She had two servings of Salad and three servings of pasta. When she had finished, she leaned back in her chair and sighed.
"Better?" he asked. His voice was hoarse.
Kimberly nodded. "Much better" she said. "Thanks for cooking. You did a great job"
He smiled. "Yeah. I can boil up pasta better than almost anyone"
The humor intrigued her. So far, her host had been all business. The smile softened his expression and added light to his eyes. She wished he would smile more. It almost made him approachable. He was still dangerous, but it was nice to know there was a regular person under all that killer edge.
But his smile faded so soon as if it had never existed and the warrior returned.
"Would you like to rest a little before we leave? I could use the opportunity to get some work done" he said.
Kimberly nodded. "I think I will get some sleep first. I'm a bit tired" she said.
He nodded slowly.
"Thanks once again," Kimberly said quietly before she slipped out of the kitchen.
------------------------
When Kimberly woke up hours later and left the room, she found Asher in the kitchen. Right where she had left him. Sitting and working on his laptop.
The only difference was that he had obviously showered and changed. He wore all black.... Even his shoes were black. Jeez... Did the man ever wear any other color of clothes? Did he even have clothes another color? She wondered. Like he didn't look scary enough already.
"Hi" she said softly.
Asher turned slowly and stared at her. His eyes looked at her from head to toe. She had slept hard-her hair was mussed and there was a crease in her right cheek. She still looked a bit sleep deprived. Kimberly didn't look away, but she stared right back with a defiance that earned his grudging respect. Not everyone looked right back at him that way. Her eyes seemed to ask "What the hell are you looking at?"
"Hi," he said finally. "You are awake... finally. We should get going. Your dad already called. He stood, hating the weird feeling he got... Like he was going to miss her.
He pushed the thought away. Hell no, he just met the lady last night, and she definitely wasn't his type.
"I will just go wash my face," Kimberly said, before she turned and left the kitchen.
When she returned, he was in the control room.
"I'm ready to go," Kimberly said.
"I'm going to have to blindfold you" Asher said simply, looking like he had just made a normal statement.
"What?" Kimberly asked. Her eyes widened in surprise. It was finally confirmed. She thought. The man was definitely crazy.
"This safe house works only as long as no one knows where it is" he explained. "If the idea of a blindfold freaks you out, I can sedate you"
"Oh" Kimberly said. The idea of a blindfold terrified her. It was too much like being kidnapped all over again. But the thought of being drugged was worse.
"I prefer the blindfold. I don't like the idea of losing control" she said.
"Some people spend their whole lives looking for the perfect way to do just that"
"Not me" she said. She stared at him and had the odd thought that she very much wanted him to like her. "I'm not what you think, Asher"
He looked instantly bored. "Let's go," he said. His voice was deeper than usual. He didn't like the feeling that was aroused in him when she said his name. It made him wonder how she would say it if they were in bed together, her legs wrapped tightly around him, and him thrusting deep inside of her.
He sighed as he locked the rooms and Kimberly followed him. It was a good thing she was leaving. He thought. These thoughts he was having would do both of them no good.
When they got to the front door. He stopped and turned to her. He took a blindfold out of his pocket. They stared at each other for a while.
"Turn around" he said softly. Kimberly did as she was told, and a few seconds later she thought she felt his hand brush her hair, then the blindfold was put carefully over her eyes. He took her hand and led her out. After he locked the front door, she felt his hands around her and then she was in his very strong arms. She gasped softly and then her hands went around his neck instinctively.
Asher groaned inwardly. Her body was so soft. He thought. Every part of him that mattered was in contact with warm, female flesh. He tried not to stare at her beautiful mouth as he moved towards the vehicle.
If Kimberly had to guess, she would have said the drive had taken about thirty five minutes before the vehicle came to a stop. She had been put in the rear of a van of some kind. There weren't any seats, but there were plenty of blankets. She had curled up on them and listened to the sound of the engine and the road. And then she had thought about how deliciously good it had felt to be pressed against Asher Adam's hot body. She knew she shouldn't entertain such thoughts about him, but she couldn't help it. The man was freaking hot. She wondered how it would feel if he made love to her. The image of him over her, his strong, muscular body pressed against hers, filling and stretching her gave her goosebumps.
Of course she knew that would never happen. The man couldn't even stand her. He was so damn rude to her and she knew that she would never see him again after he returned her to her father, so she forced herself to think about her father and Phoebe. The two people in her life she was sure actually loved and cared about her.
When the van stopped, she straightened. She heard footsteps and then there was the click of the lock followed by the creak of metal as the rear of the vehicle opened.
"You can take off the blindfold now," Asher said.