Total pages in book: 139
Estimated words: 135378 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 677(@200wpm)___ 542(@250wpm)___ 451(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 135378 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 677(@200wpm)___ 542(@250wpm)___ 451(@300wpm)
Uh-oh.
Suddenly, the word choices Hugh used come flooding back to my mind.
He specified over and over again that I wouldn’t have to see Silvan tonight.
Now, I’m holding a blindfold.
Goddammit, he tricked me after all.
I don’t want to put it on, but the thought of seeing Silvan makes me feel sick. Crushing the scrap of silk in my hand, I lean forward and knock on the divider.
The partition doesn’t move.
I sink back in my seat, and a sense of foreboding washes over me. I’m tense as I lift the silk to my face just to see if putting it on triggers anything. It doesn’t seem like it should since Silvan can’t see me, but there’s a sense of him seeing everything that I can’t seem to shake.
Swallowing, I slide the band down over the back of my head and settle the mask on my face. The silk feels smooth and cool as it falls across my cheek.
Like a fool, I wait for some magical change, but nothing happens. I’m just sitting in the back seat of a strange man’s limo wearing a blindfold like a lunatic, so after a moment, I rip it off and toss it on the seat beside me.
I look around for locks, but I don’t see them. Maybe only the front partition where the driver is has the ability to lock and unlock doors in this thing.
That realization makes me feel more like a prisoner than a pampered guest.
I’m about to start banging on the divider again when the limo slows and comes to a stop. A stop alone wouldn’t be suspicious. I can’t see with the partition up, but maybe we’re stopped at a traffic light.
Foreboding sweeps over me when I hear a sound that’s suspiciously like Hugh’s door opening. We’ve only been on the road for a minute or two, so we’re definitely not to my destination.
Trying to ignore my racing heart, I tell myself it’s nothing.
It feels like a lie, though. I think I’m in trouble.
In hindsight, I definitely shouldn’t have gotten in this car. Hugh seemed so nice; I can’t believe he’s complicit in a thing like this.
Extinguishing the last of my thoughts that perhaps I’m overreacting, the limo door swings open, letting a gust of cool air into the cabin.
I stiffen at the sound of Silvan’s voice. “Thanks, Hugh.”
I’m angry with myself because I knew better.
Again.
When will I ever learn to listen to my damn instincts?
For a moment, I freeze as Silvan climbs into the car. He’s tall and broad-shouldered, so he cuts an imposing figure despite being dressed more casually this evening. His hair is still long, and his facial hair is still trimmed in the style of Uhtred since he was just dressed up as him last night.
His mouth tugs up with pleasure at the sight of me. Or maybe at the sight of my palpable fear.
I like to pretend I look cool and collected, but I know I’m only fooling myself. My mind keeps generating memories of last night when I was alone with him in that Viking bedroom.
I stop the thoughts before they can get more intimate.
“I knew this was a trick.”
Silvan shakes his head. “It wasn’t a trick.”
“You said you’d leave me alone tonight. That’s the only reason I came.”
He cocks a dark eyebrow. “Actually, I said you wouldn’t have to see me tonight, and that was true. If you’d been obedient and put the blindfold on like I told you to, you wouldn’t have had to see me.”
“That is a very technical loophole.”
He smirks. “Should’ve had your lawyer look it over before you agreed. Too late now.”
“I don’t have a lawyer,” I mutter, even though I know he was joking. “Maybe I should get one,” I say, hoping to sound at least mildly threatening.
“Sure,” he says, leaning back in the seat and making himself comfortable. “You can use mine.”
“That would definitely be a conflict of interest, and I’m fairly sure anyone working for you is outside my budget.”
“Damn. Guess you’ll just have to rely on my honesty, then.”
“That’s like relying on a dinosaur not to eat me,” I mutter.
His smile widens, his dark eyes glinting with amusement, then he playfully gnashes his teeth.
“See?” I shake my head. “Cannot be trusted.”
“If the worst thing I do to you is eat you, then I don’t know what you have to complain about.”
My face heats up as soon as I realize the double entendre in what we’re talking about, and he laughs.
“Better watch that pretty mouth around me, farm girl,” he says, still amused. “You might give me ideas, and I assure you, I have enough of my own.”
“I am not interested in any of your ideas.”
“And I’m not interested in your denial,” he shoots back.
“That makes one of us uninterested in something and one of us a criminal,” I inform him.