The Lost One (Lost Series Book 1) (16 page)

“I have told him.” He motioned toward Liam who now has a sheepish grin on his face. Flick leaps at him, getting him to whisper it to her. It’s rather annoying not knowing where I’m going, and a little nerve wracking. Flick laughs hysterically.
Great…

“I wonder if she’ll like it. Anytime we’ve mentioned it, she has said no,” Flick says to Liam, still grinning. My stomach drops and my nerves kick into overdrive. I don’t want to make a fool of myself
doing whatever he has planned.

“Are you ready to go, miss?” the young fella says, reminding me he
is still waiting in my doorway.

“Oh, sorry, won’t be a minute.” I go to my room and grab a light coat and my bag, better off being prepared for anything. I quickly grab some flat, peep toe
shoes and run back to the door.

“Okay, guys, I will see you later. Are yo
u staying here or going home?”

“We might head home. Make sure you message me as soon as you get home tonight,” Flick shrieks, dancing on
her toes.

She is kind of freaking me out and I’m sure my facial expression
is saying that loud and clear.

“You really are crazy,”
I say, shaking my head at her.

“Yeah, but you love me. Now get going.” She pushes me out the door and I’m following my driver
down the hall to the elevator.

“Are you his dri
ver?” I ask, making small talk.

“Only on special occasions.
He likes to have his own independence,” he speaks as if he knows Corban pretty well. Here is my chance to fish for some information.

“Oh, yeah, can
I ask your name?”

“It’s Jonas.” He sm
iles as we get on the elevator.

“How long have you known
Corban or Mr Andrews as you call him?”

“Are you looking for information?” he asks with a one-sided smile on his face, his eyes burning into mine. My cheeks heat
up with embarrassment.

“Umm…perhap
s,” I say slowly with a giggle.

“Well, I’ve known
Corban for about three years. I actually tried to rob him one night while high and drunk, and he, of course, got the better of me. Then he took me to a rehab centre, paid for all my bills to get me sober, and gave me this job, well, this business opportunity. So, I owe him a lot.”

I’m speechless; the wind has been knocked from me.
Corban did that for an actual stranger and I’m about to get into the car with an ex-drug addict. I don’t think my dad would approve.

As if reading my mind, he said softly, “
It’s okay. I’m clean now. You have nothing to worry about. You looked a bit petrified after I told you my story. Trust me when I say, I’m clean because if I mess up again, Corban will take my business away from me, and I’m not as young and stupid as I once was. “Jonas seems to be a genuinely honest guy. If that were my story, I know I would never tell, but at least it has a happy ending. Corban has a big heart to do that for him, changing his life for the better. My trust in him grows a little bit more. The elevator door opens and we walk out to the front of the building. Waiting there is black limo with black tinted windows and bright shiny rims.
Wow, what a nice car
. It isn’t a stretch limo, more like a luxury car, but one I would never be able to afford in my lifetime.

“Sorry, your story took me by surprise and now I’m a little lost for words at this…” I gesture toward th
e car. “Is this your business?”

“Yes, miss,
Corban helped me get started and got me some high up clients. So I’m pretty busy now and have a number of drivers working for me. I’ve paid Corban back, right down to the last penny and more. I owe him a lot.”

“You can call me
Melodi or Mel,” I say as he opens the door for me. I slide in on the cream leather seat in awe of this luxurious car. It smells new and clean, unlike my little car.

“Sure thing,
Melodi,” he says as he shuts the door, leaving me to explore the rest of the car. It has a mini bar.
Hmm…maybe one won’t hurt.

I move across the seat, not so gracefully, eager to have a quick drink to help settle my nerves. I open the
fridge, and I’m immediately disappointed. It’s empty! Just my luck. I hear the front door shut and Jonas chuckling. I glance up at him with questioning eyes.

“Something funny?”

“Yeah, Corban thought you might go for the fridge and asked me to empty it.” He laughs again.

“He needs you sober for this date.”
He turns his back to me, starting the car, and leaving me disappointed.

“Well, that sucks then,” I pout and pull out my phone to text
Corban to tell him how disappointed I am, but the alarm goes off, alerting me I have a text message from Corban. Speak of the devil!

Corban
: Sorry, Beautiful x

Yeah, yeah, whatever. I smile at my phone. He gives me butterflies, even through a text. I’m a very lucky girl, even though I don’t know what exactly we are. I plan to talk to him about that tonight and the issue with work.

With an irrepressible smile on my face, I quickly message him back.

Me: Whatever, I know you’re not sorry. You like making me all hot and bothered, only to not let me have a nicely chilled drink to cool me down. LOL x

It’s not long before he replies.

Corban: And I will be making you all hot and bothered again x

I burst out laughing, forgetting Jonas is here. I see him looking in the review mirror at me, a small grin on his face. He probably thinks I’m crazy. Who cares? I learnt early to not worry about what people think of me. If they want to hate me or think mean things about me, then that’s their problem, not mine. Although, I don’t think Jonas is one of those kinds of people. It might just look crazy for me to be sitting in the back giggling and giving my phone a corny smile. I hit reply.

Me: C-man, who says I’m going to let you? I think you have worn me out. x

I sit back, awaiting his reply. Knowing I will see him soon gets me excited. My phone goes off again.

Corban: Oh, Miss. White, I will have my way. I know you can’t resist me… x

Have his way? Resist him? He is right on both counts. I know I’ll surrender myself to him. I can’t resist that man with all his nakedness and perfectly defined, tight body. I don’t message him back. Make him wait, I reckon.

