Page 19 of Mine

“Well, yes, you did. But it takes two doses for the medication to be effective, Sweetheart.”

Sitting ramrod straight, she held her breath as they wound up the side of the mountain. She didn’t know what she should be more afraid of, the steep terrain or the current conversation.

“Effective? Just what the fuck did you give me?” she asked, her voice taking on a hint of annoyance.

Placing his foot on the brake, Kade slowed his SUV to a crawl and gently turned left onto the long driveway that led to his cabin. He hadn’t planned on telling her the truth about the pill, but if things were to progress, he knew he needed to be forthright with her.

“I gave youPlan B,Sweetheart. I knew I wouldn’t want to pull out or use protection the first time I was with you. But I’ll use condoms from now on, I promise,” he said, pulling in front of his A-Frame cabin.

Not caring that they had arrived at the end of their journey, Lexi blinked at him in a daze.That’s why the pill looked so familiar. She had taken the morning after pill the first time she and Leo had had unprotected sex.

You really fucked up this time! What if the reason you haven’t fallen pregnant yet is because Leo’s swimmers don’t swim? Did you ever think of that?

“Oh,” she breathed, unable to say anything else to either her abductor or herself.

Putting the Mercedes in park, he turned off the engine and unbuckled his seatbelt. Opening his car door, he stepped onto the snow dusted gravel driveway and slammed the door behind him. Walking around to the passenger side, he opened her door and leaned over her slim body to remove her seatbelt. Daylight was quickly fading, and the temperature was dipping below freezing. It was best that they settle themselves in for the night as soon as possible.

“Ok, my love,” he muttered, reaching for the black backpack resting at her feet. “Time to see your new home!”

Helping Lexi from her leather seat, he reached back into his SUV and grabbed a gray metal flashlight from the glove box. Closing the passenger door, he took her by the arm and gently led her towards the modest two-story cabin. He hadn’t planned on taking her to his safehouse for at least a few more weeks and it annoyed him that things weren’t ready. He hoped she wouldn’t be turned off by the fact that they would be roughing it for a day or two.

“I’ll head into town tomorrow to get gas for the generator,” he said, pulling his keys from the pocket of his jeans and unlocking the door. “Until then, we have flashlights and I’ll make us a fire. How does that sound?”

Turning her gaze from the rustic cabin to her captor, she gave him a faux smile. Why the hell was he asking her? It wasn’t like she had a choice in the matter.

“Sounds nice,” she replied, her teeth chattering slightly from the frigid air.

Opening the red wooden door, Kade glanced at her with concern painting his face. Even though he had bundled her up in an oversized puffy coat, thick jeans, and Ugg boots, the freezing temperatures were still getting to her. He needed to build the fire quickly, before she became sick.

Turning on the flashlight, he ushered her inside the dark cabin. Taking her shackled hand in his, he led her towards the stone fireplace flanking the far wall.

“It’ll just take me a couple of minutes to get a fire going, Sweetheart. I promise I’ll have you warmed up in no time,” he said softly before pulling logs from the reserve pile next to the fireplace.

Nodding a reply, Lexi watched him as he set to work setting the wood inside the hearth and sparking a fire. Within a couple of minutes, the fireplace roared to life, filling the immediate area of the dusty cabin with much needed light and warmth. Moaning happily, she stretched her bound hands towards the heat and closed her tired eyes. She always did love being next to an open fire.

“Feels good, right?” he asked, shrugging the backpack from his shoulder and dropping it to the floor.

“Very good,” she replied honestly.

Turning to look at her, Kade studied her for a long moment. She looked so sweet and happy, he liked seeing her like this. It washed away all the anger he still harbored from her little stunt earlier in the day.

Unable to stop himself, he stepped in front of her and gave her a chaste kiss on her rosy cheek before digging into his dark denim pocket. Pulling out a pair of tiny silver keys, he reached for her restrained hands. Unlocking the handcuffs from her wrists, he gave her a loving smile.

“Stay right here and warm up. I’m going to unload the truck. While I’m doing that, be a good girl and take your last pill. It’s in the front pocket of the backpack. There’s a bottle of water in there with it so you have no excuse not to, ok?”

Opening her eyes, Lexi nodded as she watched him move towards the front door. Rubbing her raw wrists, she waited until he had crossed the threshold before following his command.

Bending over the backpack, she unzipped the bag and retrieved the pill and water. Popping the lone pill from its foil housing, she placed it on her tongue and cracked open the plastic bottle. Saying a silent prayer, she washed the tablet down with a large swing of water. She hoped that half of the dose would be sufficient in protecting her from an unwanted pregnancy.

Yeah, you’d better pray you don’t get pregnant with the Spawn of Satan,her conscious hissed.

Mumbling a curse, she tipped the plastic bottle upwards and chugged down the rest of the tepid spring water. Turning her back to the stone hearth, she slowly danced her gaze around the darkened space to memorize her new surroundings. Although she shouldn’t make out specific details in the firelight, she couldsee that the open concept cabin was sparse of furniture or personal effects. There didn’t appear to be anything obvious she could use as a weapon. It left her feeling somewhat defeated.

Think Lexi,her mind nudged.There is a kitchen...and where there is a kitchen there are usually…

“Knives,” she breathed aloud.

Swooping her eyes to the left, she narrowed her sights on the small kitchen. She prayed that she would find at least one knife inside the pine drawers. It didn’t have to be a butcher’s knife; any blade would do. Hell, if she had to, she could use a dull butter knife to slit her captor’s throat. She only needed to find a way to rummage through the cabinets without Kade knowing.

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