5

Kat’s eyes went wide. “Are you serious, what are you going to do? Because as soon as he sees me you know what he’ll do, don’t you?”

“What?” Ruben arched a perfect eyebrow at her.

“Order me to kill you.”

Ruben’s eyes narrowed. “That’s why you will be in chains and gagged when he gets here.”

Kat stood up. “What the fuck!” Her eyes blazed intensely as she glared at Ruben in a challenge to try it. Ruben saw the shadows in the room shift slightly in his peripheral vision.

“Relax, Katarina. Please listen to me and trust me. You don’t want to have to kill me, do you?”

Kat shook her head, relaxing a bit as he crooned softly and calmly to her. “No, of course not.”

“Well, if Mr McGowen sees you incapable of acting on his orders he won’t give them, will he?”

“But I won’t be incapable…”

“Does he know that?” Kat shrugged in answer as Ruben leaned forward, placing his forearms on the desk. “The fact that Big Red thought binding your hands and gagging you like a warlock was going to work, I think means that Mr McGowen might believe the same. It’s clear that he did not divulge information on you being a Demon either, so I assume he really doesn’t know all too much about you.”

“Possibly…but is that a risk you’re willing to take?”

A knock sounded on the door causing Kat to flinch like she was ready to attack someone, spinning around to face the door.

Ruben tensed when he saw her quick reaction and frowned. “Enter…” He said relaxing back into his chair. Kat looked back at him and he flicked his fingers indicating for her to sit back down. As she sank back into the chair he smiled at her before lifting his eyes to the opening door.

A vampire in a black suit, like the ones that had been with Ruben at Big Reds, stepped into the room. Guards, Kat guessed. He glanced briefly at Kat, appraising the room, before turning his full focus to Ruben and bowing his head in respect. “There is a Scott McGowen and others at the gates wishing an audience, my Lord.”

“Let him in by all means…” Ruben smiled widely. “But only him and one other.”

“Certainly, my Lord.” The vampire bowed his head again and left the room.

“My Lord?” Kat asked. She knew he was an Overlord of the City, but that didn’t usually mean a person was addressed with a title, usually it was just Sir if you wanted to be respectful.

“It’s a sign of respect to my family’s status.” Ruben brushed it off. “Kat, forgive me for this…” He waved his hand and whispered some words and suddenly Kat found herself bound to the chair. The chair moved across the floor, scraping around the desk until it was sitting beside Ruben’s behind the desk side by side.

“What the hell?!” Kat yelled startled as she struggled in the ropes. Again Ruben noticed that strange shift in the shadows in his peripheral vision but when he looked around he couldn’t see any change.

“Please Kat, we just talked about this.” Ruben said calmly. “Trust me, I won’t hurt you.”

“Some warning would have been nice.” She growled at him as she glared up at him, breathing heavily and snorted at him, blowing hair from her face.

“I apologise…and I won’t gag you until the closest moment, I promise.” Ruben smiled at her, brushing her hair back for her then dropped his hand and placed it on her thigh, leaning across in his chair towards her, his eyes intense and dark as they locked on to hers. “When you leaned back onto my shoulder tonight…” He stopped himself and clenched his jaw. Now was not the time.

“What?” Kat asked breathless as she felt herself being enthralled by this sexy vampire at such close range, the amazing scent of his cologne filling her nostrils.

“I cannot finish that sentence with you bound like that.” Ruben grimaced, removing his hand and pulling back, straightening his tie with discomfort.

Kat’s mind swirled with bitter disappointment.

A knock sounded at the door and Ruben flicked his wrist, his long subtle fingers pulling a handkerchief out of his top pocket. It flew through the air with a mind of its own, spinning and twisting itself up before gagging Kat suddenly. “Enter…”

He leaned back in his chair, smugly smiling as Scott and his off sider walked in. Scott scowled to see Kat bound and gagged sitting next to Ruben and scowled even darker when Ruben casually put a hand on Kat’s thigh possessively.

“What the fuck is she doing here with you?” Scott yelled. “She’s mine!”

“Please sit down, Mr McGowen.” Ruben said calmly. Scott sat down in the other chair and his man stood behind him with his hands in his pockets.

“What do you want?” Scott demanded. Kat noticed the door was kept open and a vampire was standing guard outside the door.

Ruben smiled but said nothing and just patted Kat’s thigh. Scott saw the movement and registered his meaning.

“No fucking way! You can’t have her. I knew you were up to something talking to her in the bars all the time, tracking her down every night, fuck you, you stalker prick!”

Ruben sat forward, lifting his hand away from Kat’s thigh and pressing his forearms on the desk. The vampire at the door turned to face the room, his eyes red and watchful.

