Captured by the Bodyguard(27)

She shoved her hair out of her face as she stretched her aching body. She could hear Cane in the adjoining room, moving about already. She remembered every little thing he’d said yesterday: about her bodyguard crush, and generally about her not even knowing what she wanted because heck, she was a rich brat daddy’s princess spoiled from birth.

Well, to hell with you, Cane Hutchison, Alexandra fumed as she shoved her legs into some running tights. She gathered her hair in a top knot and finished putting on the gear she’d need for a run in the nearby wooded park. She ran most mornings but in the past month she hadn’t been that regular, content mostly to go to the gym. But for the past few weeks since he’d been assigned as her bodyguard, Cane always came along. She’d enjoyed his company even though they rarely talked. But today, she couldn’t even stand to be in the same house with him not to speak of letting him along as her jogging partner slash minder. As far as she was concerned, he was no longer even her bodyguard. She’d officially divested him of his services last night and once she got back in an hour, she’d call her dad to make her stand.

But for now, she needed to clear her head. Run off all the negative energy from last night as well as all the angst that had built up since the cluster bomb her life had become when she got assigned a bodyguard.

For some reason, she found herself tiptoeing out of her room, unwilling to face a confrontation with Cane. If he saw her, he would insist on accompanying her which would be awkward and quite frankly, unwelcome. She still hadn’t forgiven him for talking to her like she wasn’t an adult who knew the difference between a crush and an actual manifestation of feelings for a man who’d made such an intense impact on her.

She stepped noiselessly past his room, pausing long enough to hear sounds that told her he was busy in the shower. Good. He needn’t know she was out on her run. She’d be back soon anyway and besides, now that her father had all but confirmed that Vincent the tycoon thug no longer considered her father a rival, then Alexandra had stopped being a target.

Feeling an almost childish satisfaction in having her way this once, Alexandra smirked as she made her way quietly out of the house, shutting the door just as softly after her.



***

Alexandra had run on that trail countless times.

As she jogged she felt the rush of adrenalin coursing through her. Her sports halter already had the sensation of cool perspiration contacting her skin. It was early morning with the sound of birds in the trees and the gentle glow of the sun breaking through the clear skies. People normally ran in the park each morning but never more than a few at a time since this was a community just outside the main city. This morning though she seemed to be the only one out this early. As always Alexandra enjoyed the tranquility that came from feeling like you were so close to nature.

At first she thought nothing of the van driving toward her, barely registering its light blue color or the shadow of the man driving behind the wheel. Her thoughts were all jumbled up and she didn’t even wonder when the van pulled over to the curb just as she neared.

She watched absent-mindedly and saw the driver, who was wearing a beanie, slam his hands on the steering wheel as if it was the van suddenly choosing to give out. She was still yards away from the vehicle which was parked right where she was soon to jog past. The driver stepped down from the van and walked round to the passenger door.

Alexandra kept a steady pace as she neared the van, her mind already elsewhere. Would Cane have realized by now that she’d left? Hmm. Maybe, like that first time, he was cooking some peace-making breakfast. Or maybe he was hopping mad when he finally discovered she was nowhere in the house. The thought of making Cane angry brought a pleased, twisted smile to her face. That was sure to get his goat, thought Alexandra with satisfaction. He’d hate to be thwarted or defied. For the first time, she was flouting his authority. He’d given her clear instructions from the start never to leave the house alone. Well fuck that, you’re no longer my bodyguard, Mr. Hutchinson. As of last night, your ass was fired, Alexandra thought with bitter triumph.

She barely noticed the driver of the van turn to her as she was racing past the open side of the van where he stood, a piece of cord in his hand. They nodded at each other, in the vague way that strangers sometimes do. Alexandra could barely see his face which was obscured by the beanie, though something seemed very familiar about his dark-skinned jaw. Not giving it a second thought, she jogged by.

But just as her body passed him, from the corner of her eye she saw his arms reach towards her. He lunged his entire body at her, and in an instant she felt his enormous hands gripping her, with one around her midriff and the other sealing over her mouth.