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I glide through the door, pulling it softly closed behind me.
Please let them all be passed out by the time I get home.
The cool night air wakes up my skin as I jog down the gravel drive, pebbles and stones crunching beneath the thin soles of my shoes. Picking up speed, I run through the tall iron gates they’ve left open. I make it to the paved road, the feeling of my long ponytail swishing behind me, swinging like a pendulum as my feet hit the road, one after the other. It’s a steady rhythm and it lulls me into a sense of peace, even though my life feels anything but peaceful.
The moon is almost full, and it lights my way, casting a blue glow against the dark pavement. It’s my own world. There’s no one out here but me. I push myself a little harder, chasing those endorphins I’m lusting after. I love a good runner’s high. My family keeps me locked away from the world. Working out is my only joy.
I’m so lost in keeping my pace, it’s not till the car is right behind me that I hear it.
My impulsive decision to take this run settles heavy in my stomach. Out by myself on the road at night. Not smart. Who’s out this late? Very few people use this road. We live deep in the forest, hundreds of untouched acres in our name. Ours is the only house for miles. The road leads to the lake, to the gorgeous estates that dot the shore.
Please pass me. My skin crawls as the car slows.
It pulls up to my side, keeping time with me. I try to pretend it’s not there. Ignore it and it’ll go away. I peek at it out of the corner of my eye. A black SUV with dark, tinted windows.
Staring straight ahead, I keep running.
I don’t know what else to do.
Please don’t let it be men sent by my father. I’d been so quiet. The study door was closed. They were all drunk and engaged in whatever they were talking about. Surely, they didn’t hear me leave.
There’s the whirr of the motor of a window rolling down. My body goes tight, as rigid as a wire drawn taut from two ends. I keep running.
A low voice comes to me, rumbling through the night. “Little girls should be safe at home. Don’t you know the kinds of men that prowl through these woods?”
Ice flows down my spine.
“Yes,” I say, keeping my eyes forward and my voice steady. No one knows I’m gone from home, but this man doesn’t know that. “My brothers prowl these woods. They’re terrifying.”
I keep my pace, one foot in front of the other, trying to ignore the hammering of my heart he caused.I can feel his eyes heavy on my body as I move.
To my horror, the SUV pulls to a stop.
There is no other choice. I take off. My legs burst into an all-out sprint. I listen for footsteps, but the only sound is my feet slapping against the pavement. I don’t look back, pulling heavy breaths into my burning lungs.
Hairs stand on the back of my neck, perspiration prickles at my underarms. How many times has my father warned me not to come out here? How many enemies has he warned me of, telling me they’d love nothing more than to deflower the Accardi princess?
Now the footsteps come, heavy with determination.
I glance at the thick, dark woods to my left. They’re my only hope. I can’t afford a backward glance over my shoulder to see if he’s gaining on me. I dart off the road, my feet hitting the soft earth.
Strong forearms dig into my belly, knocking the wind from me. No! My assailant holds me tighter, my back pressing into his chest. I can feel the muscles beneath his shirt shifting.
His arms lock around me, creating a prison around my ribcage.
“What do you want?” I hiss, grabbing at his arms, trying to push them away.
His mouth finds my ear, his breath hot against my cheek, and it tickles my skin, making the bits of hair that loosened from my ponytail flutter. “To teach you a lesson.”
It’s the same deep voice that reprimanded me from the SUV.
His hard palm runs over my trembling midriff. My cropped shirt rises, his hot skin caressing my cold torso. My muscles constrict, my belly going hard as a rock. Fear and remorse fill me.
What have I gotten myself into? What is he going to do to me?
One big hand presses into my belly, holding me against him, pushing my ass against the tops of his hard thighs. I dig my fingers into his forearm, a feeble attempt to dislodge him.
Heat from his body travels through his clothing, warming my skin. The clean scent of him hits me, cedar and man. This is the closest to a stranger I’ve ever been. My mind goes to my mother’s other collection of books, the ones that hide under my bed. The spicy romance novels that I’ve dog-eared, re-reading my favorite scenes time and time again.
