His Possession (The Owners) (10 page)

Chapter Eight

Waking up early the next morning, Cadeon left Violet to sleep a little longer. After the nightmare
of the previous night she hadn’t slept well for the remainder. Anne wouldn’t be around until about seven-thirty, and he had some calls to make. He went to the kitchen to start the morning coffee then went to his office and fired up the computer. Going back, he set himself up a cup with milk and sugar. He went back to his office and dialled Tate’s number.

Cadeon didn’t care how early it was. He wanted some answers.

“Hello,” came the muffled reply.

“We’ve got a deal,” he said.

“For fuck’s sake, Cadeon. I’m working on it. Shit like this doesn’t just grow on trees. I’ve got to work at it.” He heard Tate moving around as he woke up. Cadeon wrote down the name Dominic. Violet had screamed his name the night before. Her mother was dead, and she spoke strangely when she talked in her sleep.

“Well, I’ve got some things that might help. I know it’s a long shot, but they’re stuff she’s called out in her sleep.”

“You’re already sleeping with her?”

“Shut it, Tate. Do you want the names to help or what?”

“Sure. Send them to me, and I’ll email them through to Sean.”

Cadeon gave him the names and the few details he remembered from her screams and also how her accent had changed while she’d been screaming. “Would that help any?”

“I don’t know. These could be people that would bring up more information, but I’m hunting in the dark at the moment. Anything you give me can help.”

They talked for a few more minutes before ringing off. Cadeon opened his emails and checked them through before going to the file he kept on Violet. He pressed the icon and brought up her personal work file.

He took the key from his desk and opened the drawer, taking out the paper version he’d got
ten
her to sign not long ago.

Something wasn’t adding up about the woman upstairs.

His gut was telling him she was in danger, but for the life of him he couldn’t imagine why. Getting frustrated, he closed the computer and placed the file back in its compartment, feeling more frazzled than before.

By the time he walked out of his office, Violet sat at the kitchen counter, watching Anne make breakfast. She didn’t talk. She simply watched the older woman walk about the kitchen.

“You keep staring at me, child, and I’m going to start dropping plates,” Anne said.

Cadeon watched her, aware Anne had spotted him and knew not to give him away. For as much as Violet opened up when they were alone, after what happened the night before, he figured she would try to distance herself as much as possible.

“I’m sorry. I’ve never seen anyone so happy in a kitchen before. It’s nice to watch,” she said.

“Hasn’t your mother ever been happy in the kitchen?” Anne asked.

“She never went in one unless she had to. Her job was to do other things.” Violet went quiet, and Anne raised an eyebrow at him.

There was darkness in this girl’s past. A lot of it.

“Good morning, Violet,” he said as she took the seat next to her.

She nodded her head, and he noted the lovely shade of red she turned. Anne busied herself in the kitchen. Cadeon moved closer to her, his leg brushing along hers. She gasped and turned to stare at him.

“I wanted to thank you for last night,” he said as quietly as possible.

“You’re welcome.”

Anne placed a bowl in front of Violet and a cup of coffee in front of him.

She left them to go and clean another room. He watched her leave.

“Can I ask you something?” Violet asked.

“Of course.”

He rested his hand on her knee and watched as she jumped from the contact.

“Am I still a virgin?” she whispered, her face bright red. Her chest looked flushed.

“Violet, we didn’t have sex last night,” he said.

“Oh.” She pulled away from him.

Anne walked back in the room, and any chance he had at talking about her question left him. Once breakfast was done, he took Violet to the waiting limo. During the working week, he didn’t like driving into the city to work. Too much stress first thing in the morning. He sat staring at Violet as she looked out the tinted window. A frown marred her face.

“What are you thinking about?” he asked.

She turned to him. No smile either. “Nothing.”

“Come on. I read somewhere that the brain is incapable of not thinking something. There has to be something on your mind.”

“I’m wondering when the bubble will burst.”

“How do you mean?”

“Well, this can’t be real. I’m no princess, and this is no fairy tale. I feel I’m going to wake up one morning, be back in my small house with nothing to offer the world other than my time,” she said.

“That’s really sad for someone who is only twenty-one.”

“How do you know my age?”

“You work for me, Violet. I know everything about you.”

She stared at him. He detected the panic in her eyes, which was fleeting, but he noticed it.

“Shouldn’t you be making advances to someone your own age?” she asked. For the first time he saw the fire inside her. The need to survive. The man in him stood up and took notice. She was young, naive, and to a point, uncultured. But she had a fight inside her. Cadeon respected her more for standing up to him.

“Do you find my advances repulsive? Or just my age?” he asked.

Violet stared at him, her gaze moving up and down his body. He laughed at how joyous he found the moment. Then stopped as he realised there hadn’t been many incidents in her life for her to let go. To be a woman. To
know someone would
catch her when she fell. To
know someone would
always be there for her as a lover but also as a friend.

