and Hailey was soon swept away in “girl talk” as Connie filled her in on the who's who that was in attendance. While I kept my arm wrapped around Hailey’s waist, Robert and I pored over the details of the Sampson deal.
The feel of her palm skating across my upper back pulled me from my thoughts. Hailey rubbed circles that swooped between my shoulders, and I stopped to see if she was paying attention to me, but she was absorbed in her conversation with Connie. It was a testament of how much things had changed between us. I made it so she wasn’t even aware of her need to touch me. The more I thought of it, the more I questioned whether things had always been this way. Did Hailey have a natural affinity for me?
“So what are you thinking? Do you think he'll meet us halfway? We're still not going public, but I think the marketing team came up with a good concept that should still garner the same results,” Robert said with an assuring voice.
“I'm not worried about Sampson. He's getting rocked on the Nasdaq and is running around frantically trying to recover. Everything will be fine. You should stay nearby, so when I clear things up, you can swoop in and seal the deal. I don't want to be here any longer than I have to.”
“I thought I saw you and Hailey on the dance floor earlier. I don't think I've ever seen you so happy at one of these things. I have to be honest. Connie always leaves these events with a list of women she thinks would be good for you. Suffice it to say, she isn’t usually impressed with the women you bring around. She thinks you’re lonely, but this one seems like a special girl.”
“She is,” I said taking another side glance at Hailey's beaming face. “Robert, if you don't mind, I'm going to get in more time with my girl, before this thing winds down.” My head was facing Robert, but my eyes flowed down the length of Hailey’s dress. I would make any excuse at this point to have her within my arms.
“Oh. Absolutely. Maybe we'll see you on the dance floor later.”
“It looks like you hit it off with Connie.”
“Yes, she's nice. Although, I must admit I had a hard time keeping the conversation off of me. She's very curious,” I said quietly. The rest of the room spoke loudly, but I didn’t know what was expected of me, so I tried to remain under the radar.
“I was listening. You did fine. Come, let's go get you that sparkling water.”
Once we were at the ball, everything felt so surreal. We were dancing and talking to his friends like everything was perfectly fine, like I wasn’t someone he had abducted and nearly raped on the plane ride over. I spent the better part of the night trying to forget what had happened only a few short hours before. My mind had already begun to blur the events, like it was trying to protect me from the man that Dominic had almost become. Dominic reminded me what he was truly capable of.
The more time passed, the more confused I became. It was less than a week ago that I was beginning to feel comfortable with my situation. It wasn’t one I would have chosen for myself, but I realized it could have been much worse. That was until an hour ago. Something snapped in Dominic. Yes, he’d done awful things, humiliating things, made me question what kind of person I’d become since I’d been taken all those weeks ago—but I had also seen a different side of Dominic. That part of him was what left me confused, because there was no doubt I should get away. No amount of quasi-apologies would assure me that something like that wouldn’t happen again, but that didn’t stop me from questioning what my life would be like after all this. Would it be so easy to go home and forget about him? Even the good parts?
It had never been more apparent how volatile our relationship, or whatever it was, had become. He had been pulling away since our conversation in the bathtub, but there was nothing that I said that was especially offensive. I’d said worse before, and he didn’t punish me for it. It was obvious that he didn't know what to do with me and was feeling out of control and lashing out at me because of it, but what could I do? I was just an unwilling participant in a fantasy life he had built for himself. I looked around the room. Could anyone else see the toll this had taken on him?
We moved like water ebbing against the shore—our bodies perfectly in sync, as he spun me around to the aching sounds of the violins. Unlike every song before it, the song being played was haunting with its shiftin
g chords and notes that died mid-air. It seemed to capture the mood between us perfectly.
“Tell me something about you that I wouldn't know.” His words pulled me from my thoughts, reaffirming my place on the floor and in his arms. Some smart remark was on the tip of my tongue, but it was snuffed out when I saw how open he looked. His face was smooth, his lips were lifted up into the beginnings of a smile, his eyes were imploring me for a truth that only I could give him.
