Chapter Two - Elise
CHAPTER TWO
Elise
Kaitlyn is at my door at noon. She looks as sharp as ever, with her blonde hair pulled up in a neat bun, black slacks, and a matching blazer. Normally, her attire is casual since she needs to blend in, but she opts for professional wear for family dinners.
“We’re about to head out. Are you all good?” she asks.
I’d be lying if I said it didn’t hurt being excluded from an event called family dinner by my own family. Though even I have to admit that it’d be stupid to risk revealing my identity when I’ve been allegedly dead for six years now, so I’ve never argued the point.
“Already? It only takes an hour to get there. Why are you leaving so early?”
She huffs, throwing an annoyed glance behind her to where the others are getting into the car. “A few of the soldiers are required for a training session, so we have to leave now to get there on time.” She eyes me warily. “Is that okay?”
“Of course,” I answer, a little too quickly, and add a warm smile to assure her.
I decided against telling anyone that Hayden is coming over tonight. If I did, there’s no way they would let it happen, and they would tell my father. Technically, I’m not breaking any rules though, since I will be staying in tonight.
“I’m good. I’ll see you guys tomorrow morning.”
She studies me so intently that I wonder if she knows what I’m up to, but after a long moment, she nods. “Call if you need anything.”
“You know I will,” I tell her and wave as they drive off.
The hours pass in a blur of cleaning and meal-prepping for the week. I’ve never had a guy over before, and I’m not exactly sure what the etiquette is. My only reference is movies and the endless romance novels I’ve read through the years.
At quarter ’til seven, I’m done getting ready and check myself in the mirror one last time.
I’m wearing my nicest pair of skinny jeans and a loose gray blouse with a generous V-neckline. My long blonde hair is perfectly straight, and I note that my dark roots will need a touch-up soon. I’ve applied minimal makeup, not wanting to look like I’m trying too hard to impress him.
Even though I am.
A knock on the door pulls me away from the mirror, and my heart leaps into my throat.
I take a deep breath before approaching the door and releasing the several locks that Kaitlyn insists I have.
When I pull the door open, I’m stunned into silence.
Hayden is dressed in dark jeans and a short-sleeved, white button-up, showing off his tan arms. His broad shoulders and commanding posture give off a dangerous air, but his smile is welcoming.
“Hey, beautiful. Mind if I come in?” He lifts his arms, and I realize his hands are full—one with a take-out bag and the other with a bottle of wine.
I open the door wider and step aside for him. “Please do. How are you?”
I really have no idea what I’m doing.
“Much better now that I’m here. You have a really nice place,” he says, following me into the kitchen and placing the items on the counter.
“Well, thank you. I’m glad you were able to come over.”
“Me too. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you.” His smile is charming but, somehow, not as warm as it was yesterday.
Unsure of how to respond, I gesture to the food. “Thanks for grabbing dinner. You can take it to the table, and I’ll get us some utensils and glasses for the wine.”
“Sounds good.” Hayden takes the food and heads to the table.
Once we’re settled in, he opens the bottle of wine and pours a glass for each of us. “So, are you originally from this area?” he asks, sipping his drink.
I didn’t even consider that I’d have to feed Hayden lies about my past, but I have no other choice. As it is, I’m already pushing my luck by having him here in the first place.
I give him my well-rehearsed backstory.
“Yeah. My parents died when I was three, so I was raised here by my aunt. A few years ago, she retired and moved to Florida, but I decided to stay here. This is my home.”
I’ve told the story enough times that it almost feels like the truth.
“I’m sorry to hear about your parents.” His words are compassionate, but his expression is almost… calculating.
“Don’t be. I was too young to know any different. My aunt is my family, and that’s enough for me. What about you? Why did you move here from California?” I ask, using the opportunity to take a bite of food.
“Business.” A cool smile graces his lips. “I decided to move here last week.”
“Last week? You’re telling me that within seven days, you decided to move your whole life across the country?”
“More or less.”
“That’s incredible. I wish I could just pick up and move somewhere.”
“Why can’t you? Doesn’t sound like you have many ties.”
And I’ve said too much.
I backtrack, waving my hand dismissively. “I mean, it sounds great in theory, but it’s not for me. I’m a homebody.”
He doesn’t push the point. “So, tell me more about yourself.”
Taking a sip of my wine, I use the pause to make a list of the true information that is safe to give him.
