SIX

Reneigh

I fought my second round of tears as I heard a solid knock on the front door. I had two hours before some driver was coming to take me to a secret location. His secretary had merely glared at me with an expression that screamed she believed me to be a gold digger or worse. She'd confirmed my address and mentioned a driver would be coming precisely at seven and nothing more.

I stared at the door for a few seconds before walking closer. The interruption had to be the clothes Elijah had mentioned he'd send over. At least I'd get some kind of indication where I might be going, the event I was being forced to attend.

As I opened the door, I had to admit that the delivery driver wasn't what I was expecting. The handsome but huge dark-haired man wasn't wearing a uniform and he wasn't driving a van covered in decals. The sleek steel gray Lexus had obviously been washed, the car's exterior glistening in the waning sun.

"Ms. Han?"

I clenched my jaw, deciding on whether to answer him.

"I assure you that I'm not an ax murderer," he said after lifting his sunglasses. "I work with Storm Enterprises and I'm just trying to do my job. I've brought some things for you from Mr. Storm."

"I don't want them," I insisted. His hulking body and stern, scarred face gave me an indication of what he really did for Mr. Asshole Storm.

"He mentioned that you might say that and reminded me to give this to you first." As he handed me a large manila envelope, a cold shiver trickled down my spine. "Now, I will need to leave the other items, Ms. Han. What you do with them later is not my concern but my advice is to follow Mr. Storm's directions to the letter. He can be harsh. And unforgiving."

"You mean cruel," I said under my breath as I continued to glare at the envelope.

The contract. I knew that's exactly what was inside.

I was sick to my stomach at the thought.

"Mr. Storm is fair but refuses to tolerate infractions of any kind," he continued, his tone gruff.

"Uh-huh. So I gathered."

His smug smile further pissed me off but there was no way out of this.

I motioned toward the house. "Fine. Do what you want. You can leave whatever he sent over just inside the door." I turned away from him, knowing he'd report back to Elijah with my reaction and I refused to give him anything else. I headed straight into the kitchen and out of the line of sight, narrowly avoiding knocking over my glass as I reached for a sip.

The contract was certainly much thicker than I'd anticipated. My fingers shaking, I finally managed to unclasp the metal prong, still tentative as I pulled out the pages. I was honestly shocked he'd upheld his end of the deal. The contract looked professionally drawn up by an attorney, every page initialed.

It was the note on the top that pissed me off.

The contract as required. I'm certain you'll find it necessary to argue with some of the details, but you have no choice but to accept. If you renege in any manner, I will find each and every reason to destroy all that is important to you. Then I'll have you arrested. I'll expect a signed copy when I see you tonight.

"Bastard." I balled the piece of paper, tossing it across the room. But you stole from the man. You deserve punishment. Even though I hated the truth, my inner voice was correct. I'd gotten myself into this ugly position. As I began to flip through the pages, I almost immediately realized that the 'deal' I'd entered into with the man was much more that I'd bargained for.

I fell against the counter, my legs shaking. "Fuck you. Fuck you, asshole." I had to be hallucinating. I took several deep breaths, trying to calm my nerves. After reading voraciously for several minutes, I tossed the contract onto the table, hissing from the rage that was all encompassing.

This wasn't just a deal with the devil. This was giving him my life for several months. The caveat? If I followed the contract to the letter, all my sins would be absolved.

However, if I signed the contract, the man would own me.

Every. Single. Inch.

I realized I hadn't heard any sound from the damn driver and was ready to take my rage out on him. That would at least send a message to the powerful jerk that I wasn't the kind of woman who could be broken. When I stormed into the foyer, the front door was already closed and a solid dozen brightly colored packages had been placed on the floor. Every one of them had been professionally wrapped, the glittery foil paper perfectly matching the assorted gorgeous bows and ribbons.

On top of everything, the man believed he could buy me. I stood staring at the items for a full five minutes before yanking the largest box into my hands, still trembling as I walked back into the kitchen. After placing the stunning package on the table, I took a step away. Even opening it meant I'd accepted the terms.

I glanced at the clock, realizing I had two hours before the car would arrive.

Before I was supposed to be dressed and ready.

Before I was required to give up my life.

Instead of opening the box, I slithered to the floor, burying my head into my hands. I had no other choice. None.

I would soon become the property of Storm Enterprises.