“Are you up for trading information?” He gave an eager nod, and I started to think of something I could give him that he wouldn't already know. I wanted to give him something honest, but the only honest thing I could think of were memories with my parents, and I couldn't give him those. I had given him too much already.
“Okay, I've got something,” I said after I'd been silently thinking for a while.
“When Jessa and I were little, we used to build these elaborate forts in our room. We'd pull all the sheets from off our beds, take down clean sheets from the closet, and gather pillows to line the floors. We'd sit in there for hours reading to each other. Sometimes now when I'm reading, I slip underneath the covers with a flashlight. It reminds me of those times with Jessa.”
“You're so sweet,” he said, swiping my hair away from my forehead.
“I wish I had known you as a child. I'm sure you were a rambunctious thing, but also very endearing. Did you have a lot of friends growing up?”
“I wasn't Miss Popular, but I had a few. It was mostly just Adam and Jessa that I spent all my time with.”
“Hmm, and how long has Adam been in love with you, or is that more recent?” I was startled by his words, not because I didn't know that Adam had been acting differently since junior year of high school, but because Dominic was jealous. That was one of the things I’d come to learn about Dominic; the more he acted unaffected by an answer, the more he actually cared. He threw out the question casually, but I knew how affected he would be by my response.
“Does it matter? I'm with you now, and I'll probably never see my family again.”
“You're right. It doesn't matter.” His words were thin, masking his discord with my response. I wanted to steer the conversation away from Adam. If Dominic was a man who could kidnap, what else was he capable of?
“What about you?”
“I'm not very good at sharing the details of my life. Maybe it would be easier if you asked something specific.”
“Um OK, what does ‘matakia mou’ mean?” I had meant to ask him one of the many times he’d said those words, but it never seemed like the right time, seeing as how he generally said it before we were about to have sex. He chuckled a little before replying, “It means ‘my little eyes’ in Greek. I don't know much of my parent’s language, but there are a few things I've held on to. It seemed an appropriate endearment for you. Your eyes always look so curious. They were one of the first things I noticed about you.”
“Can I ask you something else?” I tensed up as the question left my mouth. It was something I had wanted to know since the first time I had kissed him. If my plan to escape him was a success, it could quite possibly be my last night with him. I wanted an answer.
“You don't have to answer if you don't want to, but...since I've been with you, have you...been seeing anyone else?” Ugh, I hated how mousy I sounded and almost expected to look up and see him laughing at me.
“Look at me. There hasn't been anyone else since the moment I first laid eyes on you.” If it weren't for his hands still holding me up, I would have tumbled to the floor with his confession. Instead, I stood there with my mouth agape. His words seemed unfathomable. Dominic was gorgeous—a man that would never have to worry about a woman wanting him. He was also insatiable when it came to sex, and I couldn’t see him as the type to go without for very long, but if I was going solely off expressions, then I would say he was telling the truth. He looked like he was swearing an oath when he uttered those words.
“Why?”
“I found what I was looking for. I didn't need anyone else.”
“One more and I won't ask anything else. Are you...are you in love with me?” I was perfectly still while awaiting his response. My stilled breath and movements only seemed to amplify the sound of my pulse and the rush of blood passing through my veins. I didn't know why I asked, other than his last confession left me reeling as to why he would feel that way about someone he’d never even met. Time stopped. There were no laughing women with baubles of diamonds dripping from their necks, no lusting men, no dancing bodies, or haunted music—it was just us.
The thought didn’t escape me that we were having a tête-à-tête that was eerily close to the bathtub conversation that preempted the whole plane catastrophe. Before, I had indirectly questioned his rational mind in taking me; now, I was sincerely curious about his motivations. I was taking a risk by bringing this up, but there was definitely a false sense of security with this many people around. I could tell by how he acted around these people that his reputation meant something here. He wouldn’t do anything to bring any unwanted attention to us.
“I don't know what it means to love, Hailey.” Seeing my confused expression, he added, “What do you think the right answer would have been?”
