Scarlett's Sin

After Hours

I woke to the sound of loud music drifting through the walls. The bass seemed to make the room vibrate. Groaning, I sat up, picked up my phone and glanced at the time.

1:14 am.

Who in their damn mind parties by this time of the day? I thought.

Uncle Brad had replied to my message but I decided to reply to him later. Sighing in frustration, I slipped on my fluffy pair of slippers and stepped out.

The music had gotten louder and it seemed to be coming from two doors down. I paused at the door, fighting my instincts. The old me would have barreled into that room and made a scene, irrespective of the fact that it wasn't my home but I had learned to be more tolerant.

Deciding that it was none of my business, I carried on, taking the stairs down to the kitchen to get some water.

I grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge, turned and began to make my way back but something made me stop halfway. My nostrils had picked up the smell of cigarettes.

The smell lingered- thick and deliberate.

This wasn't what I was expecting, I thought. I had imagined Thane would be someone who had his s**t together like the prim and proper men my aunt and mother always dated or married. Maybe he wasn't around and someone was throwing this party in his house without his permission, disrupting the sleep of his kids.

It definitely wasn't Erin but then, who?

The smell was coming from the kitchen's back door, which was slightly ajar. I decided I would just snoop around quietly, find out the source and head back to my room.

I stepped out.

Looking up at the clear starry sky, I drew in a breath of fresh air, sighing then closed my eyes and leaned against the side of the house. The feeling of calmness washed over me.

So caught up in the serene atmosphere, I soon forgot why I came out in the first place until I felt the intense heat of someone's stare on me. The hair on my neck instantly stood on its ends. I turned slowly, my eyes settling on-

Him.

The biggest man I'd ever seen. He leaned back lazily against the wall, close to the door I had just walked through.

How the hell had I missed him?

His face was submerged in the darkness, giving him an eerie look. A cigarette was tucked between his lips, thick smoke billowed out. Though I couldn't see his face, I felt his intense stare on me. I wanted to say something but he exuded a sort of animal magnetism that left me tongue-tied.

Then something changed. His laid-back demeanor vanished and he straightened, stalking towards me.

He closed the distance too easily, too confidently. My body reacted before my mind caught up, every instinct warning me that this was a man was danger. Hell, he had the walk of a predator, both lazy and alert.

"You are not allowed to wander around," he said in a deep, rough, husky voice that seemed to reverberate from his chest and into mine.

I took a step backwards as shivers ran down my spine. I didn't know who this man was. Logically, I knew that from how at ease he had seemed smoking seconds ago, he was not a stranger or intruder but I wasn't taking any chances.

My toe touched a loose stone and I bent quickly, picking it up. "Who are you?" I asked.

"It's late. Get the hell back upstairs," he growled.

At that moment, I figured he knew who I was but I wasn't going to let some bodyguard bully me into walking away like a tame lamb.

"You're not going to tell me what to do. Hey! Back up!" I griped as he began to invade my space.

He laughed.

The rumbling seemed to resonate from deep within him. Something glinted in the dark as he laughed but I couldn't make out what it was.

"You are too bloody tiny to give me orders," he taunted.

I wasn't small but being right next to him, I knew I looked tiny, insignificant. My blood boiled. I wasn't going to be intimidated, not one bit. He could have asked me politely to head back or better still, explained why I should but he didn't so we had to do it the hard way.

He kept coming, his hands reaching for my shoulders. I swung the stone towards the side of his head but instead of crying out in pain and backing away, he growled, gripping my hand and with a gentle flick of my wrist, disarmed me.The stone hit the ground uselessly. His grip wasn't rough, just precise and familiar, like he had made that move before.

I wasn't a weak girl, far from it so I was shocked at how easily he had disarmed me.

He was almost completely pressed against me now. His thick, woodsy scent assaulted my nose, slowing my thoughts. Shivering in fear, terror, and anticipation, I was tempted to run, to flee. Logically that would have been the best so why was I still rooted to the spot? Did I have some kind of death wish?

'He could be a psychopath or a killer,' my voice of reasoning whispered but I just stood there, subtly drawing in the addictive, woodsy scent wafting off him. In my stupid haze, I hadn't realized that he still had a firm grip on my hand until he pulled me even closer towards him.

"Who the hell are you?" He growled; his voice seemed agitated and really angry now.

I blinked then gasped as the angry tone of his voice broke through my funk, plunging me back into the reality that I was standing alone in the dark with a stranger.

I twisted my hand forcefully out of his grip and shoved him but it was like trying to budge a slab of stone. I ducked quickly under his arm and put a little distance between us, feeling a little pang of disappointment as his woodsy scent faded with the distance.

"You tell me who you are," I snapped. "FYI, I'm not the one lurking around in the shadows."

He didn't respond but just at that moment, a harsh white light sliced through the darkness, blinding me momentarily. I flinched, throwing a hand up to shield my eyes. "Hey," I called, trying to see past the blinding light.

The guard holding the flashlight stumbled to a stop, eyes going wide as he regarded us, the man behind me. "Boss? Sir. I- I didn’t realize it was you," he stammered, lowering the light so fast it nearly hit the ground.

Boss?

My heart lurched.

I turned sharply to regard the man behind me, whose features were still halfway submerged in darkness.

Thane? The mayor and soon-to-be head of state? Aunt Erin's fiance?

He didn’t react or blink at being addressed as the "Boss" by the guard but instead stood broad, immovable, the intensity of his stare boring through me like hot steel, simmering in the darkness and for some reason, I couldn't look away.

My heart thudded loudly, nearly drowning out the guard’s voice as he stammered nervously, respect and fear tangled together in every word, "I, uh, heard a disturbance, sir. Thought something might be wrong."

Silence stretched for a moment then he rumbled deeply, voice low and final, "Everything is alright, Mark. Dismissed."

"Yes, boss. Miss Scarlett," the guard replied in rushed obedience, feet shuffling away hurriedly as though he didn't want to linger around for long.

Thane suddenly went still.

In the dim light, his body tensed, shoulders drew back, frame went rigid and although his face was shadowed, his eyes seemed to sear through me. It was as though something had clicked into place for him.

"Scarlett? Fuck." A low, furious growl tore from his chest; raw, unrestrained.

I grimaced, shifting uncomfortably. I guess he just figured out who I was, just as I did him.

This wasn't going to be good, I thought to myself as I exhaled sharply, gearing up to speak even though I had no idea what to say but he tisked sharply through his teeth, the sound echoing in the silence then without warning or explanation, turned away, striding into the shadows, away from the house.

"Hey! Thane! "Uh, Mr.-," I called out, forgetting his last name but he didn't stop or look back, disappearing into the surrounding woods.

"s**t," I sighed as I stood there, heart pounding, cold air on my skin and one unbearable question echoing through my mind.

Had I just had a moment with my aunt's fiance? My soon-to-be uncle?