Total pages in book: 16
Estimated words: 15455 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 77(@200wpm)___ 62(@250wpm)___ 52(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 15455 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 77(@200wpm)___ 62(@250wpm)___ 52(@300wpm)
I look her up and down. She’s barely wearing any clothes, and all of it is soaking wet. She’s clutching herself like she needs someone to hug but has no one left.
“You’re on your own in an alley, completely soaked through, crying your eyes out,” I say, lifting a brow. “It’s okay not to be strong for a day.”
She gazes at me but doesn’t inch back when I try to get closer.
“C’mon,” I say, beckoning her. “Let me get you somewhere warm and safe.”
She looks at my hand and then scans my face, almost as if she’s trying to spot the lie.
“You can leave anytime you want,” I add. “You can trust me.”
Her eyes flicker with hope.
She takes in a breath.
Finally, her hand reaches for mine.
The smile on my face grows when her skin touches mine, her fingers fitting so neatly into the palm of my hand. And when I rise, lifting her up too, I stop only to stare at how gorgeous she truly is. Her long black hair sticks to her porcelain face, her soft, heart-shaped lips, those round, hooded eyes staring straight into my soul … all of it beguiles me.
I pull her forward, out of the shadows of the alley and into the open. The rain still pours down on us, but my driver quickly hops out of the car and fetches an umbrella from the back, rushing to us.
“Sir, your new Colbert will get wet!” he says, huddling close to us to keep us dry.
“I don’t care,” I say as I guide her toward the car.
She seems unsure of me, and I completely understand why.
Who would ever trust a stranger whisking you off the streets?
Trust is a dangerous thing, only extended to those we deem most worthy. But I will prove myself to her.
“Open the door,” I command my driver when we get to the car.
“Sir, are you sure we should be—”
I throw him a damning look.
Just one simple glance is enough to make him suck in the air.
“Yes, sir.” He swiftly pulls it open and waits for us, holding up the umbrella so we don’t get wet any further than we already are.
It won’t help her clothes, but at least it’ll give her the one thing she lost on her way to this alley: her dignity.
And I cannot fucking wait to restore it to its original state.
I slide in first and pat down on the couch, watching her contemplate her options.
“Get in,” I tell her.
She bites down on her bottom lip and looks around the street.
I didn’t lie. She’s free to go wherever she wants, whenever she wants. I won’t stop her. I won’t go after her if she chooses to flee right now and never look back, and I wouldn’t blame her if she did.
But what I’m offering is something far more valuable than the outside world can ever give her: A new start.
To me, this girl seems like an intricate puzzle.
And I can’t fucking wait to unlock everything she has to hide.
2
Emilia
I can’t believe I’m going along with this stranger, hopping into his expensive-looking car and letting him take me wherever he wants.
It’s dumb. Insane.
But it’s too late to stop it now as the car has already begun to drive.
My body feels frozen, and I don’t know if it’s from the cold rain soaking through my clothes or from this man whose warm, callused hand I can still feel wrapped around my fingers even though it’s no longer there.
I stare at my hand, afraid to throw even one glance.
But I can see him look my way through the left side of my eyes. “Do I frighten you?”
I rub my lips together and shake my head.
He snorts and smiles softly.
Fuck.
Of course he can see right through my posturing.
I push through my anxiety and turn to look at him, but I’m struck in awe at how handsome he truly is. His chiseled jaw with a neatly trimmed beard, that short, textured salt-and-pepper hair with a low fade, buff arms barely contained in that Colbert of his, the intricate tattoos snaking up from his hand all the way to his wrist hiding underneath his clothes, and those piercing blue eyes with a smoldering gaze that reminds me of the moon in the night sky.
Simply breathtaking.
Those eyes will make me do things I’ll regret.
A blush spreads on my cheeks, and I quickly look away again.
He must be twice my age.
My hands tighten across my waist. I cannot let my guard down, no matter what.
“It’s okay,” he says.
Suddenly, I feel a tickle near my neck. Gently sliding across my skin, his finger pushes a strand of hair behind my ear.
“Most people are intimidated by me.”
I shudder against the lavish leather seat.
His hand leaves my skin, and so does the warmth that filtered through my body, goose bumps erupting all over.