Lost In Mr. Parks (Park #3) Page 11

  All day at work I was anticipating what was to come. Parks told me to meet Cleaver outside the building at five thirty. What the hell for?

  My pen lid had been chewed to bits, and I only realised it when Clarke cleared his throat and glanced at the lid in my mouth.

  “What’s on your mind, my girl?” Clarke always worried about me. He was the only one in the office that did.

  “Nothing.”

  “Typical Evey answer.” He smiled warmly, patted my hand, and got back to work.

  Clarke was with a dramatic client for most of the afternoon, luckily for me. Although my dazed mind was cut short by someone calling my name.

  “Evey.”

  Dropping the pen from my mouth, I looked up and saw Adele calling me into her office. “Have you got a moment?”

  Adele was a larger-than-life character. Midforties. Gorgeous masses of red hair tumbled over her heart-shaped face and light blue eyes. She was taller than the average woman, and her attitude came across as bold.

  I pushed to my heels and couldn’t help but groan. “What have I done now?”

  A chuckle came after my statement, but Adele just batted her hand at me. “Nothing. I would just like to inform you that you have two weeks off, starting from tomorrow.”

  Huh? “What for?” Did I book a holiday without remembering?

  “Mr. Parks requested it.” Her smile lit up her whole face.

  “Can he do that?”

  She smiled again, and turned on her heel to take back her chair behind the desk. “It’s his firm. He can do what he likes. I’ve cleared it with Clarke. He’ll be fine.”

  “Oh.” I wasn’t sure how I felt about Parks interfering and booking my holidays without telling me. I mean, sure I was happy to have two weeks off work, who in their right mind wouldn’t be? But all this sudden secrecy had me feeling queasy. And hungry.

  Lunchtime came, and I was about to head out of the building to grab some food, but I was stopped by that huge man Parks called Nixon. He was holding a large brown bag and stepped in my way.

  “No need to leave, miss.” He didn’t even smile. He was like one of the Men in Black, just weirder.

  I gaped, trying to look into his sunglasses. “Why doesn’t Parks want me to leave this building?” I knew it was down to him.

  Nixon said nothing, just handed me the bag and waited for me to turn and leave. I was about to do just that, but my annoying ways wouldn’t let me. Instead, I shifted, pretending I was about to walk around Nixon, and just as I expected he moved, blocking my path. I did it again, until it looked like we were dancing. In the end, I started laughing and turned on my heel to head back to the office.

  “That was quick.” Clarke took off his glasses when I entered the break room.

  I held up the brown bag, showing him. “We had a delivery. It’s pasta. Dish it out, I’ll be right back.” My heels took me back into the office, where my phone was. I snatched it from my handbag and speed-dialled Parks.

  He answered immediately. “Princess, I—”

  “Don’t ‘Princess’ me. Why are you not letting me leave this building?”

  “I am quite busy right now. If this is not an emergency, then I’m going to hang up.”

  I slammed my palm on the desk. “Oh it will be an emergency if you don’t stop your people following me, not letting me leave a damn building. Trevor and Gabe are gone; you told me yourself. So what is your reason for keeping me prisoner?”

  It went quiet for a second before it sounded like he spoke to someone in the background. “Excuse me.” There was a brief pause before he came back to me. “Evelyn, Nixon was simply delivering you lunch.”

  “Bullshit,” I snapped. “Why don’t you want me leaving?”

  “Your safety is more important to me than anything in this world. Just know that. Now, I have a meeting to finish.”

  “Wade!” I warned down the phone. “You hang up on me and—” The line went dead. “Bastard,” I breathed. “He hung up on me.”

  My heels worked ferociously on the marble corridor as I made my way back to the break room. Clarke was already halfway through his pasta and looking over some court papers. He glanced up when I closed the door with a slam, causing some of his food to fall from his fork and down his shirt.

  “Crumbs,” he cursed, getting up to clean it off, then he looked over at me.

