HER BODYGUARD

Kimberly drank some water from the faucet and returned to the bed. Asher would probably have recovered from the sedative, but that wasn’t going to be much help to her. Sure, he could trace her to the hospital, but then what?

Alex was probably going to kill after getting what he wanted from her. She accepted that. If not today, then soon. The thought of death scared her, but that really made her want to pound her hands against the walls and scream was the thought that Asher would never know she was sorry to have misjudged him. He would live the rest of her life aware that in the heat of the moment, she hadn’t trusted him.

“I was a fool,” she whispered into the silence. “I should have trusted him. I should have remembered that Alex would do anything to lure me out. I should have known you were on my side”

Worse, she should have listened to her heart. Over the past couple of days, she had been feeling things for Asher. Maybe they were about him rescuing her as much as about the man himself, but they were still there. And they had made her nervous. She didn’t want to be vulnerable to any man.

She tried to imagine what Asher would think when he woke up. He would find her laptop and the email. He would start with Christopher. But then what after that? She had a feeling Alex would take care of that little detail. Which meant Asher would end up with no way to find her.

It didn’t occur to her that he wouldn’t look for her. Despite what she had done, he would come after her. That was the kind of man he was. If only she could tell him how much she regretted what she had done.

Time passed. When the sun was high in the sky and the small room had become uncomfortably hot the door opened and Alex entered.

“I hope you slept well” he said politely as he stood just inside the door.

She stayed on the bed, back against the wall, legs stretched out in front of her, and studied the man in front of her. When she didn’t answer, he sighed. “You are going to make this difficult, aren’t you?” he asked.

“I’m not inspired to cooperate,” Kimberly said.

“Even if I threaten to kill you?” he asked.

She was proud of herself for not reacting. “You are going to do that anyway,” she said.

He smiled. “Probably. But wouldn’t you rather it was later?”

“Not if it means having anything to do with you” Kimberly said. “What do you want from me?”

Alex’s good humor faded. “So impatient to be dead?” he asked. “Be careful, Kimberly. But don’t worry, you will get your wish soon. And I will make sure I’m the one to do the job”

He moved over to the bed and sat next to her. “How did you do it?” he asked conversationally. “How did you turn Asher Adams? I mean…. I did some research…. I know he’s the best in the business…. But he seems overly protective of you. I’m just wondering why…. Isn’t it supposed to be about just business”

His calmness and even temper told her how in control of the situation he thought himself to be. Not comforting for her.

Kimberly decided to ignore his question about Asher. She didn’t want to think about him right now. It made everything even more painful. And she didn’t want Alex going after him. “What do you want from me?” she asked instead.

Alex leaned close and wrapped his hand around her hair. He tightened his grip until every hair follicle burned.

“You are protecting him. How sweet” he said, sounding incredulous. “Bitch…. Wow… You have been sleeping with him… I knew you were nothing but a rich whore”

He laughed. A creepy laugh that frightened the hell out of her. She probably shouldn’t have done what she did next, and she didn’t know why she did it anyways, but she spat in his face.

He released her hair, stood and slapped her hard across the face. The blow stung, but she refused to react, even if she knew that her lip was bleeding.

“What the hell do you want from me?” she yelled. “I don’t even know you. What the hell did I ever do to you”

He grabbed her hair again, jerked her head back, arching her neck and throat. With one hand around her throat, he began to press lightly against her jugular vein.

“What do I want? You ask” his voice was soft as a lover’s. “What do I want? I want to have you like that bodyguard of yours had you. That is what I want. You have no idea what kind of problems you have caused me with my boss by making all this too hard for me. It wasn’t supposed to come to this… it was supposed to be just about the money. But you and your bodyguard caused it to go this far… Running around, escaping and hiding. You have no one but yourself to blame.” The pressure of his fingers intensified. “It’s not fair, is it? But then life is not fair”

Her vision began to blur. The door opened, and she heard a voice say “All right, that’s enough, Alex. You can have your fun when I’m done with her”

“Yes, boss” Alex said

He released her immediately and Kimberly tried desperately to catch her breath. She looked up at the man who had just entered into the room and she couldn’t believe her eyes.

It was Christopher Keane.

————————

“You” she said, unable to believe her eyes.

She understood everything now. Asher had been right. It was definitely someone close to her and her family. He had been the one behind all this. Alex and the rest of the gang worked for him.

Christopher grinned at her. An evil grin that sent chills all over her body. “Yes. Me” he said. “Surprised, huh? I gotta say I love that look on your face”

“You bastard” Kimberly hissed. “What did you do to my father?”

“Oh relax. He is fine” Christopher said. “You know, doing his thing in his mansion, working, surrounded by his bodyguards… Isolating himself from the rest of the world… Confident that his little girl is safe with Mr bodyguard”