“Carter, what’s wrong?
“Josie, what are we going to do with you?I don’t want to take you and dump you.You aren't like those other girls.But I don't want you to tell anyone about this.I want you to work with me.We could build an empire together.”
Can he really be this delusional?
“I don’t know what to do with you.”
“Let me go.Home.”
“Jared said not to do that.Because you would tell.”
“I don’t feel very well,” the room spun on her again, and not even faking it, she slumped on the couch, almost on the floor.
“Josie!Get up!”Carter lifted her from the floor, then set her down again.“You want to leave?That's fine.But I'm not going to let you go until I know for sure that you aren’t going to leave me.That you aren’t tricking me like everyone else.Do you know when I first started, I tried out a local brewery and I got a bad batch of beer?Everyone told me it was the flavor I didn’t like but I swear it was bad.I know my fish supplier hates me.He likes everyone else, but he charges me an extra five percent.”
His arm under her back pressed into her spine, causing her pain.“I would feel mad if a supplier was overcharging me too.”
“But they all do it to me.They laugh at me.Thinking I am here only because of my football career!”He removed his arm.He stood up and paced the room.“So, what if I am?Don’t I get to make a living?I like cooking at first.I didn't like dealing the people.Who has an allergy to maple syrup?”
Josie bit her lip.“Food allergies can be hard to accommodate.”But not impossible.She thought of her clients, the McKay's who ordered their celebration dinners from her because Miss.McKay had severe food allergies.
She’d heard of a maple syrup allergy before as well as a birch sap allergy.If she couldn’t eat maple syrup, she’d make a dark caramel topping.Or a fruit compote.Thinking of food made her stomach grumble.
Her captors hadn’t given her anything to eat other than a handful of pretzels after she threw up the first night.
“Can you get off the floor?”Carter turned back to her; his expression pinched and angry.
“I can try,” Josie grabbed the couch cushion and tried to pull herself up.She got up with a lot of effort and laid on her back slumped.
“Yep, that's great.You should have taken the hint when I gave you that key charm.I bet your rich boyfriend didn’t give you a key.”
She bit her lip, wondering if there was a key for all the biometric security features.There had to be a backup key, right?What if the power went out.Though she supposed Ares would have a generator.
Her thoughts raced but if she kept thinking, maybe she would ignore the fact that Carter was now perched over her, his lips hovering above her.
She closed her eyes as his fingertips wandered to her waistband.“Come on now, Josie.Show me what you can give me.”
“Get off me!”She brought her knees up under him and kneed him as hard as she could.
He cried out but grabbed her wrist.
Willing her body to fucking move, she scrambled from the couch, shaking his touch off.
“Fuck!”Carter crumbled to the floor, crouched over in pain.
This time, Josie ran for that door.She pushed it open to a garage.Jared was lying against a wall, his head turned.
The garage was open, she could see the street outside, the rain coming down hard on the pavement.
She ran for the door, pushed the garage door button.
“Get back here!”Carter ran through the door.
She ducked under the garage door, ran as fast as she could in socked feet, down the street, where she slipped.
The air went out of her as she hit the cold pavement.
“Josie!”
