Page 11 of Pit

“So, pee,” he says, nodding at the door.

“With my hands tied?” I ask.

“Yes.”

“In that spider-filled shack outside?”

“Yes.”

“Fuck,” I hiss, heading for the door. I step outside and look around. There’s land for miles, and all I can hear are birds singing their evening song and crickets in the grass. I carefully open the door to the toilet and wince. There are cobwebs and huge spiders in the corners. I edge in slowly and look into the toilet. It’s dirty inside, but there are no insects, so I squeeze my eyes closed and reach under my dress to remove my underwear.If I can’t see them, they’re not there, right?Lowering onto the seat, I breathe in through my nose and out through my mouth. “It’s fine,” I whisper out loud. “I’m fine. They’re just little, tiny insects. They’re scared of me and I’m bigger.”

“Who are you talking to?” My eyes shoot open to find Pit staring at me with a confused look on his face.

“Myself,” I hiss.

“You’re giving yourself a pep talk about spiders?”

“I hate them,” I admit.

“Pity, there’s one right next to you,” he says, and I scream, jumping off the toilet and running out with my underwear still around my knees. I’m aware I’m still screaming and waving my arms around my head, and it’s only when Gigi runs at me that I fall back onto my arse.

“Gigi, sit,” Pit orders when she’s inches from my face. He’s still half-laughing from my overreaction. “She’s already terrified enough without you trying to eat her.”

My heart slams against my chest, and I begin to sob. The last twenty-four hours are catching up with me, and being so terrified has come to a head. Pit’s laughing fades. “Look,” he says with a sigh, “I was kidding. It wasn’t that big.” I sob harder, trying to tug my knickers up my legs to no avail.

Pit swoops down and lifts me under my arms, putting me back on my feet. He crouches before me and pulls my knickers up, straightening my dress. “You’re fine,” he says firmly. “Spiders won’t hurt you.”

I give a slight nod, humiliation now replacing my terror. As I follow him back to the house, he begins to laugh again. “You know what’s funny?” he asks, wiping tears from under his eyes. “That you reacted more to a fucking spider than you did to being taken or a man being killed right before your eyes.”

We go back into the kitchen and the steaks are now resting in the pan. I’m impressed with his cooking skills—I’ve never known a man to cook before. My father was a lazy fuck who made me do everything he classed as ‘woman’s work’, and I haven’t known Alec long enough, but he seems the type to have a chef or just eat out a lot.

“Sit,” he tells me, and I do.

He plates up the food, placing one in front of me, then he takes my wrists and uses a knife to slice the tape away. I rub the redness, grateful he’s at least allowing me to eat properly.

He sits opposite me with his own plate of food and gives a nod. “I want to see what you think,” he says.

I pick up the cutlery and slice into the steak. My mouth waters as the juices run out onto the plate. It’s medium rare, cooked to perfection. I close my eyes in appreciation as it melts in my mouth, and when I open my eyes, Pit is watching me closely. “It’s really good,” I tell him, blushing slightly.

“We have cows,” he tells me. “I have a farm manager who deals with all that, but there’s enough meat in that freezer to feed half of London.”

“Why don’t you look after them?”

He shakes his head, taking a bite of his steak and groaning in pleasure. I shudder at the sound, picturing the way he kissed me in the elevator. “I don’t stick around for long.”

“Why?”

“So, what do you have that your husband wants?” he asks, changing the subject.

“That’s my secret to keep.”

He smirks. “It must be important if he married you.”

“It’s worth a lot,” I reply.

“You know I’m going to find out, right?”

I continue to eat. Who knows what he’ll do when he finds out? And without it, I have nothing left to bargain with.

---