His Duchess [Completed]

Chapter 40- Mystery Solved [E]

Fluttering her eyes open at the brief caress to the side of her face, Annie's vision blurred from the lingering remains of sleep.  Blinking away the haze, she realized she was in the suite.  The heavy weight of her head felt like a bowling ball. However as groggy as she still was, Annie attempted to lift her upper body straighter to shake off the sleepiness.  Closing slowly and forcefully re-opening her eyes repeatedly like a butterflies wings, she looked to her left and quickly realized somebody was standing right next to where she rested.

A dark suited man stood silently gazing down at her. Traveling her eyes along his length, starting at his legs which were at her eye level then up to his arms and wide shoulders.  He was very muscular from what she could tell already.  The man was tall, poised, confident much like a statue waiting patiently for acknowledgment. 

He was watching her, for how long she did not know, but the blazing intensity of his eyes was unsettling. When she squinted and blinked several times, Annie thought she was hallucinating when his face registered. 

The mystery man?

That's when the shock set in.

The disbelief skidded across Annie's features. Her eyes were met with a fierce-stoney hard stare. Eyes the shade of a winter sea. 

It can't be. No, no, no...

She stood up rather unsteadily, struggling to maintain her composure.  He had to help hold her hand to keep her upright. As the brief of the contact was, Annie pulled away like his touch burnt her.

"This must be a mistake, I have to go.." She said, never looking him in the eye—she could not face him feeling sick to her stomach. The effects of the shock waves pulsing through her numbed body caused her limbs to weaken.

He made an attempt to grasp her arm. "Don't touch me!" Annie exclaimed, backing away from him on unsteady legs. "I want nothing to do with you!"

"You don't have a choice." He says smoothly, advancing slowly.

Annie was backing away towards the door, looking frantically behind her. A few more feet and she might be free. The only difficulty was the heavy door.  Getting it to open swiftly was going to take great effort before he can catch her.

Striding cautiously, he advanced slowly, watching her with hooded eyes—decreasing the distance between them.  The look in her eyes was empty. A look you would give a stranger or somebody you disliked.  She was weary of him like a bystander would be of a criminal.   

And it angered him.

"I hate you, just leave me alone in peace." She pleaded, watching his stoic expression.  He crossed the room, cornering her between the door and his body, with no means of escape. Ironically it looked like a scene from a national geographic show—the tiger watching its prey, slowly bidding its time until it attacked.

"You're not going anywhere anytime soon. If I were you, I would get comfortable."

Calm, smooth and determined as ever, he tried to reach for her again but Annie recoiled from him. He was hoping for a smoother transition but as expected, she was always difficult. And now he had her trapped against the door, refusing to look at him.

Annie gave up when her back collided with the hardness of the door. Instead of looking straight ahead, she turned her face to the side and closed her eyes, not giving him the satisfaction of her attention.