Boss's Virgin - A Standalone Romance (An Office Billionaire Boss Romance)

by Claire Adams

  So I walked. I could feel a blister forming on my right heel, making each step a little more excruciating than the last. I was walking by a café and I considered going in and asking for some water. There were people sitting at the outside tables, eating ceviche and salads and drinking colorful cocktails, all of them laughing and relaxing and looking like they were having a grand old time. I stood there for a moment, trying to decide what to do. Surely they wouldn’t deny someone a glass of water, would they? I was about to walk in when a car pulled up and then stopped next to me, a black Fiat convertible. I recognized the driver, though for a second, I couldn’t remember where I’d seen him.

  “Hi, love,” he said in a British accent. “Isla, innit?”

  “Yes,” I said. Then I remembered where I’d seen him; he was one of Levi’s friends.

  “Alfie,” he said. “Fancy running into you like this. Need a lift?”

  “Actually, yes,” I said. There was a water bottle in the center console; I didn’t care if he’d been drinking from it. “And could I have a sip of that water while I’m at it?”

  He grinned. “’Course you can. Hop in.”

  I limped over to the car and got in, guzzled about half the water. I instantly felt better.

  “You headed back to Levi’s?” he asked as he started to drive again.

  “Uh . . . yeah, I guess so.”

  “Great. You mind if I just make a quick stop first?”

  “No, that’s fine,” I said. I wasn’t exactly looking forward to going back to Levi’s. I glanced at Alfie as he drove. Would it be weird if I asked him to go in and get my stuff for me? Probably.

  I leaned back against the seat and let my eyes close, enjoying the feeling of the air whipping through my hair. It felt good to be off my feet, and I’d have to make sure to get a Band Aid for that blister. I started to doze, but I woke up when the car stopped. We were parked in front of an apartment building.

  “You want to come up with me?” he asked. “I’m just picking something up for a friend, but I might be a few minutes.”

  “Sure,” I said. I was incredibly comfortable just sitting there in car, except that I had to pee. And I was still thirsty, which was a weird juxtaposition of sensations. “Would it be all right if I used the bathroom?”

  “Absolutely. Follow me.”

  I followed him into the lobby, which was cool and dark. He bypassed the out-of-service elevator and we climbed up three flights of stairs, my blister stinging with each step. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. I waited next to him while he fumbled with his keys and then slid them into the lock, opened the door.

  “Loo’s right over there,” he said as we stepped into the apartment. He nodded down the hallway, to the left as he shut the door behind him.

  “Thanks,” I said.

  I went into the bathroom and peed, then splashed cold water on my face and drank some from the tap. I could hear Alfie talking to someone, though I couldn’t make out what it was they were saying. I looked at myself in the mirror, the skin on my nose, cheeks, and forehead red and already starting to peel.

  How could you be so stupid? I thought. How could you think that things would work out with Levi? Both Sophie and my mom had been right: They’d just been trying to protect me from what they knew would happen, and I had refused to listen. I kept seeing him standing there, kissing her, like it was the most natural thing in the world. They belonged together, though. They always had. I was an idiot to think that things would be any different.

  I splashed a little more water on my face, patted it dry with a towel, and left the bathroom.

  “I feel much better—” I started to say, but then suddenly felt someone grab me from behind, and I tried to scream but there was a damp, sweet-smelling cloth smashed up against my face, blocking my mouth, my nose. I tried to fling my arms out, grab onto something, anything, but there was only air. I could tell that whoever had grabbed me was considerably larger and considerably stronger. I kicked out, flinging my head from side to side, but nothing I seemed to do worked. And the smell from the cloth was so overpowering, and I began to feel like I was falling, like I’d lost control of my arms and legs, and there was nothing else I could do but tumble down into the darkness.

  31.

