The man saw that sunrise was near and moved away from Bethany. She whimpered at his absence and he reached down and gently stoked her hair and cheek. She sighted in content and settled back down. The sun was just about to peek through the gray clouds so he hurriedly dressed himself and turned back toward her. He raised his hand toward the nightstand beside her bed and her gifts appeared in the next second. He hoped she would like them. He took one last look at her then disappeared just as the sun greeted the land.
Bethany stretched and smiled as she awoke from her content sleep, the memory of last night still in her mind. She couldn’t stop smiling as she rubbed her eyes and sat up in her bed. She flung the covers back and swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood up, but then sat back down when something caught her attention. A single red, white, and black rose tied together with a length of white lace stood in a crystal vase, and a small tree branch with two ripe peaches sat next to that. She felt her heart beat quicken as she looked at her gifts. She knew who they were from, no doubt about that, and she knew their meaning. The peaches came from her garden, the place where they first met. The black rose symbolized him, the white was her, and the red was the passion they shared. She didn’t touch them for fear that they would vanish. She only sat there as her smile grew and she remembered last night.
A clock chiming the hour reminded her that she would miss work again. She groaned and quickly showered and dressed in a light white dress. She looked for something that could hold her hair back since she still hadn’t unpacked much, and an idea came to her. She went to her nightstand and carefully untied the lace from her roses and used it to pull her hair back in a ponytail. She grabbed her keys and headed out her door, the man never leaving her mind.
Bethany’s new job was as a secretary for a banker’s son. She was set on the top floor of the building as a private secretary. She hadn’t expected to be given a job of such responsibility, but she figured that it would be away from the noise of people talking and telephones and the pay would be better, so she agreed to the job. Her new employer was named Stephen Daley, but he told her that he thought that calling people by their last names was so.... unfriendly, so he gave her permission to call him by his first name. She nodded, but wasn’t really listening to what he was saying as he told her what was expected of her. She just couldn’t get over last night! She shook her head slightly to try to clear her mind and got her first good look at her new boss.
He was tall, around 6’8", with blond hair that was slicked back and blue eyes that had a sparkle that made her uneasy. He was well built, that was easily shown even under the handsome white business suit. Something about him scared her. Mabey it was the way his eyes looked at her or the glint of his white teeth whenever she looked at him or the fact that he had put his hand on her shoulder and squeezed it one too many times. She had shuddered at the touch once he released her and as the day progressed he kept doing that. Once when she had been at the copy machine, he had snuck up behind her and reached around her to tickle her. She had whirled around and had come close to slapping him, but apparently the look on her face had told him enough and he had backed away holding his hands up in the air and giving her a playful grin.
Stephen smirked at his new secretary. She was small, but it only gave him an advantage over her. She also had spirit. She had come close to hitting him when he had made his first move toward her. He also could watch her through his office window as she worked at her desk.
‘If only she knew how many secretaries I’ve had on that desk...’ he thought as a smile of pure lust crossed his face. ‘Poor little thing. She doesn’t even know what pleasant surprises await for her as soon as everyone leaves.’ He watched as she finished going through a folder, then placed it on a growing pile of folders, then picked up the next folder in a stack that was quickly disappearing. ‘Don’t you worry Bethany, I have plenty for you to do.’
Bethany already felt worn out as the sun began to set over the horizon. She had been going through folders all day, and Stephen kept bring more out to her. She knew that she was tired and decided to call it a day since all of her new co-workers had already left. She closed her computer down and began straightening up her desk as Stephen walked out of his office with a large stack of folders.
"Leaving already?" he asked her as he walked to her desk and set the folders down upon it.
"Yes, as a matter of fact I was." she answered, trying to be polite to this man that already made her sick.
"Well I’m sorry, but I really need someone to go through these files." he said, looking her dead in the eye.
"Would it be all right if I took them home?" she asked, suddenly wanting to get out of the building as fast as she could.
"I’m afraid that it can’t." he said flatly.
