Chapter 6

It took a week before Shania finally found the opportunity to leave the casino on her own. She had spent the week in a gilded cage, enjoying every pleasure Khalid could offer but freedom. While he lavished his wealth on her, she had spent her time watching and waiting, her sharp mind hungrily taking in every detail.

Khalid spent much of his days in his office, running his various business interests. In the evenings and late into the night he would keep her up talking. At first she had resisted, but the ever present threat of more intimacy kept her agreeable to his terms. She had learned that Khalid owned a lucrative construction company as well as the casino. She suspected he was involved in less legitimate businesses as well, but they never discussed it.

Mostly, Khalid wanted to know about her. She was loathe to talk about herself and would offer only pointed answers to his questions, but gradually he had coaxed more out of her than she had intended to give. She had told him about the death of her parents, and the cold, racist rejection of her grandparents. He had proved to be an attentive and sympathetic listener. It disturbed Shania, who preferred to see only the brutish side of him.

He insisted on purchasing a whole new wardrobe for her. Most of the clothes hadn't even fit in her closet, so he had made room in his, ensuring that Shania would have to enter the dark, masculine room to retrieve the items in there. He had brought shop owners into the condo with their inventory for her to choose from rather than allowing her to leave for a shopping trip. Even under guard he didn't seem to trust her off his property.

Every evening he had brought her jewelry worth a fortune. The first night he had gifted her with a diamond necklace and earring set, Shania had been embarrassed and angry.

"I don't want them!" She had quickly shoved them back into his hands, disgusted. "You can keep your gifts, including the clothes. You may have bought me from my husband, but I'll be damned if I become an object for you to dress up and keep in this cage for your convenience."

His knuckles had tightened around the black velvet jeweller's box. Tension thrummed through him. Shania quickly backed up a few steps, having come up against the wrong side of his short temper before. She tilted her chin up, refusing to take back her comment. He had to learn that she couldn't be bought.

The slabs of muscles in arms and neck tightened and then released. Finally he said in a calm voice, "It is not my intention to insult you with these gifts, Shania."

She swept her hand back towards the bedrooms where her new clothes were stored. "What are you doing then, Khalid, if you aren't trying to buy me?"

His smile was somewhat cruel. "I already bought you, princess. I don't need to give you anything for that to be true."

Shania sucked in her breath and glared at him. She hated being reminded of her position in his home. Her not being there of her own free will made everything that happened between them a lie, one that she refused to participate in. She crossed her arms protectively over her chest and glared at him.

Khalid sighed and tried again. "Look, Shania, I wish you could believe me when I say my motives for keeping you here go beyond the obvious. I haven't touched you in two days, not since I first brought you up here."

"You can't expect me to just trust you. How do I know you won't hurt me?" she asked bravely.

He nodded. "I can understand why you would mistrust my intentions. Your husband treated you badly and, as far as you're concerned, he sold you to a man without scruples."

"A man that can beat other men nearly to death," she whispered with a shiver, eyes wide and accusing.

He shrugged. "I admit, I can be a ruthless bastard when I must. But I don't want to hurt you, Shania. I find it's just not in me. I want to protect you from men like Aiden Galveston, or the sleazy gamblers that hang around my tables."

"What about men like you?"

He stepped toward her. Opening the jewelry box, he withdrew an exquisite white gold chain with a teardrop diamond pendant. It looked beautiful and delicate against his long dark fingers. He took hold of her wrist in his other hand and gently pulled her toward him. His fingers, wrapped around her wrist, felt like hot steel. She stumbled forward the step it took to bring her close enough to feel the heat from his body.

"Men like me," he said huskily, "want to treat you like the princess you are."

Shania shivered.

Khalid continued, his breath feathering down her cheek as he bent to place the chain around her throat. "I have never brought a woman up here, into my private sanctuary, with the intention of keeping her. I take my women to one of the other suites and fuck her until I'm done. I haven't even thought of another woman since the moment you existed for me. I rarely give gifts and I've never picked those gifts out myself. You make me want to change, Shania."

She stared up at him as his fingers deftly smoothed the necklace into place. His fingers felt good, tracing the gentle swells and dips of her collarbone and throat. Her eyes fixed on the long, dark lashes rimming his eyes and took in the sincerity of his black eyes. She turned her face away and closed her eyes.

"I can't believe you," she whispered.

She tensed, waiting for his reaction, and flinched when his knuckles gently swept down the slope of her cheek and across her full lips. Though he barely touched her skin, she felt like he was scalding her.

"I can wait," he said.

That had been a week ago.

She had accepted his gifts as graciously as she could and she had participated in the conversations as he had insisted. But she never stopped watching for the chance to escape her gilded cage. She had silently taken in the bits and pieces he had allowed her to hear and see.