  Levi

  After Ella had stormed out, I went out looking for Isla. For some reason, I had it in my head that I was going to round a corner and there she’d be, and there’d be a moment or two of silence and then I’d open my arms and she’d walk over and embrace me. I’d whisper how sorry I was and that the kiss she had walked in on meant nothing, and all would be forgiven. To make it up to her, I’d take her back to the villa and give her as many orgasms as I could.

  I let this fantasy play out in my head as I walked, and it allowed me to lose track of time. How long had I been walking for? Where the hell was Isla? Had she gone back to the house?

  I pulled my phone out of my pocket, realizing that I had turned the ringer off. But there were no calls from her, just a bunch of missed calls and texts from Alfie, who I wasn’t in the fucking mood to talk to right now. If I talked with him, it’d probably end up with me telling him to eat shit and die.

  I called her, knowing that she wouldn’t pick up, but hoping I was wrong. Maybe I should just go back to the house and wait; all her stuff was still there, so she’d at least have to come back to get her passport before she could leave. All I needed to do was see her in person and I’d be able to explain it.

  “Isla,” I said to her voicemail. “It’s me. I’m running around here looking for you, except you seem to have vanished. I know you’re pissed, and I don’t blame you; I didn’t mean for you to walk in and see that. I mean—shit. That came out wrong. I wasn’t kissing Ella. Well, I was, but I didn’t initiate and I had just told her that you and I were together. I swear. And then—” I was interrupted by the incoming call tone. I pulled the phone away from my ear and looked at the screen. “Fuck off!” I shouted, seeing Alfie’s name appear. The voicemail was still recording. “Shit,” I said. “That wasn’t directed to you, that last part. Isla, just call me back, okay?” I hung up.

  “Yo, Levi!”

  I turned and saw this guy Joel ambling over. Joel was a friend from New York, super into the party scene, had his own place here not too far from my own.

  “Oh, hey,” I said. He held his hand out and we slapped fives. His eyes were hidden behind his aviator sunglasses.

  “You cool?” he asked. “You look like you need a little something to mellow yourself out.” He slid a joint from behind his ear and tried to hand it to me. “Try a puff of this. You got a lighter? It’s Afghani Daydream and it’s fuckin—”

  “No, I’m all set,” I said. “I’m actually looking for someone.”

  “Oh, I just saw Ella over at Boho Bar. I was going to say what’s up, but she looked pissed. She should still be over there though.”

  “No, not Ella. Isla, actually.”

  “Isla? I don’t think I know her.”

  “Sure you do. Remember how I had a stepsister in high school? That was Isla.”

  Joel frowned. “Isla . . .” he said. He snapped his fingers. “Oh yeah! The fat chick? I remember her.”

  “She’s not fat anymore.”

  “Yeah, well, she used to be. That’s so funny that you mentioned her, because I actually saw her a little while ago.”

  “You did?”

  “Yeah. I was eating lunch at Gordina’s. I thought she looked familiar, but I couldn’t for the life of me remember where the fuck I had seen her. But that’s it! Hell yeah you’re right—she’s not fat anymore. She looked fuckin dope. Amazing transformation. She got in a car with someone.”

  “What? A car? With who?”

  Joel shrugged. “I don’t remember, man, sorry. I was too busy staring at her ass. It was a dark car, I think.”

  “A dark car. Great. Thanks. That’s entirely helpful,” I said.

  Joel grinned, not catching my sarcasm. “Any time, man.” />
  Who had she gotten into a car with? Whoever it was, they were probably giving her a ride back to my place this very second so she could get her stuff and leave.

  “When was this?”

  He glanced down at his wrist, even though he wasn’t wearing a watch. “I’m not sure . . . it was a little while ago, at least. No more than hour, I’d say.”

  “And you don’t remember who she was with?”

  “Sorry. It wasn’t a taxi, though. I know that for sure.”

  “I gotta run,” I said to Joel.

  “You do what you gotta do,” he said. “But we should chill soon. Bring Isla!”

