Accompanying song:

 

 

 

Providence, Rhode Island – April 20th, 2013

 

 

I freeze and let his words sink in. He doesn’t know me. Not even my name. What is going on here?

“It’s me,” I say, placing my hand on my chest. “Lillith.”

He frowns, his nose twitching in disgust. I hate that suspicious gaze in his eyes and the way his body is slightly slanted, as if I’m a lunatic approaching him for no reason.

“And I’m supposed to know you?” he says, raising an eyebrow.

My lip lowers, my heart strangled by tangling dismay. “How is this possible?”

“I’m sorry; I think you have me mistaken for someone else.” There’s a twinge in his voice, and it’s almost as if he’s in a hurry to speak the words. “Excuse me, Miss, but I have to get going now.”

He steps past me and walks down the sidewalk while I stare at him from behind. I’m baffled—completely shaken—from his blatant denial. This can’t be right. He knows me and I know him.

“Wait!” I call out, and I run after him, blinking my tears away.

“What do you want?” he grumbles.

“Why don’t you recognize me? You know you know me.”

“I’m sorry; I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Yes, you do. Stop denying it.”

“Miss, leave me alone, please.”

His ignorance hurts, but I won’t let it get to me. “No, I want to know why you’re denying that you know me. You know full well what we did in the hospital.”

He takes a big gulp of air but doesn’t exhale, which tell me he’s upset. Good, he should be. I am, too. I don’t understand any of this.

“Stop ignoring me.” I grab his jacket. He stops and looks back at me, his face so dark, so volatile; it scares the shit out of me. One jerk is all it takes to make me release him from my grasp.

“I don’t know what you want, but I suggest you leave before I call someone.”

“Like who, exactly?”

He starts rummaging in his pocket and takes out his wallet. “I don’t care, just leave me alone! Do you want money? Is that it? Here. Now go away!” He pushes something into my hand. Baffled, I gaze down at the hundred-dollar bill. No, no way.

“I don’t need your money,” I say as I follow him, crumpling it up so I can hand it back to him.

“Then what do I have to do to make you leave?” he says. “Call the cops? Is that what you want?”

“No, of course not.”

“Then why do you insist on following me? You don’t know me.”

“Care to explain how I know your name then, Mister Sebastian Brand?” I scoff.

“You could’ve gotten that from anywhere. I’ve heard about enough now,” he hisses.

“I’m not leaving.”

He doesn’t respond, so I follow him into the building next door to the gym—the exact address that I found on the internet when I searched for him. I knew it; he does live here. Why else would he go in here?

“Mister Brand, are you honestly going to deny the fact that we have been talking for ages now?” I try to ignore the guard at the desk, staring at us from under his glasses.

“Yes. Yes, I am.” He smiles at me while pressing the button on the elevator.

I make a petty face. “You can’t fool me. I know you know me, and I know you remember all those nights at the hospital. Don’t tell me it wasn’t real. I’m not sure what kind of game you’re playing here, Mister Brand, but I’m not falling for it.”

“Oh, I’m not playing games, Miss. If I was, you’d know.” There’s amusement on the surface of his voice.

“Oh, do tell.”

We step into the elevator, and he presses a button. I look around and notice that even the elevator looks expensive. Wood lines the walls, the bars are colored gold, and on the floor is a velvety red rug. Everything about this entire building is expensive, and from the looks of it, Sebastian is anything but poor.

“I actually happen to enjoy plenty of games, but this is not a game to me,” he proceeds. “This is serious. I’m honestly wondering why you are following me. You do realize I could have you arrested for harassment, right?”

“I’m sure you could.”

He chuckles. “I like that you’re not at all terrified. I admire that in a woman.”

“I’m not intimidated by men in suits, and you, sir, don’t scare me at all.”

“How unfortunate …”

I gulp and look at the numbers on the panel in the wall. There are still a lot of floors to go. This building is huge, and he lives on the top level. This could take a long time. A very long time alone with him. Oh, shit.

As the elevator doors close and I’m left alone with Sebastian, or whoever in the hell he thinks he is, my heart beat speeds up. I shift in place to try to hide my discomfort. I must push through. I will not leave him, no matter what he says.

“Listen, I don’t know what game you’re playing, but you know just as well as I do that—”

Suddenly, Sebastian grabs my arms and shoves me against the wooden wall, trapping me between his arms. The money that was in my hand drops to the floor.

“What? That I know you or you know me?” He leans forward. “That I did something with you?”

I swallow, staring him dead in the face, not giving in to his taunt. “We had sex.”

Squinting, he steps closer, tightening his grip on my arms. “And?”

“And it was wonderful.”

He smiles cheekily. “Of course it was.”

I breathe a sigh of relief.

“I rock every woman’s fantasy. Too bad it’s only a fantasy.”

“What?” I say. “It wasn’t just a fantasy.”

“Oh, Miss, whatever your name is …”

“Carrigan,” I sneer.

“Miss Carrigan …” The way he says my name sends shivers down my body. “Whatever you have in your mind, you’re mistaken. I would not take a woman and not remember her.”

“Don’t call me a liar.”

“I’m not. I simply think you’re confused. That’s okay. I know how to deal with confused women.”

I snort. “I bet you cause most of that confusion.”

He smiles. “Touché. You’re right, I do.” He cocks his head. “And you know what else?” He leans forward, pushing himself up against me. My nipples perk up from arousal, smoothing along his casual attire. Even though he denies every single thing I say, he still turns me on.

