Page 38 of Ensnared
"See you tonight," he warned.
Eve waited until she heard the door close. Not daring to move, she strained to listen for the sound of the front door closing and the low rumble of an engine pulling out of the circular drive.
Assured the house was empty, Eve flipped back the covers and scrambled out of bed. Swiping her glasses off the nightstand, she ran to the bathroom.
Please let Dominic be gone.
Please let Dominic be gone.
She chanted it like a prayer as she ran into the closet and grabbed her bag. Last night, she carefully stuffed her overnight bag with as much stuff as she could carry. The rest would just have to be lost. Grabbing the jeans, an olive-green button-down shirt, and a black tank top she had lying to the side she took it into the bathroom.
It was the quickest shower and change she had ever done in her life.
Pulling her dark curls into a ponytail that dangled down past her shoulder blades, Eve stopped at the door and let out a calming breath. Carefully, she opened the door and smiled at Mochi who sat up in her bed with a morning meow.
Grabbing the munchkin cat, she dashed over to the other side of the hall and opened the bedroom door. Mochi's designated room was empty save for a few things. Locating the mesh cat carrier, she herded Mochi inside.
"Be a sweet girl and stay quiet for momma," she whispered. "Today's the day we get out of here."
Mochi just stared up at her with big sweet eyes. Stealing back to the bedroom with the carrier, she set it down next to her bag.
"Okay, now to check if the coast is clear," she mumbled to herself as she snuck down the hall. For some reason, she felt strangely like Velma from Scooby Doo with all the sneaking around. Except the villain in her story was much more frightening.
Pushing away thoughts of Dimitri's wicked smile and cold eyes, Eve hurried to the stairs and looked down at the grand living room. Empty. Not letting herself get her hopes up, she quickly went down the stairs and peered around them toward the kitchen. Walking hesitantly closer, she crept across the living room and past the main foyer into the kitchen. Eve let out a breath; it was empty.
If Dominic was here, he usually hung out in the kitchen. Taking no chances, Eve rushed to the foyer and stopped at the door. The large double wrought iron and glass door was a work of art. It set the tone for the entire house with its intricate detail of a rose vine framing the thick glass. Gingerly, she leaned on the door and looked out.
A figure moved past and Eve nearly jumped out of her skin.
Backing up, she squinted and waited. After a few seconds, she exhaled and smiled. It was just the two guards! That had to mean the giant was with Dimitri.
Turning, she ran back upstairs and grabbed both her bag and the carrier. Going through the kitchen with her bags in tow, she opened the door to the garage and hit the light switches. The four-car garage was massive. Three of the car bays were filled with cars, the third being her car. Her old Honda Civic looked sad next to the midnight black McLaren and BMW.
Stuffing her bag in the trunk and tucking Mochi into the dark recess behind the passenger seat, Eve slipped into the car and opened the garage door. Starting the car, she pulled out a few feet onto the sunny driveway before a man in a dark suit appeared at her window.
Expecting this, Eve gave the man a polite smile and rolled down her window.
"Where are you going?" the man asked tersely in a deep accent.
Glancing from him to the other man standing at her passenger window, she gave him what she hoped was a hopeful smile. "Another interview," she said.
His dark eyes scanned her casual clothes.
"It's an…informal interview," she added lamely.Fuck, fuck, fuck,she mentally screamed. Why did she not think of that?!
The man looked over the top of her car and said something in Russian to the other man before looking back down at her with his usual hard eyes. "Time you will be back?" he demanded.
"Around two," she lied.
The man made a noise under his breath and nodded before stepping back. Ahead of her, the gate at the end of the drive began to open and Eve let out a shaky breath as she rolled the window back up and began to drive away.
It wasn't until she was down the street and could see the closed gate of the mansion in her rearview that she allow herself to breathe again.
Meow. The sound came from her right and Eve smiled as she stopped at the intersection's light. Reaching down, she carefully pulled Mochi's carrier bag up front and into the passenger seat. Buckling the bag in, she unzipped it just enough for the kitty to stick her face out of the hole and look around.
"We're free," Eve announced, stroking the cat's head.
Mochi just looked around unfazed by the fear-tinged happiness coming off Eve in waves.
