by I. T. Lucas
Anastasia laughed. “Seriously?” She leaned to whisper in his ear, “We’ve just made love on the jet.”
They had, and once again, Leon had managed not to bite her. But the only way he could pull it off again was to keep his pants on, not allow Anastasia to touch him, and focus only on pleasuring her.
He lifted her onto his lap. “And your point is?”
“No point.” She pulled the pink scarf out of her coat pocket. “Do I need to put it on?”
Damn, he should have added a proper blindfold and restraints to the list of items he’d asked Arwel to collect for Anastasia’s. “You know the rules.” Leon took the scarf from her hands. “Close your eyes, beautiful.”
“Yes, sir.”
3
Anastasia
“We are here.” Leon’s soft murmur was followed by a gentle kiss on her lips.
Smiling, Ana opened her eyes. “We are? I thought that I only dozed off for a couple of minutes.”
The blindfold was no longer over her eyes, the limousine windows were no longer opaque, and they were parked in front of a cabin that was modest compared to what Ana had expected. After flying on a private jet and then being driven in a limo by a uniformed driver, she’d expected the cabin to be a rustic-looking castle.
“It was a little longer than that.” Leon held the coat up for her.
Somehow, he’d managed to put her clothes back on without waking her.
“You really are a sex god. I keep blacking out from bliss.” She stretched like a well-satisfied kitten. “I've had two firsts in the span of three hours. I joined the mile-high club, and I made love in a limo. I’m quite impressed with myself.”
Well, the limo part had been one-sided, but contrary to what a former president had claimed back in the day, oral pleasure given and received still counted as sex.
The strange-looking chauffeur opened the back door, smiled his fake smile, and offered her a hand up. “Welcome to the cabin, mistress.”
“Thank you.” Ana took his hand not because she needed help getting out, but because she didn’t want to offend him by refusing.
“I will bring the luggage in, and then I will show you and Master Leon where everything is.” He bowed before pivoting on his heel and heading for the trunk.
“Do you have the key?” Ana threaded her arm through Leon’s.
“It’s a keypad lock. I have the combination.” He pulled out his phone and glanced at the display for a moment. “It’s the same number as the one for the gate.”
She looked over her shoulder, surprised to see that the property indeed had one. “I didn’t even notice the fence around the place. The bushes are so tall that they are hiding it.”
“Yeah. They have grown quite a lot since the last time I was here.” Leon led her up the stairs to the front porch.
Ana’s step faltered. He hadn’t told her that he’d stayed in the cabin before, and the idea that Leon had brought other women there had her seeing red. A shag pad wasn’t the romantic getaway she’d imagined.
He doesn’t belong to you. Calm down.
“When was the last time you were here?” She tried to sound casual but didn’t do a great job of it. It came out sounding like an accusation.
“My partner and I were tasked with guarding a couple who stayed here.” Leon punched the code into the keypad and pushed the door open.
“Your partner? Was it Peter, aka Devlin?” She hoped it hadn’t been Marisol, aka Eleanor, or some other female operative.
It was irrational, but Ana couldn’t help it.
Leon had probably been with scores of other women, and she was okay with that, but she wanted the cabin to be a fresh start for the two of them, and she definitely didn’t want to have sex with him on the same bed where he’d done it with others.
“I was here with Bowen, my former partner.” Leon left the door open. “So, what do you think?”
Ana hadn’t even looked at the interior yet. “It’s nice.” She scanned the open floor plan. “It looks like it was done by an interior designer. Everything matches perfectly, the colors, the fabrics, the scale.”
He seemed disappointed by her lack of enthusiasm. “I guess that you are used to more luxurious accommodations.”
Ana laughed. “I’m not. Did you already forget where I've lived for the past three months? And before that, I lived in an apartment that I shared with two other girls.”
“What about your father’s house? Or is it a mansion?”
She shrugged. “The one I grew up in was sold a long time ago. But even there, my room was nothing special. The only real luxury I had was the bathtub.”
“Then you are going to love this one.” He took her hand and led her to the bedroom. “We have a hot tub.” He opened the door to a bathroom.
Looking at the tub, all she could think about was whether Leon had soaked in it with another woman. “Did you get to try it?”
Evidently, she hadn’t absorbed Emmett’s Way of non-possessive free love. If she was that jealous over a guy whom she’d just met, then maybe Safe Haven wasn’t a good fit for her. She was much too selfish to be a community member.
He shook his head. “Bowen and I took turns sleeping on the living room couch, and we got to use the bathroom in the loft. It has an old-fashioned claw-foot tub that’s quite nice. Do you want to see it?”
“Maybe later.” She tried to hide her relief. “How many bedrooms are in here?”
“Two bedrooms that share the downstairs bath, and the loft.”
Things weren’t adding up. Was he lying to her?
“You said that you were guarding a couple. How come you and your partner didn’t sleep in the other room or the loft?”
He rubbed his hand over the back of his neck. “They didn’t start as a couple, and they each had their own room. We were also guarding a third person at the time, a guy who slept in the loft. Why all the questions, Anastasia?”
