Page 32 of Captivated By Him

“We’ll meet with them. See what they want. Maybe we can make a deal that makes us all happy and puts this bullshit behind us,” my father says and pushes up from the chair. Just from the movement, he seems momentarily winded, but it passes.

“Let’s go,” he says and points to the door.

“You stay here. Do you understand, Nicole? Right here in this apartment,” I say, keeping my voice down as my father and brother head for the door. It’s not like they haven’t given the same orders before, but Nicole doesn’t need them overhearing us.

“I understand,” she says, moving up to her feet. “Don’t go anywhere until the big bad Staszek family says so.”

“I don’t like the tone.”

“I don’t like your arrogance,” she shoots back at me, looking entirely too confident for a woman two words away from getting her ass smacked.

“There are men downstairs; if you try to leave, they’ll stop you and call me. And if they call me—”

“You’ll make me wish they hadn’t. I know.” She pats my chest and throws on a sarcastic grin.

I stare at her a long moment. She’s saying the right words, but her sudden acceptance throws off red flags.

“Jakub,chodzmy!” my father calls me as the elevator opens up for him.

“Be here when I get back.” I point a finger at her and step backward until I have her agreement.

I get in the elevator and watch her still as the doors slide closed, taking her from my sight.

“She’ll be fine,” Dominik says.

I tense.

“If you had told Kasia to stay put, would she?” I ask, not bothering got look over my shoulder.

I sense his muscles knotting up.

“Exactly,” I say, checking my watch for the time. The faster we get this meeting over with the sooner I can get back here.

Chapter 10

Nicole

“Nicole.” Nora rushes into my office and closes the door behind her. I look up from my computer where I’m sending off another email to a local food blogger with an invitation to opening night of the new restaurant. Nora’s face is flushed, and her chest is heaving.

“Were you running from someone?” I ask with a small chuckle.

“No, but you might want to,” she urges in a hushed tone.

“What are you talking about?” I click on another email to read a response from another blogger.

“Jakub.” The one name that can get my insides fired up, but in this case, it sends a chilled shiver through me.

I check the clock on the computer screen. I’ve only been here half an hour. It took me fifteen minutes to get out of the apartment without his men seeing me—thank you, fire escape. It was another twenty-minute Uber drive to the club. There’s no way he’s finished with his meeting yet.

“What about him?” I try to keep my voice steady, but even I hear the little rise.

“He’s here.”

My fingers freeze over the keyboard.

“And since he was adamant you would not be in today or tomorrow and you weren’t to be bothered, I figured maybe you should know he’s here before he sees that you’re here, because I get the very distinct feeling you’re not supposed to be here.”

I move my gaze from my computer screen over to her.

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