Chapter 19

-Jianna-

"I am not going home with you Sebastian." I was aggravated and the machines I'm hooked up to are making sure everyone is aware of it. The alarms kept on going off and the nurse kept having to come into my room and silence it.

"Sir, I think it's best you leave." said the nurse in an annoyed tone after shutting off the alarm for the nth time.

"No," said Sebastian calmly. "I am not leaving here without my girlfriend."

I looked at him and got more irritated. The alarms started going off again.

"Sir, please. You're not helping Ms. Spencer by being here. You're upsetting her. Should I call security?" threatened the nurse.

He looked at her with pure rage in his eyes. "Fine. I will wait outside. But I am not leaving without her." He walked out of the room and the nurse started silencing the alarms again and adjusting my blood pressure cuff and finger monitor.

"Sorry about that and thank you for kicking him out. It's the last thing I need right now." I said as I laid back down. I took a deep breath out of exasperation and closed my eyes hoping I could fall asleep. But as I lay there, I couldn't help but wonder what he was thinking. Was he just concerned for my well-being, or was there something more going on? I tried to shake the thoughts from my head and focus on getting some rest.

I think I did manage to get some sleep because the next thing I knew, the room was dark and I could hear hushed conversation somewhere in my room.

"What do you mean you can't find him?" said the voice, sounding irritated. "I know he was just in the hospital because one of the doctors taking care of Jianna described him to a tee."

I realized it was Sebastian. I can tell from the tone.

"Then go fucking find him. And be quick about it. We're about to leave. If he doesn't lead this mission then we're all dead." I heard the familiar tone of a call ending so I pretended to close my eyes again. I felt Sebastian's hand holding mine and I felt a shiver down my spine. I heard him do something on his phone then a faint ringing. He was making another call.

"Ashley. It's me. Take the car around. We're leaving." he said in a cold voice.

I hear Ashley say something on the other line.

"Well, she is. Take the car around."

Another phone call ended.

I think I fell asleep again because I woke up and I was in a car. I opened my eyes and realized it was already dark outside. I could see street lights pass by fast so I knew we were moving. "Where the fuck am I?" I thought.

I noticed movement in the front seat and realized that Sebastian was driving. He looked over at me and saw that I was awake.

"Hey, sleepyhead. How are you feeling?" he asked with a hint of concern in his voice.

Confused and scared, I decided to play along. "I'm okay, I guess. Where are we?" I asked, looking around the dark car.

"We're headed out of town. I need to keep you safe. I'm going to put you in a safe house until this whole thing blows over. I don't know who's after you and I don't know if they're going to come back. All I know is that I have to keep you safe whether you like to or not." he kept his eyes ahead but I could tell by his voice that he was not playing around.

"Sebastian take me back. Please. I don't want to go into hiding for something that may or may not be a legitimate threat. You are wasting your time not to mention resources." I said trying to sound convincing.

"Besides, I have to go to work. I've come in for a total of 12 hours and I'm pretty sure Ms. Greene is going to get me fired." It's my feeble attempt to get him to turn around and drive me back. I already knew it wasn't going to work. He owns the company.

As if reading my mind, he doesn't even look back at me.

"You're kidding right?" He said.

"No, I'm not. I'm going to get fired." I said sounding apprehensive.

He grabs his phone.

"Morgan? Sebastian. Hey, Jianna is going to be on an important assignment for a couple of weeks. I've sent her to one of our HQs in London so she won't be in the office for a while." then silence. "Because I asked her to Morgan. Are you questioning my decision?" Silence. "Good." And he hung up.

"There. Fixed," he said sounding annoyed.

I can't believe he just did that. He has no right.

"Sebastian please take me home." I pleaded.

"I can't do that, Jianna. Not until I know you're safe." Sebastian's grip on the steering wheel tightened as he spoke. "There are people out there who want to hurt you, and I'm not going to let that happen."

I shook my head in disbelief. "What people? Who are you talking about?"

He didn't say anything.

I let out a deep sigh and leaned back in my seat. "This is crazy. You can't just take me away like this. It's technically kidnapping. How did you even get me out of the hospital?"

"I made a donation," he responded nonchalantly. "Apparently certain donors get certain "privileges" when a certain denomination is donated."

"You did what!" I sat up in disbelief. "H-how much did you donate?" I'm terrified of what he's going to say.

"50" he answered.

Oh. That's not too bad. "$50,000?" I clarified.

"Million." he corrected.

50 MILLION DOLLARS???

All the color on my face drained and I started to get faint.

"Sebastian! $50 million???" Apparently, the healthcare system would be willing to overlook kidnapping for $50 million. Unbelievable.

Sebastian didn't seem to care about the shock on my face. He continued driving, his eyes focused on the road ahead. I didn't know what to do or say. I felt trapped and powerless, but at the same time, I couldn't deny the attraction I felt towards him. He was dangerous, reckless, and arrogant, but there was something about him that drew me in.

Before I could ask him any more questions, I felt the car slowing down. I looked outside and didn't notice that we were in the middle of nowhere and that we were approaching the edge of a forest. Sebastian stopped the car and got out. I watched him go around to the back of the car and open the trunk. I was too scared to go outside and honestly had the mind to lock him out. "He probably took the keys, dummy!" I thought to myself. I was trying to look into possible exit strategies when I saw Sebastian go to my door. I immediately locked it.

"What the hell are you doing Jianna? Open the door please." he sounded impatient.

"No! Absolutely not! Nope! I don't know you that well yet. How do I know you're not a serial killer? You just took me to the middle of nowhere!" I yelled at him.

"Why would I take you out of the hospital and give away all that money? To kill you?" he chortled.

"I don't know! Maybe you have some sick twisted plan!" I retorted, still keeping the door locked.

Sebastian let out a deep sigh and leaned on the car door. "You're not a hostage, Jianna. You can leave whenever you want but please. I'm just trying to keep you safe. Look, I know this is all a lot to take in, but I'm not trying to kill you. Why would I take you to my family home if I was trying to kill you?" he pleaded.

I looked at him skeptically. I opened the door and he looked at me with concern in his eyes.

"You can't just take me away from my life like this," I said. "If you would have only explained things to me, told me what you were planning, I would have wanted to be given the luxury of a choice."

He looked at me like a wounded child. Like someone has taken his favorite toy and his mother told him he can't have dessert.

"Jianna...I-I'm so sorry," he lowered his head and knelt in front of me like a repentant sinner.

I was astonished by his sudden change in demeanor. Sebastian had gone from cold and calculating to vulnerable and apologetic in a matter of seconds. I didn't know what to make of it.

"I don't know what I would do if something would have happened to you." he held my hand and placed his forehead on them.

"Sebastian..." I started.

"Please Jianna, let me take care of you. " he entreated. "Let me prove myself to you. Please."

I don't know what to say.

"Ok," I said softly