Goose bumps spread from my neck to my fingers, and the voice materialized in front of me in the shape of a man. His blonde and black hair was pulled carelessly into a bun. His green eyes twinkled as he smiled. “Hi, there.”
I was lifted in the air before I could react and tossed over his shoulder. I jerked into action and pounded against his back, but I might have been throwing feather punches because he didn’t break stride or even indicate he was in pain as he carried me from the suite to the staircase and down.
I could feel the presence of the other man following, but then his voice speaking curtly into the phone confirmed he’d followed.
“It’s a chick, man. Yeah… she’s alone.”
Man-bun never took his eyes off me and with half a grin on his pretty face, he looked too friendly for what was happening here.
I sat on the marble floor of the entrance where he ordered me after I had socked him and sat crossed legged as he instructed. He stood in front of me with his hands shoved in his pockets, but something told me not to misjudge his easy stance. He could probably slit my throat before I untucked a leg.
The other one brooded a few feet away with his phone plastered to his ear. He wasn’t as friendly as his partner was, but he hadn’t hurt me either. I sat as still as I could and listened in on his side of the conversation but understood nothing. They either spoke in code or didn’t believe in complete sentences.
The defined muscles in his arms, powerful back and broad shoulders straining against the thin shirt he wore told me where he spent much of his time. I wondered if he was one of those guys who were all muscle and not much else. His dusty colored hair was messy in a fashionable way. Maybe he’d just rolled out of bed with someone who couldn’t keep her fingers from running through it . I knew I wouldn’t.
“You look like you have a question,” man bun commented. His lazy grin grew into a full-fledged smile when my gaze jerked from his partner. It was obvious I’d been caught ogling. I ignored his comment and his smugness and let my gaze fall to his chest. A pristine white button-up covered the area, but it didn’t hide the muscles bunched beneath them. He wasn’t as strongly built as his friend was, but he was no less impressive. The black jeans he wore emphasized his muscular legs and fit him like a glove but not tight enough to make me question how much air he was getting down there. Black suspenders hung from his jeans, giving him the appearance of a rugged geek. On his feet were black Nike high-tops.
My perusal traveled back up and found he was no longer watching me. His attention was on his friend’s conversation and a deep frown obscured his soft features. Instead of investigating his change in mood, I studied his hair. His dark roots faded into the blonde highlights before disappearing behind his skull and into whatever tie he used to hold the strands together.
He had a playfulness about him that made me wary. He probably knew exactly how attractive he was and how much power he could wield with his assets.
My gaze pinpointed the spot where my fist had connected with man bun’s jaw as soon as he released me. A bruise was beginning to form, and I smiled at my handiwork. His partner’s slight limp as he paced told me he still felt my kick to his kneecap. It was too bad it didn’t shatter.
I bet they wouldn’t be writing home about the hundred-pound girl who kicked their asses anytime soon. They hadn’t seemed to be in any rush to hurt me. I even hurled insults as I was carried down, but they never reacted.
“What the FUCK do you mean let her go ?” The angry outburst from the brooding one caught my attention. His was already fixed on me. His disdain for me was obvious, so I made sure to return the gesture. “Why?” he growled into the receiver. He listened and then scrubbed his hand down his face. “Fuck. Fine.”
I made sure to look real smug about that. He caught my smug look and expressed with his eye and the curl of his lip exactly how much he wanted to murder me. When he started toward me swiftly, my smile dropped, and I scooted back on my bum.
“It’s for you.” He extended the phone, but it might as well have been a bomb.
“Um…”
“Take it,” he demanded through clenched teeth.
“Why?”
He snatched the phone back and stabbed the screen. “You’re on speaker,” he informed. There was nothing but silence while my heart pounded in my chest.
“Tsk. Tsk.”
So much for lucky breaks.
“Ever the disobedient one…” I felt my blood drain when I recognized the refined voice. It was deeper now–stronger. “Even when you’re in my house uninvited .”
“You have something that belongs to me.”
“You expect me to believe that?”
I shrugged to hide the tremble, but then remembered he couldn’t see me. “Believe what you want.”
“There are consequences to bad decisions.”
“I’m sure I don’t know what you mean.”
“But your father would, wouldn’t he?”