Page 38 of Risky Behavior: Submitting to the Ruthless Guard
A deep voice caught my attention, and I watched as a man who was nearly twice the size of Leo made his way into the room. He had on dark gray slacks and a white dress shirt with the collar undone and the sleeves rolled up. He had colorful tattoos that covered his arms and chest, and I found myself unable to pull my eyes from them.
“I hope you don’t mind me a bit more casual than if we were meeting in my office? I had to help Nico unload someone — I mean something — so I left my tie and coat in the car.”
“No, that’s fine. I appreciate you coming here.”
“It’s not a problem at all.” He sat in the high back chair across from me and held out his hand. “I’m Dr. Nikolaidis, but you can call me Anthony if that’s easier.”
“Thank you, I’m Talia. Just Talia is fine.”
“It’s nice to meet you. Leo asked me to come out and see you, but other than what Alessia shared with me last night, I don’t know much about you. Why don’t we start there?”
“I told Leo he was overreacting. I think I’m dealing really well with everything that has happened. Honestly, I just want it all to go away so I can move on, but he doesn’t think that’s a good idea.”
“How did you two meet?”
“I don’t know how much you know, so stop me if I’m repeating myself.”
“It’s fine Talia. I’d like to hear about everything from your point of view.”
“I entered into an agreement with a friend of mine to marry a man for five years. My friend Raven found the man of her dreams. I didn’t.”
“Things didn’t go according to plan?”
“No. The man who purchased me at the auction was abusive. He is an evil human and Leo came to work there. At first I thought he was like the rest of them, but then he told me Becket and Raven had sent him.”
“Did you believe him?”
“I wanted to, so I did. Things were pretty hopeless at that point. I had decided I just needed to stay alive for the five years I was there and when I got out, I could deal with all the shit that had happened.”
“You are out now. Have your feelings about it all changed?”
“Maybe. I know it was bad, I get that, but I want more than anything to pretend it didn’t happen. But with Leo gone—”
“It’s okay, Talia, I know where he is and what he is doing. You can trust me.”
“I just don’t know what to expect when he comes back.”
“Are you afraid things will change between the two of you?”
“I’m afraid he won’t come back. Or maybe that he will and he’ll think I have been too much of a problem with him from the beginning.”
“Did something happen that would lead you to think that?”
The casual demeanor that Dr. Nikolaidis had seemed to make it easier for me to talk to him than I thought it would be, and the questions he asked all seemed in tune with what I was feeling.
“I don’t know. Miles, the man who bought me, he is dangerous. I’m not an idiot. I know what Leo does, but still the thought of something happening to him because of me… it’s just awful.”
“Have you spoken with him since he left?”
“No, it was just this morning. I don’t expect to hear from him until it is all over. But if he doesn’t come back… if he doesn’t come back, then I don’t know what I will do. Everyone around me leaves. Raven is the only person I have in my life and I wouldn’t risk her life by running to her. I feel like it’s risky for me just to be here. I’d die if something happened to Valentina or the kids because he found me here.”
“I promise this is one of the safest places you can be right now. I’d like to spend some time digging into what happened while you were with Miles, but that can wait until another time. Tell me more about why you feel like everyone around you leaves?”
“I don’t have anyone, Dr. Nikolaidis. It’s not an exaggeration either. My father left before I was born. My mother was an addict. Raven’s mom took me in and she died a couple of years ago. It’s just me and Raven now, but she has Becket and… well, I don’t have anyone else.”
“What about Leo?”
“I can’t think of him like that. Not now. Maybe when he gets back, it will be different. I fell for him so fast it was terrifying, and now he’s gone.”