encountered soft black fabric.
Oh, God. Please no lingerie…
Lifting the material in front of my face, I came to realize it was a single pair of
black leggings. Confused, I felt the thick cloth in my hands noticing they were
fleece lined. There was no way I’d need to wear fleece-lined leggings here,
especially since I wasn’t technically allowed to wear pants … so what the fuck were
these for?
“Fleece-lined leggings?” I asked him, cocking an eyebrow in question. “I
thought these were on the blacklist?”
“I figured you might need them,” he said, that sly little grin lifting the corners
of his mouth.
“Why? Are we going somewhere?” I asked, almost hopeful I’d get a new change
of scenery.
He nodded. “You have until tomorrow to pack whatever it is you want or need.
We leave in the afternoon.”
“Where are we going?” I asked way too excitedly.
“And spoil the surprise? I don’t think so.”
“Obviously somewhere cold,” I said, giving him the slyness in my smile now.
“And that’s the only hint you’ll get. Now get upstairs and start packing. I have a
lot of work to get done before we leave.”
Darren then stood up to leave, kissing me on the forehead before he left the
room.
Looking down at the fleece leggings in my hands, I didn’t know what to think.
Obviously, he’d decided to exploit my confession about the coming of Christmas
and was likely taking me somewhere with snow. Maybe we were going somewhere
with mountains? I felt my heart race with excitement and couldn’t help but smile at
the idea of getting the fuck out of this house. I was getting tired of beaches
surrounding me.
I quickly headed back to my room and looked in my closet, trying to figure out
what the hell I should pack. I didn’t have any clothes fit for winter, except for the
new leggings in my hand. I briefly wondered if Clive Owen might be able to assist,
and then laughed at how funny it might be. I poked my head out of my bedroom
door to find the two of them standing like statues as always.
“Hey, Team Rocket, you guys know what the hell I’m supposed to pack for this
surprise little trip?”
“The necessities, Miss Jaden,” Clive answered without moving from his
position.
“Yeah, but what are the necessities? I don’t have any winter clothes.”
“Your clothing will be provided for you. Just bring what you think you’ll need to
keep up your appearance.”
“Like your hairspray,” Owen added with a smug smile.
I scoffed at him. “Hairspray can make an excellent flame thrower, Owen. Just
remember that,” I snapped and shut the door on them.
Asses.
Trudging over to my closet, I grabbed a good-sized duffel bag and headed into
my bathroom. I packed my flat iron, curling iron, hairspray, my face wash and
moisturizers, toothbrush and hairbrush, some makeup, and hair ties. Thankfully,
there was enough room for my tablet and iPod. The bag zipped closed easily and sat
on my bed looking sad and lonely. It was weird not having a larger secondary bag
containing my clothes. I didn’t care for any of the clothes in my closet currently,
and I was curious about the change in my wardrobe when we got to wherever the
hell it was that he was taking me.
I really shouldn’t let myself get excited. This trip was just another form of
manipulation, Darren’s way of buying my affection, and I hated that I’d have to
fucking reward him for it. I had to try to enjoy myself, give him the illusion that I
was blissfully ignorant of his methods of “persuasion” when it came to winning me
over. He’d lose, but I doubted he wouldn’t be able to surprise me nonetheless. I had
no idea what to expect, but I had a feeling it was going to be nothing like what I was
expecting.
I didn’t see Darren for the rest of the night or even the following morning for
breakfast. I went through my normal routine for the day, working out for my
singular solid hour, showering, lunchtime, and a stupid-ass painting session before
I was finally called away to clean up and meet Darren downstairs in ten minutes.
After washing up in my bathroom, I came out to find Owen and Clive standing in
my room.
“Ready?” Clive asked me.
“Yeah,” I replied, suddenly nervous.
Clive nodded then took my little travel bag from my dresser while Owen led me
out of the bedroom and down the stairs. Darren was talking on the phone as he
paced in the foyer, glancing at me only when I finally stood on the final step. I
waited for him now while Clive and Owen went to load our luggage into the trunk of
the car.
“Excellent. I’ll come by to pick it up in two days. Thanks,” Darren spoke into the
phone and hung up.
So not only were we going somewhere unknown to me, Darren had business to
attend to there. Great.
Pocketing his
