Page 35 of Hideaway

“Are fucking you serious?” Kara scoffed in disbelief as she took a couple steps backward, trying to put space between them. “You aren’t some orgasm overlord. If I want to fucking come, I’ll fucking come. I have no intention of signing the rights of my body over to you, no matter how fucking bossy you are.”

Cade closed the distance between them in a single, angry lunge. “Watch that fucking mouth,” he warned, his voice deceptively calm. “You said your pussy was mine, remember?”

Kara had the vaguest recollection of saying something of the sort whilst in the throes of a mind shattering orgasm, but there was no way in hell she’d allow him to hold that against her. “Declarations during sex don’t fucking count. That was the pheromones speaking, not me.”

“Regardless, your cunt belongs to me. No one is allowed to touch it without my permission, and that includes you. If you disobey me, I will know, and you will be punished.”

Possessing literally no ability to formulate a response tothat, Kara merely stood in stunned silence, her chest heaving against Cade’s as her heart pounded frantically with anger and lust and everything in between. What the hell was he doing to her? Before she could spout a clever retort or a witty insult or even a beautifully simplisticfuck you, their stare down was interrupted by the sound of someone clearing their throat as an awkward way of announcing their presence.

“Ah, just in time,” Cade greeted the person standing behind Kara.

Kara turned to see Declan shifting nervously as he watched his boss pressed intimately against her body, the room charged with anger and the lingering remnants of sexual arousal. Immediately, she stepped away from Cade, smoothing down her dress as a means of calming her emotions and hoping she appeared more presentable than post-orgasmic. Declan’s gaze shifted to the floor, as though he didn’t want to be caught looking at Kara; the self-preservative move was understandable given Cade was likely exactly the sort of territorial Neanderthal to take offense at someone having the audacity to look athis things. The thought made Kara scoff aloud.

Cade fixed her with a glare before his expression turned decidedly smug. “Declan is going to be your babysitter while I’m away. He is responsible for keeping you out of trouble, so go easy on him.” Cade laughed at the horrified expression on Kara’s face at the idea of being treated like a mischievous child. “You,” Cade ordered, pointing at Declan. “Donotlet her out of your sight. Lock her in her room if you have to.”

“Cade!” Kara exclaimed, understandably outraged. There was no way that fucker was going leave her locked away while he was gone. The manor was enough of a prison without adding more bars and padlocks.

“Be good,” Cade commanded, bestowing a woefully unwelcome kiss on her forehead. “I will likely be back tomorrow.”

"CHECK,” Kara announced in a bored tone, languidly moving her piece across the chessboard. Playing a game had been Declan’s idea. Something to relieve the awkwardness of being the active jailer of someone being held against their will. And something dull enough not to incite the jealousy of his scarily aggressive employer. As she was about to win her third game in a row, chess was clearly not the kid’s forte.

As Declan studied the board with an overly concentrated expression, Kara pondered why the hell she was contentedly sitting there playing games with him instead of trying to escape while she had the fucking chance. Yes, she’d promised Cade she would stay put, but that was before he’d given his little minion permission to lock her away. She was, after all, a captive. Even if her captor’s fucking skills were unequivocally incomparable, shouldn’t escape be her ultimate priority?

Working up her nerve and her less than adequate acting abilities, Kara turned pain filled eyes to Declan as she grasped at her temple in false agony. “Fuck, my head,” she groaned dramatically.

Declan jolted to his feet in concern. “What is it? What’s wrong? Are you hurt?” he asked anxiously.

Kara had to cover a smile at the poor kid clearly worried that his boss’s plaything might succumb to death or injury on his watch. She knew his fear of Cade was nothing to scoff at, but she simply couldn’t fathom why everyone treated Caden fucking Ashford as though he was a god. Well, she’d at least try to use that fear of Cade’s wrath to her advantage. Declan wouldn’t want Cade to come home to histoyin less than pristine shape, now would he? “I’ve got the most dreadful migraine coming on,” Kara explained, keeping her voice strained and weak as she covered her eyes. “I get them somewhat regularly, but they’re exacerbated by stress. My current situation, as you can imagine, doesn’t help matters.” Kara cast a glance at Declan, and he had the decency to look guilty at the implication.

