Page 36 of The Ruler
I hesitated for a second, taking in the sight of him naked and aroused in front of me. His tattoos and muscles made me want to reach out and touch him, explore what his warm skin felt like, but the small distance between us felt massive as he watched me, guarded and impassive.
“I’m sorry I left,” I said quietly, my shoulders pulled forward and my hands covering my breasts.
“Yeah,” he muttered. “I’m sorry too.”
It wasn’t clear to me what he was sorry for. Sorry for dragging me in here and getting me almost naked? Sorry that I had left his office and wasted his time?
Khan activated the dryer function, and we didn’t speak as the warm air hit us from all angles.
“Pearl,” he said and grabbed my wrist when I started to leave.
“Yes?” I looked back at him.
“No more running. You follow me,” he said with his eyes narrowed. “Not the other way around.”
I stood motionless half in and half out of the shower.
“You got it?” His solemn expression came off menacing and intimidating.
“Yes, I got it,” I said softly and shook my wrist loose.
CHAPTER 9
A Miracle
Pearl
I was delighted when Khan told me we were going to visit Boulder and Christina, who had moved out of the manor and into Boulder’s estate on Victoria Island.
Escorted by six guards in three drones, I wondered if that was normal procedure for Khan or if the security was because of me.
Victoria Island was beautiful and Boulder’s large estate was something out of an old movie. Christina had told me about the place, and it was easy to see why she loved it so much here. The large house was like a modernized museum and surrounded by gorgeous greenery and water.
“How can this behisisland?” I asked Christina when she gave me a tour.
“He inherited it from his previous boss.”
“But this island isn’t small.”
“I know,” Christina took me up the elegant old-fashioned staircase. “You have to see the view from up here.”
Large windows provided a stunning view of a pond nestled in between forest on both sides. It had rained this morning making for the magical sight of blooming wildflowers stretching to reach the morning sun and moisture evaporating like steam in the air.
“I can’t believe how many nuances of green there are,” I said and took in everything, from the pale leaves on the cotton trees that looked almost yellow in the sun, to the bright colors of the ferns by the forest, and the darker wild-grass that waved tall and welcoming in the summer breeze.
“Do you see the swans?” Christina pointed. “Aren’t they adorable? Boulder says that in the spring thousands of frogs sing all night.”
“Yes, it’s very beautiful here and so secluded.”
Christina shrugged. “I don’t mind. It’s only a short flight to the mainland and it’s so peaceful out here.”
“But no one ever comes uninvited, do they?”
“I don’t think so. Only three other men live here.”
“Who?”
“The two park rangers and Boulder’s personal assistant, Max.” Christina pointed to a detached building. “Max lives in that annex – he’s nice enough – but I haven’t met the two park rangers yet.”
