His Obsession

6- Trying to figure her out

I kept quiet for a minute, weighing the pros and cons in my head, finally deciding to just comply with him. "Fine," I replied to him as I started walking towards the building. I could feel the anxiety and nerves rise inside of me again as I anticipated what was going to happen. I could hear his footsteps as he walked directly in front of me. I had been here once before, but this time I took the time to look around the building and study my surroundings. Watching everyone inside as we neared the elevator that would take us to his penthouse.

Waiting for the elevator seemed to take forever, so I glanced quickly up at him only to find that he had pulled his phone out. He was staring at the prelit screen. I wondered what he wanted me to talk about. Why would he go out of his way like this to make sure that I came home with him?

I noticed him put the phone back into his chest pocket as the elevator chimed to let us know it was here and the doors began to open. He then placed his hand on my back and nudged me inside. I stand stiffly next to him as the elevator ascends toward his penthouse. I try to keep my gaze away from him as he makes me feel nervous. I was scared that he would force me to do something I didn't want to do.

The elevator chimes signaling that it has reached its destination. The nerves in my stomach make me feel sick. When the doors open, he once again places his hand on my back and nudges me inside his home. "Take a seat on the sofa and make yourself at home. I'll be right back," he says as he walks down the hall. I wondered what he was doing, but didn't sit down on the sofa as he suggested. Instead, I walked carefully up to the elevator and pushed the button. I heard a loud beep, and then in an electronic voice, it announced "Locked, password" telling me that I was stuck here as I had no clue what the password was.

Lorenzo's POV

Well done Enzo, you are a real gem! You've forced this girl into your home again, and why is that? Because something just doesn't feel right about her?

Coming out of the room, I heard the elevator chime again, telling me she had tried to leave. But really, how can I blame her? She wasn't sitting on the sofa as I suggested. She was standing near the elevator when she turned around and gave me an apologetic look. I couldn't help but marvel at this girl's beauty. She must surely be one of the prettiest women I have ever seen. She intrigues me as she is very careful with her words. She gets very feisty if you upset her and she fights back. If I were to be honest, this was something I craved. A woman who could put me in my place, a woman who wasn't afraid to speak her mind and tell me what she was thinking. She didn't know it, but I was planning on making her mine. I'm just not sure how to make that happen at the moment.

As I sat on the couch watching her carefully, I threw the manila folder down on the coffee table. She cautiously picked it up with a confused look on her beautiful face. That alone made me smile. "What is this?!?" she demands, flipping it open and when I see the fear flash in her eyes, I knew I had her exactly where I wanted her. She narrows her eyes and glares fiercely at me. "Where did you get this?" she demanded. I could see that she was pissed off, and I needed to let her be. I never thought I would receive any of the information contained in the folder when I asked my man to check on her.

"Calm down, all I did was hire a private investigator to look into you after our first meeting, when I saved you from getting raped. I have to admit that I didn't like killing those guys in front of you like that, but I didn't know of an alternative way to protect you at that moment." I say, trying to get her to calm down a bit. I continue with a friendly smile, "I have some powerful enemies, people who would stop at nothing to destroy me. They even tried to hire a whore to get in here so she could scoop some dirt for them. It just comes naturally to me now, to examine everyone who enters my life with a fine-tooth comb."

"So what?" she asked softly, but she looked nervous and on edge at the same time. "You shouldn't have that information on me... no one should. He'll find me." She said, throwing the folder down on the table in front of me. I couldn't help but notice that she looked so ashamed, which made me wonder what she was hiding. There was no description of what happened to her in the folder; all I had was her age and name, and a brief note about where she was from before she moved to New York. I wanted to take away all of the pain in her eyes and make it so she wasn't afraid. The man listed in the folder must have worked his magic on her, and I wondered who this man was.

"Who will find you?" I asked her as calmly as I could.

"Nobody...," she answers quickly and stares directly at me. There was a hint of danger in her eyes; what was transpiring here?

"Look, I don't know much about you. I just want to learn a bit more if you are willing. Who is this man you say will locate you?" I repeated. I had to know. I don't know why but everything inside of me screamed for me to protect this woman, to protect her from whoever she was running away from.

"That's none of your business!" she snapped, anger shining through her eyes. I knew then that I should probably drop it, for now, she looked tense enough as it was. "Please, I just want to go home." she lowers her voice.

I knew I had struck a nerve with her, and not willing to push her away, I reluctantly agreed to take her home. I wish she could just stay here with me, as it would be much easier to protect her should this man find her. "Okay fine, I will take you home."

I rode the elevator down to ground level while calling my limo driver and asking him to have the car ready to take her home. I had a lot to do if I was to know whether or not I could keep her safe. She was a complete mystery to me, and I ached to figure her out. I watched as the limo approached us while we stood there on the sidewalk.

I never do this, but I personally held the door open for her to climb inside. Closing it softly behind her, before walking up to the driver's window to give him her address. She also ordered him to make sure she was inside before he drove off. I watched as the limo took off and drove away taking someone with it that I found myself falling for, and that was just something I couldn't do.

After the car disappeared from sight, I silently headed back to the penthouse, hoping that she would be safe tonight. I knew that sleep was out of the question until I did something to ensure her safety. Therefore, grabbing my phone, I called the one person I trusted to do the job. He owed me his life, so I knew he would do whatever I asked of him.

"Hello, sir?" I hear his voice soften. "What's going on?"

"Hello Nick, I need a favor. I need you to watch over this girl. I want to make sure that she stays safe and doesn't get into any trouble." I growled into the phone. "Remember you owe me, and this is what I want you to do." I listened closely to his complaints. Oh did I know that he was willing to try this with me as his wife had just given birth to their youngest baby? He was now the father of three children, and all thanks to me. I employed him under the table so that he could support his family and keep them safe. Because of me, he could afford that townhouse on the better side of town so his kids could be sent to the most prestigious schools. I just needed to remind him of that fact. "Listen, Nick, this is what I want you to do and you are committed to doing it. Or I might have to stop those direct deposits into your account. Understand, you don't have a choice in the matter." I yell into the phone, shutting him up quickly.

"Fine, I'll do it. What's the address?" he sighs as I give him the address of her apartment. I told him to be there within an hour and to watch and report to me about what she was doing. Walking into my office, I pick up her file again and decide to do a little bit of research on my own. Turning on my laptop, I type his name into the search engine. I just had to know...