Perfect.

“I have a doctor’s prescription that usually keeps the migraines from becoming too crippling, but it’s in my purse upstairs in my room.” Kara paused to moan pitifully. “Do you think you could go get it? I’m not sure I have the strength to stand right now.”

Declan’s expression was plagued with uncertainty and unease. “Umm, I don’t know. Ashford said I wasn’t supposed to let you out of my sight.”

“Please, Declan,” Kara pleaded, allowing her voice to tremble. “Does it look like I’m in a state to go anywhere? If I don’t take the medication, I could black out, and then you’ll have to explain toAshfordwhy you let me pass out in his game room.”

“Okay, okay I’ll go get it. Just stay here, okay? Don’t try to get up; I don’t want you getting hurt,” Declan responded frantically as he moved toward the exit.

“I’ll be right here,” Kara agreed with a wincing smile. It was her second lie of the day. Or perhaps the third. She was losing count. As soon as Declan was out of sight, she rushed out of the room, knowing she had bought herself between five and ten minutes to make her escape. She hurriedly headed for the detached garages that she’d discovered while exploring the grounds. They were somewhat removed from the main part of the house, so she knew it would take at least three minutes to get there if she sprinted.

Thankfully, Kara found the doors to the sprawling car storage unlocked. Turning on the overhead lights, she was shocked by the superfluous number of automobiles sitting unused in the garage. There were at least fifteen cars; some were clearly vintage, collectible items, others were flashy and sporty, about four were black, sensible sedans that looked more for business than pleasure. Having no interest or knowledge in the types of cars housed in Cade’s excessive collection, Kara looked for the most nondescript vehicle she could find. Settling on a black Audi, she quickly snatched the keys from a rack on the wall and started the car. Shockingly, her plan was working. With maybe three minutes left until Declan sounded the alarm, Kara pushed the button for the garage door and flew down the drive.

Belatedly remembering that she would have to pass gate security, Kara slowed the car to a reasonable pace before stopping in front of the iron wrought gate—the one thing between her and escape. She knew Ortega and Braxton were with Cade on his assignment. They’d left behind minimal security who’d likely been commissioned to keep peopleout, not keep peoplein, so she hoped there was a chance she could slip by without an incident. Shockingly,miraculouslythe gates opened, and Kara sped out into the open road toward freedom. She felt a twinge of sympathy for the poor bastard who opened the gate. One thing was certain, they’d be lucky to escape Cade’s wrath merely unemployed.

Chapter Nine

FOUR hours. She enjoyed four fucking hours of freedom before the wolves descended. Her first stop after escaping had been the university library. In hindsight, it probably wasn’t the most logical choice of sanctuary, but she hadn’texactlybeen looking for a place to hide. She’d just wanted a moment to breathe without the suffocation of being under watch all the time. As utterly insane as it sounded, she’d had every intention of returning to Ashford Manor after checking in on her colleagues, her work, and ensuring the security of the rare texts. Perhaps she’d made a mistake in assuming the choice to return would be her own.

“Hello, Dr. Caine,”a dark and familiar voice slithered from behind her, leaving a trail of goosebumps in its wake.

Fuck.

Kara turned sharply to find Jace leaning nonchalantly against a bookshelf with an unmistakably smug grin on his revolting face. Kara's fingers turned white as she clawed at the book in her hand with uncontainable fury. Cade had sent his fucking minions after her. And not just any of his infernal employees. Fucking. Jace. Kara took a cautionary step back from the threat of the man before her. Even if she ran, she wouldn’t make it very far before he caught her. Aware that she was trapped, Jace took another step toward her.

“Don’t worry, I’m not allowed to touch you. Ashford wants you in perfect condition so he can rip you apart himself.”

Kara shivered at the insinuation, walking backward until her body collided with the hard frame of the bookshelf against the wall. Jace followed, filling the space between them until he hovered over her. True to his word, he made no move to touch her.

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