Ruin Her

She took the card from him. “And if I don’t turn up?”

“You’ll just have to wait and see what I do to a woman who doesn’t do as she’s told.”

“You were only supposed to be some fun,” she said.

He reached out, unable to deny himself the pleasure of touching her. He tucked some of her hair behind her ear. Soft locks. Deep brown.

“Yes, only I decide when the fun stops, and I’m not ready for it to be over.”

“You don’t get to make decisions like this. It’s not fair. I have a life.”

“That you do, but you’ll be there tonight.” He didn’t give her a chance to argue. Turning on his heel, he left her alone.

It was now time for him to kill a bunch of their enemies. In a way, he was making the streets safer.

Chapter Three

Ellie paid the cab driver, climbed out, and stared up at the large building. It was a grand place. The kind a woman would love to have, but she wasn’t stupid. These kinds of properties came with a price, or a woman had a bunch of luck, earning the kind of income one needed to be to have a home like this.

Rubbing a hand down her face, she took a deep breath. She should have stayed home.

The thought of this man, whose name she still didn’t know, coming to her place, and … she didn’t know what he’d do. The man she’d slept with, no, fucked, shouldn’t have taken her ID or found her.

She wasn’t used to this kind of attention.

Stepping out of the way of a couple, she looked down at the ground. Whoever was at reception was going to send her away.

Was this punishment for leaving this morning?

She hadn’t even called Casey to ask about him, or if she had any idea of who he was. Clearly, he came from money, or was a businessman, wealthy in his own right. Knowing this didn’t make her feel comfortable, though. If anything, it made her even more uneasy.

“Just get it over with.” She opened the door and walked through to the reception where there was a man dressed in a gray suit. He put the phone down, his gaze falling on her.

“Hi, I’ve been given this address and been asked to meet him here.” She didn’t know the guy’s name. This was bad.

The receptionist typed and then nodded. “Ellie Taylor.” He grabbed a pair of keys and handed them to her.

“Wait, how do you know it’s me?”

“We have your identification on the screen. We pride ourselves on security. Welcome to the Giavanni Building.”

“Giavanni?”

“Yes.”

“Like the nightclub?”

The man just smiled. She took the keys and made her way to the stairs.

“The elevator will take you to your floor,” he said.

“The floor is on the key,” she said. “I can walk.”

She wanted to do something to clear her head. She knew she was missing something, only, she didn’t have the first fucking clue what exactly it was. Fifth floor.

The steps were nice. The building was quiet.

She found the apartment easily, matching the number with the key.

After sliding the key into the lock, she stepped through the door and closed it behind her. “Hello, anyone home?” She pushed some hair off her face.

No one answered.

The apartment was huge. She took a moment to admire the sitting room.

Two large sofas were turned to a television that would have taken up one wall of her apartment. The windows were nice and big, floor-to-ceiling. There wasn’t a chance in hell she would ever stand close to them. She hated heights.

Keeping her distance from the windows, she found a small dining room. The table had nine seats. Next, the kitchen, modern, clean, and pristine.

She was going to go down the hall but stopped as she heard the door open.

Rushing back to the corridor, she saw him. “Who are you?” she asked.

“How do you like your new apartment?”

“My new apartment?”

“Yes, this is where you’ll be staying.”

“Wait, what?” She tilted her head to the side, pursed her lips.

“It has everything you might desire.” He grabbed her hand, leading her down toward the bedroom.

The bed was huge, bigger than the one she’d been in last night. A full closet waited for her as well. Next, he showed her the bathroom. There was another bedroom.

“I don’t want you to invite anyone over unless you’ve cleared them with me first.”

“Wait, hold on. You’ve rented me this apartment and … who the fuck are you?” She frowned at his smirk. “This isn’t funny. I don’t have a clue who you are, and no one, I mean no one goes out and rents a perfect stranger an apartment.”

“Buys. I own this place.”

“You’re kidding me. This isn’t happening.” She stepped away from him, needing air. Needing something.

“It’s simple. I enjoyed last night. I know you did. I take care of what I want and now I’m keeping you safe.”