for Father’s and Akira’s guards tonight.
I told them not to follow me as if I’m a sheltered little princess.
After closing my car door harder than needed, I march to the other car, which unsurprisingly stopped right behind mine.
I knock on the Audi’s tinted window. “Open up.”
No answer.
“Ren, is that you? I swear to God, I’m going to start getting really nasty really fast if you don’t stop playing around.”
The door opens and I startle, my heel catching on the asphalt as I meet those tropical eyes. He’s dressed in a black hoodie and sweatpants, and the early evening’s lack of light casts a shadow on his face.
“Sebastian? What are you doing here?”
“Following you, obviously.” I don’t like the coldness in his voice, even though I know where it’s coming from.
“Shouldn’t you be resting?”
“Maybe. But you were also supposed to stay this morning.” He reaches out and grabs me by the wrist, then yanks me over. I yelp as I land on his lap.
“Sebastian! What are you doing?”
His eyes rage as he whispers in threatening dark words, “I asked you nicely to stay, but you don’t want nice, Naomi. You want me to fucking kidnap you.”
34
Sebastian
You might be fucking her, but I’m the one she comes back to every night.
Mori A.
That’s the card I got with the package of essential oils that showed up at my apartment this morning.
Right after Naomi fucking left.
I didn’t think she’d stay just like that, but I’d hoped she would at least talk to me about it, not disappear like she did seven fucking years ago.
She won’t be disappearing now.
I slide my attention to her as she grabs the seatbelt with both hands while watching the road.
When I followed her from her company, I meant to go all the way to her house and kiss her in front of the fucker before I kidnapped her.
There’s been a slight change in plans, but my intention still stands.
Aside from her initial fight, she’s been quiet all the way here, just watching the road with her dark, haunting eyes.
“We…did we just pass the sign to Blackwood?”
I remain silent, tapping my forefinger on the steering wheel.
“Sebastian! Why are we back in Blackwood?”
“This is where it all started. Seems like a perfect crime site, don’t you think?”
She pushes back in her seat, her delicate throat bobbing with a gulp and her cheeks paling.
Fear radiates off her in waves.
Good. She needs to be fucking scared.
“What are you going to do, Sebastian?”
“Have you ever seen a kidnapper share his plan with his victim?”
“Is this about how I left this morning? I…couldn’t just stay.”
“Yes, you could have, and I don’t just mean today. I also mean seven fucking years ago.”
“You’re only judging me from your perspective without even knowing mine.”
“Because you refuse to fucking share it. But I’m done coaxing you into this.”
I swerve the car to a dirt road and she squeals, digging her black-painted nails into the seatbelt.
Then she freezes as she makes out our surroundings.
“Sebastian…no…not here…”
“Yes. Fucking here.”
I stop the car, kill the headlights, and step out of it, then round to her side. She tries to scramble away, but I grab her by the elbow, undo her seatbelt, and drag her out.
The scene is like déjà vu.
“Remember Blackwood’s forest, Naomi? Turns out, the mafia does use it to bury corpses, after all. Reina was found assaulted and on the brink of death right here. Doesn’t that bring back memories?”
“No…no!” She hits my chest with a closed fist as she wiggles and tries to push me off her.
“Save the fight for when I’m pinning you against the fucking ground.”
“Why did you bring us back to the forest? It’s where you were shot and they took us.”
“It’s also where I chased you the first time, and I’m in the mood to repeat it.”
“You’re out of your mind if you think I’ll run now.”
“You’re talking as if you have a choice. Run or I’ll leave you here.”
“You…wouldn’t.”
“Try me.”
“We’re not twenty-one anymore, Sebastian!”
“What? You’ve lost your stamina?”
“I’m wearing heels.”
“All the better. I can catch you faster.” I release her and she steps backward, but her wild gaze remains on me, her hair in disarray, framing her soft, pale face.
“And then what? What if you don’t catch me?”
“Oh, I’ll catch you. Whether I do it sooner or later is up to you.”
“I hate you sometimes.”
At least it’s not all the time. “That makes two of us. Now, run.”
She startles, but like in the fucking past, she turns around and runs.
Her movements aren’t as fast as