I lay back for a few minutes thinking, then I felt the soft touch of fingers on my leg. I was no longer alone. The fingers ran up my leg in a familiar way, tickling and teasing me at the same time. I stilled as he ran his fingertips all the way from my ankles and up my thighs, pushing my skirt up as he touched me. He grabbed my wrists and I felt him taking the handcuffs off. I sighed in relief that I was no longer constrained, but then froze as I felt a piece of rope replacing the cuffs and tying my wrists together. Why was he putting rope on my hands?
His fingers ran over my stomach and then across my breasts. I was ashamed that my nipples were already hard, but he seemed to enjoy that, as he ran his palms across them several times. I lay there, unsure of what to think and feel. My body was on fire and my mind was in shock. Then he slipped the earmuffs off. My ears adjusted to the sound in the room—all I could hear was his heavy breathing and the sound of my own heartbeat. I wanted to say something, but my voice wouldn’t work.
“You look so beautiful.” The voice was deep and muffled and I didn’t understand why it was so hard to hear him. He leaned down and I felt his lips pressed against mine, kissing me softly. I lay there passively, something in me not feeling right about the situation. I turned my face to the side and he groaned, grabbing it roughly.
“Don’t turn away from me, Bianca,” he muttered, and kissed me again, his fingers slipping down my stomach. “Did you think I’d just let you go? Did you think I’d let you play me and not do anything?” He rubbed the outside of my panties roughly. “I’ve wanted you for so long now.” I breathed in his musky scent, and while it was familiar, I knew it wasn’t Jakob. It wasn’t my Jakob at all.
I felt him sliding my panties down and felt my legs being pushed apart and fingers touching me before he kissed me again. I breathed in his fragrance one more time and I finally understood the reference to Tyler Durden. It didn’t make sense, but it was the only logical answer. Jakob wasn’t Mattias. There was no Mattias.
“Jakob?” I whispered, and the man next to me froze, telling me all I needed to know. “I know who you are. I know what’s going on.” My voice was angry.
“You do?” His voice sounded hard and I marveled at what a good actor he’d been. Only a few times had I ever seen him so upset. He’d played me well, though I’d thought I was playing him. He kissed me hard again, then squeezed my breasts. I felt his tongue between my legs and my body buckled as I closed my thighs on his face and tried to shift away from him. The feel of his tongue and his technique confirmed it to me. I wasn’t sure why I’d been so stupid. All along I should have known the truth. When I was on the island, Jakob had made it clear to me that his father had never married his mother. He wasn’t David’s full brother. David’s mother was married to Bradley senior, David’s mother was Bradley senior’s wife. And Jeremiah Bradley would never have given his bastard the power over the company that Mattias wielded. That meant that Jakob was not Mattias. And if everything I was starting to think was true, it also meant that a far greater lie had been taking place for a long time.
“Do you like this, Bianca?” His mouth left my wetness and he kissed me on the lips. I felt his hands on my face as he slid the blindfold off. “I want you to watch me as we make love.” He grinned down at me, his green eyes lacking emotion. “This will be our first time.” He touched my face lightly. “I want it to be perfect for you, Bianca.”
I blinked up at David, not feeling surprised. I’d known from the minute he’d touched me that it wasn’t Jakob. I stared into his eyes and he gave me a small half smile. Now I knew why Jakob had told me not to trust David. He had been up to no good from the very beginning.
nine
“What are you doing, David?” I blinked up at him, my body still shaking slightly from the tingles and anger that were invading my body in equal waves. I tried to kick him and he laughed, a hollow, unsympathetic sound as he held me down.
“What you wanted me to do.” He grinned at me and ran his fingers across my lips. “What you’ve been wanting from the beginning.”
“Where’s Jakob or Mattias?” I asked softly, though part of me already knew the answer. It was the only answer that made sense, though it didn’t make any sense. The driver had known that it was a setup and he’d tried to warn me as best as he could, but I’d been stupid. I wanted to kick myself at how many stupid decisions I’d made.
“Mattias couldn’t be bothered to come. He told me to take care of you for him.” David shrugged and his right hand stroked up and down my stomach. His fingers felt rough and aggressive and I shifted on the bed uncomfortably.
“David,” I pleaded. “Please untie me. Don’t do this.”
“Why? You going to be a fucking tease again?” He stared down at me, nostrils flaring. “You think you can just be a cocktease and get away with it?”
“David.” I took a deep breath. “Please, don’t do this. This isn’t who you are. This isn’t who we were.”
“You think you can play me? You think that after everything you can just use me and expect that you’re not going to pay?”
“David . . .” I froze as I heard a loud bang. “What’s that noise?” I frowned as he jumped up as well.