“It seems I already do have her.” Ruben stared at Scott. “You saw fit to give Katarina to Big Red to go towards paying your debts. I have now paid those debts, so your debt now belongs to me, so ergo does the agreement you had concerning Katarina and as it is after midnight would mean I have a whole day with her.”

“You have my debt, but you can’t have her!”

Ruben smiled. “So you did expect her to kill Big Red instead of having sex with him, good to know. I’m glad you’re not as despicable as that.” Ruben glanced at Kat and saw her eyes were large, watchful and hostile. “But how are you going to pay the debt?”

“I can’t pay the debt…you already know that.” Scott said sullenly looking at Kat, regret burning in them. He knew the only way for him to accumulate money fast was by using the little demon.

“That’s not your biggest problem, Mr McGowen.” The amusement in Ruben’s voice was clear.

“What does that mean?” Scott frowned and looked back at Ruben, distrusting.

“Do you know how many bosses you have pissed off with your little power play in the gutters? Hmm?” Ruben tilted his head at Scott slightly.

“What are you talking about?” Scott feigned innocence.

“Do I really have to spell it out for you? The small time gangs you killed the bosses of, they worked for people much higher up on the pay scale, and they want their goods and money back.”

“Ha! I’m sure they do…I want up the pay scale…I’m willing to negotiate with them.” Scott grinned as he cockily adjusted his seated position and oozed attitude.

Ruben looked at him amused. “You’re negotiating with me.” His voice was chilly.

Scott grinned and made himself comfortable. “So, what do you suggest?”

“That you take the payment of your debt as a given and you leave her here.” Ruben’s tone was cold and unfriendly, not liking Scott’s disrespectful attitude. He was a lowlife human gangster, a bottom feeder, worse he had sold his soul to try and make himself more powerful, forgetting that this city was controlled by him, a powerful pureblood vampire!

“You’ll wipe my debt for her?” Scott asked, a tone of disbelief coming into his voice as he pointed with his thumb at Kat. She stared back and forth at Ruben and Scott hating this whole conversation…she twisted her wrists against the bindings holding them firmly to the arms of the chair in frustration.

“Yes, I’ll even throw in an extra hundred thousand if you like.” Ruben said graciously trying to get Scott to go for the deal and at least leave Kat there for now.

Scott’s eyes narrowed. “Or…”

“Or we declare war on your little gang and wipe you from the face of the earth.” Ruben said it casually, but with no emotion.

Scott’s eyes went wide and he glanced at Kat as she started mumbling against the gag. Ruben sat back and lay his hand on her thigh.

“Hush, baby girl.” He muttered. Kat grumbled and huffed but went quiet, shaking her head and rolling her eyes as she felt him block her power. He had noticed her agitation and couldn’t have her interrupting, knowing that being bound to the chair didn’t actually mean anything.

Scott smiled as he looked at her. ‘”Fine, I agree. Keep her here, whatever…she won’t stay, you know…unless you keep her like that.” Scott laughed. “Or on a leash…”

Ruben frowned. “So you agree to the money in exchange for Katarina?”

“Yeah, all good. When do I get the cash?”

“Right now.” Ruben clicked his fingers and the guy at the door stepped in. “Take Mister McGowen down the hall to the accountant to sort one hundred thousand direct to his account, then escort him off the premises.”

“What no hand shake?” Scott sneered as he stood up, adjusting his jacket.

 “That won’t be necessary.” Ruben’s voice was cool and slightly disgusted.

“Okay then…” Scott shrugged, turned to Kat and grinned. “I’ll be seeing you later, Kitty Kat.”

Kat’s stomach rolled with a wave of nausea at the way he said it.

Scott followed the vampire out with a swagger to his step, his man in tow and closed the door. Kat was muttering against the gag again, her eyes blazing. Ruben looked at her and waved his hand making the gag disappear.

“What seems to be the problem?” Ruben asked coolly.

“He’s not going to honor that agreement you idiot!” Kat yelled at him.

“Calm down, he will have to…” Ruben turned. “Come out now.” He called.

A panel in the wall opened and a man in a black robe stepped out.

“An adjudicator!” Kat said shocked.

“Yes, so you see it’s okay, he has to honor the agreement, I have a witness to it.”

Kat stared at him and sneered. “You fucking idiot!” She sighed and shook her head. “All you’ve achieved is giving him money to go gamble and have a great time, then once it runs out he’ll order me to go to him.”

Ruben waved the Adjudicator out of the room and removed the bonds holding Kat. She didn’t move except to draw her knees up, perching her heels on the edge of the seat, and hugged them.

“Explain.” Ruben ordered.

Kat’s eyes came up to his and she smiled at him. “I appreciate what you tried to do, I really do, but you should have got that agreement written down.”

“An Adjudicator as witness is as strong as a contract written down.”

