Hannah & the Dom Next Door (31 page)

Turning, eager to return to Mitch, she had to step aside as another woman entered the bathroom. To her surprise, she barred the door by leaning back against it, folded her arms over her chest and glared at Hannah out of angry, hate filled eyes.

“Who the fuck do you think you are?” Crystal snapped, taking her anger and jealousy out on the woman Mitch had spent so much time with last week and tonight, the woman he looked at as if his world revolved around her and her responses to his mastery.

“Excuse me?” Hannah didn’t know this woman and certainly couldn’t fathom where her animosity was coming from.

“So polite,” Crystal sneered. Her nemesis had an innocent, wholesome look about her that didn’t belong in the club. “Just how long do you think you can hold Master Mitch’s attention? How long do you think it’ll be before he tires of babying you through scenes and returns to me, someone who knows what he likes and relishes what he dishes out? He may play with others, but he
always
returns to me.”

Hannah felt as if she had another splash of cold water thrown on her face. Was it true, what this woman was saying? Her heart turned over with the possibility, her throat clogging with unshed tears as she took this obviously experienced woman’s words to heart.

Tonight Mitch showed her what he really liked when it came to sex, showed her that all the steps he had taken with her the past few weeks that she had considered sexually extreme were just appetizers, enough to whet her appetite for the extremes he really preferred. Everything he did, every new experience he introduced her to, she now realized showed how pathetically boring and naïve she really was. She knew she was feeling vulnerable after what she just experienced, and shouldn’t listen to malicious gossip, but she couldn’t seem to help give credence to what this woman said and take some of it to heart.

Hannah cringed when she thought of how she had so easily set aside a lifetime of moral convictions for the chance to be pleasured over and over by him, and for what? For no other reason than her own self-gratification. She couldn’t even lay part of the blame on Mitch as she was the one who propositioned him first and she was the one who agreed to their affair believing it was going to be a temporary, no feelings attached liaison. She has only herself to blame if she now felt like a pathetic, naïve idiot at how blind she has been. She should have known she could never have been intimate with a man without feeling something for him, and definitely should have known a man like Mitch would never be interested in more than a few weeks of uncomplicated fun with a woman like her.

“What? Nothing to say?”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know Mitch had a relationship with you.” If there was one thing she was sure of, Mitch wouldn’t have cheated if he was in a committed relationship, so she knew she wouldn’t have that sin on her conscience. He was too honorable for that and, by her own admission, Mitch played around. But that didn’t negate the validity of her other statements, that she couldn’t expect to hold Mitch’s interest for much longer.

“He and I go back several years. Master Mitch has needs I understand and that I’m willing to meet, including sharing him occasionally. Just so you know,” Crystal finished as she stepped up to her, “you’re only one of many, but I’m the one and only.” Seeing the resignation on the other woman’s face, Crystal turned away with a smile. Planting a seed of doubt was all it ever took with newbies like this one.

Hannah felt completely out of her element with this woman’s accusations and revelations. She’s never had to deal with petty jealousies or compete with women from Caleb’s past. Tall and slender with her pretty face enhanced by make-up, this woman would draw the eye of any man, and from what she said, she was well versed in knowing all the ways to please them. Averting her face, Hannah flew out the door without looking back, blinking rapidly to stem the flow of tears threatening to spill. Praying Mitch was still in the back room, she quickly made her way across the main room, keeping her face averted as she punched the elevator button. Right now, she needed some alone time, some space to examine her head and her priorities, time to figure out what it was she really wanted and just how far she was willing to go to get it. The doors swished open and she stepped in, her relief at her unnoticed exit short lived as Anna put a hand on the doors to stop them from closing.

“Hannah, what’s wrong?” Anna had noticed Hannah’s rapid beeline towards the elevator and instinctively knew she was upset. Looking at her ravaged face and guilt ridden eyes, she had been right.

“Anna, please, let it go. I’ll call you tomorrow. Please,” Hannah pleaded as she looked behind her, making sure Mitch hadn’t returned to the main room.