  “Don’t ask,” I shot out, then picked up my pasta bowl and ate to suppress my anger. I couldn’t stop thinking about how confused my mind was starting to become. In some ways, I loved that Parks took control because it gave me less responsibility, less time to think. In another way, I still wanted to be independent and make my own choices in life. I had to aim for finding that balance. Balance was something Parks couldn’t give me, though. Every time he was near, my judgement leant only way one. His way.

  Five thirty came around, and I had calmed down by that point, so I willingly met Cleaver outside the building.

  “How was work, Evey?” Cleaver smiled when he climbed back into the driver’s seat.

  I pulled my seat belt around my body and slammed it into the pocket. “Well, it would be good if Parks actually let me outside for some bloody fresh air.”

  Cleaver chuckled, not daring to agree or disagree and pulled out into traffic. It was peaceful, and a comfortable silence filled the car.

  “Where is Mr. Bossy Bastard, anyway?” I asked after getting hit with his answer machine when I tried to call him for the twentieth time.

  “He’s…busy.” Cleaver settled with that, so I grunted, hoping we were driving to him. But that was soon ruined as I realised we were heading to the airport.

  “We’re flying?” I didn’t get that nervous, sick feeling I got when I first flew, but I did get it because I had no idea what was going on as I stared up at the sky, watching a gigantic plane that had just taken off from Heathrow Airport. I dived into my bag that was sitting between my feet and pulled out my phone.

  “Why is his phone still switched off,” I vented when I couldn’t get through to Parks, then tried to call Steph to tell her about my plans, but that was off too. “What the hell?” I mumbled. “Why is everyone’s phone switched off?”

  Cleaver shrugged, unbuckled his seat belt, gracefully climbed out, and walked around to my side. When he pulled the door open for me, I stared up at him, my mouth gaping. My mind swarming.

  “I’m flying alone?”

  Cleaver nodded, a smirk appearing on his lips. “Yes. Is everything all right?”

  “Where are we going?”

  Cleaver ignored my question as he gently tugged on my hand to get me out of the car and then tapped the side of his nose. “It’s a surprise, Evey.”

  I gave an eye roll as my response and followed him over to the beautiful private jet that was just coming out of its hangar.

  Cleaver passed my suitcase to one of the immaculately dressed hostesses, who raised a smile, introduced herself as Penny, and told me to follow her up the stairs.

  “Have fun,” Cleaver called as I climbed them. I turned my head and gave a small wave with a shaking hand while my body filled up with trepidation.

  “Do you know where we’re going?”

  The blonde hostess smiled at me, then tapped the side of her nose too. Jesus Christ, why was everything so secretive? I followed her to the lounge part of the plane and took a seat on the comfortable recliner. She kindly asked me to put my seat belt on before the plane ran its course down the runway and took off effortlessly. When we were steadily in the air, Penny joined me again.

  “Ma’am, Mr. Parks requests you have some lunch as the flight takes off. We will be aboard for several hours. He also suggested you get some sleep.”

  Well, he could have told me himself if his damn phone was on.

  “Thank you,” I murmured as I watched her dress a table across from me. She placed a glass on the table first, then went back to her trolley, where she pulled out a blue glass bottle and filled it with water. Then she placed another
glass onto the table and filled that one up with orange juice. Next, she put a bread basket that was overflowing with bread onto the table—way too much for one person. Then she put down a plate covered with a silver dome.

  “Would you like to take a seat?” She straightened out, gesturing her hand over the table. She seemed so robotic, so fake, and so…clean.

  “Sure.” I pulled myself out of one comfy chair and plonked myself onto another with the dining table in front of me. As soon as she saw I was comfortable, she lifted the lid off the silver plate, and the smells of gorgeous delights hit me all at once. Lamb shanks, asparagus, and a small dollop of mashed potato were arranged in a perfect circle.

  The hostess set a silver gravy boat alongside me, then straightened up again. “Enjoy your meal. Please, if there is anything at all I can get for you…”

  “Thank you.” I wasn’t sure how I felt about being treated like royalty. Maybe a little uncomfortable. But that wasn’t in the forefront of my mind; what was, was the deliciousness of the food in front of me, making my mouth water.

