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?”
“Yes.”
“Good.” Adam sat himself down in Mr. Kender’s big leather high-backed chair and leaned against his fingers forming a temple at his chin. “What do you do here, Olivia?”
“I’m Mr. Kender’s PA,” I said, swallowing hard. “Um…that is, I’m his personal assistant.”
“I know what PA stands for,” he snapped, glaring at me again. “How long have you worked for Mr. Kender?”
“Three weeks,” I responded. “My friend Melody got me this job when…”
“Did I ask you about the hiring process?”
“Um…no.”
“Then don’t talk to me about it.”
I could feel heat rising up my face, and I knew I was turning bright pink. Adam gazed at me for a moment before continuing.
“Next question, Olivia.” Adam’s voice was calm and smooth again. “Are you sleeping with him?”
“What?” I gasped. “No!”
“Good.” Adam got up from the chair and leaned back over Mr. Kender’s laptop.
I just stood there with what had to be a totally inane look of disbelief on my face and my mouth hanging wide open. When I realized I was probably going to start drooling on myself, I snapped it shut.
Adam tapped on the laptop’s keyboard furiously for a few minutes. Then he stopped. Then he clattered about again. His eyes flashed over the screen, narrowing slightly. Then they moved over to me, and the intensity of his stare made me take a half step backwards.
“Do you have a laptop?” Adam asked.
“Um…yes?” I stammered again.
“Are you asking yourself a question this time?”
“No,” I said softly.
“So you do have a laptop?” he smirked.
“Yes,” I said, a little louder. “I have a laptop.”
“Where?”
“The desk outside this office.”
“Go and retrieve your laptop,” Adam said. “Bring it back here to me. Don’t stray, baby, okay?”
“Okay,” I said, and turned around to walk out the door.
“Want me to go with her?” I heard the bald man speak.
“It’s okay, Cole,” Adam said. “She’s coming right back. Aren’t you, baby?”
“Yes,” I said. I walked swiftly out into the office, wondering why I was simply complying with everything this man said.
Maybe because he’s telling you exactly what he wants you to do instead of asking for your opinion?
I tried to push that thought aside, but it just wasn’t willing to budge.
I went to my desk and tried not to look at Frank the Monster Man standing next to the elevators with his arms crossed over his chest and spinning his gun, which was looped around one finger. My laptop was still on with the screen saver running, so I closed the cover with a quiet click, undocked it from the docking station, and carried it back into Mr. Kender’s office. Adam looked up and smiled at me when I walked back in.
“Good girl,” he murmured. “Over here.”
I handed the laptop to him, and his fingers touched mine as he took it. A shiver went up my hand and arm from the contact of his soft, warm fingers. Adam turned the thing back and forth in his hands for a minute before he pulled it back over his shoulder and flung it across the room.
It hit the wall, and pieces of plastic and metal went flying in all directions. I jumped and a short scream escaped from my throat.
“Sorry abou
t that,” Adam said nonchalantly, looking back to the laptop on the desk. “I needed to break something, and I figure what I need is probably on this computer, not yours.”
The bald man, Cole, started to laugh.
“Go check on Frank,” Adam said, waving his hand toward Cole. “Make sure he isn’t trolling for more stragglers. He’s pissing me off.”
“Will do!” Cole dropped the red file folder he was perusing and strolled out the door, closing it behind him.
“Sit.” Adam motioned to Mr. Kender’s chair.
It’s that voice of his, I thought as another tingle danced around in my panties. Good lord, my panties were probably wet by now.
While I was thinking about the condition of my undergarments, Adam was standing with one hand on the back of the chair, waiting for me with his eyebrow raised. I felt my face go hot again, and I dropped my eyes to the ground. I think he snickered, but I wasn’t sure if I had heard right. I took a couple of steps forward and turned to sit on the chair. Adam pushed against the back of the chair and maneuvered me to the laptop.
