The cold autumn wind swirled with leaves, feeling as if it could pierce right to the bone.
Vesper pulled her coat tighter and looked up at the pitch-black night sky, the corners of her eyes bloodshot.
As she walked to the curb to hail a cab, a rough hand suddenly clamped over her mouth and nose. A pungent, cloyingly sweet drug instantly filled her nostrils, and a wave of suffocating dizziness washed over her. Her strength drained away as if siphoned from her body, and the streetlights blurred into a haze of light.
Within seconds, she sank completely into darkness.
When she came to, she was in an unfamiliar bedroom.
Her body was limp and powerless; she couldn’t move a muscle.
She heard footsteps outside, and a moment later, the door opened.
Three bare-chested men walked in, their eyes raking over her, churning with undisguised lechery and greed.
The man in the lead squatted down, his rough fingers reaching for her collar. His tone was vulgar and flippant.
"Just look at her. She’s President Lockwood’s woman, all right. Hot stuff."
Another man snickered along with him, his gaze sticky and his words obscene.
"Once you’ve had a woman like this, you can say you’ve really lived. We’re in for a treat today, boys."
"I hear she’s still a virgin. She must taste amazing."
"Don’t even think about fighting me for her. I’m going first!"
"Why should you get to go first? You always get the best of everything."
"How about we do it together?"
The three men exchanged a filthy, knowing glance, their slimy eyes locked on her.
Vesper’s pupils contracted violently. An extreme, heart-stopping fear seized her, the terror nearly spilling from her eyes.
She tried with all her might to open her mouth, but only fragmented, airy sounds escaped her throat. She couldn’t even form a coherent cry for help.
"Make her drink this!"
The leader ordered gruffly. Another man immediately stepped forward, his large hand clamping down on her jaw like a vise, forcing her head back and her mouth open.
The cold rim of a glass was pressed to her lips as the liquid was brutally poured down her throat. She choked and coughed violently but lacked the strength to even turn her head away.
She struggled wildly, flailing her arms and legs, but her limbs were as limp as if they were boneless. Her resistance was so feeble it was like a kitten’s playful scratching to the men—utterly useless.
Mere seconds after she swallowed the liquid, a scorching fire ignited within her limp body. It blazed from her core to her extremities, a searing heat that made even her fingertips tingle with a feverish numbness.
Her consciousness began to drift, the figures before her blurring and doubling.
The heat and weakness left her with barely enough strength to lift her eyelids. She could only watch as the three men closed in with menacing grins. A rough hand reached for her collar, and the brush of a sweaty fingertip against her neck sent a wave of nauseating revulsion through her.
Despair washed over her like a tidal wave, and she felt as if she were back on that evening three years ago.
A dim alley. Three leering thugs had surrounded her, taunting her as if she were prey, watching her panic with nowhere to run.
And amidst that overwhelming despair, Luke had appeared like a bolt of lightning tearing through the night, saving her.
’But this time... Luke isn’t coming.’
She closed her eyes in despair, bracing for the inevitable, degrading violation.
BAM—
The flimsy wooden door was kicked open, slamming against the wall with a loud CRASH and leaving it shuddering.
The sickening thud of fists on flesh followed, punctuated by a few shrill cries that faded to whimpers within seconds.
Vesper’s dark lashes trembled.
Her fingers, clutching the hem of her clothes, were shaking as she slowly lifted her heavy eyelids.
A tall, imposing figure was silhouetted against the light, striding toward her. The cold fury radiating from him had yet to subside, but the moment his eyes landed on her, its sharpest edge seemed to soften.
He reached her and squatted down.
Without a word, he took off his black overcoat and carefully wrapped her in its warm fabric.
The large coat completely covered her huddled form, shielding her from the cold and her own vulnerability.
He reached out, gently cradling the back of her limp neck with a steady, tender grip, and swept her up into his arms.
The warmth from his palm seeped through the thin fabric of her clothes, making her tremble at the searing contact.
"Don’t be afraid. I’m taking you out of here."
His voice was low, laced with an unshakable calm.
He turned and strode steadily out of the chaotic room, holding her close.
As he passed the doorway, Jared glanced down at the woman in his arms, then lifted his gaze to the figures huddled on the floor. His expression was like frost. His thin lips parted to utter two words, each syllable dripping with ice.
"Interrogate them."
The head of his security, Leon Quillan, bowed his head.
"Rest assured, sir. I’ll make them tell us everything."
Inside the car, the heater blasted a suffocatingly dry heat. Nestled in Jared’s arms, Vesper felt the full effects of the drug surge through her.
"Hot... I’m so hot..."
Her mind felt like it was floating on clouds. Her only fixation was the crisp, masculine scent emanating from him.
She reached up and grabbed his shirt collar, her scorching fingertips brushing against his Adam’s apple. Her head burrowed uncontrollably into the crook of his neck, her lips grazing his jaw as she let out soft, ragged breaths.
Jared went rigid. The depths of his eyes darkened, and his arms tightened around her. "Just hold on," he said, his voice strained and hoarse. "We’re almost at the hospital."
But she wasn’t listening. She tilted her flushed face up to him, her hazy eyes glued to his. She threw an arm around his neck and lunged forward, pressing her lips to his.
The moment their lips met, a searing softness accompanied by sweet-sounding pants, she clumsily and eagerly tried to deepen the kiss with her tongue.
After a few failed attempts, she bit him in frustration.
Jared’s Adam’s apple bobbed. His self-control crumbled under the intense temptation. A flicker of desire lit his dark, narrow eyes as he turned the tables, parting her lips to claim her mouth.
The driver silently raised the privacy partition, kept his eyes on the road, and sped up.
Jared’s kisses trailed down her slender neck, and the temperature inside the car climbed steadily higher.
But at the crucial moment, he caught sight of the unfocused haze in her eyes. It was like a bucket of cold water dousing the fire in his veins. He grabbed her wandering wrist, turning his head just enough to avoid her next kiss.
His voice was painfully hoarse, yet laced with an undeniable restraint.
"Vesper, snap out of it. Look at me. Do you know who I am?"
’Taking advantage of her like this... isn’t right.’
He held her against him, one hand firmly gripping her wrist, his eyes swirling with an unreadable emotion.
Vesper’s long lashes fluttered as she vaguely recognized him.
"Jared... Jared?"
His throat tightened.
"Do you know what you’re doing?"
A flicker of confusion crossed Vesper’s eyes before another wave of heat washed it away, leaving only instinct and desire.
"I want... you..."
Before she could get the words "help me" out, his lips descended on hers like a storm.
"President Hawthorne, we’re at the hotel..."
The driver’s voice came from the front as the car glided to a stop.
Jared carried her directly into the elevator.
The woman in his arms, pliant as if she had no bones, wrapped herself around his neck, demanding another kiss.
He let out a low chuckle and bent his head to kiss her, their lips and tongues tangling in a dance of inseparable passion.
Once out of the elevator, he hoarsely coaxed her to swipe the key card.
A trail of discarded clothing littered the path from the living room to the bedroom.
He slowly peeled away her layers, one by one.
The night was long, the room filled with a captivating intimacy, and they sank into a boundless passion.