But that thought made me want to kick and wail in the middle of the sidewalk like a toddler. I didn’t want to go back to New Haven, and the idea that I wouldn’t see Shayne again until our parents wedding made me want to throw up. Crap. Whatever it was that I felt for him, it was bad. Bad for my sanity. Bad for my life. But that didn’t stop me from wanting it just as badly.
I was an idiot for not just asking him if he had screwed that girl in St. Louis. He’d tried to talk to me several times on the bus, but I kept moving away from him like a twelve-year-old. I had never been in an adult relationship before if that was even what this was.
Shayne and I had sex twice, and now we barely spoke to each other. That wasn’t even close to a relationship.
Because I was so wrapped up in my own little world, I missed the dark van that scooted up beside me on the street. I looked around to figure out where I was. I was at least four blocks off my normal route if I was planning to walk back home. But then I looked down at my shoes. Those heels weren’t made for walking. I stepped closer to the curb and started to scan for a taxi.
It happened so fast that I barely had time to process it. The door of the van slid open, and a man in a ski mask jumped out. His hand came up, and I opened my mouth to scream. I have no idea if any noise actually made it out of my mouth before a blow landed hard on the side of my head, and the world went black.
There was a throbbing in my head as I felt around the edges of my consciousness. It hurt to even think about opening my eyes. But then I remembered the last few moments I could recall, and my eyes shot open. I regretted it immediately as the pounding in my head increased by a factor of ten.
I groaned and moved to touch my head when I realized that I couldn’t move my arms. I couldn’t move my legs either. I managed to squint looking down at my body. I was sitting upright in a chair. My arms were bound behind me, and judging by the sticky sensation I felt around my wrists, they were bound by duct tape. The same kind of tape that I felt across the lower half of my face covering my mouth.
Blinking rapidly and trying to clear my head, I scanned the area around me. I was in a room that appeared to part of a small studio apartment. There was a dirty mattress on the floor a few feet away from my chair. Off to my right, there was a small galley style kitchen. Dirty dishes overflowed in the sink. A small table was wedged in the corner with two metal chairs around it. There was a heavy smell of dust and neglect. There was no sign of anyone else in the apartment with me.
I tried to move my legs again, but they appeared to be bound to the legs of my chair. I started to whimper. Someone had abducted me off the sidewalk. I had no idea who had done it or what they wanted with me. It appeared that I was in a slovenly apartment, and I was alone. At least for now.
Trying to keep my cool, I started to explore the bindings on my wrists. If I could get them free, then I could get out of the chair. Although I was terrified out of my mind, I focused on that one thought. Get my wrists free. One step at a time. It was the only thing keeping me from a full-blown panic attack.
One thing at a time.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE - SHAYNE
Maury left a few hours after Alexa did. He said I needed to get my shit together and that I was losing focus. Of course, I was. I was feeling like the world’s biggest ass for the way I treated her. I saw the look on her face when she left the gym. She looked as if she had been the one to get the shit beat out of her. I had done that. Me.
I was the loser. She had been telling me how rosy everything was looking with my money, and instead of thanking her, I fired her. I had done it because as we sat there talking, I couldn’t help but stare at her perfectly formed lips. Her hair was up in that stupid bun that was held up by just a pencil. I wanted to pull that pencil out and see the blond tendrils streaming around her face.
I wanted her lips wrapped around my cock as I dug my hands into those curls. I wanted to hold onto them hard as I watched her work me into a frenzy just before I came in her mouth. That’s what I was thinking about as she went on and on about my financial statements. So when she looked at me so expectantly, I naturally gave her the exact opposite reaction. So I didn’t reach across the desk and claim her lips until she made that whimper that drove me wild, I got angry.
The anger wasn’t imaginary. I was pissed that I wanted her as badly as I did. I was furious that after two weeks of doing everything I could think of, pushing myself past the point of physical exhaustion and drinking myself into a stupor before falling into bed dead drunk, she was still there in my thoughts. I couldn’t get her out of my head and seeing her walk back and forth around the gym talking to the rest of my crew and acting like I didn’t exist was driving me insane.