Page 4 of Mr Monday
‘That’s such bullshit.’
I felt myself getting pissy, which was a welcome change from the desire I’d felt moments before but not at all a good thing in a job interview. Nor was the swearing. He laughed, and I liked how it sounded.
‘Be that as it may, either put it on or get out.’
What the fuck had I gotten myself into? I hadn’t established an emergency plan. No one was waiting for my check-in phone call. Mom was back in England, which was what had made this whole venture possible. No one knew I was here. My former co-workers thought I was taking a trip to London to see my mother and the Harry Potter studios, and I’d lost touch with the few friends I’d had in college. Plotting the best way to reduce a company to figurative smoking rubble didn’t leave me with a lot of time to socialize. If something happened to me now, there wasn’t a soul on earth who would notice any time soon. Panic filled me and I glanced at the now closed door. I could leave if I wanted to, but I couldn’t give up. I eyed the blindfold.Really?Then I pressed my lips together and switched my gaze to his face.
‘Give it to me.’ I held out my hand. How much more control was I to give up? It was bad enough that I’d soon be thousands of feet up in the air, and now he wanted me to put my fate entirely in his hands.
He ignored my hand. I kept my gaze pinned on him and refused to look away. I was beginning to wonder if he knew who I was. If he – orthey –did, then my plan would be shot to hell, but if they didn’t, then I was one step closer to making my way inside the organization.
‘I’ll handle the blindfold,’ he said, and moved toward me.
I shook my head and leaned away from him, keeping my hand outstretched for the blindfold. ‘I’d prefer to put it on myself, if you don’t mind.’
‘I do mind. The sooner you let me, the sooner we’re on our way.’
I shifted forward, not wanting to comply but knowing I had no choice. When he placed the blindfold over my eyes his fingers were warm against me, and when they brushed my skin I’d never had such a reaction to a man’s touch before. I could barely keep myself still on the seat as the shock of arousal swept through me. The blindfold was soft and silky, and the most seductive male cologne I’d ever smelled wafted around me. I raised my fingers to touch it; they trembled as I felt the bottom edge of the blindfold against my cheeks. Leather. The outside was leather, and the inside was lined with satin. Something about that combination got my blood pulsing thick and slow, whirling in a seductive heat between my thighs.
This man was more than I’d bargained for.
‘You’re trembling.’ Hearing his sultry voice, it felt like he was inside my head. In every crevice and corner. Filling me until I was all him. Distracting me. And I was letting him . . . oh God, I was letting him.
I turned to him, unable to see his face and excited that I couldn’t.
‘I know.’ My voice was weak, and all I could do was whisper.
‘I like that.’ I felt his breath next to my neck, warm and inviting.
Holy shit.This man exuded sensuality. I was confused. How could he have me in such a state? I was not normally a fool for a man, but this one was making me forget the importance of what it was I was here to do. That couldn’t happen.
Then he must have leaned closer, because I felt him all around me. He filled my senses. My body and my soul. I knew instinctively that he would be amazing in bed. Would that opportunity ever present itself?Oh, I hope so.
I couldn’t sit still. He was so close I felt his body as if an electrical current were crackling between us and I squirmed on the seat, trying to ease the ache building in me. I turned my face to the window, hoping for some air to cool my flushed skin and help me refocus. I had to pull myself back together.
Was being blindfolded better than being able to see him? I wasn’t so sure. To see him in the dark, so intimate and close, would be almost as seductive as not being able to see him but knowing he was there. Especially not knowing how close he was sitting to me. Was he looking at me? I breathed in and caught his scent again; it mingled with that of the blindfold. I was overcome and drew in a breath when the helicopter lifted off. It tilted. I wasn’t prepared for it and I flung my arms out in attempt to keep my balance. My body lost its sense of up versus down and panic hit me in the chest. I knew I was high in the air, with nothing between me and the ground but the shell of this tin can of a helicopter.
One hand hit the window and the other handhim.
‘With great risk comes great reward. Just chill. We’ll be there soon.’
His voice filled my headset and I wondered if the pilot could also hear him. Would they both be able to hear me if I spoke? Could they both hear my rapid breathing? It sounded like a roar in my own ears. I settled back into the seat, but I couldn’t relax my muscles. Tension built in my neck and shoulders as I held myself rigid.
After a few minutes, I felt myself calm as the helicopter settled into a steady flight. It wasn’t choppy or jumping around in the sky, like I thought it’d be, and I let out a slow breath.It was going to be okay.I didn’t really feel like talking, so when music filled my headset I felt myself calm a bit. It lulled me. My sense of hearing was heightened by my lack of vision, and I swore I could hear the man next to me breathing through my headset, even with the music in the background. It was seductive. The image I’d had moments before of us making love flash-forwarded to one of us sated after a night of sweet love. Falling asleep, intimately, in the dark, wrapped in each other’s arms. I could see myself inhale, liking the scents of him that swirled around me. I knew I would never forget it and, should I ever smell it again, I would be forever reminded of this night. Of him. This strange and enigmatic man who had tipped my world off-kilter in such a short space of time.
I rested my head back on the seat, allowing my senses to take over. Behind the blindfold, I closed my eyes. It helped to see him in my mind’s eye. I wondered if he was looking at me, and I felt a flush sweep through my body. My mouth opened as I drew in yet another shaky breath and I could’ve sworn I heard him breathe in at the same time. It told me that maybe he had been watching me, and that excited me more than I cared to admit. His presence gave me a bit of comfort, though, and I felt my fear fading a little.
We sat in silence, but it was as if our bodies were speaking to each other. I opened my mouth, about to say something, but snapped it shut again, remembering the pilot. Then the cadence of the helicopter changed. It was descending and I curled my fingers over my knees as my stomach dropped with the descent. The touchdown was gentle, however, and the engines were turned off.
It appeared I would be staying here – whereverherewas – for a while, otherwise why would the engines be shut off? I touched the blindfold, desperately wanting to rip it off. But I waited. Positive there would be a further set of instructions.
‘We’ve arrived.’
The announcement came from the pilot through the headsets.
Then my headset was removed, the man’s fingers brushing over my hair and behind my ear. A delicate shiver overtook me, and my nipples hardened. Thank God I had a jacket on.
Still blindfolded, I tipped my head to listen. The door was unlatched and opened, and a rush of sea-scented air filled the cabin. I was baffled by everything that had transpired so far. Why on earth would he bring me to the seaside?
