Total pages in book: 48
Estimated words: 45901 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 230(@200wpm)___ 184(@250wpm)___ 153(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 45901 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 230(@200wpm)___ 184(@250wpm)___ 153(@300wpm)
“You…you’ll regret that insubordination, Miss Ward!” he snapped. “How dare you speak to me like that?”
“How dare you speak to me the way you do?” I shot back. “You’re always so hateful and cruel—it’s like you enjoy being mean. Maybe you should see someone about that. Don’t we have a mental wellness program at Bentley where you can meet with a therapist?”
“You…I…” Mr. Price didn’t seem to know what to say. Finally, he fell back on an old standby. “I’ll go see the therapist when you see a weight councilor or a dietician,” he snapped. “Maybe when you lose some of that blubber you’ll be marginally attractive.”
“Nice try,” I said flatly. “But it just so happens that I have someone in my life who loves me just the way I am. So I don’t give a flying fuck what you think about my weight!”
I don’t usually swear but I’d had enough of his abuse and I wasn’t going to take it anymore!
Mr. Price’s pale eyes narrowed in obvious frustration.
“I thought it must be something like that,” he muttered, apparently speaking more to himself than to me. “Damn it!”
Then he turned on his heel and stormed out of the office.
I watched him go with a feeling of triumph. He couldn’t hurt me anymore. Then a thought occurred to me—what if he was going to HR to get me fired?
The blaze of joy I’d felt at finally standing up to my awful boss cooled some at that idea. But then I lifted my chin. If they tried to fire me, I would complain to HR and anyone and everyone else I could find. I had Katrina and Jeremy as witnesses now—they could testify about how horribly Mr. Price treated me.
And if I had to, I could go around the company and get a lawyer. CEOs and highly placed executives weren’t exactly popular right now—I was sure I could get a jury on my side if it came to that.
Also, no matter how bad things got, I now had a refuge to run to—a place where people liked me and cared about me. And I had Tark.
I comforted myself with thoughts of Hidden Hollow as I waited to see if I was fired. But the rest of the day passed peacefully since Mr. Price never came back. Nobody called me to HR either, so I gradually began to relax.
By the end of the day, I was feeling positive that everything was going to be all right. Maybe Mr. Price would leave me alone from now on, since he knew his mean words couldn’t get to me anymore. Also, I was going to be able to see Tark again very soon—we had planned to have dinner that night. And I had every intention of trying to seduce him afterwards—I still wanted those naked cuddles!
At last it was five o’clock and nothing bad had happened. My heart was light as a feather when I walked out to the parking lot. My plan was to go home and get into the sexy lingerie set I had bought last week. I would put it on under my regular clothes before I drew the magic door and went back to Hidden Hollow. Then, after supper—or maybe even before—I would slip off my skirt and blouse, revealing the sexy red teddy I’d bought just to tease Tark with.
And then—how could he resist me? I loved the fact that he loved my body so much—it made me feel like a goddess, which was certainly different from how every other man in my life had always treated me. I was no longer just the skinny girls’ fat friend—I was the one Tark wanted and I wanted him right back, I thought happily as I pressed the clicker to unlock my Honda. My Orc boyfriend was—
My thoughts were cut off abruptly when someone grabbed me from behind and something wet and cold was slapped over my mouth and nose.
“Hey!” I shouted—or tried to shout, anyway. But whoever had me was strong—much too strong for me to break free. And besides, something strange was happening—the cold wet thing on my mouth and nose smelled oddly sweet and I was beginning to feel woozy.
“That’s right,” a familiar voice crooned in my ear. “Breathe it in—take it deep into your lungs!”
“What…who…?” I tried to say but the arm around my waist tightened sharply, making me gasp in another breath of air through the damp cloth.
As the world around me began to go gray, I realized that I was in trouble.
I just didn’t know how much.
13
HARMONY
What woke me was a pounding headache and sharp pains in my wrists and ankles.
“Ohhhh,” I groaned and tried to move, only to find that I couldn’t.
“Don’t bother trying to get up, Miss Ward,” a familiar voice snapped. “I’ve made certain you’re not going anywhere.”