Sierra stood next to the stretch limo, unsure of how she should say goodbye to her father. She had to bottle the excitement she was feeling at escaping him. He'd probably strangle her on the spot, if he knew the extent of her elation. She was unsettled about Mr. Whitfield's expectations, though and couldn't keep a bit of that from showing through her otherwise stony expression.
Still, she couldn't push away the thought that she was finally getting away from her father. She hoped and prayed she'd never have to step foot inside his house again.
"I'd like to speak to my daughter alone for a moment," Douglas said as the three of them stood beside the sleek car.
"Make it quick. I have a stop to make before the jet takes off," Damien said as he glanced at his watch. Sierra was blown away with how the man spoke to her dad. She'd never heard anyone act so disrespectful to Douglas Monroe. People normally did everything they could to impress him, practically bowing at his feet.
What surprised her even more was the fact that her father was allowing the insubordination. She almost wanted to hug Damien, she was so happy to see her father taken down a peg.
Before she could feel too smug, her father was gripping her arm tightly as he led her away from the limo. She didn't even cringe as pain shot from where his fingers dug in. The pressure was nothing compared to some of the past abuse he'd inflicted on her.
When they were far enough away that he felt confident in not being overheard, he stopped and turned his back to the limo. He obviously didn't want Damien to see the menace on his face.
"I don't know how long Damien will put up with you being his personal escort, but you'd better keep your damn mouth shut about what happens in this house. He's paying a lot more money than your worth for the privilege of your company. Do not disappoint me, or your life won't be worth living. Do you understand me?" he snarled, emphasizing Damien's name like it was a swear word.
Sierra felt bile rise in her throat. She knew her father was evil, how could she not? But, without saying the words, he was telling her she was nothing more than a slave to be traded. She knew he felt nothing but disdain for her, but she'd thought somewhere, maybe deep down inside, that he cared the tiniest bit.
She'd been wrong.
With brief words, he'd explained what was expected of her. She feared there wasn't a job at all. Maybe Damien had just bought her as his mistress. Could she go through with it if that was the case?
The reality was that she probably could. What made the entire matter worse was that she'd rather be this stranger's sex-toy than her father's whipping post. There weren't words to describe the misery coursing through her in that moment.
Only the angst of defying her father kept her standing before him with no expression. She knew better than to show weakness, or release the tears that so desperately wanted to fall. The cost was too great at showing him any emotion.
"I understand, Father. I won't disappoint you," she reluctantly responded. She knew she'd been taking too long to reply, because she saw the twinge in his jaw, her alert that he was losing control.
"Good. Don't forget it. Now, give me a hug to keep up the Monroe image," he commanded, his body stiff as if having to touch her disgusted him.
Obediently, she moved forward, keeping a few inches from touching him, as she carefully wrapped her arms around his shoulders and gave him an awkward hug. He lifted one hand and patted her back, before pushing her away.
To an observer it may have looked like a sad goodbye between a father and daughter, but only if they were far away. Up close, their faces would've given them away. His was filled with loathing, hers filled with resolve.
Sierra once again thought of her mother. How could the woman actually marry such a cruel man, and then make it even worse by having children with him? She'd never do that to a child of hers – not for all the comforts in the world. She didn't want to think her mother had married for money, but she didn't see any other reason anyone would choose to marry Douglas.
Without saying anything further, Douglas turned, knowing she'd follow him, and they walked silently back to the limo where Damien was casually leaning against the door.
"All set?" he asked, his eyes searching her face.
She looked down, unwilling to let the Master-of-Reading-People, read her.
"Of course," she quietly replied.
Damien gave a short shake of his head in a silent command as he glanced to his left. Sierra turned and noticed their driver turn around and head back to the front of the vehicle. Damien then opened the door and motioned for her to climb inside. Without saying anything else to her father, she stepped into the back, and waited for Damien to follow.
He joined her and pulled the door shut. As the car started to move, Sierra looked out the window, watching as her home – prison – started to fade from view.
The fear of Damien faded as pure elation filled her. For a few precious moments she forgot the man across from her and reveled in her liberation.
As she turned her head, a small smile playing on her lips, her eyes connected with the dark green depths of Damien's. Her smile faded as her earlier anxiety rose to the surface. She may be free from her father, but could she have possibly jumped into a fire much worse than the one she'd been in?
A shudder racked her body as his eyes darkened even more, his gaze holding her captive.
∞∞∞
With reluctance, Damien pulled his gaze away from Sierra's large, captive eyes. Everything about this woman seemed to rattle him to his very core. She was beautiful, sure, but so were a million other women in the world.
He figured it had to be the mystery surrounding her. He wanted to know the reasons she'd so willingly sacrificed herself. Who would so quickly submit to leaving into the unknown with a stranger? She was either that greedy, or that desperate.
If it was a matter of greed, he knew how to deal with that, but if it was the other… Well, he feared going there, as it brought up too many memories of his own past.
