by Alexa Riley
I’m trapped.
4
Ash
I stand outside the dirty building and shake my head. I double-check my phone and make sure I have the right address. My private investigator gave me all of the info, but I needed to be sure. After I’ve confirmed it, I walk up to the door and hit the buzzer on the stoop for the top floor.
There’s no answer, so I try again. Right when my patience runs to its thinnest, there’s a voice.
“What.”
“Mr. Gold. I’m Ash Carpenter. I’d like to talk business with you.”
“Fuck off,” the guy says, and the line goes dead.
I hold the buzzer down again, and this time I don’t wait for him to speak.
“I owed your father some money and I’d like to talk to you about how to repay that debt.”
There’s a half a second of hesitation before I hear the lock click. I grab the door and head to the top floor, ignoring the filth along the way. This is no place for Jasmine. She should be in a palace. Not some run-down shithole. Her father should be working two jobs to make sure that’s happening, not pissing away all his money.
I’d had her followed after the first time I saw her. I wanted to know everything I could, and if possible, any weaknesses that would lead to me acquiring her, to find some way to make her mine. It didn’t take long to find out who he was and even less to find a weakness. He owed money all over town. He used his father’s good name to take out loans he’d never be able to gamble himself out of.
I was disappointed to find out about the life she had been leading and that there wasn’t some protective father that I would have to fight to have her. It only angered me more. I should be having to gear up for war against a man who would never let his sweet little girl go, but I had a strong feeling this wouldn’t be much of a fight. I know I’d die to keep her safe, to make her mine.
Deep down I knew exactly what I’d use this information for. No matter what I tried to tell myself, I came here tonight with one goal. And I plan on seeing that through.
When I get to his front door, it’s already open a crack and he’s peeking out.
“Who are you?” he asks, skepticism and hope clear in his voice.
“I said I’m Ash Carpenter. Can I come in?”
He doesn’t answer but steps back and pushes the door open. I walk in and look around at the bare place. He’s probably sold everything that’s not nailed down to feed his addictions.
“Listen I don’t know—”
I raise my hand, and he stops talking. I want to get straight to the point. No reason to pussyfoot around it. I’m here for her and nothing else.
“You’ve got a laundry list of debt on every street corner of this city.” I reach into my suit pocket and pull out a stack of papers and drop them on the table. “This is everyone you owe so much as a nickel to, and believe me, they want to collect.”
“Who the fuck are you? Why are you here?” His face is red with anger and shame. No man likes another in their house calling them on their shit.
I watch his fists clench at his sides, but he’s a weak man and I’m twice his size. There’s nothing he could do to physically threaten me and we both know it.
“You’ve gambled away more than you’ll ever be able to pay back. Not even if you live to be three hundred. But I have the financial means to make it all go away, and it’s hardly a drop in the bucket for me.”
I watch his throat move as he swallows but doesn’t speak. Interest is clear in his eyes.
“You may be asking yourself why I would do this, and there’s only one reason. You’ve got something I want, Mr. Gold. Something I need you to give me.”
“I don’t have anything,” he says through gritted teeth and shakes his head. How could he not remember the one precious thing he has? Goes to show how undeserving of her he.
“Oh, but you do.” I say, taking a step closer. “Something far more valuable than you realize.”
It takes him a moment, but I see it dawn on him a second later.
“Jasmine?” he asks, confusion clear on his voice.
“See? Deep down you know how precious she is. And I want her.” I’ll have her. I don’t say that part out loud.
It makes my stomach churn to see him think this over. He didn’t immediately deny me what I want, which makes me believe he hasn’t considered her a commodity before. Will he now that I’ve presented an offer? My research told me almost no one knows she exists. Which is probably why she hasn’t been used as leverage. Or worse, payment. But I also don’t think his debts have ever been this bad before. There is a price on his head now, and from the marks on his face, I’m guessing someone already tried to claim that price. Men like him will always choose their own life over anyone else’s, even their own daughter, which is why I feel no guilt taking her from him.
“What do you want with her?” he finally asks. I note that he hasn’t said no.
“I want a moment alone with her. Then, depending on what she decides, we can proceed.”
“You want to be alone with her? For how long?” So the negotiations begin, but I truly believe he is going to let me have what I ask for. This show he is putting on is more for his own conscience.
“A few minutes. Enough for me to explain what I want and for her to decide.”
“What are you going to do to her?” He looks flushed again. Like he’s ashamed to consider what I might do.
He’s a solid piece of shit, but at least he’s asking questions instead of sending me in there to her. I can’t imagine any father allowing this conversation to even begin. But he is, and it makes my heart ache for the dark-haired beauty who’s caught my eye.
“I’m going to talk to her. And when she decides what she wants her future to be, I’ll leave.” I don’t mention that she’ll be on my arm when she does it.
“And if I say no?”
“Then I’ll leave. But my offer leaves with me.”
I’ve already got plans to do this without him, but it would be easier if he handed her over. This way, there’s no coming back and knocking on my door, trying to change the deal. If this is all done the way I want it to, then it will all be over soon.
