When Storms Collide

~15~

"Yes." I whispered.

Sebastian sighed, the frustration clearly evident on his face.

"What does he want me to do?" I finally managed to ask.

His jaw clenched, eyes narrowing ever so lightly.

"It doesn't matter because you won't be doing it."

"I'm perfectly capable of making my own decisions." My voice came out sharp.

His shoulders stiffened but he didn't argue with me.

"What does your uncle want me to do, to prove that I'm not a liability?" I asked again.

He took a deep breath. "He wants you to assist me in one of my tasks."

He came closer till we were practically standing chest to chest. His hands grasped my shoulders.

"Don't do this Angelica, it will be a mistake. I don't want you to be part of this hell that is my life." His head lowered so that his pleading eyes could meet mine. "Please say you won't."

I swallowed.

"If I ask you to leave this life behind, will you? Will you leave with me?"

He didn't respond but I got my answer by the way he stepped away from me and trained his gaze on the floor.

Blood before all.

He wasn't going anywhere.

I raised my chin up stubbornly.

"Then I guess you have two hours to prepare me."

~~

I gazed at her dark smoky eyelids and red stained lips. The gold sequenced dress she wore ended mid-thigh and had a plunging neckline.

The woman gazing back at me through the mirror looked nothing like me. The transformation was unreal, I couldn't even recognize myself. My head was already starting to hurt by how tightly my hair had been tied over my head into a high pony-tail.

The torturous shoes I wore added about six inches to my height.

I was completely out of my comfort zone.

As soon as Sebastian had left a stern looking middle aged woman had walked into the room she had started working on my face, hair and clothes without uttering a single word. I'd stopped trying to talk to her after my first couple of failed attempts.

There was a soft knock on the door.

Sebastian walked in as soon as I called out that the door was open.

My breath hitched when I saw him.

He wore a black leather jacket with a tight fitting black V-neck shirt underneath. His legs were encased in dark jeans. I noticed that he was wearing black combat boots.

Although his clothes were casual he looked different somehow, sharper, seductive almost.

Sebastian's eyes trailed over me leisurely, sweeping from head to foot. My whole body erupted in strange, but not unpleasant tingles.

His face was impassive when his face finally met mine but my eyes caught the slight bob of his throat as he swallowed.

"Shall we go?" I asked finally.

He gave me a stiff nod. "Yes, but let's go through the basics once more."

I nodded in agreement.

"Who are you?" He asked.

"Veronica Ricci." I responded immediately. "I am 26 years old, rich, arrogant. I believe I'm too important to give anyone more than a second glance."

Sebastian tilted his chin up in approval.