“Sign on,” Adam said.
I could have. I mean, I knew all the passwords. Mr. Kender made me memorize them because he didn’t want them written down anywhere. Still, I hesitated, wondering just what the hell I was doing. Was I really going to betray the trust my boss had bestowed upon me with his password? This guy was a terrorist with a gun stuck in the front of his pants.
I got a little fixated on the thought of the gun in his pants that wasn’t an actual firearm, and completely forgot what I was supposed to be doing.
The chair made a little squeaking sound as Adam leaned his weight against it and brushed my hair away from my ear. My whole body seized up and my hands gripped the armrests.
“Olivia, I know what you are thinking.” Adam’s breath was hot against my ear. “You are worried about your loyalty. You are concerned that you may be betraying the trust of the man who hired you. I’m telling you, Olivia, he is not worthy of your trust.”
“And you are?” I heard myself say and immediately wished I could take it back.
“Most certainly,” he responded. “Though you have met me under some rather…interesting circumstances, I assure you trusting me is more likely to be in your best interest than trusting Mr. Kender.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because he is a vile, evil man!” Adam slammed his hand against the top of the chair suddenly, causing me to jump. Then I heard him take a slow, deep breath. “I’d kill him myself, but I’m afraid that would be far too easy on him.”
I sat and stared at the login screen with its seemingly innocent little name and password text boxes.
“I am going to use a word that I don’t use very often.” Adam leaned close to me again, his arm landing lightly over my shoulders as he leaned down to look me in the eye. “But this is important. Olivia, please, type in Mr. Kender’s name and password.”
“For which folders?” I asked quietly. I mean, I really didn’t have a choice, did I?
“Multiple accounts for accessing different information?” Adam raised his eyebrows. I nodded in confirmation. “How are they organized?”
“By color,” I responded.
“Which colors?”
I started rattling off the various colors for the various folders. When I said “pink,” Adam stopped me by placing his finger against my lips. I had to fight back a sudden urge to stick my tongue out and find out how it tasted.
“That’s the one,” he said. His eyes were wide, and he took a long, deep breath.
“He never goes into that one,” I told him.
“How do you know?”
“He’s never asked me for the password,” I said. “He can’t remember any of the others.”
“That’s as good a confirmation as I am going to get. Enter the password for the pink folder, Olivia.”
My breath caught in my throat, and with my hands shaking, I reached up to the keyboard and did as he asked.
“Thank you,” Adam said softly, and I felt his warm breath against my cheek just a moment before his lips grazed my skin. “Now get up and stand next to me.”
Again, I did as he asked. I wasn’t even hesitating anymore, and the tension throughout my body was increasing. It was increasing in the most interesting and pleasurable way.
Adam’s fingers flew over the keyboard again until his eyes lit up and he silently pulled a flash drive from his pocket, inserted it into a USB port, and started copying files. He sat back in the chair and smiled up at me.
“You have no idea how long I have waited for this moment,” Adam said. He reached out and took my hand in his, then brushed his lips over the back of my knuckles.
“My good luck charm,” he murmured. His voice was dark and soft. He released my hand and pushed on the floor with his feet, effectively moving the rolling chair a couple of feet back. He ran his eyes down to my shoes and back up…again. I could feel heat in my cheeks. For several minutes, he just stared at me. I danced back and forth from one foot to the other.
Finally, he spoke.
“Take the scarf off,” he said softly.
“Um…what?” My heart was starting its little sprint again as I tried to comprehend what he was asking me to do.
“The scarf on your neck,” he repeated slowly, obviously thinking I’m a moron. “Take it off.”
“Why?”
His eyes narrowed at me again, and I had a feeling I didn’t want to question him a second time. I reached up with shaky fingers and pulled at the knot. I swallowed hard and gave the knot one more tug and it loosened enough to come undone. I pulled the fabric from around my neck and held it out to him.