“Just wait one minute. Let me find Mitch. You shouldn’t leave when you’re upset.” Anna stepped back, knowing she couldn’t stop her from leaving, but she wasted no time rushing to confront Mitch about what happened. She found him in the dungeon room, Crystal shoving her panties down and grabbing his hand, trying to force it between her legs.

Storming up to them, ignoring a glare from Colin, she snapped, “
Now
I know why Hannah just flew out of here in tears!”

“What?! God damn it, Crystal,” Mitch ground out as he flung her hand away. “Back the fuck off.” Turning to Anna with a glare, he demanded, “Explain.”

Oh shit, Anna thought as Colin joined them, shackled Crystal’s wrist and turned icy green eyes on her. “Yes, explain,” a familiar voice said from behind her. She should have remembered Donovan always kept one eye on her.

“Hannah came out of the restroom and went straight to the elevator. She looked upset so I tried to stop her.” Turning to glare at Crystal, Anna narrowed her eyes at the other woman’s guilty expression. “As a matter of fact, you practically followed her out of the bathroom, so why don’t
you
tell us what made Hannah so upset.”

As three pairs of angry male eyes joined the censure in Anna’s glare, Crystal tried to pull out of Colin’s grip.

“Not until you explain,” Colin told her.

“Fine,” she snapped angrily. “All I did was point out that Master Mitch and I have a long standing relationship, and that she shouldn’t read any more into his attentions than a few nights of fun. I was doing her a favor,” she finished defensively.

“You and I have nothing, as I’ve repeatedly told you.” Turning his anger on Colin and Donovan, he threatened, “I’m done here until she’s banished.” Without waiting for their response, Mitch strode quickly from the room, anger and worry threatening his composure. As if it wasn’t bad enough that Hannah had listened to Crystal’s garbage without coming to him, an idle discussion with Colin and Jason had revealed something that made him worry sick for Hannah’s safety.

Colin, a former county sheriff, always kept up with crime reports, and when he happened to mention there were no suspects yet in the case of a murdered drug dealer found in the Arboretum, he feared the attempted vandalism of Hannah’s car and her mugging might be related as the murder took place around the time Hannah had a job at the gardens. It was a long shot, highly improbable, but where Hannah was concerned, he wasn’t willing to take any chances. Mitch remembered hearing the news report when the body had been found, but hadn’t thought anything of it until now. As soon as he set her straight on Crystal’s remarks, he’d find out what day the murder had taken place and check with her to see if she had been at the gardens that day.

Kenny pulled over and parked several houses down from the address of the woman who had become the bane of his existence. Finally, he thought, relieved when he saw the large truck that had been in the neighbors drive the last several nights was gone. He had waited almost a week after the botched mugging to attempt a break-in, knowing she would be more cautious after his theft of her purse, only to find she was never alone late at night. The man he had spotted entering her place more than once was big and tended to keep a vigilant eye around her place, definitely not someone he wanted to tangle with.

He wished he could risk leaving work and get this done during the day when there was a better chance of both of them being gone, but that would require taking a full day off so he could sit and wait for her to leave and that would leave him with no alibi if he needed one. Jackie was sitting in their apartment, ready to swear he hadn’t left it all night if need be. He was still debating the wisdom of making this one last effort to get hold of any incriminating pictures this Hannah Hershberger might have. It’s been several weeks since Connor’s body was found and so far, no one seemed to be looking for him. On the contrary, according to the last news report, which was days ago, the police still had no leads or suspects to follow up on.

But Kenny has never been one to leave his fate up to chance. The coast looked clear, the woman’s house dark and deserted, as well as the neighbor’s. Why risk her eventually hearing about the murder then putting two and two together when he could be in and out of her place in thirty minutes? He’s been committing B and E’s since he was twelve, knew how to pick any lock and disable any alarm. If he hadn’t grown so fond of snorting coke, he would’ve stuck with home robberies and never had to do that stint for possession that still gave him nightmares.