The music stopped, and the crowd erupted in applause, drowning out the sound of fading notes and the chorus of conversations. It wasn't the answer I had expected, but what answer would have been the right one—to know that he loved me without really knowing me, or that he didn't love me, yet chose to keep me for his own amusement? His admission caused a slight twinge in my chest, but before the feeling could settle, we were already at the edge of the dance floor. Dominic gripped both of my arms, turning me to face him directly.
“Hailey,” he said prompting me to answer the question that was still ringing through my ears. I was a cornered rabbit confused by my fight or flight response as my eyes darted around the room looking for an escape.
“Mr. Callas, how nice to see you. I was told you might not be attending.” A short, paunchy man with clipped gray hair in a navy blue suit strode up to the side of Dominic, oblivious to what was occurring between us. It took a moment for Dominic to respond. His hands dragged down my arms before he broke eye contact to greet our intruder.
“Sampson. Long time no see.”
“Yes, yes. I was just thinking that myself. And who is your beautiful date tonight?”
“Sampson, this is Hailey. Hailey, this is Sampson with JAS Industries.”
His hand was clammy against my palm, but I shook earnestly while giving him a warm smile. His large green eyes raked across every piece of flesh available to view. He looked like a starving cat finally let out of its cage only to pounce on its first meal. I began second-guessing him after catching his leering gaze, but it was all or nothing. He was not only my last hope; he was my only hope.
Before they settled into their conversation, I asked to be excused to the restroom. I didn't immediately look at Dominic, but I felt him stiffen beside me.
“Of course, of course, that'll give us men a chance to talk business,” Sampson said jovially.
“Do you think you can find the restroom on your own?” Dominic's glare let me know that he wasn’t concerned with my sense of direction. I leaned in and gave him a soft kiss on his cheek, letting my lips linger against his skin before I pulled back. “I'll be right back. Trust me,” I whispered before pulling away, with eyes still locked on his. His body flinched, and I gave him a look that stilled him in his attempt to get up and follow me. I knew the position he was in. It would look too suspicious if he jumped up to come with me to the restroom. He didn't trust that I would come back, even though I had every intention of returning. I knew it would be too difficult to leave alone without drawing attention to myself.
When I entered the women's restroom, I noted a couple of women standing in front of the mirror touching up their makeup while chit-chatting about their various accessories. I could easily tell them my name and situation, b
ut this needed finesse. I couldn’t ruin whatever shot I had at escaping him, and I didn’t trust that these women wouldn’t balk at me at the first opportunity presented—they seemed like the catty type.
“It seems I came unprepared—would either of you ladies have a pen and paper on you?” They stopped speaking and looked at me as if I were a zoo animal that started speaking to them. A few moments passed before they pushed a pen and scrap of paper in my direction. I scribbled a quick note, tucking the paper between the fabric of my dress before returning the pen and shuffling into one of the stalls.
I unbundled myself from the confines of my dress and simply sat on the toilet basking in my first moment of freedom in over a month. Tears pecked at my eyes, but I kept them reined in. I couldn't let Dominic see that something was amiss. I didn't want to think about what would happen if Dominic discovered my plan, so I tuned out all thoughts of the last several weeks and concentrated on the muted sounds of music drifting through the walls and the quiet hum of the air being pushed through the air duct.
The bathroom door opened and closed, and I heard the women’s voices swallowed up by the crowd outside. How many other rich bastards out there were just like Dominic? How many women were here against their will? The thought was sickening. I used the restroom and washed my hands, paying special attention to my reflection in the mirror. My eyes were wide with a touch of fear in their blue depths, my makeup was still flawless, bringing out my high cheekbones and full lips. I pinched my cheeks so I looked a little livelier upon my return to Dominic's side.
I don't know if Dominic had been watching the bathroom area the whole time, but the moment I left the hallway, I felt those dark predatory eyes on me. They glared at me as if they could split me open, revealing everything I kept from him, including the few bits of myself still unclaimed by him. I didn't smile or glare; I remained unaffected by his gaze, simply moving closer to him.