“You’ll talk to her. And then pay off all my debts?” He looks down to the papers, probably trying to calculate how much he owes.
“Yes. I want to talk to Jasmine.” I keep saying her name because I love the way it sounds in my mouth. “And once I’m finished, I’ll take care of all your debts. No matter what she decides.”
There is no way she’s not coming home with me, so my words are empty.
“Fine. But she’s a bit skittish around strangers.”
That’s all he says in way of warning before he nods toward the stairs. I take them one at a time. When I reach the top, I see a door and hear something that sounds like crying.
I move toward the door and stand outside, pressing my ear to it. There’s a sniffle, and then another small cry escapes. I ball my fists at my side, thinking that he must have done something to make her feel this way. That piece of shit father of hers had better not have lain a fucking hand on her or I’ll rip off his fingers.
I take a calming breath and knock softly on the door.
“Jasmine. I’m Ash.” I wait a moment and hear her cries quiet. “Open the door, sweetheart.”
There’s a pause, followed by what sound like soft footsteps.
“It’s okay. I’m here to save you.”
5
Jasmine
I stare up at the grayest eyes I’ve ever seen. His words sink in, yet they make no sense. For some reason he looks familiar, like I’ve seen him before, but I can’t place it. His eyes soften when they meet mine for a moment, then I watch anger take hold.
His dark hair and the shadow of his beard only add to the deadliness that lurks with him. His size doesn’t help. Towering over me easily, his broad shoulders fill the doorway.
“Who made you cry?” he grits out, stepping toward me and into my room. I
step back, and he slams the door closed behind him. A lick of fear creeps up my spine, and I glance over at the open window. Before I can even look back, he’s pulling me into him, wrapping his arms around me in a tight hold.
I should push back. My panic should be rising higher with each second his arms are wrapped around me so tightly, but instead I melt into him. I bury my face in his suit jacket and let the tears fall, taking the comfort from this stranger. It feels so good to have someone hold me. It’s then I realize I can’t remember that last time someone hugged me, pulled me close. The thought makes me sob even more. Before this moment I would have thought I’d panic and fight to get free, but something about this is different. Right.
I feel his lips on the top of my head after a minute. The softness of the gesture doesn’t match the anger I feel pulsing off him. But I know it’s not me who’s causing that rage. After a moment, I realize I’m being held by a man I don’t know. Alone in my room. I jerk back, and he loosens his hold a little so I can look up at him.
“I won’t hurt you. Never. I promise you that on my life.” His words are soft, but I can still see the anger in his eyes.
“Y-you…” I stutter over the word. “You look mad.”
“I’m mad at whoever made you cry,” he says in the same raspy tone as before.
Releasing me, he takes the glasses from my face and tosses them away.
“Hey!” I protest, but he slides another pair on. The frames are thinner and there are no scratches marking the lens. They’re perfect.
“Better?” he asks, tucking my hair behind my ear. I stand there, shocked, really unsure of what’s happening here.
My mouth parts a little, and he runs his thumb across my bottom lip. His nostrils flare. “You smell like candy apples.” He moves his thumb down and runs it along my neck. My breathing picks up. I have the urge to lean into this man, but I don’t. His deep gray eyes hold me captive. “I’ll have to be careful with you. You’re so soft.”
I don’t think those words were meant for me. It’s as if he’s talking to himself.
“Who are you?” I know he said his name is Ash, but that means nothing to me. Here to save me?
“Tell me who made you cry,” he pushes, ignoring my question.
I drop my head, remembering what I’ve lost.
“I lost the money I was planning to use to move.”
“You want to leave here?” he questions, almost as if he likes that idea, too. He tips my chin up, making me look up at him. His touch is so much softer than I thought it would be. As if he thinks I’m delicate. His eyes search mine, and the way he’s looking at me makes warmth spread across my cheeks. Concern shows in his gaze, even through the trace of anger still lingering.
“More than anything,” I admit. “I can’t leave now. I lost all of it.”
“He took it, didn’t he?” I know he’s talking about my father, but I don’t answer him. I can see he’s pissed at the idea. I might not love my father like a daughter should, but I don’t want him on the receiving end of someone’s anger. I’d never want anyone to be hurt.
“You can come with me,” he says when he sees I’m not going to answer him.
“I don’t know you.” I take a step back, and I watch his jaw tick at the action, but he doesn’t stop me.
“Anything has to be better than this.” He looks around my room, and I want to cringe with embarrassment. I can tell he’s got money. I’m sure his suit cost more than I want to know.
“I don’t understand,” I admit. This is crazy. More than crazy, but for some reason my heart and body are screaming at me to say yes. Go with this man. He is something to you. Feel it.
“I’m going to be straight with you, Jasmine. I want you.” He shakes his head. “No, I mean you’re mine. Want doesn’t begin to cut it.” He says it so simply, as if it’s a fact known to everyone.