She sighed and turned her computer back on and reached for the first file. Stephen moved behind her, letting her think that he was returning to his office. His eyes roamed over her back, lingering on her rear. He quietly snuck up behind her and reached out to her hair. Bethany’s eyes widened and she raised herself from her chair as her hair was suddenly released from it’s bindings. She turned and glared at Stephen who was holding the lace in-between his thumb and fore finger as if it was something repulsive.
"When you work for me, you’ll be able to afford NICE things for your hair." he said as he threw the lace to the ground and stepped on it. Bethany gasped and looked at him, disbelieving what she just saw. When he removed his foot, she quickly snatched the lace up off the floor and held it to her bosom.
"How dare you disrespect my property! I demand an apology!" Bethany screamed as she glared at the repulsive man.
"I’m sorry Bethany." he said as he moved closer and picked up a strand of her long red hair. "It’s just that hair like this deserves something better than a piece of ribbon."
"It’s lace, and mabey I liked how my hair looked with it in!" She answered.
Stephen didn’t even blink at her response, only smiled and began walking toward her. "You have spirit. I like that in a woman." he said, his voice lowering to a tone that he used to seduce so many women before her.
Bethany heard his tone change and her eyes widened as he approached her like he was a hawk and she the mouse. She backed away from him until she hit the wall. She had got herself caught between a desk and a file cabinet with him approaching quickly. Her grip on her lace tightened as Stephen closed the gap between them and pressed her up against the wall. Tears of fear welled up in her eyes as he dwarfed her with his frame.
"Poor little Bethany," he said with a voice of half sarcasm and half of pleasure that he had this affect on her. "You don’t have to be scared. I will make you feel good, better than you’ve ever felt before."
His arms encircled her body and pressed her against him. She screamed and tried to fight as best she could, but he was just too strong. Tears streamed down her face as he pressed his lips against hers in a sloppy kiss that made her feel sick. He blocked her view of the window, so she didn’t see the sun set at it’s unusual pace.
The man searched her house, running through her hallways, looking for her. He had heard her scream and wanted to make sure that his tiny girl was all right. He made himself calm down and stop running through her halls like a mad man. He closed his eyes and quickly searched the town. He found her in one of the new office buildings and his heart almost stopped as he saw a man bent over his woman, forcing himself on her. He wasted no time and transported himself to the room as quickly as his powers allowed him.
Bethany was shaking uncontrollably from horror and fear as Stephen bit her tightly closed lips. He was so wrapped up in his activities that he didn’t hear someone approach him from behind. Stephen suddenly felt a large hand wrap around his throat and pull him away from Bethany and lift him into the air. His eyes widened and tried to scream as he reached for whatever was choking him. Bethany sank to the ground as Stephen suddenly left her and she looked up just in time to see the black robe of her midnight lover. He grabbed Stephen from behind and lifted him off of her. She closed her eyes as she moved up against the desk, holding her lace so tightly that her knuckles turned white and cried. She could hear Stephen screaming and things breaking, then a horrible moan filled the room, then all was quiet, save for her crying. She didn’t open her eyes for fear of what she might see. She felt herself being lifted from the ground and pressed against a warm chest covered in soft velvet. She buried her face in his chest and cried as he stroked her hair and back, whispering to her in his soothing voice. She opened her eyes and looked up at him. His hood was pushed back and his eyes shown with hatred and anger from the fight. She dared not look anywhere else, for she did not hear Stephen and feared what this man had done. The man caressed her face and bent down to capture her lips with his. Bethany wanted to cry at the gentleness of the kiss. This man had just saved her from whatever Stephen wanted to do to her. He could feel her shaking in his arms and knew that he needed to get her away from this place. He raised his hands to her shoulders and pulled her away from his body so he could look into her eyes.
"Bethany, do you trust me?" he asked an a soft voice.
She didn’t even think twice. "Yes I do."
He smiled at her response. "Then close your eyes so I can get you to safety."
She moved back into his embrace and closed her eyes as his arms wrapped around her. It was time she found out who he was.
Copyright 1999 by Lady Serria