“Not if an actual written and signed document already exists.”

Ruben scowled. “He actually went that far?”

“Yes he did.”

“But demon contracts are written in blood and promise your life to the demon realm?”

“Yes, they are and yes they do.” Kat twisted her mouth sardonically.

“Shit...I’m sorry, baby girl.”

“You shouldn’t have gagged me.” Kat looked away.

Ruben turned in his seat and leaned towards her. “I will not let you return to him.”

Kat stared at him. “You can’t stop me…I have to.” She touched a finger to her neck and the contract spell collar blazed to life for Ruben to see. He scowled deeply as he watched it fade away again.

“I will sort this out so you don’t ever have to do anything under order ever again.” He reached out and cradled her jaw in his hand, making her look at him. “I promise you, I won’t let him hurt you anymore.”

Ruben’s mind relived the night he had watched Scott in a bar make her sit on the floor between his legs and keep her hand flat on a table while he practised his knife skills, tapping it in between her fingers over and over again getting faster and faster until he inevitably failed and stabbed her fingers, laughing and then starting over. Ruben had been held back and dragged out of the bar by his loyal men that night after reacting to the sweet smell of Kat’s blood and the strange desire even then to take Kat from Scott’s dead corpse. That was before he had started talking to Kat, before he had started keeping tabs on her whereabouts and going out to see her his instincts driving him towards her every night.

Kat sank into his eyes as he smiled at her. The more they stared at each other the darker the intensity in his eyes got.

Kat was overwhelmed by a desire to kiss him, she suddenly leaned forward and pressed her lips against his, lingering a moment before sitting back and meeting his eyes again. His eyes looked surprised for a moment then darkened again and he smiled.

“That was a nice surprise, baby girl.” He tightened the grip on her jaw and pulled her back to his mouth and kissed her again, he licked his tongue seductively over her lips making her part them as he pushed his tongue slowly into her mouth, licking lavishly and sensually leaving her breathless. She responded in kind, opening her mouth fully to him and entwining her tongue with his as they kissed passionately. Kat moved round in her chair so she could climb over into his.  He leaned back wrapping his other arm around her pulling her towards him as she wrapped her arms around his neck and straddled him. She sat on his lap as they continued to kiss. Ruben pulled her head back sharply by grabbing a fistful of her hair, staring at her with dark hungry eyes. He licked his lips, taking a moment and smirked as he saw her panting wanton expression.

“I didn’t expect this, baby…not yet anyway.” He smiled at her as he stroked a finger down her cheek and along her bottom lip, staring at it intensely, as he pressed on it, drawing it down, opening her mouth.

“Neither did I…not at all.” Kat agreed, mumbling with him touching her mouth. Her head was spinning at the emotions that were welling up inside over just kissing this delectable vampire, he was an exceptional kisser and had left her breathless and definitely wanting more.

Ruben laughed and placed his hand on the side of her head, pulling her head to him so it was tucked under his chin, her cheek pressed to his collar bone and wrapped his arms around her. “I don’t want to spoil this by it going too fast.”

Kat was surprised. She had never had a man say that to her. She smiled and relaxed in his embrace enjoying the feeling of his hard body pressed against hers. She held on to his suit jacket either side of his chest under his arms like a koala bear.

“I feel strangely safe with you.” She breathed contented like never before and closed her eyes. His scent calmed her, an intoxicating mix of sandalwood, musk and vanilla, which surprised her.

“You’ve never felt safe in the arms of another before?” Ruben asked in a husky low tone as he breathed against the top of her head.

“No, never.” She shook her head against him, slightly.

Ruben growled deep in his throat and pulled her further into himself, tightening his arms. “Poor sweet baby girl.”

Kat laughed. “Why baby girl? I’ve lived a long time in the demon realm, I’m probably older than you.”

Ruben pulled her head back by her hair, gently, bringing her face up and looked into her amazing clear dark green eyes. “Because you’re a baby in this realm I feel…” She had a naïve childlike quality to her.

Kat laughed again. “I suppose I am.” He was right, the last time she had been sent here there was no, what they called, technology…or automatic weapons or even cars…so she had felt extremely overwhelmed for the first few days. Just seeing the bustling streets and bright lights was disorientating enough.

He smiled that devastating smile and kissed her forehead, tucking her head back under his chin. He slipped his head down so his cheek was resting on her head and closed his eyes, enjoying the feeling of her warmth on top of him, she was very hot, insanely hot, but for a cold vampire it just attracted him more as he fought against his baser instincts to bite her and taste her. Time seemed to stand still and Ruben had no idea how long they sat like that. He was enjoying holding her, he felt protective and possessive of her. Strange feelings for him to experience. Women came and went in his life with not too much concern for them, but this young woman…

He wondered…