She landed in the middle of the room, breathing hard, but not even sweating. She hadn’t had a good workout in over a week, and isometrics would only go so far. She had no idea if her theatrics were at all effective. She was probably just amusing the guards.
She’d torn the room apart, knocked over bookcases, upturned the bed, broken the mirror that was perched over the dresser. The next day, she had to put it all back together again because, quite simply, no one cared. A part of her mind understood that she was behaving like the little girl who’d grown up in this room, not the mature fighter she’d become. But there was something about coming home to family issues and familiar surroundings that made a person revert to childish ways.
No one came. No one said a word about the slamming she’d done to the floor. No matter what she did it made no difference, and that pissed her off even more. Nothing she did seemed to matter, and being ineffectual was worse than being a prisoner.
David came to her the first few days she was locked away. She had tried to talk to him, but he only ever fixated on that damn USB stick, what he insisted on calling a ‘memory stick.’ She still hadn’t told him that she’d found it and given it to Luke. What he’d done with it she couldn’t guess; they hadn’t had time to discuss it.
But David was blaming their father. He’d assumed the old man simply didn’t leave it where he said he would. David wouldn’t say what was on the stick, but he seemed to have lost his admittedly fragile grip on sanity when he realized it was gone.
And it was all her father’s fault. The thief had waited until David was through with school and set him up to take over the company, and then left him holding the bag. He’d betrayed his own son just like he’d betrayed everyone one he ever encountered. Like Dani. Like Dani’s mother.
He hadn’t met Luke. She stopped with that thought. She checked her watch. She had a precious opportunity to get out of her room for a brief time; Benny was taking this sham of a marriage to heart and was not only going through with the whole thing, but he was doing it in style. Like it was the real thing. She and Luke were to go to the hotel where the ballroom had been rented for the ceremony and the reception. They were supposed to sample foods for the menu, and discuss things civilly with the caterer, as though nothing strange was going on. As if they were any loving couple planning their wedding. Uncle Benny had insisted that things look normal on the outside. It was all part of the trap.
As though every loving couple met with the caterer dragging along an entourage that included an aging mobster, and a dozen goons straight out of The Godfather.
She stomped her foot one more time for good measure and headed to the shower. There was a petty thought that she should go with hairy legs, not having showered for several days, but appearing like that in front of Luke seemed horrifying.
Even after their shared ordeal, she wanted to impress him. So... shower, shave, careful selection of just the right clothing. Maybe a short dress? Really short, as in make-Luke-uncomfortable short.
She shook her head at her own vanity. The truth was that, regardless of the fact that he was angry with her, despite the fact that she didn’t trust him, and past the issue of being held prisoner, she felt what she felt. She might not like him. She might not even trust him. But the heart feels what it feels, and she was going to primp and preen because she was a woman in love.
Driving him crazy was just a bonus.
CHAPTER TWO
Dani was ‘escorted’ downstairs to the office. She noted, to her disappointment, that there was no visible damage to the ceiling below her bedroom, and Uncle Benny wasn’t lying on the floor with a concussion caused by loose plaster. The only highlight to the view, pacing the floor, was Luke McConnell.
For a moment, the sight of him sent a thrill through her. Tall, slender, with that thick head of hair a girl just itched to lose her fingers in, along with a chest and arms that spoke of serious time at the gym. With a firmness to his grasp that let you know you were being held, dammit.
Freakin’ A, those were amazing arms.
To her practiced eye, he moved like a man who could take care of himself. She couldn’t be attracted to one who didn’t.
His expression when he saw her threw cold water on her sudden ardor. She felt herself stiffen, and held her head high.
“What the hell now?” were his first words to her.
Happy to see you, too. “We have a meeting,” she said coldly, “at the hotel. We’re meeting with the wedding planners. And deciding the meal.”
The guards closed the door behind her and she was left alone with him.
“Your idea, princess?”
Dani’s eyes widened, and adrenaline charged through her. How dare he. How freakin’ dare he. “None of this is my idea! I’ve been locked up in my room for days. No one’s been asking me for my ideas, opinions, or—”
“You’ve been held hostage in your room?” he asked in surprise. “Why? You’re family. Why should you be held against your will? You’re going to side with them.”
“Them?” Dani clenched her fists, trying unsuccessfully to keep her voice down. “What ‘them’ are you referring to? Do you mean my brother? My father, my uncle? MY FAMILY? Which one?” She stomped her foot. “And why wouldn’t I stand with my own family over someone I JUST MET?”
“SOMEONE YOU’RE GOING TO MARRY!”
“THAT WASN’T MY IDEA EITHER!” She held up her hands for peace and swallowed. “Okay, maybe it was. But I did what I had to do to keep you alive.”
“Or your brother would have killed me? Or was that your uncle? Or your father? Someone in your family.”
He clearly wasn’t going to let that go. “My father hasn’t met you. Although, I’m sure if he did, he’d want to kill you, too. That seems to be a rather common response where you’re concerned.”
“Only in your family. And your father has met me. I worked for him.”
“Maybe you can tell that to your real boss. If you ever see him again. Seems like he’s not too keen on keeping you alive either! As a matter of fact, I seem to be the only one who gives a shit about you at the moment. Maybe you want to think about that.”
“Not that you’re doing such a great job of it!” Luke fired back. “I’ve still got bruises from David’s bully boys.”
“You’ve had bruises before,” Dani scoffed. “Big deal. They heal, they fade. You’re alive and that’s thanks to me.”
“I’m a freakin’ prisoner thanks to you! What the hell was I thinking getting close to you? I’ve lost my job, and for that matter am probably a wanted man by now, and that’s because of you, too!”
“Is that all you can say? Really? You selfish prick! After all this time being locked up and all you can do is scream about you? You’re not the only one being held prisoner here!”
“Well, I didn’t know!” He rounded on her, his voice still loud. “And by the way, that’s a damn nice dress!”
“THANK YOU!”