Twisted Desire (3 page)

Stepping under the hot spray, I lowered my head into it and lathered the shampoo in my hands. I didn’t have much hair but washed it regardless. Scrubbing my head raw, I rinsed it, grabbed the soap, and scrubbed my body. Memories of being told my new assignment hit me as I rinsed off the foamy lather.

“You wanted to see me, Roman?”

He looked up at me from his desk, a cold smile washing over his face. “Tag. Yes, have a seat.”

I did what he said and lowered myself into the chair across from him. He leaned forward and steepled his hands together. I didn’t say anything; I knew to wait for him to begin.

“We will have a new guest tonight, and she won’t be happy about being here. I’ve decided you are the best man for the job of watching over her and making sure she doesn’t do anything, how shall I put this…out of line.”

Alarm bells started going off in my head. What the hell was he talking about? “Who is she?”
was all I asked.

“Penelope Santoro.”

The alarm bells got louder hearing that name. Holy shit.

I made my face stoic, not showing any of my inner feelings. I had mastered the art of hiding my true feelings with my job. It was life or death.
 

“Raul Santoro’s daughter,”
I commented.

Roman grinned and nodded. “Yes. She is en route as we speak. She is not to know anything when she wakes up. She will ask because she has no idea what is going on. Raul has always kept her in the dark about his business dealings. Once he realizes his precious daughter has been taken, he will know I don’t forgive and forget. Quite the contrary— I play dirty when forced and don’t look back.”

I turned off the shower and dried off the drops traveling down my body. Wrapping the towel around my waist, I stepped out and looked in the mirror. The man staring back at me was a stranger in that moment. A man who had somehow missed the fact that his boss was kidnapping his rival’s daughter, and putting him in charge of her.
 

I groaned at the turn of events and let the towel land on the floor. Grabbing a navy Polo shirt and a pair of clean jeans, I slipped them on and hurried to brush my teeth. Being on a yacht in the middle of the ocean was not where I thought I’d be, especially with a naïve, innocent girl to watch over. Roman obviously still didn’t trust me as much as I thought; he had something more for me to prove. The question burning inside of me was—what the hell was it?

I locked my cabin door and walked to hers. Opening the door and shutting it quietly, I paced over to her. She was passed out cold, not even moving an inch when I lightly touched her shoulder. Good. The meds were doing their job. I stood there feeling like a total creep watching her breathe, but I couldn’t help it. She looked so peaceful, which was a stark contrast to how she’d been earlier. I wished she could keep that peace, but knew it was futile. Soon enough she’d wake up and see that this wasn’t a nightmare; it was her new ugly reality.

I ran a hand over my head and turned to leave, stopping cold when I heard her mutter something. Turning around, I stilled, silently demanding she say it again. I took a step back when she suddenly turned over and again said, “Help me, Daddy.”
She continued to sleep, clueless to my presence.

I backed up a few steps, watching her chest rise up and down and her long, dark lashes dusting her cheeks. She was hot, gorgeous actually, which made me once again wonder how long I was supposed to be her babysitter. Annoyance flared inside, but I squelched it down, telling myself to be patient.

I walked into the dining room, cringing when I saw Rico sitting right beside Roman, his dark, beady eyes glancing over the room. He was such a prick. But, of course, I put on my mask and shook his and Roman’s hands when I reached the table.
 

“Tag, how’s the girl?”
Roman asked as he wiped his mouth with his white linen napkin. His light blue eyes and stark white hair gave the impression that he was a good man, a pleasant man, which was far from the truth. He was one of the most ruthless men I’d ever known. To be in Roman’s cartel was an honor in itself, but it was also a literal life or death situation. One screw up and you were out. Literally.

I put my own napkin on my lap as I sat down, scooting my chair in. “She’s upset and scared to death. I gave her some sleeping pills so she’s out cold. So far I haven’t told her anything, but got the word from Rico to ease her in a bit.”

Roman stopped mid-chew and stared at me. “Yes, but not much. The less she knows, the better. Understand?”

Did he think I was an idiot? I only nodded, saying, “Of course.”

“I have some options for her I’m considering. I’ll wait and see what happens over the next few days.”

I quirked a brow. “Anything I need to be aware of?”
I know better than to just ask what these options were.

Roman shook his head, and I didn’t miss the knowing grin on Rico’s ugly face. “Not yet, Tag. I will fill you in when I’ve decided what’s to happen.”

Anger flashed through me, but I just nodded and took a drink of my wine. You never questioned Roman Vitale—ever. What he said was final; you risked being pulled off the job, kicked out of the cartel altogether, or just plain dead if you made that mistake.
 

“Just keep your eye on her,”
Roman continued, setting his fork down on his plate. “She is a very valuable pawn in this, and nothing is to happen to her until I know our next move.”