She shrugged. “It will sound silly to you, but I wanted this cabin to be our place, with no memories of past lovers.”
“Come here.” Sitting on the tub’s lip, he pulled her onto his lap. “I’ve never been here with anyone but Bowen.” Leon chuckled. “He’s a swell guy and quite handsome, but he’s not my type.” He added a wink. “Other couples have stayed in these bedrooms, though. Does it bother you?”
She shook her head. “As long as it wasn’t you and the bedding was laundered, I have no problem with that.”
“Good, because I believe this cabin is special. Several of the couples have fallen in love while staying here, and I want to believe that these walls hold a residue of that magic dust. If we are lucky, we might get sprinkled with some of it.”
4
Eleanor
“Over there.” Eleanor took her tray to the one table no one was sitting at.
Peter followed. “You know that someone is going to join us here eventually.” He put his tray next to hers and pulled out a chair.
“I’ll do my best to discourage them.” She glared at a classmate that was heading their way.
The woman’s smile faltered, and she changed directions, choosing a different table to join.
“You are in a bad mood today.” Peter took a sip from his cucumber-infused water. “Do you miss Leon?”
She chose to ignore his tease. “I don’t know why you are paying attention and asking questions in class. Before you know it, you’ll get brainwashed like the rest of these nitwits.”
“There is a kernel of truth in what they are teaching here.”
The guy was so naive. “Of course there is. The best lies are based on truth. That’s how they get you.” She leaned closer to him. “Do yourself a favor and stop listening altogether. Instead, help me figure out how to get a face-to-face meeting with Emmett.”
“What do you hope to learn? You said that you won’t be able to tell whether he is a compeller or not because his compulsion will have no effect on you.”
“I might pick up on his attempts to asce
rtain whether or not I’m susceptible to his compulsion.” She unfolded the napkin and draped it over her knees. “I know what to look for, the subtle little tests a compeller uses to check that.”
“It didn’t work with Greggory. You thought that he was susceptible, and he wasn’t.”
She smiled. “That’s because the sweet guy is so agreeable. I was sure that I had him under my compulsion. But that’s neither here nor there. If Emmett tries to test me, I will know.”
“You can request an audience.”
“I already have. I asked Tammy to arrange one for me. She said that she can put in a request but can’t guarantee that he will see me.”
“She might still come through.”
“I doubt it.” If she were more attractive, she might have had a chance. “I wonder if he’s invited any of the other female attendees.”
Peter picked up his knife and fork. “We can ask around.” He cut a piece of fish and stuffed it in his mouth.
“We also need to find out where he lives.” She glanced around before leaning closer to him. “Can you shroud both of us?”
He nodded. “Not for long. I can keep a shroud around myself for up to half an hour, but if I need to shroud you as well, I will tap out at ten minutes, fifteen max.”
“How long will it take you to recharge?”
“At least an hour.”
“That’s not good.” She took a bite of the fish and winced. “I should have chosen the chicken breast.”
“I can go in alone,” Peter suggested. “That will give me more time.”
Eleanor pushed to her feet. “I’m going hunting.”
“For chicken?”
“Yeah, that too.”
Getting in line for the buffet, she scanned it for a male staff member. When she found a suitable victim, she waited for him to load his plate before approaching him. “Hello, Rodney.” She read his name on the tag attached to his shirt. “Please, come join my friend and me at our table.”
He looked confused, either by the invitation or by his need to agree to it, but he followed her nonetheless.
Compulsion was a gift that kept on giving.
“This is my friend, Devlin.” She pointed at Peter’s name tag. “Devlin, this is Rodney.”
“Hi.” The guy put his tray down and sat down. “Neither of you are in any of my classes.”
“Are you a counselor?” Eleanor feigned surprise. “I thought that you were upper management.” She leaned closer. “You look like the brainy type. My favorite.”
Rodney smiled. “Is that so?”
“It is. I know that I’m supposed to invite you, but I’m curious to see where the staff live. Can you invite me over to your place instead?”
“I wish I could. But I’ll gladly accept your invitation and come to your room.”
She shook her head. “I’m sorry, but the deal is on only if you invite me.” She affected what she hoped was a seductive expression. “I can sneak in. No one needs to know.”
“Regrettably, that’s impossible. At night, the gate to the community’s compound is locked, and you would need a keycard to get in.”
That was what she needed to find out, but it wasn’t the answer she’d hoped for. “Bummer.” Eleanor leaned back. “Where does Emmett live?” She infused the question with compulsion.
Perhaps the guy could provide some useful information after all.
“In the compound.” The guy shifted, looking uncomfortable. “I need to go.” He picked up his tray. “It was nice meeting you.”
“Sit down, Rodney.”
He planted his ass back in the chair so fast that his plate rattled on the tray.
Peter put his hand on her shoulder. “Let him go, Marisol. You are making a scene.”
A quick glance around proved that he was right. People were looking at their table.
“Sorry about that.” She smiled apologetically. “I get cranky when I don’t get what I want.” She waved a dismissive hand. “You can go, Rodney.”