“I watch you. Every day you have school, you walk past my building in front of the park. My office is on the bottom floor, and each day I wait for you.” He takes a step closer to me. “All day I feel darkness around me. Almost as if it’s trapping me in, and then you walk by and for a brief moment in my day I feel…” He shakes his head as if he can’t find the word. “Peace,” he finally finishes.
I glance over at the open window and back to him. While I don’t get why he thinks I bring him peace, I get having something that comforts you.
“You work across from the park?” I ask.
“I own the whole building. My home is on the top floor.”
It’s my turn to take a step toward him. I think I know which building he’s talking about. “The building with the giant balcony on the top floor? Overlooking everything?” I’ve always wondered what it looked like up there. Overlooking the park. The rest of the city below you. Far enough away to find comfort.
“Yes.” He smiles.
“And you want me to come home with you?” He takes another step toward me, the space between us fast disappearing. “You want me to bring you peace?”
“I want you to bring me everything.”
6
Ash
“If you agree to come with me, I’ll provide everything for you. A place for you to live, money to do what you want. I can pay your tuition if you want to go to college. I can make every dream you’ve ever had come true.”
She bites her lip, and I can see indecision on her face.
“I promise to never hurt you, Jasmine. I’ll protect you from all the darkness in the world, including what your father is bringing home. You’ll be mine, and I will treat you like a queen.”
“You won’t hurt me?”
“Why would I hurt the most important thing in the world to me? The thing that holds my heart in her hands?” I shake my head because the thought disgusts me. I reach out, touching her powder-soft cheek. “No, my sweet girl. I will only ever do what you ask me to do. Your words command me. Speak it into existence and it’s yours. Everything you’ve ever desired.”
“Why are you doing this?”
It’s a fair question. I can see how badly she wants this, how much she wants what I’m saying to be true. I just need her to give me a chance to show her it is. “Because from the moment I saw you, I felt something inside me come to life. Everything was so bland and sparse before you. Walls of nothingness started to close in around me. Nothing held any flavor anymore. It was like there was no point to life anymore. I’d done everything I’d ever wanted to. Until you. You awoke a sleeping heart in my chest, and every day it aches for you. I have reason to want to get up each morning. I want to take care of you. Make sure you have enough to eat, that you have what you need. That everything is yours. The world, Jasmine. From first sight, I knew you were the missing piece in my world, and by taking care of you, it fills this need in me. By knowing that I’m the one making you happy and making sure you have your dreams come true, mine come true.”
She looks past me to her bedroom door and then back to me. She takes a breath and squares her shoulders.
“Okay. I’ll come with you. I know what will happen to me here, and maybe if I go with you there’s a chance. But if you hurt me—”
I cut her off by placing the tip of my finger on her lips. “Never.”
She must see the truth in my eyes, because she nods.
“Pack your school things. I’ll meet you downstairs.”
She gives me a small smile, and I reluctantly step away from her. I hate putting even this small distance between us, but it’s necessary.
When I get back downstairs her father is sitting at the table, looking over the paperwork. He stands up when he sees me and starts to ask questions about the financials.
“So you’re going to give me the money or what?”
I’m disgusted those are the first words out of his mouth. Nothing about his daughter or what I could have done to her upstairs. Not even my intentions with her. It’s always about the money.
“I’ve already taken care of your debts around town.” When he gives
me a confused look, I shrug. “She was coming with me no matter what you said. But I’m a man of my word.”
I reach into my jacket pocket and pull out the yellow envelope I was saving. I toss it down on the table, and he reaches out, grabbing it up and opening it.
“That’s all you’ll ever see. You don’t get to come looking for her. You won’t hit me up for more money. Are we clear?”
He barely glances up from the fat stack of hundreds to nod in my general direction. I turn to see Jasmine watching from at the bottom of the stairs. A trace of hurt crosses her face, but then she shakes it away. The scene before her is exactly what she expected, and she’s disappointed it wasn’t different. I plan to spend the rest of my life proving to her this was the right decision.
“Are you ready, sweetheart?” I ask, holding my hand out.
She hesitates for only a second before walking to me and putting her hand in mine. There’s an old saying about the devil you know being better than the one you don’t. But in our case, I truly am the prince that’s come to save her. And I’ll make sure she sees that.
“Goodbye,” she says softly to her father.
It’s then he finally looks up from the money he’s counting and sees her standing there with a bag on her shoulder.
He opens his mouth a few times then closes it. He clears his throat. “Good luck.”
“You too,” she replies quietly.
There’s no embrace, no I love yous. Nothing. They stand mere feet apart, but there might as well be an ocean between them. They’re strangers who were pushed together, and this is where their story ends.
But where this one stops, ours starts, and I pull her toward the door. She comes with me easily, and I let out a small, relieved breath. I think there will always be a fear inside me that she may not choose a life with me, but my only hope is to make her so happy, it’s impossible for her to say no.
I take her hand and hold it with both of mine, wanting to hold on to her as tightly as I can.