They rode in silence for several minutes as she looked out the window and he examined the set to her shoulders, the way she gazed at the passing scenery as if seeing it for the first time. When he felt the quiet had gone on for long enough, he moved to the small fridge and pulled out a bottle of sparkling water, pouring two glasses.
"Here," he said, holding the crystal out to her. She slowly turned around and looked at his hand as if it would bite her. He found himself wanting to smile, but held back.
He had left her with the impression she was to be basically nothing more than his beck-and-call girl. He understood her hesitancy in accepting anything from him.
"It's not poisoned. I can almost guarantee that," he added as he took a sip from his own glass.
"I didn't think it was," she quickly said, as if worried she'd offended him. She reached out and took the glass, bringing it to her lips and taking a small sip as if to please him.
He wanted her to please him – in many erotic ways. His aroused body throbbed as he started picturing a few of the things he'd like to do with her in the very large and private back seat.
Luckily the car ride to Trinity's home wasn't long, and soon the car stopped and Damien sat back while waiting for the driver to open his door. He saw the curiosity on Sierra's face, but he didn't bother explaining what was going on.
His door opened and he gracefully exited the car before holding out his hand to assist Sierra. She looked startled that he was having her come with him. They were at a home, not a business and she didn't see why he'd want her to join him.
"Where are we?" she tentatively asked.
"My friend's home. I promised to stop in before I left. We'll be away for at least two weeks and today is her daughter's birthday party."
"I can wait if you'd like…" she said as she looked at the large house before her.
"No." He gave her no further elaboration as he took her arm, then moved quickly toward the front door.
"Damien Whitfield, you're late," Trinity scolded as she came running down the stairs. "I thought you were going to miss out. Cindi's been asking for you for the past hour."
"I'm sorry, Trin. I got held up." His arms opened and she leapt into them. Seeing Trinity brought warmth to the cold shell around his heart, melting it quickly. She was the only person on the planet he'd drop everything for.
"You can quit pawing all over my wife at any time, now," Drew said as he stood in the doorway with little Joshua sitting on his hip.
"If she wasn't so dang delectable, I may be able to," Damien taunted him. Drew rolled his eyes as he looked over and noticed Sierra standing awkwardly next to the two of them.
"Hi. I'm Trinity, Damien's best friend, though you wouldn't know it since the man never comes to see me anymore. The handsome man up there is my husband, Drew, and he's holding our son, Joshua," Trinity said as she introduced herself and her family.
"I'm Sierra Monroe…uh, Mr. Whitfield's new employee," Sierra said, stumbling over her words a little. Sierra's nervousness could be felt by everyone. Damien felt a bit of guilt over not explaining where they were going.
"Mr. Whitfield. Ha! That's amusing. Don't worry about formalities here. It's a four-year-olds birthday party," Trinity said as she took Sierra's arm in hers and started leading her up the large entrance stairs.
Damien followed behind, not too sure he liked his new employee getting cozy with his best friend. He didn't want his business and personal life to mix. He certainly didn't want his plans for revenge to come anywhere near Trinity. For one thing, she'd throttle him, for another, she'd talk him out of it. He wouldn't be able to stand the conflicting emotions of trying to do the right thing for his deceased mother, and trying not to hurt Trinity.
"Come on Damien. Let's get a drink while the ladies finish setting things up. Don't worry, you're not the last arrival," Drew assured him.
Damien watched as Trinity led Sierra to the kitchen. He shouldn't have brought her to the party. He should've just had the limo drop her at the jet and made her wait on him. He hadn't realized how uncomfortable it would make him to have her alone with Trinity. He should've known she'd try and befriend Sierra. That's just how Trinity was. She instantly liked everyone, and unless they did something to not deserve her trust, she gave everyone the benefit of the doubt.
He accepted a glass of wine from Drew and downed half the glass. He had to refocus and get his head back in the game. He wouldn't let unwanted emotions get in his way.
The Andersons had to pay for what they'd done.
"How's business, Damien?" Derek, Drew's cousin, asked.
"It's been good. I'm heading over to one of my vineyards in Australia right after the party. The land next to my largest property just came up for sale. The man knows I want it so he's trying to charge twice what it's worth. He'll be singing a different tune by the time I leave."
"I have no doubt he will," Ryan piped in with a laugh. Damien figured he'd better tone down his voice. His emotions were a bit out of control.
"I have to say I'm glad you're best friends with my wife, and not a mortal enemy. You tend to get quite the predator's gleam in your eye when you're talking about something you want," Drew said with a laugh.
Drew's cousins both nodded their heads in agreement while joining in the laughter. Damien looked around the room, realizing how uptight he was acting. He forced himself to smile while relaxing his shoulders. He could let down his guard for a couple hours, being among men he trusted.
"I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm starving, and if I'm not mistaken it smells like Jasmine's in the kitchen cooking up something delicious," Damien said as his eyes darted toward the door.
"You'd be correct. Let's drive them crazy until they cave and give us an appetizer," Derek said with a gleam in his eye.
The men walked from the den, letting the incredible aroma filling their nostrils lead the way. When Jasmine cooked, the entire neighborhood opened their windows just to get a sniff.
