Page 20 of Origins
She waved her free hand in the air, noticing that I hadn’t followed her. “We’ll have a little chat in my office—just the two of us.”
She had an office? I still didn’t even know who she was.
“Wait,” I called out, rushing to gather my books and papers. Why was I so messy?
As I was shoving everything in my bag, she glanced at me and her voice changed slightly. “Hurry now.”
Oh no, she was getting angry. “Okay, let me just—”
“Ms. Protean, fancy seeing you here.” Damen Abernathy’s decadent tones reached my ears, causing me to freeze in shock. A silent curse shot through my mind. Somehow, I hadn’t been able to avoid his smooth velvety voice and entrancing looks for as long as I had hoped.
I heard something resembling a growl, and I peeked around the cubicle. Damen stood nearby, but I didn’t think I was within his range of sight. He was smiling at the elderly woman. She had turned to face him as well, and I noticed that her features no longer held that grandmotherly softness.
She was glaring at him, but that didn’t seem to bother Damen at all as he continued. “It’ssorare to see you outside of your classroom and office. What brings you here today?”
I wasn’t ready for this. I had kicked Titus in the balls. I had also maced his said friend, who may or may not be related to the Mafia. I needed more time.
Perhaps Damen being here was a coincidence. He might not even be aware that I was here at all. I was still behind a cubicle.
“I’m sorry to interrupt, but I need to borrow Miss Brosnan for a while.”
Darn it.
“Why?” Her voice was unexpectedly harsh. “I need her at the moment. We were about to have a discussion.”
“That’s not such a good idea.” Damen’s face was still the picture of politeness. “I was looking for you as well, to be honest. Cécile has escaped from your office and is causing havoc in the lunchroom. Brandon attempted to capture her, but he is now being treated at urgent care. As for Cécile, the last I saw, she was perched on the refrigerator and was clawing at the heads of any faculty member leaving or entering the room.”
Ms. Protean frowned. “Don’t lie. My Cécile is an angel. You must have mistaken her for someone else’s vile beast.”
“I doubt it,” Damen replied, his tone slightly icier. “I believe that you are the only faculty member who owns a Persian with a bejeweled collar and pink claws.”
“My poor Cécile!” Ms. Protean covered her mouth in horror. “She must be so frightened.” She turned to me, apologetically. “I’m so sorry, dearest, but we need to reschedule. I must go before those brutes terrorize my innocent animal again.”
Damen raised an eyebrow, looking at her sardonically. But she didn’t seem to notice. Instead, she was already off in a rush—more quickly than I thought possible, based on her appearance.
Damen was watching her retreat—he totally wasn’t paying attention to me. This could be my only opportunity for escape. I just needed space to compose myself.
I grabbed my packed bag and slipped into one of the lines of bookcases. I had to be quick.
I didn’t even made it ten feet down the narrow aisle, before I was pulled to a halt. Damen was watching me, amused, as his hand held firmly onto my backpack. “Where do you think you are going, baby girl?”
Chapter Seven
Kidnapped
Even though I struggled forward, Damen had a firm grip on my backpack and he wasn’t letting go. I was trying to ignore him, to move forward, but I started to lose momentum and my feet began to slide backwards on the laminate floor. He continued to pull me towards him until my head rested against the hardness of his chest.
I could no longer ignore my predicament. “Damen,whatare you doing? Let me go!”
Perhaps he was more like Titus than I had thought, and he needed a dosage of the same deterrent.
He chuckled. “I’m holding you this way so you can’t escape. And, also, so you can’t attempt any underhanded tricks.”
“If you mean what I did to Titus, there was nothing underhanded about that,” I retorted. “It was self-defense.”
This was the worst. He knew—Titus had tattled on me. And he was angry.
“It was hilarious,” Damen remarked. His voice was a purr next to my ear—making it hard for me to focus. “And well-deserved, I will admit. Titus can be overbearing. However, with you, I’d rather play it safe.”
