The Prize

HE HAD BEEN STUDYING her every move for the past three months. Knew everything about her, maybe even more than she knew herself. And while it still pissed him off to think that she was the woman Dantes was last seen with—-

Didn't matter in the end.

He wanted her still, and that was why...

You're mine, angel.

He slowed his car to a stop when he saw her rental break down in the middle of the road. He knew he was playing with fire, interacting with her directly like this, but he didn't give a damn.

Look at me and see how much I want you.

He waited until her eyes met his. Her hesitation was evident, but he continued to stare at her through the untinted window of his car.

C'mon, angel..

He needed her to make the first move.

That's it.

She walked up to him like his own snowstorm angel, with her golden hair plaited in locks, and her gray eyes full of fear that she was doing her best to mask behind a tremulous smile.

"H-Hi."

She asked for a ride, and when she was seated next to him inside the car, her nervousness was apparent in the way she tightly clutched her purse between her hands.

"So...is it your first time in Laramie?"

"Um...yes."

Her voice trembled, and he wondered if she was even aware of the signals her body were giving.

Just as honor and desire were at war inside of him, the flush of her cheeks as she seemed unable to tear her gaze off him spoke of a similar struggle.

He wanted her, she wanted him. But she obviously thought it was wrong because she didn't know him...while he believed it was wrong because he knew who she was.

A buzzing sound broke the silence, and she fumbled with the lock of her phone. As she pulled her phone out with visibly shaking fingers, something else peeked out, and the faintest glint of metal caught his eye.

His gaze swung sharply back to her face, and the horror in her eyes was all he needed to see.

He didn't move a muscle as she clumsily yanked the gun out of her purse. Didn't flinch as she pointed it at him, her knuckles white, her grip unsteady.

What are you thinking, angel?

What are you planning?

He could disarm her in a blink if he wanted to.

But he didn't.

Because the fear in her eyes meant there was still a chance she was not on Dantes' side. And that chance, however slim, was enough for him to continue playing along.

"Just do as I say and you won't get hurt."

Her bravado impressed him, never mind if he also thought her an idiot for not realizing how impossible it was for her to win against him in any way.

"Says the person with a gun."

"You weren't supposed to know I had one."

A part of him wanted to believe she wasn't lying, but because trust had to be earned in his line of work—-

"My sincerest apologies."

If she was telling the truth, then she would have nothing to fear.

"I wasn't aware being observant is a crime now."

But if she was playing a game with him, then she had everything to lose.

Games like this were what he lived for.

And whether she liked it or not—-

She was his prize.

And he meant to take his sweet time savoring every trembling inch of her.