by Liz Lovelock
Why is he smiling at me? That grin, though.
“I’m sorry. I took to you at first sight. I guess I didn’t notice the footwear last time, since I had to leave in a hurry.”
Had he only wanted to contact me because he thought I was one of those uppity girls? My confidence begins to crack. Men seriously suck.
It’s not like I had the best role model for a father in my life.
“Perhaps you should go, because I’m not one of those ‘kinds of girls.’” I use air quotes. “You don’t know anything about me.” I’m unable to hide the hurt.
Taking my hand again, he halts me and spins me around. Roman’s eyes bore into mine. “I’m sorry I hurt you by what I said. You’re so much more than I expected, and I’m glad you’re not like those other women.”
“I’m not ready to forgive you yet,” I reply with a playful grin.
Pulling me into his side, Roman drapes his arm over my shoulders. He’s got some height to him, especially against me. I only come up to his shoulder and fit perfectly against his body. “Perhaps dinner will help you to forgive me?”
“When were you thinking?” I ask, mentally running my agenda through my head.
Roman thinks for a moment before he answers, “How about tonight?”
“You want to see me again today?” I look up at him. He glances down at me, and my breath leaves my lungs.
“Of course. I’d love the chance to get to know you more.” He waggles his eyebrows at me.
We stop outside the café, and he releases me. “I might have to work late tonight.” I say.
He scratches his stubble. “Well, I’d still like to see you. How about you message me when you’re close to finishing, and I’ll come by and meet you?”
Warmth spreads throughout me. Am I dreaming? Roman is seriously not the kind of man who would normally go for me.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” he questions while he regards me for a moment.
“Like what?” My voice rises. I hadn’t realized I was looking at him a certain way.
“As though you’re weighing up if you want to meet me or not. Deciding if you’re going to get hurt, or is it something else?”
We stay standing on the street, staring at one another. I shrug. “Yeah, okay, you got me there. Why me? I’m obviously not your type if you gave your card to me, clearly expecting me to be something else.” I go for honesty instead of avoiding the conversation altogether.
“Because you interest me and there’s something about you that draws me in. I’d like to get to know you. Come on. Let’s go order and sit. We’ll talk more while we’re waiting.” He opens the door for me.
I step into the familiar area. The scent of strong coffee hits me and immediately makes me need one. We place our orders and take a seat near the window.
Roman speaks first. “So let me clear something up. Yes, I thought you were one of those girls…” He pauses. Boom! Punch to the gut. Roman’s hand reaches for mine across the table. “But I’m glad you’re not. I’d like to see where this goes. You’re beautiful.” The heat creeps over my face at his words. “What do you say?” He gives my hand a light squeeze.
“Would you let me say no?” I already know the answer, but figure I’ll play with him for a bit.
Roman sits back in his chair, folding his arms across his chest. “No, I wouldn’t.” There’s such force in his words.
“Perhaps I’ll make you work for it?” I tease. I already know that I’ll go tonight, but this is fun. I attempt to keep my face unreadable.
In a flash, he’s up from his seat, his hands pressed on the table, leaning right in my space. “I’ll be all over you, Elenore. I’ve tasted you, and those perfect lips of yours are waiting for me to claim them again.”
Pulling my bottom lip in between my teeth, I take a steady breath through my nose.
“Blackwood.” Both our heads twist toward the voice. The girl at the counter is holding up two coffees and a bag of food for me to take back to the office.
Roman’s eyes are back on me. “Saved by the server, only next time she won’t be here.” He stands tall, strides over, and picks up our order. My shoulders sag with relief. As much as I’d love for him to kiss me again, this entire situation seems to be moving too fast. He hardly knows me. Yet, he seems so sure of what he wants.
Am I ready for that kind of commitment? I’m not sure.
“Let’s go, precious.” He waits by the door, holding it open for me.
Once outside, my phone chimes. Great, who’s this? Violet getting angry because I’m not back yet? An unknown number flashes on my screen. Quickly, I answer it in case it’s work-related.
“Hello, Elenore speaking.” My tone is professional.
“El, it’s me.” Lewis’s familiar voice comes through.
“Oh hey, sorry. I didn’t recognize the number.”
“Yeah, I’m at work on the landline. I didn’t hear back from you so thought I’d call to make sure you’re okay about the police visit you got?”
I peek up at Roman through my eyelashes. He’s unable to take my hand this time since he’s carrying all the purchases.
“Oh, okay. Yeah, I’m all right. I wasn’t when they came. I kind of felt blame for the fact that I didn’t report her m-missing.” My words crack once as I speak. The familiar lump lodges itself in my throat again. I don’t care Roman can hear me.
Lewis sighs. “Oh, I’m sorry, El. Trust me, it’s not your fault. I was basically being accused of taking her, and then they went and said the same thing to me about not reporting her missing. I felt terrible. I thought police officers were the good guys…” He lets the words hang for a moment. “Those two weren’t.”
“I know what you mean. They were pretty upfront.”
Roman scoffs beside me. “It’s our job,” he mutters.
“Anyway, you free tonight? Wanna hang?”
