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She looked over at the stranger with the intense eyes and oddly beautiful hair. “If it’s money you want, my father will pay. This isn’t necessary.” He didn’t respond. “It’s not necessary to take such drastic measures.”

“Money is not an issue. It’s you my boss wishes an audience with, Ms. Wilson.”

How was that possible? She’d lived her entire life alone. She didn’t have friends, much less enemies. “I don’t even know your boss. If you would only tell me what this is about then maybe I can help.”

He took his gaze off the road for a brief moment and looked at her. If it were at all possible it seemed his eyes glowed. God, I’m losing it. “Seriously, I can just speak to him on the phone and clear this up. I think it must be a case of mistaken identity.”

“You are Callie Wilson. You work at HealthTec, Incorporated. You reside at 222 East Seventh Street. You are twenty-five years old. Your income is—”

She held up a hand in surrender. “Yeah, yeah. Not mistaken identity. I get it.”

“All will be clear soon,” he said, his voice annoyingly calm. “It’s a long drive so you might want to get some sleep.”

She rolled her eyes at the absurd statement. “Sure, because I’m not at all freaked out over the fact you just kidnapped me.”

He shoved a hand through his hair, the first sign that he wasn’t as cool and collected as he appeared. “I do not like that term.”

“Kidnapper?” his lips thinned. “Uh, too bad. That’s what you are since you quite clearly kidnapped me.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “It’s a crime, by the way. Kidnapping. You will go to prison for this.”

“This is not a kidnapping. The term implies that you are being taken and kept against your will. That is untrue. My boss wishes an audience with you that is all. As I’ve stated before no harm will come to you. You will be returned as soon as the meeting is concluded.”

He turned a corner and Callie realized he was driving her out of town. The thought terrified her. “Where are we going?”

He was silent for another few miles and she really didn’t think he would answer. When he finally did, she noticed his voice had softened. “The meeting isn’t held near here. It’s two hours at least.”

It didn’t escape her notice that he didn’t actually give her the name of a city or town. She also didn’t know the name of his so-called boss. Callie wasn’t sure what was going on. He swore it had nothing to do with her father, but it was the only logical explanation. The only person that her father had pissed off enough to seek revenge was Edward Sinclair III. He was her father’s old business partner. Edward originally had the idea to use the genetically modified ginseng, but her father had stolen the concept, then he’d sold his half of the business back to Edward and started his own company. Her father had effectively killed Edward Sinclair’s business when he’d left. It’d been over eight years ago, but Edward definitely still held a grudge against her father. Maybe Edward was done watching from the sidelines as HealthTec raked in the dough. He’d come to collect.

Callie would figure out the why later. First, she needed to get away from Mr. Ice. She started to formulate a plan of escape. At some point her kidnapper would need to gas up the vehicle. Or she could make like she had to use the bathroom. Somehow, she’d get him to stop the SUV. She could get away from him then. She only needed to be patient and wait for the right moment. A depressing thought struck then. No one would even miss her. God, her own dad probably wouldn’t even miss her. At least until Monday when she didn’t show up for work. How pathetic? She didn’t have friends who would come check on her. Her dad didn’t spend time with her outside of work. She couldn’t even remember the last time they’d shared a meal together unless it was a business lunch or dinner. How had she let her life get so lonely?

Callie pushed those maudlin thoughts away and looked back over at the man taking her God knows where. She was struck again by the sheer beauty of him. His hair flowed down around his shoulders to the middle of his back. The silvery color shown in the dim light from the dash. She’d never seen anything quite so brilliant before. Certainly not out of a box. No way was it the man’s real color though. And he was tall enough to barely fit into the car without skimming the roof. He kept twitching his heavily muscled shoulders as if he were uncomfortable. The black suit he wore with the crisp white shirt beneath was tailor-made to his frame. She knew clothes and this man wore a suit that cost upwards of three grand easily. Probably more considering it fit him like a glove. He seemed to sense her staring at him and he glanced her way, flashing those grey eyes. They looked right through her, as if he could read her thoughts. It was not a comfortable sensation.

“What’s your name?” Maybe if she got him talking he’d see her as a human being and not just a job. Maybe he’d sympathize with her.

“Mr. Zenarian,” he said, as his gaze went back to the road. “But you know this already.”

“No, I mean your first name.”

He seemed to hesitate, but then came to some kind of decision. “Flare.”

She couldn’t have heard him right. “Say again?”

“My name. It’s Flare.”

Ookay. “Um, that’s very unusual. Are you from a different country, Flare?” Could he be Russian? Oh, God, please don’t be the Russian mob.

“I live in this country.”

Lordy, it was like pulling teeth with this guy. “But were you originally from somewhere else? Russia maybe? You have a slight accent.”

A hint of a smile played at the corners of his mouth. “I am not Russian. My ancestors were not from here, but I was born here. So, that means I’m not foreign.”

“Oh, okay. You don’t look like the typical men I see around here, that’s all. I mean, your hair alone makes you stand out.”

He frowned over at her, taking his gaze from the road for a for few seconds. “What’s wrong with my hair?”

God, she’d actually offended him. She’d offended her kidnapper. Nice going, dipshit. “Nothing at all. It’s beautiful. The color is just very unusual.” She fisted her hands in her lap before continuing. “So, Flare, you mentioned your boss wants a meeting with me. Can you tell me what it’s about?”

“My task is to pick you up and bring you to him, Ms. Wilson. You will have to hold your questions for him.”

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