The guy’s hands trembled as he picked up his tray.
When he was out of earshot, Peter shook his head. “Subtle you are not. Perhaps you should leave this to me.”
“Be my guest.” She huffed out a breath. “I’m tired of having to constantly push forward by myself.”
Peter didn’t seem offended. In fact, his smile looked condescending. “Patience, my dear, is a virtue.”
5
Anastasia
“The refrigerator is fully stocked, mistress.” The driver opened the fridge door. “But if you run out of provisions or require anything else, please let me know, and I will rush it over expeditiously.”
Ana took a quick glance at the overstuffed vegetable drawer and the neatly organized shelves. “Are there any restaurants that deliver up here?” She turned to look at Leon over her shoulder. “My culinary expertise is limited to throwing together a salad and heating up pre-made meals.”
Beaming happily, the driver opened up the freezer. “Master Kian also asked me to prepare meals and freeze them for your convenience.” He pointed at the stack of shallow containers. “Each one contains two portions that can be served for lunch or dinner.”
The odd driver was also the cook?
Whoever Master Kian was, he was one lucky dude to have him. But she needed to have a word with him about forcing the poor guy to call everyone master and mistress. Who still did that in this day and age? It was demeaning.
“Thank you. That was very kind of you and of Master Kian. Please thank him for us.”
The guy bowed. “I shall convey your thanks, mistress. Is there anything else you require of me?”
He’d already shown Leon and her where everything was, including the cleverly hidden washing machine and dryer, the extra towels and linens, the broom, the mop, and the vacuum cleaner.
As if she was going to use any of those housekeeping appliances.
Ana was on vacation and had no intention of spending it on cleaning unless the place got absolutely filthy, which wasn’t going to happen with only the two of them there. She’d seen Leon’s room in the retreat, and there hadn’t been a single item out of place in there.
The guy was definitely a keeper. A handsome sex god who wasn’t stuck up and who kept his room clean was a rarer find than a unicorn.
She smiled at the butler. “I can’t think of a single thing.”
“Then I shall depart promptly.” The driver bowed for the umpteenth time, spun on his heel, and headed out.
“Strange man,” Ana said as the door closed behind him. “Who is Master Kian?” She mimicked the driver’s British accent.
“He’s the head of the organization I work for.” Leon pulled two containers out of the freezer. “I’m hungry. How about you?”
“I can eat.” It had been many hours since she’d had breakfast, and she hadn’t had lunch. Add to that the intense activity on the jet and then in the limo, and she was famished. “What’s in there?”
Leon took the lids off. “One is lasagna, and the other spaghetti with mushrooms.”
“Perfect. I’ll make a salad.” Ana rummaged in the vegetable drawer and pulled out a head of lettuce and two tomatoes. “By the way, where are we?”
“In the mountains.”
She rolled her eyes. “Can you be more specific? I know that we are in the Los Angeles area, but this place is in the middle of nowhere. Is it somewhere in the vicinity of Big Bear?”
It hadn’t escaped her notice that there were no phones anywhere in the cabin. It wasn’t uncommon these days for people to forgo landlines because everyone was using cellphones, but she still found it odd that a vacation place didn’t have one.
“It’s in the Kern County area,” Leon said.
Talk about evasive answers. She’d never heard of Kern County, and for all she knew, it could be huge. She still had no idea where the cabin was.
“How come there are no phones in here?”
He chuckled. “There are no telephone lines nearb
y to hook up to. This place is completely off the grid. It even generates its own electricity and gets water from its own well.”
Ana arched a brow. “A survivalist cabin?”
“I guess it could be used as one.”
“What about cellular reception?”
“There is none, but my phone has a satellite connection, so we are good.”
Maybe she was being paranoid, but the total isolation creeped her out. Leon could murder her, and no one would ever find the body.
Then another chilling thought shot through her head. What if he was holding her for ransom?
That made so much sense that her knees weakened from the impact of the realization.
Had her father even sent Leon to retrieve her from Safe Haven? What if it was all a lie to get her to come willingly without making a scene?
How could she have been stupid enough to believe everything he had told her? She hadn’t even thought to verify his story with her father.
Leon had cleverly blindsided her by letting her call Megan to set up a contingency plan. But if she didn’t call Megan in a week as they had agreed to, her friend would assume that Ana’s father was holding her prisoner, and she wouldn’t know where Ana was.
But what about the private jet and the limousine?
Whoever Leon worked for appeared to be much wealthier than her father. They didn’t need his money.
Then again, the jet and the limo could have been rented, and the expense was well worth it to transport her anonymously. No one would have the slightest clue as to where she’d been taken.
“What’s the matter?” Leon asked. “Suddenly you seem tense.”
She turned to him. “Can I use your phone to call my father?”
“Sure.” He put a hand on her shoulder. “Did you have another panic attack thinking that he really had a stroke?”
That was a good excuse, and if Leon indeed let her call her dad, it would be a huge relief. It would mean that the entire scenario she’d built in her head wasn’t true.