This was the possessive feeling his father talked about. The need to be with her no matter what. As long as he could spend time with her, hold her, he would be happy. Nothing else mattered in life other than the rare moments of bliss, two people shared together.

“I don’t find you repulsive,” she said.

“What about my age?”

“I don’t care about your age either.”

“Just my general need to control?” She smiled, the first real smile he’d ever seen her make. “You should do that more often.”

“What?”

“Smile.”

She blushed.

“It seems hard to smile,” she said after a few moments.

“Why?”

“Because I’ve never had much to smile about.”

Cadeon didn’t question her further. He knew how hard it could be to talk about people.

“What will I be doing today?” she asked.

“You’ll be camping out in my office.”

“Doing what?”

“I bought you this and took the liberty of filling it with some books.” He reached inside his briefcase and pulled out one of the small e-readers that were so popular.

“Why would I need this?”

“Because you weren’t well yesterday and I rather like the thought of having you in my office so I can keep an eye on you.”

Also, I hate the fucking bastards in the office who check out your ass. You’re mine, Violet, and I don’t share.

“I can pay you back,” she said. Her hands shook on the small device.

“Don’t worry about it. I would be offended if you even tried to pay me off. That’s yours. I only ever want to see you smiling as you read it.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. Can I ask for something in return?”

“Anything.”

Cadeon had hoped she would say that. “Kiss me.”

She frowned but moved to sit beside him. Her brown eyes were so expressive. The apprehension was back, but she had a ghost of a smile back on her face. The moment she went to kiss his cheek, Cadeon stopped her.

“No. I want you to kiss me on the lips.”

He wanted to know what it felt like to have her reach across the short distance and place those lips on him. His blood was firing on all cylinders, creating an inferno inside.

With the e-reader in her lap, she leaned over and brushed her lips against his. Not the most sensual of kisses, but to Cadeon it was the most beautiful thing he’d had.

“Thank you for my present, Cadeon.” She moved back to her seat, staring at his gift in her hand.

****

Violet hadn’t lived a life where she got many presents. The most her mother could afford was the clothes on her back and enough to feed her. Most of the nights were spent with male clients while Violet camped out, hidden in her little cupboard. As soon as she was able, she’d taught herself to read and write, going to the priest to get his help. He was the only friend she had who wasn’t in Dominic Green’s pockets. She stared down at the gift. Her heart beat frantically inside her chest. Did this gift mean as much to Cadeon as it did to her?

She never wanted to let it go. At Christmas, her mother had given her a doll. A small plastic doll, with no clothes, but it had been one of the best years of her life. Biting her lip to contain the tears, Violet ran her hand over the flap covering the screen.

Should she give it back? No, her kiss had been the only payment required. She looked up and saw Cadeon staring back at her. The intensity of his stare held her in place. He made her tingle from head to toe from his kisses and touches. Cadeon Ashwood made her feel. For most of her life, she’d learnt to cut herself off from feeling. Being numb was better than being alone and in pain.

“Are you all right?” he asked.

“Yes.”

He could have no idea what
that
simple gesture meant to her. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath, holding the gift to her chest. When the limo pulled up outside, she followed him outside. With a hand on her back, he escorted her upstairs. Next to him going through his office, she felt immature and out of her depth. There were so many women who would love to be with him
, who
could keep up with him at every turn.

She felt the stares and tried to ignore them. The hatred coming off the women threatened to burn a hole straight through her back. He yanked on his office door, and it opened instantly. Stacey stared at her but smiled rather than glared. At least there was one person who wouldn’t hate her.

For two nights, she’d gone home with the boss. For two nights she’d slept in his bed. Last night they’d done something that made her feel so good inside. Cadeon was working his way into her system. When she looked at him, her heart beat, and she felt alive. Someone was looking at her, not staring over her. Cadeon saw her; he didn’t see through her.

“Take a seat. Relax and enjoy.”

He threw his jacket on the seat and went around to his desk. She sat on the seat next to his jacket.

Opening the flap of her present, she read through the titles of the books available to read. Not many stood out, so she decided to start from the top.

His voice as he spoke on the phone would distract her. At times she looked up and caught him staring back at her. After a time, she pulled his jacket over her. She felt so calm and happy to be safe.

Chapter Nine

Dominic Green stared at the queue of girls in front of him. Some looked like they were knocking on death’s door. He picked out a selection before going back inside his office. Business was booming. The crisis in the world meant more people were turning to gambling, drugs, and women to escape the pain of their situation.

He lit up a smoke and sat down. Pouring himself a healthy measure of scotch, he glared at the picture on his desk. The girl was a pretty bitch, he’d give her that. She’d pack a couple of grand in a few nights. Some of his more expensive clients liked them on the chunky side with the girl-next-door kind of look.