  “Yeah, sure,” I said. I turned and started walking back to the house, looking for a taxi. Of course the only ones that went by were already occupied. If Isla hadn’t gotten into a taxi, then who had picked her up? She wasn’t friendly with anyone out here, as far as I knew, though I supposed that didn’t mean she couldn’t have made friends without me knowing. People were like that around here, very friendly, just interested in having a good time.

  I had to get back to the house before she did; I just needed to be able to explain everything to her in person, and let her know that what she just saw with Ella was not at all what she probably thought it was.

  32.

  Isla

  I opened my eyes, a dull headache throbbing at the base of my skull, a strange, gross taste in my mouth. I felt groggy, as though I’d been asleep for days, but as my vision came into focus, I realized that I wasn’t anywhere I recognized. I was in a small room, stark white walls, one small window with the blind partially closed. There was a twin-sized bed in the corner, along with a dresser and a small desk with a laptop computer on it.

  My mind reeled; for a few moments I was completely disoriented and couldn’t for the life of me remember what had happened or where I was. Who was I supposed to be with? Where was I?

  Right now I was sitting on high-backed wooden chair, my hands tied behind my back with thin nylon rope. My heart began to race.

  And then slowly, things began to filter back. The first image, of course, being that of Levi and Ella. I had come back and walked in on them kissing. Yes. That had happened. And then I left and he didn’t come after me and Alfie . . .

  That was it. I’d gone with Alfie to his friend’s house and went into the bathroom and then . . . just a big blank after that, as though that section of my memory had been spliced out. But I was tied up in a chair and the door was closed. I strained to hear, and I thought I could detect someone moving around somewhere nearby.

  I tried to move my hands. My shoulders were aching because I couldn’t bring my arms forward and stretch them out. They weren’t tied around the back of the chair, but through two of the wooden rungs, so if I tried to stand, I’d bring the chair with me. The rope wasn’t cutting off my circulation, but it was tight enough that I knew there was no way I’d be able to wriggle free.

  Still, I tried. I pulled my left wrist, then my right, trying to shimmy them out. The rope cut into my skin and felt as though it were just getting tighter. I tried to take a deep breath and calm down. It was just a rope; I could get out of this. I had to.

  I look around the room to see if there was anything that might prove useful, but there were no sharp edges, no scissors, nothing that would come even remotely close to helping me.

  The door opened.

  It opened slowly, just a crack at first, and then a little further, a little further, until finally some guy I’d never seen before stuck his head in and peered at me. His had bulging eyes and a beaky nose and awful, pock-marked skin. His grin revealed cracked, uneven teeth.

  “Oi, Alfie!” he said. “She’s awake.”

  He stepped into the room. I felt myself break out into a cold sweat.

  “Who the hell are you?” I asked. “What is going on? I really don’t know what you think you’re doing, but I can all but assure you I am not the person you want.”

  “You’re right.” Alfie stepped into the room, behind the guy I didn’t recognize. “You’re not the person we want, but you’re going to help us get the person we want. Who is Levi, if you haven’t figured it out. Oh, and this is Jasper, by the way.”

  “What do you want with Levi?”

  “It’s quite simple what we want with Levi. We want him to keep things the way they’ve been for years now. We don’t want him mucking about and messing things up, because it’s all been going smashingly. He’s not here all the time, so he doesn’t realize quite how good it is.” Alfie gave me a level look. “I imagine that you had something to do with this decision of his.”

  “What?” I said. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. I really don’t.”

  “I’m having a hard time believing that, love.”

  I shook my head. “Well, you should. And I’m the wrong girl to have tied to a chair if you’re trying to get Levi here, because he’s probably back at his place fucking Ella. So why don’t you just untie me and I’ll leave. I won’t report this to the police or anything; I’m just going back to the U.S. and never planning to come back here again.”

  “I’ve left several messages for Levi, but he doesn’t seem interested in picking up the phone.”

  “It’s a little disrespectful,” Jasper said. “Alfie has played the most important role in all of this, as far as Levi is concerned.”