He glanced at my outstretched hand for a split second, and then his eyes went back up to my neck.
“Undo the buttons on your blouse.”
I stared at him, and I think my mouth might have dropped open as well.
He gave a half smile and glanced down at the floor for a moment. He closed his eyes and shook his head slightly before looking back up at me. I heard a breathy laugh escape him.
“Just the top three buttons, baby.”
Because I didn’t know what else to do, I complied and shoved the top three buttons through their loops. The top of my blouse fell open a little, exposing my neck, but not much else.
“No boyfriend?” he inquired, though it sounded more like a statement than a question.
“No. Um…how did you know…?” I questioned pathetically.
“No hickeys.” He smiled a little broader.
“What does that have to do with anything?”
“If I were your boyfriend, I’d be leaving marks all over you just to make sure every other man who got near you knew you were mine.”
I stared at him in shock, not having any idea how to respond to a comment like that. There was a big part of me that wanted to pull the neckline back a bit more so he had easier access. There was another part that…well…that wanted to do the exact same thing. I started raising my hand to the top of my blouse, my eyes still locked with his.
That’s when the phone at my hip started buzzing—loudly. How is it that silent mode was just about as loud as setting the damn thing on high? Adam’s gaze darted over to my hip and then up to my eyes, pointedly. I didn’t have to look to see who it was. I knew it was Elissa.
“Are you going to answer that?”
“No…um…should I?”
“Maybe you should at least look to see who it is.”
“I know who it is,” I said.
“Do you now?” Adam smiled a quiet, captivating smile.
“It’s Elissa,” I said.
“And Elissa is…?”
“The receptionist,” I responded. The phone kept ringing. “She knows I’m up here.”
“By all means,” Adam said, motioning to my hip with one hand, “answer the phone before it goes to voice mail and she assumes the worst.”
I pushed the answer button and held the phone up t
o my ear. I had no idea what I was going to say to her.
“Hi, Elissa,” I started.
“Hi? What the hell do you mean ‘Hi’? Where the fuck are you?”
“I’m…um…in Mr. Kender’s office.”
“Olivia, you were supposed to get out of there!”
“I know, but…” Adam’s hand covered mine and he gently pried the phone away. I hadn’t even heard him stand up.
“Hello there, Elissa,” Adam said, his voice as smooth as silk. “Tell me, is Mr. Kender near you? Hand the phone to him now, without a word, or I’m going to start removing body parts from your friend here.”
I inhaled audibly, and Adam looked up at me, shaking his head and putting the index finger of his free hand up to his lips to give me a silent shushing. Then he reached that same finger out and stroked it lightly over my jaw line. Shivers started on the skin he touched and traveled throughout my body.
“Mr. Kender, so nice to speak with you again.” Adam dropped down into Mr. Kender’s desk chair and put his feet up next to the laptop. “I’ve been enjoying the company of your PA. She’s been very informative—with a little persuasion.”
Adam looked up at me and winked.
“I’m a little surprised, actually. She’s a lot older than your usual tastes. She’s probably out of high school at least, you sick little fuck.”
Adam pulled the phone a little ways away from his ear. I could hear Mr. Kender yelling but not what he was saying.
“I sure hope you walked away from the crowd,” Adam said. “You’re not exactly subtle.”
He leaned back in the chair and stretched his neck to the left and then the right.
“She’s extremely attractive.” Adam’s eyes started at my feet and then moved slowly up to my eyes. I shuddered. I swear I could feel his gaze over every inch of me. “Is that why you hired her, Mr. Kender? Are you trying to tap this sweet young thing? Have you laid a hand on her at all?”
I shook my head and watched a slow half smile creep over Adam’s lips.
“Good,” he mouthed silently.
“I’ve got the files, Mr. Kender.” Adam’s voice lost the nearly playful, light tone he had been using and became cold and hard. “This is just the first step. When I’m done with you, you are going to wish I had just pulled the trigger.”