His Need by Ann King Page B

business okay? This meeting never happened.
Now…you’re free to go.” He took another swig of his drink and put
the glass down on the table not looking at her. His face seemed as
if he was burning up inside. Was this all part of some elaborate
scheme to overthrow Carlos?
    Elsie was stumped. Her
breathing became laboured. Had he threatened her cousin`s life? The
nerve of him. How did he know so much about her? This game of the
rich and the powerful was getting more dangerous by the minute.
Elsie felt sick to her stomach.
    Elsie jumped out of the
bed before he changed his mind, grabbed her bag and slipped on her
shoes and ran for the door, her heart still pounding hard in her
chest. She thought her knees would give out on her and she’d faint
to the floor but thankfully, she was out of that suite and in the
hallway. She recognized it was the same floor as Carlos’s suite and
ran for his door. She swiped the key card and entered and closed
the door behind her and slid to the floor.
    God, she was in so much
trouble. This romantic fantasy had turned into a nightmare in one
catastrophic moment.
     
    “ If Red had laid one finger on you, I would have had him killed
before he knew what hit him.”
    Elsie jolted up. She
lifted her head to see Carlos standing over her in the room looking delicious and sexy as always. She was
relieved to see him. His steps must have been quiet because she
hadn’t heard him walk over to her. The scent of his sweet cologne
wafted past her nostrils and brought her senses back to life. He
must have been somewhere else in the enormous suite when she came
in.
    “ W-what? You kn-knew I was
kidnapped?” What was going on here?
    “ Not quite, my dear. Your
sexy panties are quite sophisticated. Not
only do I have a wired remote to play with you when I desire but I
can hear what you’re saying and who you are conversing with.” He
cocked a sexy brow in a James-Bond style pose.
    “ What? You planted a bug
on me? Is that what you do to all your
women, Carlos? Who are you? This is crazy. What`s going on?” Her
head was spinning like the spin cycle of a clothes drying
machine.
    “ Relax. No, I
don’ t place surveillance on everyone I
date—though I should. When you left, I saw Red leave behind you and
had my men follow both of you.” His hand was coolly in one pocket
while he held a glass of wine to his lips with the other
hand.
    “But I didn’t see anyone.”
    “ When you’re being
followed by professionals, you’re not supposed to… They took the express elevator and got up to the
floor fast to Red’s suite. I know he’s working with my brother
John. I don’t fuck around when it comes on to my enemies, Ms
Sherwood.” He gave her a deadly stare and a cool glance. “Care to
have a glass?” he offered her a drink to which she shook her head
and squeezed her eyes shut before opening them again.
    “ I’m always one step ahead
of the game,” Carlos continued. “I know there would be those who
despise me at the event tonight. I’m just surprised you just walked
off without first hearing my explanation.”
    His eyes grew dark and
dangerous. The color of his skin tone seemed darker. His body
appeared more tense. She could see a muscle twitch in his
jaw.
    “ What are you going to do
about Red?”
    “ That crazy son-of-a-bitch made the worst mistake of his life. He
just touched my woman and held her against her will. Not smart. His
just reward is coming. Don`t worry about him.” He gave a wicked
grin.
    Elsie was dazed.
Did Carlos just refer to her as his woman?
Oh, God! And this man gorgeous sophisticated man before her who’d
given so much to help disadvantaged youth from every background and
donated so much of his time and money to helping the
unfortunate…could he have a heart of stone as well as a heart of
gold?
    “S-so you heard everything?”
    “Yes.” His words were sharp and
sent daggers to her heart.
    Was he upset with
her? She racked her brain trying to
remember what she had