“Well, there isn’t much to know. I graduated a few weeks ago with a major in Culinary Arts, and I’m working at the bakery until I figure out my next steps.”
“And what are your ideal next steps?”
The bitterness from Dad rejecting the internship still stings, and I decide on a whim to answer his question honestly.
“In a perfect world, I’d study in Europe for a few months and find a full-time position after that. But I’ll probably end up taking the first job that’ll hire me and gain as much experience as possible.”
“Why only a perfect world? That sounds like a reasonable plan to me.”
If only my father thought so, too.
“Like I said, I’m a homebody. What about you?”
His lips pull to one side as if he doesn’t know where to start, and I wait patiently for his response.
“I didn’t go to college. In fact, I didn’t finish high school.”
“What?” I blanch. “How did you manage to get a job without any credentials?”
“It’s all about who you know. Connections are worth more than any degree.”
Logistical questions flood my brain, but I don’t voice them. This is a first date, after all. The last thing Hayden wants is to be grilled about his educational background.
He continues, “I mostly work in management. Right now, I’m preparing to start negotiations for a property my agency is interested in.”
After finishing my food, I set my elbows on the table and rest my head on my hands. “That sounds interesting. What kind of property is it?”
He mimics my dismissive wave. “I won’t bore you with the details. Are you done eating?”.
“Oh, uh—yeah, I am.” I stand and begin to clean up.
Hayden stands from his chair, and suddenly, we’re so close that I can feel the heat radiating off his body. If he weren’t so tall, our noses would be touching.
I look up into his deep brown eyes and feel small, but not in an inferior way, more like I’m being protected.
Like I’m safe.
I forget that I’m holding our empty food boxes until he takes them from my hands.
“Allow me,” he says, and I release them to him as if in a trance.
“You know, you’re a little controlling,” I tease once I’m able to form a coherent sentence.
He laughs—the sound deep and amused. “In my line of work, it’s a necessary trait.”
While he clears the last of the trash from the table, I take our glasses and pour refills.
“Come join me in the living room when you’re finished,” I tell him, and I walk out of the kitchen with a sway in my step.
My whole body relaxes as I lower to the couch. Between the small talk and the wine, I’m significantly more relaxed than when Hayden first arrived.
I lift my legs onto the couch, tucking one under my bottom and bending the other in front of me.
Hayden walks in, surveys the room, and comes to sit next to me instead of on the adjacent chair.
We lift our glasses, and I take a sip of mine while he studies me.
“What?”
“I have a hard time believing that you’re single,” he admits after a moment of thought.
I smile sardonically. “Does that line usually work?”
His low chuckle returns. “As a matter of fact, it does, but I suppose I’ll have to ramp up the creativity to impress you.”
“Please do. I’d hate for clichés to be your downfall.”
“I can assure you, Annie, that I am anything but cliché.”
It’s only now that I realize we’ve both unconsciously leaned toward one another, putting our faces only inches apart.
Every feature of his face is flawless. The eyebrows are tugged together as he studies me with a gaze overflowing with interest. His full lips are lifted in a ghost of a smile that sparks heat in the pit of my stomach.
What were we talking about?
I reluctantly pull away, desperately needing to regain some clarity.
“So, what about you?” I ask breathlessly. “Why are you single?”
Hayden seems to snap out of a daze similar to mine, but his expression remains thoughtful.
“I’m married to my job. And I’ve never met anyone I wanted to be with.”
“I find that hard to believe.”
“What’s your excuse?”
My shoulders lift in a shrug, and I sip my wine to cover the red that creeps into my cheeks. “I’ve never actually… dated anyone before.”
Genuine surprise twists Hayden’s features, and I hope he doesn’t push the topic.
I’m not so lucky.
“What do you mean?”
His free hand rests on my leg, rubbing lazy circles on the knee. The touch is so natural that I’m not sure he even notices he’s doing it.
“I was homeschooled until college, so I never really did the whole ‘dating’ thing.”
“But you had guys throwing themselves at you once you went to college, right?”
I shake my head, drinking the remaining wine and setting the glass down.
He lifts his hand from my knee, and his finger gently lifts my chin to meet his questioning gaze. His eyes are softer now than they have been all night; that strange edge is gone.
“Have you ever had a boyfriend?”
I shake my head.
