LUSTING TO HAVE HER WAY

THE MAN WHO SAVED HIS LIFE

CHAPTER 6

James' calm voice came through the phone.

He was on a brief business trip to the United States.

"Angela says she has found someone more qualified to be my personal assistant. I'm saying no. Bismarck is exactly the person I want for the job. That young man saved my life."

Donald's curiosity deepened.

"Really?" he asked.

James' voice remained steady.

"Yes. God used him to do something extraordinary for me. Some unknown men planted a bomb under my car outside the conference centre on the day I was due to travel. I had no idea it was there. I was already walking towards the car when a young man suddenly ran up to me and insisted on speaking with me."

Donald's eyes widened.

"Jesus Christ!"

"If not for Bismarck's persistence," James continued, "I would have been inside that car when it exploded."

Donald shook his head.

"Thank God for your life. We heard about the explosion on the news, but we never knew it involved someone we knew."

"That was intentional," James replied. "I stayed away from the media. The car was completely destroyed, so there was no way anyone could identify its owner. I didn't want unnecessary publicity."

Donald remained silent for a moment.

The revelation changed the way he viewed Bismarck.

This was not simply a young man James had casually hired.

He was someone James believed had saved his life.

And that made Angela's determination to get rid of him even more dangerous.

Donald hesitated before asking another question.

"If you don't mind... what did Bismarck want to discuss with you?"

James smiled faintly.

"A job. He told me he had resigned from a hotel the day after he started work because a guest had been murdered there. He no longer felt safe working in that environment. As a way of thanking him for saving my life, I directed him to my recruitment agent to process his application immediately, even before I returned."

Donald's eyes slowly shifted toward Angela's bedroom.

For a few seconds, Donald said nothing.

The pieces were beginning to fit together.

Bismarck had not entered James' life through Angela.

James had chosen him personally.

And worse still, James appeared determined to keep him.

Donald glanced towards Angela.

She was standing a short distance away, listening to the conversation.

Her earlier anger had settled into an unsettling calm.

"Have you told Angela the real reason you employed Bismarck?"

"No," James replied. "I didn't want to burden her with disturbing news before the wedding. I want her to be emotionally and physically relaxed. Besides, I told her to take good care of Bismarck—to make sure he is comfortable and well fed until I return."

Donald's stomach tightened.

He glanced toward Angela again.

If James knew what had really happened at Black Corks Hotel, everything would change.

And now James had unknowingly instructed Angela to protect the very person who could expose her.

Angela slowly walked closer to Donald.

She stopped beside him, close enough for her perfume to reach him.

For a moment, their eyes met.

Donald could see the controlled irritation behind her otherwise composed expression.

She did not say anything, but the look in her eyes seemed to tell him that she understood exactly what James' instructions meant.

Immediately, an idea crossed Donald's mind.

"Hold on, bro," he said. "The line is breaking up. Could you repeat that?"

It was a lie.

He switched the phone to speaker mode so Angela could hear James for herself.

James repeated himself.

"I said I told Angela to take good care of Bismarck. Make him comfortable. Make sure he is well fed until I return. That young man means a great deal to me."

Donald looked at Angela.

Her face flushed with anger.

The room suddenly became silent except for the sound of her breathing.

Angela's fingers tightened around the glass in her hand.

For a moment, she looked as though she might say something.

Then she slowly lowered her gaze.

James' words had left her with a problem she had not anticipated.

She could not simply dismiss Bismarck.

She could not openly mistreat him.

And she certainly could not explain to James why she wanted him gone.

"All right, bro. Take care of yourself," Donald said.

"You too," James replied.

Then he added:

"And take good care of Angela. Be careful, Donald."

The call ended.

For several seconds, neither Angela nor Donald spoke.

Donald lowered the phone.

Angela remained beside him, her expression unreadable.

"You enjoyed that," she said quietly.

Donald raised an eyebrow.

"Enjoyed what?"

"Making me listen to James tell me how to behave in my own house."

A faint smile touched Donald's lips.

"You needed to hear it."

She turned towards him.

"Did I?"

Their eyes met.

There was irritation between them, but beneath it was something more familiar—an attraction neither had managed to erase despite everything that had happened between them.

Donald looked away first.

Angela noticed.

Her lips curved slightly.

Then she stepped back.

Donald looked at Angela, hoping James' words had changed her mind.

They had not.

If anything, they only hardened her resolve.

Angela remained determined to force Bismarck to abandon James' offer.

She slowly placed her phone on the table.

"So," she said quietly, "James has decided that Bismarck is indispensable."

Donald nodded.

"He has."

Angela's expression remained calm.

Far too calm.

Donald recognized that look.

It was the look of someone who had just encountered an obstacle—and was already thinking of how to remove it.

"We'll have to be more careful," she said.

Donald frowned.

"Angela, you heard him. He trusts Bismarck."

"I heard him."

"And he specifically told you to take care of him."

"I heard that too."

She looked toward the room where Bismarck had been confined.

"But James isn't here."

Donald stared at her.

"What are you thinking?"

Angela's lips curved into a faint smile as she looked into eyes of her dear brother-inlaw, Donald.