“Yes, sir,”
I agreed, silently wondering just what the hell was going on and what he had planned for Penelope.

Chapter 3

It felt like the sun was literally right outside my window, laughing at me with how bright it was. I groaned as I turned over, which was the wrong thing to do. My head and my mouth felt like they were full of cotton, but my head had something extra special because it was pounding ferociously.
 

Opening my eyes and blinking a few times, I looked around the room, trying to figure out where I was. Putting my hand to my forehead, trying to curb the sunlight from my eyes, it hit me like a ton of bricks. The cold room, the strange man, being kidnapped—it all came back. It suddenly felt like a huge, heavy weight was on my chest, making me bolt up and struggle for breath. I was sure I was having a heart attack. As the weight sank deeper and deeper into my chest, I struggled to stand, only to crumple to the floor, hitting my head on the edge of his chair. I lay there, stunned, still struggling to breathe, terrified out of my mind and starting to sweat and shake.
 

Good Lord
,
please, take me, put me out of my misery
, I begged.
 

My vision started to cloud, and bright lights were flashing around. My hands were clawing at my chest to try and release the awful weight. It barely fazed me when I heard the door slam against the wall and felt myself being lifted off the floor.

“What the hell happened?”
a deep voice shouted.

I could barely understand myself, let alone be able to talk. I was set down on something soft and soon felt something at my mouth.
 

“Breathe, deep breaths,”
the voice commanded.

The urge to go into the darkness was too great; I couldn’t do what he asked.

“Penelope, BREATHE!”
he roared.

I was lurched up to a sitting position and suddenly took a deep breath. The weight slowly decreased, sending a feeling of relief through me. After a few more breaths, my vision started to come back, and my heart rate slowed down.
 

Once I was able, I lifted my head and saw what was in front of me. A paper bag. Had I been hyperventilating? I could have sworn I was having a heart attack.

I sank back on the bed and closed my eyes. My head started swirling with everything that was going on. Why was I taken and put on some boat? I just wanted to go home.

“Are you okay?”
I heard him ask. It sounded like he was across the room, but I felt his hand on my arm, so I knew he was right next to me.
 

“No,”
I croaked out. “I’m not okay. What just happened to me? I’m scared.”

I heard him sigh as the sound of the chair scraping the floor burst in my ears. I opened my eyes and saw him sitting close to me, worry in his eyes.
 

“I think you had a panic attack,”
he told me.

A panic attack? Me? I’d never had one before in my life. “Oh,”
was all I said. My mind was so jumbled; I didn’t know what to think.

“Listen, Penelope, I know you’re scared,”
he started.

“Scared? Yes I’m scared,”
I replied, my voice still weak. “I’ve been kidnapped with no memory of it, and the only person I’ve talked to here won’t tell me why.”

Being kept in the dark not only made me angry, it felt like hot lava rolling down my spine. He was my only source of information, and he refused to tell me a damn thing! How dare he take me and not tell me why! I tried to sit up quickly but was instantly assailed with dizziness, making me fall back onto the bed.

“Whoa
,
whoa,”
he said, gently pressing me down.

“Don’t touch me,”
I hissed.
 

He instantly removed his hand. “Seriously, relax. You need to rest. You’ve been through a lot in the past twenty-four hours.”

I looked at him like he was crazy. “You think?”

My head was pounding, and my throat was dry. All I wanted to do was go home. Tears sprang in my eyes, and I turned my head away from him. I just wanted him to leave me alone.

“I don’t blame you for being angry,”
he told me. “I also don’t blame you for hating me. I’d hate me too.”

I still wouldn’t look at him, but I couldn’t resist saying, “Then let me go.”

He let out a hollow laugh, and my tears started streaming down my face. Would I ever see home again?

“I wish it were that easy, sweetheart.”

My head jerked to look at him when he said that. “Don’t call me that,”
I seethed, the tears still falling down my face.

He winced when he saw, but I didn’t care. He was an asshole, and I hated him, hated him more than I’d hated anyone in my life.
 

He held up a hand. “Whoa, whoa,”
he said. “Settle down. All I was saying was there’s no way I can just let you go home, as you requested. All I can tell you right now is that you were taken in retaliation.”

I squinted my eyes at that. Retaliation? For what? “What are you talking about?”
 

He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, looking like he was trying to think of what to say in response. What in the world would I be taken in retaliation for? I scoured my brain to think of something, anything, but nothing came to mind.

He finally spoke. “Listen, that’s all you need to know for now. No more questions.”

I sat up quickly, then felt my head spin. He reached out to help me, but I recoiled at his approach, making him sit back. It was then I really focused on his face and was again reminded at how beautiful he was. I felt my heart start to race, and I knew it wasn’t from the panic attack I’d just had. I jerked my head to look out the small window by my bed, needing space from him. But I also needed some answers regardless of what he’d just said.