“Have you ever been on a date?”
I shake my head again.
“So, this is your first date? Ever?”
“Yeah.” I try to look down, but his finger holds me in place, and I lose myself in his comforting pine tree scent.
If it weren’t for the fact that he’s clearly put himself together for our date, I might wonder if he’s been hiking today. It’s nothing like the overpowering cologne of most men I pass on the street. It’s subtle yet wholly overwhelming.
Without moving his finger from my chin, he sets his glass on the coffee table and leans in.
“Annie,” he says, his voice low and soothing, “have you ever been kissed?”
His words aren’t accusatory, but that doesn’t ease my embarrassment.
I can’t bring myself to speak, so I shake my head slowly.
My heart pounds faster, and all my nerves rush back when he closes the short distance between us, and our lips meet.
The kiss is slow and sweet. The hand that held my chin now cradles the side of my face, his thumb resting on my cheekbone. I place my hands on his hard chest, and I can feel that his heart is beating almost as fast as mine.
When we slowly pull away, I bite my lip to stop from saying something that could ruin the moment, and I look up at him through thick lashes. The gaze I meet is unlike anything I’ve seen on Hayden’s face before. It’s dark—overflowing with a desire that would scare me if I didn’t mirror it.
That unbridled desire is my only warning.
His lips crash to mine.
This kiss—though just as sweet as the last—is rough and passionate.
One of his hands still holds the side of my face, and the other takes hold of my lower back, pulling me in until we’re flush against one another.
I move my hands from his chest and let them run through his hair, gripping it and anchoring him to me.
I don’t process my lack of experience and happily let Hayden take the lead. In one swift pull, we’re lying down, and he’s on top of me, dominating my mouth with his. My hands wander up his back, and with little conscious thought, I pull his shirt up.
He slows then, leaving one last kiss on my lips before pulling away and looking at me with a cold calculation—one that makes me wonder if I did something wrong.
Hayden climbs off me and stands, taking our empty glasses and giving me a tight, almost pained smile. “I’m going to get us refills.”
I sit up when he leaves and bring my fingers to my lips as I try to process what just happened. I just had my first kiss, and it was incredible.
Until he ended it so abruptly, that is.
Hayden comes back into the room, handing me my glass and taking a seat on the couch, farther away from me than before.
Was I that bad? Maybe he just isn’t that into me…
I try to control my expression, but I must not do a good job because he gives me a forced smile. “No need to rush, gorgeous. Let’s just enjoy tonight.”
The strange edge has returned to his expression, and I wonder if it has anything to do with our kiss. Then again, my knowledge of men is minimal, and I’m probably just reading into it.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to get carried away,” I whisper and avert my gaze.
“You didn’t. I did.”
I take a sip of my drink to cover my heated cheeks and the insecure thoughts threatening my composure.
“What is it?” Hayden asks.
“It’s nothing…”
His finger lifts my chin, rougher than before. “What is it?”
When I look at the demand shining in his brown eyes, a rush of something I don’t recognize hits my chest and reverberates all the way down my spine. The feeling is completely foreign—a warm mix of adrenaline, boldness, and nerves.
Whatever it is, I want more.
“You didn’t need to kiss me out of pity.” I pull away from his gaze just long enough to down the rest of my wine.
Wow, I drank that too fast.
The world grows hazy, and I blink to clear my blurring vision.
“I didn’t kiss you out of pity,” he tells me, and I get lost in his eyes—in the longing I find there. “I kissed you because I couldn’t stop myself, Elise.”
My heart stops.
Time stops.
Everything stops.
My eyes go wide, but it’s hard to focus because everything seems to be moving in slow motion.
I push away from him, and my wine glass falls to the wooden floor, shattering along with my sense of security.
“What did you just call me?”
With a slight shake of his head, Hayden’s eyes narrow in an expression that sucks all warmth and safety from the room. With his lips pressed in a hard line and his jaw ticking angrily, he looks nothing like the man I let into my apartment.
I try desperately to scramble away, but he’s on top of me in an instant.
“What’d you do to me?” My words are mumbled, and I shake my head to clear it, but the world is too fuzzy.
I look at the fragments of glass on the floor, tinged red with the last drops of what I now realize was drugged wine.
“Take a nap, Princess. Everything is going to be just fine.”
Dark, cunning eyes are the last thing I see before I slip into oblivion.