  I ate every morsel, even worked my way through half the bread. What the bloody hell was wrong with me? I never had a huge appetite, but lately I seemed to want to eat everything and then some.

  After giving myself twenty minutes to come out of a food coma, I tried to call Parks again. “Fuck’s sake,” I murmured when it went to his answer machine again.

  “Everything all right?” The hostess was back at the table yet again to refill my orange juice. She never even let it get to the bottom before she was refilling it again. I never drank so much orange juice in my life, and never used the toilet so much, either. I decided to leave the table and watch a movie instead.

  I was yawning and felt my eyes closing as the film came to an end. I checked my watch quickly, noting I’d be on the plane for five hours. Where the hell was I going?

  “Penny?” I called, and she was by my side within a heartbeat.

  “Yes, ma’am?”

  “How long left have we got to go?”

  “Oh, a couple of hours.” Her cheeks glowed red even under all her professionally done makeup, and I knew she was uncomfortable with lying.

  “God,” I groaned, stretching out my arms. “Can you show me to the bedroom? I’d like to sleep.” I remembered Parks ushering me to the bedroom the last time I was on this plane, but I was so intoxicated with arousal last time, I couldn’t remember where to go.

  “Of course. Follow me.”

  I followed Penny down a hallway, and to the left of that was the bedroom. She gestured at it with her hand and smiled.

  “Thanks.” I waited for her to leave, then pushed open the door. On walking into the room, I saw a purple satin slip and a matching eye mask. The slip was sexy, with white lace trimming on the cups and a small slit up the thigh. I got undressed, and as I picked it up to put it on, a white piece of paper fell from inside. I picked it up, and a smile spread wide across my face as I read it. My heart hammered away as the simple, subtle words hit me hard.

  Remember, I never stop thinking of you.

  Sleep tight, Princess. W x

  Those words tugged at the strings that seem to hold my heart together, and I clutched the paper to my chest, trying to stem the ache that was inside. The ache that came over me when I was missing a huge part of me.

  I climbed into bed and laid the note along the side of my pillow. I knew I would fall to sleep, dreaming of what tomorrow would bring.

  God, I hoped it was him.

  Chapter Eleven

  After being on the plane for almost twenty damn hours, I got bored of actually wondering where the hell we were heading. It was clearly someplace on the other side of the world. Parks still didn’t answer my calls, but he had his plane staff waiting on my every beck and call. Topping me up with food and drink, asking me if I was comfortable. It was starting to get damn irritating. I wanted off.

  “Miss Banks, we will be landing shortly. Could I please ask you to fasten your seat belt?”

  I did as Penny asked, yawning and glancing out the window. All I saw was blackness all around me, telling me it was evening.

  “One more thing.” Penny looked embarrassed that she’d interrupted my viewing as I turned my head on an unintentional frown. “Mr. Parks insisted on you wearing this.” She held up a black blindfold.

  My eyebrow arched as I stared at the piece of silk. “Seriously?” She shrugged slightly on a warm smile. “Fine.” I took it out of her hands and placed it over my eyes.

  “I will escort you off the plane when we land.”

  Well, that’s a relief, I thought sarcastically.

  The plane touched down, and shortly after I heard Penny by my side again. “Miss Banks, if you take my hand, I will slowly guide you off and into your waiting car.”

  “I’m trusting you with my life now.” My voice was serious, but I was joking, though she didn’t laugh.

  The plane door had opened, and the instant Penny guided me down the first step, a wave of heat hit me slap-bang in the face.

  “Wow,” I gasped, trying to adjust to the temperature change. Penny continued to guide me down each step slowly, and all I kept thinking was, Please don’t fall. When my feet hit solid ground, I sighed in relief, then heard a familiar voice.

  “Morning, Evey.”

  “Cleaver?” My head turned automatically toward his voice. “How the hell did you get here?” I felt a right twat. Blindfolded and talking in a direction I wasn’t entirely sure he was standing.

  “I was the copilot, Evey. Now let’s get you in the car and to your hotel. I would like to inform you that it is very early in the morning. I can imagine you feel confused, disorientated, a little jet-lagged, but all will be revealed in due course.”

