Inside of Mr. Kender’s office were two other men. The tall, bald, and lanky one was standing by Mr. Kender’s filing cabinet, which was always kept locked but had obviously been broken into. I could tell because it was on its side with all the drawers bent up and strewn about. I wasn’t sure, but I thought there might have been a bullet-sized hole near the lock. The bald guy was digging through a bunch of files in red folders. Those were documents I was told never to touch.
The other one was standing behind Mr. Kender’s desk, leaning with his hands on either side of Mr. Kender’s laptop. His hair was deep black and slicked back on the sides. He was wearing dark pinstriped pants and a white button-down shirt. There was a jacket matching his pants tossed over the back of Mr. Kender’s chair. His deep green tie matched his eyes, which I noticed immediately when he looked up toward the door.
When his eyes met mine, I was kind of glad someone was holding on to me because I could have fallen right there on the floor. Not only were his eyes about the most intense shade of green I had ever seen, but once they locked with mine, I found I couldn’t look away from him. I think I actually gasped because he was, without a doubt, the most beautiful man I had ever seen. The intense look that was originally locked with my eyes slowly traveled down my body and back up again.
I never really understood the term “eye fucked” until that moment.
My stomach muscles, as well as the ones right below my stomach, clenched, sending a delicious shiver up my body. My eyes dropped slightly, and I found myself staring at his lips and wondering just what they might taste like. Then my eyes dropped over him for a moment, and oh my God, was he built. I tried not to let my gaze wander, but my eyes dropped down to the front of his pants. Unfortunately, the first thing I really noticed was the gun buried in the waistband of his trousers, and I had to immediately look away.
Monster Man pushed me through the entrance, his hand digging into my arm hard enough that it would probably end up leaving a bruise.
“What the hell is this?” Green Eyes didn’t raise his voice, but something in the tone made it sound like he had.
“Hostage.” Monster Man grinned. I knew it anyway, but when I heard the word spoken, I had to bite down on my lip to keep from whimpering out loud.
“I told you before,” Green Eyes said, practically snarling, “no hostages. Why the fuck do you think we had them evacuate the damn building?”
“Relax, Adam.” The tall, bald man smiled. “Frank is just doing his duty.”
At least Green Eyes and Monster Man had names.
Adam’s gaze dropped back down to my feet and slowly made their way back up again, and I felt another shiver run up and down my spine. This shiver landed itself right between my legs and seemed to be pretty happy staying there.
“Let go of her, Frank,” Adam commanded. My arm was released, and I rubbed at the spot where he had been holding me. “Go on. Get out of here.”
At first I thought he meant me, but when Frank turned and headed out the door, I recognized my mistake.
“Come here, baby.” Adam raised his hand and motioned at me with two fingers curling back toward himself.
I stood there and stared at him with my mouth open. His brows lowered, narrowing his eyes and making them go dark.
“I don’t ask twice,” he said.
I told my feet to move, and surprisingly they did. I took a few steps over to the desk but stopped when I was still a good six feet away from him. I know I should have been afraid of him—I mean, he was obviously some kind of terrorist—but I was actually more afraid I would do something to look foolish in front of him than of what he might do to me. Actually, that thought itself was probably about the most foolish one I had ever had, so I was already well on my way to village idiot.
He raised his eyes from the computer screen back up to mine. He cocked one eyebrow in my direction, glanced down at a spot next to him on the floor, and then back up to me. There was no doubt he was telling me to move to that spot, and I thought it was probably best to do what he indicated. I moved to stand next to him, my fingers twisting around themselves in front of me while I chewed on my bottom lip.
“Let me see your arm,” he said, holding out his hand. I hesitated for a moment, and his eyes darkened again. I tentatively held my hand out toward his. He took my hand in both of his for a moment, his thumb running over the base of the third finger of my left hand before he slid one hand up my arm. He stopped at the place where Frank had been holding on to it, right below my sleeve, and slowly massaged the reddened skin there.
“What’s your name, baby?”
“Olivia.”
“Olivia,” he repeated, smiling.
His hands were soft, and his nails were obviously manicured. His touch was either incredibly sensual, or I was just that insane. When he ran his finger slowly over the red mark on my arm, I could feel it in my nipples. They hardened without warning, and I was glad my blouse was loose fitting in the front. He ran his hand back down my arm to my wrist and then back up again, sending my flesh into goose bumps. At least my arm matches my breasts. His fingers graced over my shoulder and up my neck until he cupped my chin in his hand. I leaned back a little, my body’s reactions startling me, but he held me in check. When he spoke, his voice was low, smooth, and strangely reassuring. “Frank is an animal. He won’t touch you again.”
I nodded slightly since his hand was still gripping me.
“I’m going to ask you some questions, Olivia,” Adam said, releasing my chin. “You are going to answer them quickly and truthfully. Do you understand me?”
“Um…yes?”
“Are you asking me a question?” He narrowed his eyes and glared at me.
“No,” I whispered.
“Let’s try this again, then.” He cocked his head to one side, his look softening. “Do you understand?”