Tested (Captured by the Billionaire #5)(6)
Author: Julia Sykes

“It’s not meant to be demeaning,” he said quickly.  “It’s a symbol of our commitment.  It means that you’re mine.”  His words were laced with longing.

Mallory wanted so badly to say yes, to ease his worry.  Mine.  The word sounded nice; it thrilled her that Jake thought of her in that way.  But this was all moving very quickly, wasn’t it?

In the wake of her pause, Jake rushed to explain himself.  “It’s just… After almost losing you…  I can’t…”  His usual composure was crumbling.  Mallory couldn’t bear to see him falling apart like this.

“Jake,” she said softly, gently cutting him off.  “I don’t want to lose you either.”  She took a deep breath, knowing that she was about to hurt him but having no other answer.  “But I don’t think I’m ready for that.  Not yet,”  she added, hoping to soften the blow.  But inside she still didn’t think that she would ever be okay with the idea of someone owning her.

“Oh,” he said simply.  Then his walls were coming back up, the cocky mask slipping back into place for the first time since they had left Venice.  Mallory hated seeing it again, but she understood.  It was his defense mechanism, and he needed it right now.  Still, knowing that didn’t stop the pain she felt at hurting him.

“Well, then,” the cocky Jake gave an easy smile.  “Let me show you more of my fabulous home.”

Mallory looked around at her ruined clothes that were strewn around them.  “But what am I going to wear?”  She asked.

His grin was wolfish.  “If you’re good, I might give you a change of clothes.”

Mallory couldn’t help scowling up at him.

Stop moping!  Mallory ordered herself as she moped around her apartment.  It had only been two days since Jake left on his business trip, but it felt more like a week.  And she wasn’t comfortable with how they had parted.  Jake was clearly still shaken by her refusal of his offer to collar her.  But Mallory couldn’t commit to something like that when she wasn’t sure; it wasn’t fair to either of them.

He had called her twice since he had been gone, but their conversations had been mundane and brief.  Mallory was terrified that she had driven a permanent wedge between them by turning him down.  Could they ever move past this?  She decided that she was going to talk it out with him, to explain her feelings.  He was coming back into town tonight, and she wanted to have the conversation in person.  It might be a bit difficult, but she couldn’t bear the disconnect that she felt between them now.

Her heart leapt as her phone rang, and she quickly fished it out of her purse, anxious to hear Jake’s voice.  But when she saw the caller ID, she frowned.  “Blocked number.”  She decided to let it go to voicemail.  It was probably a solicitation call.

The call ended, but then the phone started ringing again immediately.  “Blocked number.”  Maybe it was just acting weird because Jake was calling from an international number?  But no, he was supposed to be arriving back in Charleston in a few hours; he had to be in the air right now.  Did he have a phone on his jet?

Mallory rolled her eyes at herself.  Of course he has a phone on his jet.  What doesn’t he have?

She answered quickly before the call could end.  “Hello?”

“Is this Mallory Williams?”  The voice was deep and distorted, like in movies when bad guys used voice modifiers to disguise themselves.

“Who is this?”  She asked, her voice suddenly high and nervous.  This had to be a prank or something.  But how did they know her name?

The voice didn’t answer her question.  “Bring me five-hundred-thousand dollars, or Jake Cleary dies.”

Mallory’s hands went numb, and the phone almost slipped from her fingers.  “What?”  She asked faintly.

“Bring me the money, or I’ll kill him,” the voice said simply.

Mallory was trembling.  This couldn’t be real, couldn’t be happening.  “How do I know you’re for real?”  She asked, trying to make her tone hard, but it was still high-pitched, terrified.

Then she heard Jake’s voice in the background, and her blood went cold.  “Mallory,” he groaned her name.

The End… For Now