For Her Protection(14)
Perfect.
Just like her perfect freaking day. She hoisted the box onto her hip and strode toward her car, sticking to the left of the lot where dim light streamed from streetlamps. The odd vehicles of late-working staff dotted the parking lot. The crunch of her heels on rock amplified in the deserted space.
Her Mercedes hunched in the corner, dwarfed by the Jeep looming beside it. She slid her keys from her pocket and pressed the button. Headlights flared in response. Half an hour and she’d be home, neck deep in files but with a tall goblet of Sav Blanc to take the edge off. Hopefully it’d take the edge off the raw ache between her legs as well.
She sidled up to the car and pressed the trunk release. Yeah she’d need a tall goblet all right. Better yet, she’d drink straight from the bottle. Maybe that would wash away the memories of dark blue eyes, thick fingers rocking against her hose, the addictive cologne she stilled smelled every time she inhaled, all of which seemed stuck in her mind like a half-watched movie she was desperate to finish.
Charlize nudged open the trunk and bent over, lowering in the box. A door clicked next to her. She jerked up, spinning toward the Jeep. A dark figure rushed out of the vehicle in a head-down bull charge. She choked on a gasp and stumbled back. The body slammed into her. She fell to the ground, her cheek hitting rock. Breath rushed out of her.
She raised her head and a meaty hand slapped over her mouth and hauled her to her feet. Her legs flailed, struggling to gain leverage on the moving ground. She sucked air through her nose. Stale tobacco wafted from the fingers smothering her face. Her heart hammered in a sickening tempo.
She twisted and jerked like a cat in a pillowcase. An arm clamped around her waist, pulling her to the larger vehicle. She dug her heels into the dirt but her shoes flipped off her feet.
The open door of the Jeep loomed as if waiting to swallow her. She threw out her arms and closed her fingers around the Mercedes’ rear door handle. He tugged but she clutched the handle, halting their progress to the open doorway. Her attacker changed tactics, pushing her against the door she clutched. Her stinging cheek pressed into the cold window, the hand still covered her mouth.
Damp cigarette breath blew against her ear as a chunky body pressed against her. The adrenaline winding through her insides exploded into her muscles. She shoved back, causing a satisfying crack as her skull connected with the face behind her.
The hands loosened for a moment. “Fucking bitch!”
She scrambled, rearing from the car, but a fist in her hair smashed her forehead into the window. The world spun and her body loosened.
“Think you’re a clever bitch don’t you? Well I’m gonna put you in your place, cunt.”
Somewhere in her reeling mind she recognized the voice but the knowledge disappeared beneath the whooshing in her ears. The hand in her hair mauled its way down her body to her chest, groping at her breast. Her skin pinched where his fingers moved roughly over it.
Wet breath hissed against her ear. “It’s not going to be quick, bitch. I’m going to fuck you over slow. You’re going to be so sorry—so fucking sorry, you cunt.”
Gregory.
Awareness penetrated the painful fog. Nausea rose in her belly. The hand on her breast dived down and tore her skirt up over the back of her thighs. She yelled but the sound muffled to nonexistence in the fleshy palm covering her mouth.
No, no fucking way. This isn’t happening. Isn’t happening…
His porky fingers reached the crevice of her backside and curled into her hose. “No panties? You are a dirty cunt, aren’t you?”
Her pantyhose tore and she yelled again, but the sound caught on a sob at the back of her throat. Cold met her ass cheeks. She threw back her head again and bucked but he was ready, her movements proved useless. A belt jingled behind her and she gasped through her nostrils. Her vision blurred.
Trembles weakened her limbs. The world slowed. Nothing mattered. It didn’t matter who she was. Bravado couldn’t save her and no amount of fortitude would rescue her. Nothing more than a stronger arm rendered her a soft, weak female.
A zipper creaked.
She extended her jaw, taking that stinking hand into her mouth, and bit down. Her teeth crunched on sinew and skin. She clamped her jaw like an animal—as if she could pierce bone. Warm, coppery blood flowed over her tongue. She twisted her head, taking flesh with her. A shout rang in her ears, the hand on her mouth disappeared but the weight still had her pinned.
He grabbed the back of her hair and her neck arched. Pain tugged her scalp and chill air slid over the metallic coating on her tongue.
Charlize filled her chest and screamed—screamed from her gut. The sound stretched, resonated through the lot, echoed off the building. Her shout filled the night until the quiet corners seemed to come to life.