Checking the street, he saw it was clear and got out of his car. Dressed in black head to toe, if anyone was up at this hour and happened to spot him, they wouldn’t be able to identify him. It took him only seconds to cut off the electricity, less than a minute to get in through the basement window despite the lock, and thirty seconds more to disable the backup alarm right before it went off. “Damn I’m good,” he praised himself as he went upstairs to look for an office and her computer as well as her camera.

Hannah was still reeling from hurt and uncertainty as she pulled into her drive. Not bothering to drive into the garage, she got out and walked on shaky legs to the front door, dismayed that Mitch hadn’t thought to leave the porch light on. Fumbling with her keys in the dark, she managed to get in only to discover the lights were out in the whole house. “Oh….damn!” she muttered as she groped for the small entryway table and rooted for the flashlight that was kept there. “Great, now I’m cursing. What other vices am I going to succumb to?” she wondered aloud. She had to admit, at this moment it felt
damn
good to vent her frustration, especially since she didn’t know how to assuage the guilt or the sadness plaguing her over how the night ended. She didn’t even want to contemplate about what the future might hold.

She aimed the flashlight ahead of her as she moved down the hall, intending to get Roxy from her crate when two things happened simultaneously; she remembered Roxy had been staying at Mitch’s when she was gone, crate free lately, and the electricity suddenly came back on, the small lamp she left on in the great room casting a dull amber glow that did little to lift the darkness everywhere else.

A sound from the kitchen drew her attention and added to the disquiet of the house. Panic threatened and the urge to run assailed her when she heard footsteps, but when she saw a man dressed all in black come towards her, surprise and fear kept her rooted in place.

“I know you,” she gasped before she realized her mistake.

Kenny swore, cursing his fucking luck. First he forgot to flip the electricity back on before coming up from the basement and now he was confronted by the very person he was trying to avoid. Her startled acknowledgement of his identity made his heart hammer with anxiety and as she turned to flee, all he could think was he had to stop her.

Hannah turned to run only to feel her head jerked back by her hair, then the man she remembered seeing at the Arboretum was pulling her around and the side of her face exploded in a fiery burst of pain as he backhanded her. The blow knocked her against the wall before she slid to the floor, terror a huge knot lodged in her throat as she struggled to rise.

“What do you want?” she managed to gasp, wondering what on earth she had done to make this man hate her so.

“Do you have me on film, you fucking bitch?” he snarled in her face as he stooped down in front of her, preventing her from standing.

“What are you…oh?” Like a light bulb snapping on, Hannah had a sudden flash of memory, recalling the picture she had caught of him coming out of the closed off garden that day at the Arboretum. But for the life of her, she couldn’t imagine why that would matter to him. “Yes, but why…” Her inquiry ended on a scream that tore through the air when he stood and delivered a brutal kick to her abdomen, his face mottled with rage.

“Fucking bitch, I knew it! Where is it?” Kenny demanded, his frustration and anger blinding him to her pale, pain-filled face and deafening him to the sound of a vehicle door slamming shut out front as he kicked her again. “Tell me, God damn it, before I cut you like I did Connors.” Withdrawing his knife from his boot, he had no time to spill her blood like he was itching to do before the front door was thrown open and he was faced with a madman.

Hannah’s scream made his blood run cold as Mitch got out of his truck. Calling her name, he ran next door and burst in to see an intruder standing over her wielding a knife, a shocked look on his face at his sudden interference. “You son of a bitch,” Mitch swore very softly when he noted the red swelling on Hannah’s face and her shocked, pain-filled eyes. Without thinking, he struck out with his foot, knocking the knife from the man’s hand before taking him to the floor.

The smaller man was no match for Mitch’s size and strength, not to mention his rage, and with only two heavy fisted punches to his face backed by anger fueled adrenaline, he was knocked out cold. Rising, he quickly turned to Hannah, his face paling when she cried out in agony, blood running down her legs.

Agonizing pain, sharp and jabbing like an icicle, lodged in her pelvis right before Hannah felt a warm gush of blood between her thighs. She fought to even her breathing as ice cold terror took hold of her. “Mitch, oh God, it hurts,” she moaned as the pain spread to encompass her whole abdomen. Mitch’s face swam before her as white dots danced before her eyes right before the room spun and everything went black.