  My body sagged as Cleaver took my arm and led me to what I presumed was the car. I felt my way over the door as Cleaver opened it for me, then ducked me in gently. I found my seat belt and fumbled to pull it across, then sighed my annoyance to Cleaver as I felt the car pull out.

  “Cleaver, this is all too strange. I don’t know where I am. I don’t know what’s happening. I don’t know where Parks is.”

  “In due course,” Cleaver repeated. I knocked my head back into the seat, exasperated. Great.

  A while later, I felt the car come to a stop, and my angst turned to excitement. Cleaver climbed out, then I heard his door close. I knew he was coming to let me out, so I unbuckled and got ready to climb out. He opened the door and took my right elbow, so I knew which direction to tilt my head when he spoke. “I will escort you to the designated place, Evey, then you will be allowed to pull off your blindfold.”

  “Okay.” When I was steady on my feet, I felt a gentle breeze flowing through my hair, then I jumped a mile when a loud horn sounded from nowhere, blasting my eardrums.

  “Shit,” I gasped. “What the hell was that?”

  Cleaver chuckled at my fright, then took extra care with his grip on my elbow as we began walking forwards until we came to a stop again.

  “Right, now, Evey, you’re going to take a big step forwards when I say, okay?”

  I nodded hesitantly, trying my best to hear anything that would tell me where I was. “Cleaver, why can I hear water?”

  “Are you ready, Evey?”

  Damn surprises. “Okay.” I took a step a giant step forwards, and for some reason I recognised the ground beneath my feet had changed. It was slightly less balanced. But then I thought, Maybe it’s my imagination.

  “Okay, were going to walk forwards, then up a couple more steps. The steps are a little narrow, Evey, so I’ll let you go up first.”

  I took two small steps forwards, trying to feel with my feet where the steps where. I found them and carefully climbed the stairs.

  “Now we’re going to walk forwards again, and up similar steps.”

  I did the same routine, but the wind became a little stronger, and my senses were brewing up a storm because of the unknown. “Woah, Cleaver, I feel high off
the ground. Why is it so windy?”

  Cleaver was behind me when he spoke. “It’s okay. Trust me. Just wait here.”

  I waited, biting my lip nervously and felt strange because I knew I wasn’t on hard ground. I felt oddly free with the wind blowing through my hair and across my face. It was cool, yet the air was strangely warm at the same time.

  I only had to wait a few moments before the next voice I heard was the one that set a fire burning inside of me. A voice that can only be described as knicker-melting. “Princess, take off your blindfold.”

  I shuddered, the hairs on my arms rose, and my heart ballooned. I couldn’t wait to take the blindfold off and be dazzled by his beautiful face, giving me more impacting sensations. But I was also scared to see where I’d been taken to. However, I had to set my eyes upon the man that had my womanly functions pining for their partner in crime for so many hours I forgot how it felt to be normal.

  I slowly reached for the blindfold, keeping my eyes closed as I took it off. I blinked them open, gaining back focus for a second, but then when they came back to life, my whole body jumped back a step, the words oh fuck spilling from my mouth.

  It wasn’t only the beautiful alpha male that stood before me, dressed in a fitted white shirt and light grey suit trousers with his dark hair blowing gracefully in the wind that took my breath away. It was also the fact I was standing on the top deck of a supreme yacht. “What the hell?” I beamed.

  “Princess.” Parks edged towards me, taking my eyes away from scanning the ocean and the dark night, a night filled up with so many lights from the unknown city across the way.

  He kissed me, taking the edge of my anxious, but excitable mood. “Trust me?” he breathed against my lips as my body melted into his.

  “Yes,” I whispered, absorbing the way he was looking at me. The yacht slowly started to move, and Parks snaked his arms around my waist, pulling me into him. He inhaled my scent as I did his, and I wrapped my arms around his neck. It was where I felt safe, where he felt safe. In each other’s arms.

  “Where are we?” I grinned, pulling back to look at Parks. He smiled one of those rare adorable smiles and nodded over my shoulder.