“Excuse me,
Melodi?” Jonas calls from the front. “Corban has asked me to get you to put on the blindfold in the compartment in the right door.”

“Wh
at?” I reply, a little confused

“Can you see the compartment on
the door there to your right?”

I look down near my legs, and sure enough, there is a small pocket compartment. I reach in and grab th
e sleeping mask from within.

I look up at the mirror, meetin
g Jonas’ eyes. “You mean this?”

“Yes, please put it on.”

“Oh, righto then,” I whisper, placing the band over my head and settling the mask over my eyes.

We continue driving for another ten or fifteen minutes before the car comes to a halt. I hear Jonas get out of the car. Then the door beside me opens and I’m enveloped with that all too familiar scent of
Corban. My body instantly stands at attention, aching with desire for him. I feel warm lips lightly press against mine, causing my stomach to do backflips. I let out a sigh of pleasure.

I sense he is still close.
“Afternoon, beautiful,” his silky voice whispers. My stomach continues its acrobatic performance.

“Hey,” I breathe, slightly short of breath. I can sense his smile. He knows exactly what he does to me and is playing with my nerves, which are already scattered around the country side. He takes hold of my arm, ge
ntly guiding me out of the car.

“Watch
your step; the curb is there.”

I place my foot where it’s safe and step out of the car. My other foot catches the door frame, causing me to trip forward right into
Corban’s strong embrace. Corban and Jonas burst out laughing. I feel the vibrations in Corban’s chest, the same chest that had been lying bare in my bed this morning. My cheeks turn pink. I hope he doesn’t notice.

“Are you all right?” he asks, still laughing. I am rather enjoying being in his arms, until he pushes me out at what I assume to be his ar
m’s length, awaiting my answer.

“Yes, I’
m fine, thanks,” I snap at him.

I can hear him trying to suppress another laugh. I pull away from his grip, pretending to be annoyed just to get a rise out of him.
I fold my arms across my chest.

“If you keep laughing, I’m going to take this blindfold off and ruin the surprise.” I keep my face straight, even though I’m laughing on the inside. As I’m standing here in a pitch black world, I can still sense
Corban. I sense his emotions and know he is smiling at me, and I can’t help but smile brightly in return.

“Thanks, Jonas.” I hear him whispering something to Jonas before I feel his hand take mine, slo
wly guiding me to move forward.

“Please, don’t let me fall again,” I beg. His thumb rubs over the back of my hand, sending my head swimming with longing for his touch over my entire body. I have never craved someone to touch me in this way, but
Corban is someone I never thought I would find. After the loss of Abby, I vowed to never trust another man again, but he brings out a side of me I enjoy, crave, and want to live for. He makes me a stronger, confident person. Not that I wasn’t already strong or confident, but he irons out the kinks, making me feel special and loved. He is my rainbow after the storm, and I couldn’t be happier.

I know we need to get to know each other a little better and I’m a hundred
percent sure in time I will share with him my loss and pain I suffered because of Jacob Smith.

“I have you. I won’t let you fall again, even though it is rather entertaining. I will always be here to catch you when you stumble and help you up when you fall.” His kind words have such meaning and force behind them. I can’t help b
ut believe he means every word.

I begin picking up a humming muffled noise. It sounds like a small engine in the distance,
kinda like a lawn mower.
I wonder what that is
. It becomes louder as we walk and I grip tighter to Corban.

“Now, stay right here while I get the door.” He releases his and I don’t move at the ris
k of embarrassing myself again.

It isn’t long before he takes my hand again, leading me into the place where the humming sound is now clearly the sound of a little motor running and I can smell gas. We walk closer to the sound and stop.
Corban releases my hand and moves in front of me. Holding the blindfold, he slowly pulls it up. As my eyes adjust to the brightness, I take in my surroundings.

We are standing in a large warehouse building, and in front of me is a large racetrack. At the starting line awaits two runni
ng go-karts. My heart stops…

Flick was right. Go-karting is not something I like, which is the exact reason I say no every time. I will put money on it that Liam or Flick put him up to this. I turn to him, ready to ask the question.

“No, they didn’t give me the idea. I mentioned it to them, but they laughed at me,” he answers my unasked question. It’s k
ind of freaky how he does that.

“Oh…ah…how did you
know I was going to ask that?”

“Your facial expressions are like an open book,” he laughs. “But really, when they laughed, that kind of gave me the answer I needed. I thought I would push those
boundaries of yours a little.”

“You won’t get me on one of those things.” I smile, folding my arms ac
ross my chest, making a stand.

My dad took Abby and me go-karting when we were about twelve, and for the life of me, I couldn’t do it. I kept crashing into the tire walls, so I gave up and vowed to never do it again, especially since Abby could do it perfectly. She and Dad laughed at me every time I crashed. I was so angry at them both. I didn’t speak to either of them for three days; well, I can’t really remember how long it was. I forgave them when they brought me Mum’s famous chocolate cake and ice cream one night
while I was sulking in my room.

“I think I could persuade you…” A cheeky expression spreads across his face as he
slowly pulls me into his arms.

I’m so not going to fall for his sexy charms. I keep my feet planted, trying really hard to not give in and me
lt into his welcoming embrace.

He laughs at me, and not releasing my hand, he steps closer to me. I can feel heat radiating off him, along wi
th his insanity inducing scent.