“What?” I ask, my lips still parted, inclining toward him.

He moves his head to my ears, making me gasp for breath.

“I mess with their heads.”

I take a sharp breath. Jesus Christ.

He places a hand on the wall beside me, squeezing my arm even harder with his other hand. “What do you want from me, Miss Carrigan?”

“I want the truth. You know me. Tell me you do. Tell me you want me. Tell me you need me. I miss your touch.”

He sniffs in my ear, but then I realize it’s partial laughter. After a while, he opens his mouth, breathing hot air into my ear. I clench my legs together from the heat.

“I don’t need anyone. Ever.”

“I know you said I shouldn’t come to you, but I couldn’t go anywhere else,” I whisper in pure despair. I don’t want him to deny me this. I can’t deal with it.

“You’re right, you shouldn’t have come. You have no idea what you’ve done.”

“I’m sorry …”

“You’re messing with the wrong man.”

I gasp as he reaches for my throat. I squirm under his arms but don’t fight his tight grip pinning me to the wall. Why is he being this cruel?

“You think you know me?”

“No … but you know me. You know I need you … I need you, Mister Brand, to make it all okay again.”

“You need me? You think you need my hands touching you? How does it feel so far?”

I struggle to stay put with his fingers slowly digging into my neck. I cough.

He comes close to my lips, almost kissing me. “You think you want this? Guess again.”

“I do,” I whisper.

“Fine.”

With haste, he spins me on my feet, pushing me down until my face is against the wall and my ass is pointing in his direction. He yanks my dress up and rips my panties down in one go.

“I’ll show you what I do to women that has them shamefully begging.”

Suddenly, his hand comes down on my ass.

I yelp in shock. Jesus Christ, he spanked me.

“Do you like this, Miss Carrigan?” He slaps my ass again, making my body rock up and down.

I push away from the wall, but he won’t allow me to back away.

“Oh no, you’re not going anywhere. You wanted me to touch you then let me put my hands all over you.”

“Not like this …” I whimper as he smacks me again.

“Yes, like this. You might deny it, but I can tell you’re that kind of lady. Someone who enjoys being conquered.” He groans. “What a nice round, perky ass. Cherry colored as well. My favorite.”

“You should see it when it’s not painfully red,” I retort in a brief moment of courage.

He chuckles while spanking me again. “Oh, playing games, are we? I like women who are a little feisty.” He spanks me again, his fingers spreading wide on my ass. “See, now this … this is what I need.”

He growls as he slaps me again, my skin tingling from the burn. I can feel the burn, and yet it excites me like nothing else. “Didn’t I tell you it was a bad idea to follow me?”

I know I’m stuck here, but I refuse to believe it was a bad idea. He is Sebastian Brand, and he knows me. I won’t stop until he says he does. However, I never imagined he’d put his hands on me like this. This elevator has us both trapped, and his hands don’t feel like they’re going anywhere else than on my ass right now. I have to deal with this a different way. “I’m sorry, Mister Brand.”

“Sorry doesn’t cut it.” He smacks me again. “Besides, since you seemed so adamant on having me touch you again, I figured I’d give you what you want.” He jerks my hair and pushes me further down. “Uh-uh, I didn’t say you could leave.”

“I never asked for this.”

“Oh, but you did, Miss. See, that’s the problem. You ask but you have no idea what you’re asking for.”

I growl, and he laughs in return. “Don’t tell me you’re backing out now; it was just starting to get fun.”

“I’m not.”

He squeezes my ass, making me squirm. “Pity.”

The bell of the elevator dings, and then it comes to a stop. We’ve reached the top level.

His hand leaves my ass, making it feel bare all of the sudden. “Playtime is up. I hope that was enough.”

Feeling humiliated, I take in a sharp breath while pulling my panties back up and my dress down. “It’s not.” I won’t back down. He might think I’m scared now, but I’m not.

“Damn, and here I was thinking you wanted me to touch you and that was it.”

I turn around, frowning, a blush growing on my cheeks from what just happened. “Is that what this is all about? Getting rid of me?”

He smiles so cheekily, so infuriating, that I growl from it.

“Aww … are you mad now?” He raises an eyebrow. “I gave you what you wanted. You asked me to need you, and I needed your ass to be red. I have what I want now, so we’re done here.”

“What? You can’t do this!” I say as he turns around.

“Actually, I can, and I have. And now you know what a prick I am. So let this be the final time we see each other.” He starts walking out of the elevator, leaving me with a gaping mouth.

“You just groped me in an elevator and now you leave? Just like that?”

“Just like that,” he calls back as he walks away.

“What kind of man are you?” I ask, baffled, as he stops in front of the only door on this level. He places his thumb on some kind of machine, and the door opens.

“Not the man you were hoping for, unfortunately. I’m sorry I couldn’t be of more help, Miss Carrigan. Goodbye.”

I look down at the floor, utterly shaken, and notice the hundred-dollar bill. I pick it up and throw it at him. “You forgot your money, douchebag!”

“Keep it!” He waves.

His voice resounds in my ears as he shuts the door behind him, not even once glancing back at me to check if I’m okay.

Asshole.

I never, ever, imagined that Sebastian could be such a huge dick, but he was. I wonder why. I still don’t believe him. Nobody in their right mind would touch me like that. Nobody would spank a stranger. Nobody. This has to be a farce. I don’t know why he’s doing this, but I will find out somehow. After all those nights at the hospital, I won’t give up easily. This is not the last time we’ll see each other, that I’m sure of. I’ll make it happen.