“Put on your seat belt," he ordered.
“Open the gate,” I muttered, infuriated by the fact that he was right, but I didn’t want to appear to obey him.
He didn’t respond. Actually, he didn’t even bother looking at me. He shifted in his seat and rested his head against the headrest like someone who had settled in to enjoy a ride from his personal driver.
What an asshole!
I took in a deep, wholesome breath to rein in my galloping temper. Once that was securely reined in, I swallowed my pride, grabbed the seatbelt from over my shoulder, and clicked it into place—like he had commanded.
Calmly, he revealed the remote in his hand and pointed it at the gate without a word. The iron gates rolled away smoothly open.
The incredulousness of the whole situation left me stunned and speechless. All I could do was shift the gear into place and drive.
Chapter 14
Sienna
LA was infuriatingly slow.
Back in London, I had relied heavily on the underground tube system which was punctual and reliable, and the buses weren’t half bad either. But here, with everyone and their pet owning a vehicle ? the traffic at this hour through Lakewood Boulevard south to the San Diego Freeway ? was enough to frustrate one to death.
Ordinarily, I wouldn’t have been too annoyed by it, but having to sit in abject silence beside the evil mannequin by my side was too much to bear in my current state of mind.
I felt like the universe was testing me to see just how much I could take before I completely lost it and exploded. My finger tapped impatiently against the steering wheel as I stared in annoyance at the standstill traffic.
Although, I tried my best not to, I couldn’t help sneaking looks at him. I had thought he wasn’t too big compared to all the other gorillas that constantly hung around my father, but his presence right now in the car was almost overwhelming. It felt too crowded to be in such a confined space with him, especially since I could very vividly remember our encounter at the pool, and the way I had fantasized about him fucking me out of my mind.
With every passing moment, it became increasingly difficult to breathe. Rudely, I turned off the air condition and rolled down the window on my side. I thought of rolling his down too, but decided he did not deserve the kindness. He could very well do it himself if he wanted to. I did feel a slight twinge of guilt. I knew in my heart that he was simply just doing his job as he had been instructed, but did he have to be such a prick about it?
To my surprise, he did nothing. Just sat as still as a statue in the boiling heat.
How could he remain so still? I wondered. His eyes were closed. Had he fallen asleep? He must have. His hat still sat extremely low on his face, so I was sure he wouldn’t see me even if he was awake. I grew bolder as I watched him.
His skin looked as smooth as milk, and the thick lashes resting on his tanned flesh made me feel quite envious. They were far thicker and longer than mine. No man should have such showy lashes. It was simply unnecessary. His nose was straight and strong, a full Roman nose. I let my eyes travel down to his jawline. It looked sharp enough to chisel stone. It was what gave him that aura of barely suppressed impatience.
Then I was back to his mouth.
His lower lip looked gloriously plump and sensuous. I could imagine sucking on it. Not that I would in real life. I didn’t even want to touch him. As a human being, he was almost worse than Fabio.
The cars around me were beginning to move so I turned away, rolled his window down, and focused on my driving.
Half an hour later, I pulled into Christine’s apartment complex in Long Beach and turned off the engine. I eyed him. I knew he was awake, but he didn’t stir. Without a word, I pushed my door open, and retrieved my purse from the backseat. It had my passport and credit cards, all the necessities needed to book a flight out of the country in a flash.
He got out of the car and followed me as I headed up the stairs towards her apartment, and soon arrived at her door. I turned around then to face him.
This time around, his gaze met mine.
Something struck my heart.
In the daylight, his eyes were the most stunning ocean blue I’ve ever seen. I opened my mouth to say what I had wanted to, but I had no recollection whatsoever of what I’d intended to say. Annoyed even further, I lowered my head and tried to restart my brain. What the hell is wrong with me? Yes, he was hot, disgustingly so, but he was also a horrible person.