Page 23 of Traces of Her
Fifteen
GRIFFIN
I’M THE ONE WHO ALWAYS has it all figured out.
So why am I the one standing here staring at the bathroom door confused as fuck?
I fucked up and I shouldn’t have gotten so close to her like that. I can still feel her soft, smooth skin on the palm of my hand. She’s a threat, not only to Jared but to me as well. Yet I still want to walk in there and fuck her up against the shower wall. My dick twitches at the thought of her wet and naked on the other side of this door.
It can’t be like that though.
She’s more of a job than anything.
She has to be.
I leave her be in the shower and go downstairs to my office to do what I do best, dig for information. If there’s something I need to know, I find out by any means necessary. I turn on my computer and unlock the programs that I use for my digging. I don’t know her last name, but as soon as I start my search, it’s evident that I didn’t need it.
Rowena Petrov.
She was reported missing seven years ago but was never found.
Photos of a young girl with white blonde hair, pale skin and ice blue eyes consume my computer screen. With her hair and those eyes, I could spot her anywhere. Although she’s matured and grown over the years, there’s something missing from these pictures.
Staring at the screen, running my eyes over each picture, I piece together every inch of her. The sound of the shower being turned off comes from the ceiling above me. And then I see what’s missing.
Her smile full of joy, the brightness in the blues of her eyes, the pinkness of her cheeks. All of that is long gone and I’m afraid it has been for quite some time. She was taken from her life and someone stole the light from her, leaving a ghost in her place.
Where did you go, Rowena Petrov? And what happened to you?
After doing my research, I lock up my computers and office and make my way into the kitchen to start dinner. Pulling open the refrigerator doors I realize I haven’t gone to the grocery store and I have no idea what she even likes. All I know is what I read on the computer and that doesn’t tell me a damn thing. I know nothing about her.
A subtle floral scent laces the air as it shifts in the room, making me hyper-aware that I’m not alone anymore. Her presence is felt as soon as she walks in.
“How was your shower?” I ask her as I close the refrigerator doors and turn around to face her. Her eyes widen slightly, and her mouth falls agape as a stunned look flashes across her face. Immediately, it’s gone and her face returns to the neutral expression that I plan on diminishing. If every sense I have wasn’t tuned in to her, the shift in her may have gone unnoticed.
Her damp white hair falls down to her waist, leaving wet spots on my black t-shirt that hangs over her tiny frame illuminating her fresh pale skin. She grabs her hair, pulling it around her shoulder as she notices me staring.
“I didn’t have a hairbrush,” she blurts out as a tinge of light pink creeps onto her cheeks. She lightly shrugs her shoulders in an attempt to shrug off her self consciousness. “But, um, the shower was nice.” She shifts her weight nervously as her eyes meet mine, bright and alive.
Nodding, I slowly start walking around the island and her body moves with mine, turning until I’m standing directly in front of her. She looks up, raising an eyebrow as she eyes me suspiciously. Testing my boundaries, I reach out, pulling her hair from her hands and brushing it over her shoulders and down her back. “Let’s go out,” I murmur, slowly running my hands down her arms.
She swiftly takes a step back, crossing her arms over her chest, looking at me like I’ve grown two heads. “What the hell are you talking about?” she asks in a defensive tone, her eyebrows drawing together. The way she looks right now, all pissed off, is something I could get used to. She’s cold and withdrawn, but there’s a fire inside of her that burns just beneath the surface and I intend on drawing that out.
“What’s so funny?” she asks as I chuckle, trying not to smile. Ignoring her questions, I turn away from her, grabbing my wallet and keys from the counter.
“Let’s go.” I smile, walking toward the door. “There’s barely any food here and you don’t have a hairbrush,” I say, looking back at her, my eyes travel up and down her small frame. “Or clothes,” I add.
“We’re going out... shopping,” she says pensively as she stares at me blankly.
“Yep.” I shrug, shoving my wallet into my pocket as I make my way into the hallway and start jingling my keys. “Come on Rowena, the stores aren’t open all night.”
Her tiny feet lightly tap the hardwood floor as she scurries behind me. “Wait,” she calls out. “I need to change first.”
Abruptly, I stop and spin around just as she crashes into my chest. Grabbing her arms and holding her, she regains her balance, still pressed up against me. Her chest heaves up and down as she catches her breath and I can’t take my eyes off the way her tits move against the fabric of my black shirt.
A moment passes before her breath hitches, tearing my gaze away from her chest to her face. I’m met by her wide ice blue eyes, shining, penetrating mine. She blinks rapidly, washing away any emotion until her blue irises grow empty and cold. “You can let go now,” she snaps, taking a small step back.
“What if I don’t want to?” I retort with my hands still wrapped around her arms.