Taking a deep breath, I tell him my plans. “Lewis it would be nice but I have a date tonight.”
Lewis hesitates. “Oh, who with?” There’s slight annoyance in his voice.
“With the young detective…”
Lewis goes silent.
“Are you serious?” Lewis’s tense voice comes through after a moment.
“Yes. I met him before today, though.” I rush out that last part, so he doesn’t think I’m heartless and took advantage of my dead friend.
“Okay then. Well, I’ll talk to you later. Bye.”
He hangs up before I have the chance to say goodbye.
How rude of him. Lewis has never done that to me before.
“Bye,” I say to myself, slipping my cell away once again.
“Everything all right?” Roman brushes up closer to me, now holding the bag and coffee in his left hand. He wraps his arm around my waist, and I mold into his side. Even though this relationship is developing quickly, it feels right.
We arrive back at the office building. Roman’s arm drops from me, and I automatically want to step up to him and give him a kiss. I don’t, though.
“Thanks for walking with me,” I say.
“You’re very welcome. Now tonight… message me when you’re about thirty minutes from finishing, and I’ll be right here waiting for you.” He leans forward, placing a small kiss to my lips. My eyes stay closed for a moment longer.
I’m falling for Roman.
A moment later, I remember the messages I’d received. “Oh. Can I ask you something?”
“Sure. Is everything all right?” Concern seems to coat his words.
“Yeah, I think so. It could be that someone has the wrong number, but I got this weird text earlier and it kind of freaked me out, because I’ve had this feeling lately that I’m being watched… on my way to work… coming home from a friend’s place, and even at home. Then this comes…” Pulling out my cell, I show him the message.
His brow furrows. “This is the only one you’ve received?” he asks.
I nod in return.
Roman hands
me the coffee and bag of food and pulls out a notebook and quickly scribbles down the number. “Don’t worry, precious, I’ll look into it. But until I find something out I’ll be here every night to make sure you get home safely.”
We say our goodbyes, and he gifts me with a hungrier kiss.
After we break, I turn and walk inside the office building with my head spinning with possibilities. Can I allow this relationship to happen?
And what was up with Lewis and his reaction? I thought he was different, he’s never acted like that.
I hope Roman is able to get some answers for me. My cell dings, alerting me to another message. My heart sinks.
Unknown: I saw that. Don’t try alerting anyone because it’ll be a failed attempt. You see, I’m smarter than you might think. See you soon, precious princess.
What the ever-loving hell is this about? My head flicks up, and I’m turning every which way trying to lay my eyes on the person who has sent the text message. A part of me wants to walk out and run to Roman’s protection. Someone has been watching me for a few days now. I knew the prickling feeling I was having wasn’t for nothing.
After returning to work, I give Violet her lunch and get back to jobs I’ve been given. At four o’clock, Violet comes out of her office.
“How’s that paperwork going?” Her tone is soft, which is very unusual. Has my world spun upside down? People around me are acting weird.
Taking my focus off the work before me, I meet her gaze. There’s gentleness in her features. “Everything is fine. I’ve nearly finished this, and then I’ve only got one more to complete. Is everything all right?”
A small smile touches her lips. “You’re an excellent worker, Elenore. I know I’ve not given you enough credit. You help make my workload somewhat bearable. Thank you.”
Yep, it’s official—something’s happened. The look on my face must prompt her to keep speaking. “I’m sorry I’ve never told you before. I wanted to see how hard I could push you. You’re an energetic worker who knows what needs to happen. Very efficient.”
Unsure what to say, I give her a smile.
After a moment of silence, she speaks again. “Elenore, I want to tutor you as a trainee editorial assistant. Your education will be funded by the company, and well, you will still be working under me, but you’ll have more workload until I can find a decent replacement for you.” Unable to hide my excitement, I stand up, walking to her and throwing my arms around her neck. Her body stiffens briefly before she returns the hug, a small giggle escaping her.
“Thank you so much! This is what I’ve wanted for so long.” Excitement bubbles through me at the thought of finally reaching one my goals to be taught and trained by one of the best. It’s a stepping-stone in the direction I want to take. Releasing her, I take a step back, a grin now plastered firmly on my face.
“I’m glad because I’ve had my eye on you for some time to do this job.” She’s talking to me as a friend. This is so very unlike her.
“What’s made you decide this now?” I can’t hold myself back—I want to know.
Violet’s head falls as if she’s saddened by something. “Well, after Rebecca and seeing how young she was, it’s made me think about things more. Brought matters into perspective. Tonight will be the start of your late nights and much more work.” Her voice takes on a professional tone. “So be ready to start working harder than you’ve ever worked.”
Hard work is my middle name. I’ve spent my life working hard, and it’s been a fight for survival. I survived my past, and I’ll survive my future even with a full-on job. I love my work, I have for the last two years, and now, with this opportunity, I can grow into so much more. Being told you’re worthless for half of your life takes a toll, but it made me stronger, and I’ve told myself I am worth this life, worth the air that I breathe.
“I’m so ready for this. You have no idea.” I beam a broad smile right at her.
