The Russian Billionaire’s Secret(55)

“When we get you someplace Sofie, we can talk,” he told me. “I will be back soon, back whatever you need for a few weeks to go off the grid and we'll go from there.”

I nodded at him, but I felt my face get wet with tears and I surprised myself. I wasn't usually one to cry, I was the type to yell and lose my temper. I was embarrassed and when he shut the door I grabbed the pillow off my bed and buried my face, the blood from my arms smearing on the white satin.

I stifled them and wiped my eyes with the back of my hand when the maid knocked on the door and came in with a first aid kit.

“I'm so sorry, Maria,” I told her softly when she started picking out the glass and cleaning my arms. The maid who'd died had been her sister. It just wasn't fair. I wanted to hug her, but she seemed to be holding herself together by a thread and I didn't want to be responsible for her falling apart.

“You didn't do it; Isabel knew the risks of working here. We both did. The pay is good, and I know your father will make sure her family is provided for. That's all she would have wanted,” Maria told me as she finished cleaning my wounds and bandaged me up. “John told me to help you pack. I hope you survive this Miss, you're a sweet girl and you've already had too much tragedy in your life.”

“You're right Maria, I have, and I want out. If you were smart, you'd get out too,” I told her bluntly.

“I need the money,” she told me and shook her head as she cleaned up the mess and wrappers from the bandages and alcohol. She pulled some bags out of my closet when she was done and started helping me pack while I waited for John to return.

Chapter 3

Hiding From Evil

John took me to a small cabin in the middle of nowhere. I was lucky it even had working electricity and running water. He made me ditch my cell phone and leave it behind. I was worried about surviving, but walking into the dingy cabin, realizing it was almost the size of my bedroom and bathroom for the entire dwelling, and no cook or maids, I was on my own.

How would I survive if I had to be solely responsible for myself? Yikes, I would need to figure this out if my goal was to go on my own. A normal person took care of themselves. I had to figure out how to do that. I wanted to be normal.

Well, I had John, but he didn't really strike me as the domestic kind of guy, and I didn't know how to cook.

“John, if you expect me to be able to take care of us while we are here, you're in for a world of trouble, my cooking skills are more along the lines of opening a can of soup and burning it in the microwave.” I crossed my arms after dropping one of my bags on the small dingy couch and he brought in the rest of the bags.

“It's a good thing I can cook then,” he told me grinning. He set the bags down and put his hand to my chin and tipped it up so he could look at my eyes. “Don't worry Princess, I promised to keep you safe, and if that means doing some laundry and making sure we have edible food, I can do that.”

“I'm not a Princess!” I huffed but when his thumb rubbed my chin softly, all I could think about was kissing him. I knew it was a mistake, but I leaned forward and pressed my mouth to his before I could stop myself.

Shocked, he stiffened against me, and I wasn't sure if he was going to kiss me back, or reject me. His hand slid around my neck and he kissed me back. His lips pressed hard against mine and then his tongue entered between my lips, deepening the kiss. The tension we'd been feeling spilled into a fiery eruption of passion. I don't know if it was survivals guilt that made me take the leap into dangerous territory, or just the simple fact I wanted him and there was no one here to stop us.

Finally, he put his hands on my shoulder and pushed himself away from me. Feeling hurt, I looked up at him confused. It had just started to feel good and I didn't want him to stop.

“Sofie, it's okay. We need to stop. You've been through a traumatic event; you need time to adjust, to heal. I can't give you the comfort you seek right now; you'll regret it in the morning.” John put his hands on my shoulders and looked me in the eye. “I shouldn't have let myself kiss you back, I'm sorry.”

“You don't understand,” I told him, starting to protest, feeling offended he'd apologized for kissing me back. He needed to understand that it wasn't about the horrible event I'd just been through and witnessed, but more that he was the first person I'd met I actually wanted. For the moments I'd been kissing him, I'd forgotten everything but how he'd made me feel. I wanted that. I wanted him.

I had means, opportunity, and a handsome man in front of me I wanted. He was trying to do the right thing, an honorable thing. He didn't seem like the type of man who was afraid of my father. I didn't know anything about him, other than he'd saved my life and the only reason he was hired by my father was to protect me. I'd assumed he was a hit man, but watching him handle the situation, he moved more like he had military training. Something niggled at me that I couldn't quite place.

“Sofie, I'm going to make us some food, okay?” John told me and then touched my cheek quietly for a moment, making me feel like maybe what I'd felt between us real. “There are two bedrooms, pick the one you want and put your stuff in it. I have a special phone I'll use to contact your father, I'll let him know we arrived safely, and then we can talk. Just me and you, okay?”

I nodded and then went to grab my bags and pick a room realizing that nothing was as it seemed. I wanted answers but I wasn't sure exactly what they were. And I guess the better question was did I really want the answers. Was the truth always better? Was being in the dark sometimes easier? Shaking my head, I realized that I would just have to trust my gut and try not to overthink it, but it was hard.