CHAPTER 3

“I’m going mad!” Tori cried out as she leapt out of her bed. She’d been lying there for close to an hour debating about getting out of bed or not. She usually slept like a baby until her alarm went off just before five in the morning and then she would be out the door moments later for her morning run. She loved to get her heart rate going first thing in the morning and watch the sun come up.

But since she was Mikhail’s prisoner there would be no runs outside. He had a state of the art gym in his house, just as her father did and the past three days she had done a lot of treadmill work, but it was not the same. Usually exercise helped her get herself centered for the day, it was a great stress reliever, and just allowed her to feel more connected to herself and the world around her. But now the world around her was encased in a very large tomb it seemed.

She was not sure how much longer she could stand to be here.

But she had no choice. Every time she thought about giving up and running out the door she remembered Laila. She was counting on Tori to be strong and to get through this. Mikhail was not the kind of guy to toy with; he would make good on his threat. Tori had seen what happened to people who tried to test him; the same thing that happened to people who tried to test her father.

It had been over almost two weeks since she’d been Mikhail’s prisoner. She spent her days wondering around his huge mansion and looking for Laila. Tori doubted that she was there, but it was worth a try anyway. At least if she was looking for her friend she felt like she was doing something to remedy this situation she was in.

When she grew frustrated with looking for Laila, she hit the gym, and when her body became too exhausted to workout anymore then she read. Mikhail had a huge library with a great selection. The man knew his literature. She wondered how much of his collection he had actually read.

She rarely saw Mikhail. She knew that he was off running a business most of the time, but then she would occasionally bump into him. He tried to talk to her, flirt with her, open her to conversation and get to know her, but Tori was adamant about ignoring him to the best of her ability. It did not seem to bother Mikhail as he just laughed it off and continued to play his little mind games.

She wondered when he would get tired of mind games and just take her, ravish her. He wanted to and she was not sure she could stop him. She could of course fight like hell, and maybe even win due to her training, but then Laila would be dead before Tori got halfway down the block.

Tori decided to try the basement again. Mikhail’s basement was like a man cave paradise with several large rooms, each with a different section of his personality. There was the lounge which had a huge home theatre with a projector, large couches, and a mini bar. The gym which she frequented regularly, and the billiard room which had a pool table, foosball tables, dart board, and a poker table.

And then there was a smaller room off to the side that she had been in once before. It looked like it was a room that had been undecided and he had just not done anything with it yet. But it was possible that Tori missed something when she checked it last. At least it made her feel like she was doing something.

As she checked the room she realized that it was just as empty as before. There were no secret doorways or compartments as she might have hoped.

“Did you really think I’d stash her here?” Mikhail’s booming voice greeted her as she exited the room.

She tried to ignore him, but he stood in her way blocking her path.

“Move,” Tori said, the anger rising within her, but as he loomed over her she felt her body getting hot. She wanted to think it was all from the rage she was feeling, but she could not deny the unbelievable attraction she was feeling right then to this man. He was beyond sexy. His handsome, chiseled face, his broad, muscular chest, and his arrogant attitude standing over her in a dominating fashion—it all created a beautiful image that she could not ignore no matter how much she hated herself for it.

“You have such a charming personality,” Mikhail said.

“I’ve spit on things more charming than you,” Tori said as she elbowed past him.

Mikhail suddenly grabbed her arm and jerked her back, close to him. Before she could do anything he grabbed her face in his huge hands and pulled her face to his.

His lips were now on hers, smothering her mouth. She tried to pull away, but realized it was futile. He was too strong; she just had to endure.

She wanted to resist him, but suddenly she realized that her body did not. Her mouth was responding to the kiss, moving across his broad lips, sucking up the pressure he was applying. His mouth was so warm and soft accompanied by his rugged stubble that pressed hard against her chin causing a bit of pain.

Tori’s body was responding. The tingling between her legs, the moistness starting to grow, her flesh growing hotter with every second—she was enjoying every second of this man’s kiss. Her head began to swim as her body surrendered into the kiss, her legs feeling wobbly as if she might fall if he was not holding her face.

And then the kiss was over.

Mikhail pulled back from Tori, triumph in his eyes and a smile on his handsome face.

“Don’t you know talking to me like that only turns me on?”

Mikhail walked away laughing.

Tori felt like hitting something. She felt frustrated, she felt controlled, and humiliated.

But she liked it. She could not stand to admit it to herself, but she liked the way he controlled her. No one had ever done that to her; no one ever would have dared and she wouldn’t have allowed it otherwise, but he did. Mikhail grabbed her, manhandled her, and took from her what he wanted. She should have felt completely violated, but she felt good. Her whole body felt like it was on some crazy high of a new drug, and she wasn’t sure she ever wanted to come down.

A smile was even forming across her face that she could not stop.

What was happening to her?