for one hell of a wild ride with Mr. Farren Shaw.
“T ime is of the essence, Essalin. The abductors have more than a two-day lead on us.”
Farren’s words from before I left him in Haven’s room so he could continue to search for clues resonate in my head. I’m in my own room now, tossing an assortment of summer clothes into an open suitcase I dragged from my closet to the bedroom floor.
I work fast, especially when I hear Farren leaving the apartment. Minutes later, I am making my way down the inside stairs that lead to the front door on the first floor. Farren turns from his position at the base of the stairs. His hand remains on the doorknob, but he watches me amusedly while I bounce my heavy, overloaded suitcase down each individual step.
With a suppressed grin, he eventually lets go of the doorknob and steps onto the lowest step. “Here, let me help you with that,” he says, reaching out.
His stretch is long, reaching me easily even though I’m a few steps away. I gladly relinquish the heavy bag and follow Farren down to the door.
But when I linger, Farren asks, “What’s wrong? Did you forget something?” He hoists up the suitcase and sarcastically adds, “Seems unlikely, considering the weight of this thing.”
“Very funny,” I retort. “And, no, I didn’t forget anything. It’s just that I was thinking about things I should do before we leave town. I don’t have much money on me, but I do have a small savings at the bank—”
Farren clears his throat, interrupting me. Softly, he says, “You don’t need to take money out of the bank. I’ll cover all our expenses.”
I start to protest, but he shushes me. “Don’t argue with me, Essalin. Just because you’re going to be safer on the road with me than if you stayed here alone doesn’t mean the trip is without risk. This isn’t some vacation. We could run into trouble. Real trouble…” He trails off, giving me no more.
I arch an eyebrow, hoping to prompt him to continue, but all I get in return is stony silence. Just like I suspected when we were upstairs in the apartment, I sense Farren knows more about what’s really going on with this situation involving Haven than he’s saying. But since I can’t make him talk, I sigh and agree to let him pay for everything.
“But, if expenses get out of hand, I’m paying you back,” I state resolutely.
“Whatever, Essalin,” Farren replies, chuckling. “I think I can handle it.”
True, Farren is loaded, but I refuse to take advantage.
With a trip to the bank deemed unnecessary, I start to walk past him. But then his hand touches my arm lightly, sending a delicious rush of warmth through me. I falter and stop. He removes his hand, much to my chagrin, and steps back.
Though it was only the lightest of touches, I liked Farren’s hand on me. Just like when he covered my mouth in Haven’s bedroom, after he grabbed my hand and I dropped the pepper spray, his touch was gentle, yet firm. It held promise, promise of how I’ve always dreamed of being touched. Touched by a man, not a boy.
“There is one more thing I should mention,” Farren says.
I cross my arms to appear nonchalant. No need for him to notice he’s affecting me again without even trying. “What’s that?” I casually inquire.
“If there’s anyone you’d like to talk to before we leave, you should call them now.”
“Why?”
“I can’t allow you to take your cell phone on the road, so there will be no calls from here on out. In fact, you need to give your cell to me before we leave.”
“W…what?” I sputter. “Why?”
Farren drags a hand through his neatly trimmed dark hair. Though it’s short, the strands appear silky and soft, making me wonder what it would be like to run my fingers through the raven locks.
“Your phone can be tracked, Essalin,” Farren says as explanation to my question.
And suddenly I can’t take it anymore.
“I told you to call me Essa,” I snap. The stress is wearing
“T ime is of the essence, Essalin. The abductors have more than a two-day lead on us.”
Farren’s words from before I left him in Haven’s room so he could continue to search for clues resonate in my head. I’m in my own room now, tossing an assortment of summer clothes into an open suitcase I dragged from my closet to the bedroom floor.
I work fast, especially when I hear Farren leaving the apartment. Minutes later, I am making my way down the inside stairs that lead to the front door on the first floor. Farren turns from his position at the base of the stairs. His hand remains on the doorknob, but he watches me amusedly while I bounce my heavy, overloaded suitcase down each individual step.
With a suppressed grin, he eventually lets go of the doorknob and steps onto the lowest step. “Here, let me help you with that,” he says, reaching out.
His stretch is long, reaching me easily even though I’m a few steps away. I gladly relinquish the heavy bag and follow Farren down to the door.
But when I linger, Farren asks, “What’s wrong? Did you forget something?” He hoists up the suitcase and sarcastically adds, “Seems unlikely, considering the weight of this thing.”
“Very funny,” I retort. “And, no, I didn’t forget anything. It’s just that I was thinking about things I should do before we leave town. I don’t have much money on me, but I do have a small savings at the bank—”
Farren clears his throat, interrupting me. Softly, he says, “You don’t need to take money out of the bank. I’ll cover all our expenses.”
I start to protest, but he shushes me. “Don’t argue with me, Essalin. Just because you’re going to be safer on the road with me than if you stayed here alone doesn’t mean the trip is without risk. This isn’t some vacation. We could run into trouble. Real trouble…” He trails off, giving me no more.
I arch an eyebrow, hoping to prompt him to continue, but all I get in return is stony silence. Just like I suspected when we were upstairs in the apartment, I sense Farren knows more about what’s really going on with this situation involving Haven than he’s saying. But since I can’t make him talk, I sigh and agree to let him pay for everything.
“But, if expenses get out of hand, I’m paying you back,” I state resolutely.
“Whatever, Essalin,” Farren replies, chuckling. “I think I can handle it.”
True, Farren is loaded, but I refuse to take advantage.
With a trip to the bank deemed unnecessary, I start to walk past him. But then his hand touches my arm lightly, sending a delicious rush of warmth through me. I falter and stop. He removes his hand, much to my chagrin, and steps back.
Though it was only the lightest of touches, I liked Farren’s hand on me. Just like when he covered my mouth in Haven’s bedroom, after he grabbed my hand and I dropped the pepper spray, his touch was gentle, yet firm. It held promise, promise of how I’ve always dreamed of being touched. Touched by a man, not a boy.
“There is one more thing I should mention,” Farren says.
I cross my arms to appear nonchalant. No need for him to notice he’s affecting me again without even trying. “What’s that?” I casually inquire.
“If there’s anyone you’d like to talk to before we leave, you should call them now.”
“Why?”
“I can’t allow you to take your cell phone on the road, so there will be no calls from here on out. In fact, you need to give your cell to me before we leave.”
“W…what?” I sputter. “Why?”
Farren drags a hand through his neatly trimmed dark hair. Though it’s short, the strands appear silky and soft, making me wonder what it would be like to run my fingers through the raven locks.
“Your phone can be tracked, Essalin,” Farren says as explanation to my question.
And suddenly I can’t take it anymore.
“I told you to call me Essa,” I snap. The stress is wearing
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