  “I really don’t know what you’re talking about. And I don’t need to know, either, because I’m not with Levi!”

  Alfie pointed a finger at me. “Now, see, that’s a lie. I know that’s a lie because I saw you there with him the last time he was out here, and I can just tell that he’s lovestruck. It’s a little sickening, actually.”

  “Yes, well, you’re entirely wrong,” I snapped. I tried to yank my wrists free again and felt the rope cut into my skin. “He’s not interested in me. And he’s back at his house, with Ella. Like I just said.”

  Alfie clucked his tongue. “I know Ella,” he said. “But neither of them are at Levi’s; Jasper checked.”

  “Then I have no idea where he is. The last time I saw him, that’s where he was, and they were making out, and I left. And you seem to have the mistaken idea that by kidnapping me you’re going to get Levi to come out here. What do you want with him, anyway?”

  “You really don’t know?” Jasper asked.

  “No! I have no idea.”

  “Levi’s decided to just pull out of the business altogether. He can’t do that. He thinks that we’ll be able to just continue on the way things have been, but he played an important role in all this: He provided the funds. And certain things—that I won’t go into details with you—have since come up, so we are actually going to need more money from him than we originally thought.”

  “So you’re extorting him?”

  “No.” Alfie shook his head. “You make it sound so sinister. We’re just trying to keep our business going. Just because we don’t have a storefront or a cash register doesn’t mean that we are not a viable business.”

  “It doesn’t sound like you are if you can’t keep things running without Levi. How long has Levi been doing this business for, anyway? I didn’t think he had a clue about anything relating to that.”

  “Oh, he doesn’t,” Alfie said. “That’s where I come in. It’s very simple, you see. Levi provides the money while I procure and push the drugs.”

  “Drugs?” I repeated. What the fuck was he talking about? “I really have no idea what this whole thing is all about.”

  “Levi never gave you a little something to try? Called Lush?”

  I frowned. “He might have, once.”

  “What’d you think?”

  “I don’t know, it was fine. I don’t have that much experience with drugs, to be honest. So you’re telling me that you and Levi are drug dealers?”

  “Me, too,” Jasper said, looking hurt that he’d be left out of the accusation.

  “Neither of us are that fond of the term,” Alfie said. “Drug deal
er. There’s a market and we’re simply filling the demand. Except there’s a problem now, with some competition, which is why it’s not an ideal time for Levi to be making his exit.”

  “I had no idea that Levi was doing any of that,” I said. “Obviously, I knew he did drugs once in a while, since I did it with him before, but I’m really not interested in having anything to do with someone who’s dealing drugs. Call it what you want, but that’s what it is.” I yanked at the rope again. “So why don’t you just let me go. I’ll tell Levi to give you a call if I see him. Which honestly, I hope I don’t.” I shook my head. “Things were not supposed to work out like this at all.”

  “At least we can agree on that,” Alfie said.

  “No, I mean, I was only getting involved with Levi because I was supposed to get back at him.”

  Both Alfie and Jasper looked at me with mild interest. “Get back at him?” Alfie asked.

  “He used to make fun of me.”

  “For what?”

  “Because I was overweight.”

  They looked at each other and then looked back at me. “You were overweight?” Alfie said skeptically.

  “When I was younger, yes. And Levi used to make fun of me over it. And then we ended up reconnecting and my best friend had this idea that I should get back at him by pretending I really liked him and then telling him to fuck off. She called it Project Revenge. So it wasn’t supposed to turn out like this. I don’t even know why I’m telling you this, but . . . there you have it. This wasn’t supposed to turn out like this at all. I was supposed to be getting back at him for all those times he’d made fun of me.”

  “Except you ended up falling for him,” Alfie said.

  I nodded. “Yes. And I thought he felt the same way, except I go back to the house today and he’s making out with someone else. Can you please untie me now? Can you let me go? I just told you the truth about all of it, so I think it should be pretty clear that holding me hostage isn’t the way to get Levi.”