Violet nods. “I know you are. Now don’t disappoint me.”
Ah, there’s the Violet I know, her forceful personality shining through the softness she showed me only moments ago. “Thank you so much, Ms. Vi. I really appreciate it.”
She says nothing more as she spins and walks away, while I get back to work. The thrill of her announcement spurs me on to get my jobs done efficiently and effectively. I can’t wait to see Roman later and tell him about my promotion. He might be happy for me.
It’s gone dark outside, and Violet has just left for the day. I have about five pages left of reading and checking. Not that there’s much checking to do because Violet is very pedantic and never really misses much.
My cell phone is sitting on the desk, and it rings, frightening me. I’ve been on edge since these messages started, and I hope Roman has some answers for me. My screen is flashing Lewis’s name. Perfect! Just the person I need to talk to.
“Hello, grumpy pants,” I greet him.
“Yeah, sorry, about before. You took me by surprise.” I hear some sadness in his tone. Still, I’m not ready to forgive him straight away.
“You were pretty rude. What’s going on?”
Lewis releases a breath. “I was annoyed because you were going on a date with him.”
What? “Excuse me?” I blurt out.
“I feel like you didn’t even give me a second thought.”
My head’s spinning from his words. It’s a good thing I’m sitting down.
“What are you going on about?” I practically yell into my cell. He’s acting like a crazy teenage boy.
Silence descends over us for a moment.
“I was hoping we’d have a chance at something?”
“Me and you?” I reply, shocked by this revelation. “I’ve never looked at you like you’re someone I could date. You’re more like my big brother. Besides, you were smitten with Rebecca.
“I know, but she’s gone now and I thought…”
My blood runs cold. How could he say that?
“Are you drunk?” I ask, puzzled by his admission.
“What? No!” he shouts back in surprise.
“What are you thinking? Moving from one woman to the next so quickly? Really? Think about what you’re saying to me,” I snap at him. How could he do this? Does he think I’d forget how much he apparently loved Rebecca?
Hopefully, he realizes what he’s saying and retracts it immediately. Instead, I’m met with crickets on the other end of the line.
“Lewis? Are you there?” I ask, a little hesitantly.
“Yeah, I’m here.” He sounds so flat. “I’m sorry, El. Better go. I’ll talk to you later. Yeah?”
I decide to act casually. “Yeah, of course,” I reply softly.
We say our goodbyes, and I’m left quite confused. I pull out the card Roman gave me when we first met, and send him a quick message.
Me: Hey, Roman, it’s Elenore. I’ll be finishing in about 30 minutes.
A reply comes through almost immediately.
Roman: Sure thing. I’ll be waiting downstairs when you arrive.
My tummy swirls with excitement. Hopefully, I will be able to forget the stupidity of Lewis and have a good time without bringing the incident up.
Getting back to my final pages, I dive in and get lost in words.
Around twenty minutes later I’m finished, and I load the paperwork back on Violet’s desk ready for her in the morning. I grab my bag, and I’m out of the office for the day—and what a day it’s been. Violet has made my life complete with her offer.
Stepping off the elevator, I say goodnight to the security guard who’s about to do another round of checking the building. Walking out onto the darkened street, the city lights brighten the way. A brisk breeze flows over me, and I tug my coat around my body. It’s not freezing, but there’s a very slight chill in the air, enough to cause goose bumps to prickle over my skin.
Roman isn’t here yet, but he won’t be far away. The street is still tonight, and there are very few people around. Turning each way,
I head off in the direction Roman walked away from me today.
Stopping, I pull out my cell and see I have a message.
Lewis: I’m sorry again. For everything.
As I read the words, an overwhelming sense of sorrow fills me. Hurt and confusion over what’s happened to Rebecca—that’s all I can put his behavior down to. I start typing before a shuffle behind me causes me to pause, turning around, hopeful it’s Roman. I don’t make it right around before something hard connects with my head. Collapsing to my knees, the pavement cuts into my flesh, and a whimper passes my lips. Tears sting my eyes as panic shoots right through me. I attempt to look up, but a blow to my cheek stops me in my tracks.
What’s happening?
White spots dance in my vision before the blackness engulfs me.
The thrill of having her jolts me. I’m eager to bring her pain, to make her bleed. Her soft pink flesh waits to have my marks pressed into it. Watching her has been fun, a shadow game—me seeing her, and her not having a clue where I am. I’m aware she senses me because her body tightens when she perceives she’s being watched.
I wasn’t planning to hit her twice, but the first strike appeared to have no real effect on her, and she was about to look at me. Not that she would have seen much, thanks to my black ski mask, but that’s not the point.
One of these girls could put up a massive fight and escape, and then my identity would be blown. It nearly happened to my father, my master. It resulted in him taping his mask lightly around his neck. I’m not that guarded; I don’t need to be. I know I’ll kill them before they give away who I am.
The roads are quiet as we near our destination. This block of land has been in my family for as long as I can remember, and back even further. Oh, the things I’m going to do to her… I can’t wait to hear her cries in the night. Her blood will join that of the others before her.