"Smells delicious, Honey. I could smell it all the way in the den," Derek said as he wrapped his arms around his petite wife.
"Are you trying to sneak some food by shamelessly flattering me?" she asked as she turned and kissed him on the chin.
"Of course not. I just couldn't seem to resist touching you," he quickly replied as his hands moved down her back and quickly swatted her butt.
Damien shifted on his feet, the moment feeling awkward as he watched the two of them flirt.
"I thought this was a children's party, not a swinger's festival," Damien said, trying to break up the intimate scene.
"Damien," Trinity scolded him, but there was a smile across her lips.
"Fine, you boys can have a snack, but you have to either go back to the den or out by the pool," Nicole jumped in. "Seriously, Jasmine, behave. You're making me want to drag my husband to the nearest bedroom."
"I'm okay with that," Ryan quickly said with a predatory gleam in his eyes.
"Don't you dare touch me, Ryan Titan. If you do, the kids will never get their cake," Nicole said as she darted around the kitchen island.
"Fine, we'll go," Derek said with reluctance as he pulled away from his flushed wife.
"See you soon," Trinity called as she blew a kiss to Drew.
Before the men walked outside, Damien looked toward Sierra who was refusing to meet his gaze. Surprise filled him as shimmers of desire shot down his stomach. He found himself wanting to grab her chin and force her gaze to meet his. A need to taste her lips, experience her unique flavor was almost overwhelming. He found he liked the confusion of the foreign desire.
For a man who was known for his impeccable control, it was a unique feeling to experience the uncharacteristic emotions overpowering him.
"I could use a beer," Damien said as Drew prodded him in the arm. He followed Trinity's husband and the other men as they stepped outside into the cool evening air.
"You know where to get them," Drew replied.
Damien headed straight for the outdoor fridge and grabbed a bottle of dark liquid, quickly unscrewing the top and taking a long swallow. The icy drink felt good going down, internally turning down his escalating temperature.
"So, are you going to tell us about the sexy new employee?" Ryan asked with a laugh.
"Nope," Damien quickly replied as he took another long swallow.
"Hmm, interesting," Drew said with a smirk.
"Nothing interesting at all," Damien replied with a glare.
"Yeah, I know that look. It seems Sierra may be more than just a new employee," Ryan taunted.
"Not at all. There's just nothing to tell. I've actually only met her today."
"Come on, Damien. Sparks are sizzling between the two of you. You may have just met her, but that's not stopping your mind from stripping her naked in my kitchen," Drew said with a knowing smile.
"Mind your own damn business, Drew," he snapped.
"All right. I'm done," Drew told him while holding his hands up in surrender.
"I think I'm going to take a swim and cool off," Derek interrupted as he moved to the pool house. To Damien, the thought of swimming until exhaustion overrode his hormones sounded like the perfect solution, so he walked in the direction of the pool with Derek.
∞∞∞
"Spill the gossip, Sierra. How long have you known Damien? I'm not trying to hurt your feelings if it's been a while, but usually he tells me everything and he hasn't mentioned having such a gorgeous employer," Trinity said as soon as the guys were out of earshot.
Sierra instantly turned red, hating how she was so easily embarrassed. Other than Bree, she didn't have girlfriends to talk to, so she was on unfamiliar territory with the whole gossip thing.
"I was just hired today," she finally answered.
"Today? And you're already going to Australia with him. Mmm, that's a long jet ride. A lot can happen," Jasmine said with an exaggerated wink. Sierra flushed even more.
"It's not like that," Sierra quickly replied, hoping they'd drop it.
"No way. I saw him watching you. His body was tense, and his eyes were practically stripping you where you stood," Trinity said with a giggle.
"Mmm, agreed. We didn't even need to turn the oven on to boil the water," Nicole added.
Sierra didn't want to say how close to right they may actually be. He may have hired her for nothing but a call-girl. He'd be disappointed if that's what he was after.
"Honestly, I swear it's not like that," Sierra said, but as the women laughed, she couldn't help but smile with them. Her fear was quickly evaporating in light of Damien's choice of friends. He couldn't be too terrible of a man if he associated with such good people.
"You do think he's hot, right?" Trinity asked, her gaze boring into Sierra, not allowing her to lie.
"I am human. It's pretty hard not to notice he's a bit better looking than the average guy. Then again, all your husbands are on an equally sizzling scale, so I think it may just be that this house has some incredibly good lighting," Sierra said with a giggle.
"Ah, great come-back. No, it's certainly not the light. Those men are definitely drool-worthy. Seriously, though, they have hearts of gold – each one of them," Trinity said, her eyes softening as she talked about the men she loved.
"I'm sure they do," Sierra replied, a bit envious at the connection these women shared with not only their husbands, but each other, as well.
"Okay, we promise not to grill you anymore tonight, but only if you swear to tell us if anything does occur on that lengthy flight," Jasmine said as she pulled a tray of sizzling meat from the oven.
"Deal," Sierra promised, feeling confident there wouldn't be anything to tell.