She had only been down in the casino three times. Each time had added to the small treasure of knowledge about the workings of the casino. Her frantic mind would absorb every scrap of information until she was satisfied.

On her rare trips into the casino, Shania was always accompanied by Ash, Khalid's most trusted bodyguard. Though constantly on guard herself, Shania found Ash's company undemanding and, after a few days of constant companionship, even friendly.

Ash hadn't exactly been thrilled with the protection duty thrust upon him. When Shania noticed, she said to him tartly, "Am I taking away from your knee breaking big man? So sorry!" His stoic demeanour had cracked, and he conceded a small laugh. A somewhat friendly rapport had ensued. Shania didn't feel any of the sexual tension that she felt with Khalid, which made her and Ash's friendliness easier. Though at six feet of solid muscle, the brawny, tattooed bodyguard who, it turned out, was also a mixed martial arts champion, was a very good looking man. Shania was endlessly amused by the women that threw themselves at him when they made the rounds of the casino. He usually flirted back, in a bored sort of way, but his eyes never left his charge.

Ash was her constant companion when Khalid wasn't available, which was much of the day. He would bring her food and allow entry to shopkeepers. He watched over her, glaring suspiciously at the menagerie displaying their wares to the mistress of the rich casino owner. Though, if they dared refer to her as such within her halcyon hearing, they would find themselves swiftly and forcibly removed. On the few trips she took to the casino, he was so viciously protective that even an appreciative glance sent in her direction could easily end in broken bones. The man took his job very seriously, a fact that caused endless teasing from Shania.

Ash only deferred his vicious guard dog routine when relinquishing her into the custody of his intense boss. He would literally disappear into the shadows whenever Khalid appeared. In one of his few moments of candor, Khalid had admitted to her that, when he had found Ash, he had been involved in illegal street fights and strung out on drugs. Khalid had seen something in the younger man and, cleaning him up, had brought him into his own operation and trained him for more lucrative fighting.

Shania hated to betray Ash's trust. It was the worst part of her planned flight from the casino. But she didn't have a choice. Each night she had spent under Khalid's roof was one night closer to sharing his bed. For some reason, that act of surrender felt like the worst possible scenario. As though having sex with him would change something within her. She had to leave while she was still intact.

Having convinced Ash to once more bring her down to the casino, Shania squeezed his arm gently and stepped into the ladies room. Ash didn't like her coming to the casino. There were too many 'variables' as he called them. He couldn't control every minute thing that might happen to his charge. As far as he was concerned a perfect trip to the casino was one where no one looked at her, no one interacted with her and no one accidentally brushed against her. He let her have a bite at the buffet, play a few slots and whisked her back to her room before any incidents could occur.

Letting her go into a women's washroom unaccompanied was highly unusual. But Ash knew there were no exits and he had gone in before her to assess any threats.

Shania had laughed out loud at the angry feminine shriek that followed him out. He nodded his head at Shania, indicating it was safe for her to proceed. She smiled somewhat sadly and brushed her hand against his arm, unbeknownst to him, a thank you for his attentive care of her over the past week.

Shania went swiftly into the third stall, careful not to bump into the woman that was in there pretending to pee when Ash had interrupted her. She was smaller than Shania but more rounded, making the two of them in the small stall an awkward fit. The woman thrust her hand out at Shania.

Shania placed her diamond necklace into the greedy palm, thrusting back the feeling of guilt that threatened her plan. Without speaking, Shania stepped back and went to the sink, pretending to wash her hands. After a minute her eyes met the other woman's in the mirror and she nodded.

She nodded and as if on cue, fell to the group with a loud gasp and began moaning and convulsing. Shania turned and stared, for a moment forgetting her part and simply admiring the acting abilities of the random woman who was helping her. Annoyed the other woman mouthed 'go' at Shania.

"Right," Shania said, racing for the door calling Ash's name in as hysterical of a voice as she could manage.

Ash was scowling down at his phone just outside the ladies room. He looked up in alarm when Shania ran straight into him, grabbing his arm and trying to yank his solid bulk into the women's washroom.

"Help!" she gasped. "Someone's in trouble!"

Her wide, frightened eyes spurred him to follow her swiftly back where she had come from. His eyes went to the woman laying prone on the tiled floor. With a frown he kneeled next to her and gently touched her cheek. The woman moaned pitiably, her head lolling sideways.

Shania felt a stab of genuine concern, the other woman looked really pale! She really couldn't have chosen a better partner in crime for her escape mission. She just hoped the woman fooled Ash long enough.

"What should we do?" she asked Ash frantically.

He looked up at her and said the magic words in his gruff voice. "Go get help."

Shania nodded and with a last look at the pair on the floor, she ran out of the washroom and straight out of the main doors of the casino into the chill night. Without a backward glance at her former prison she stepped onto the waiting bus and breathlessly counted the seconds until it pulled away from the casino and headed to the city.