Sinful Mates 1-3 novel Chapter 15

　　“She is staying at the storage lockers a block from here.” He dobbed on me. Tobias’ eyes dared me to try and lie my way out of it. I knew better than to try. How did he know though? No one knew, not even the manager as it was a weekend, and I hadn’t even had a chance to tell him about my car needing to be stored there. Feeling flustered, my hands became clammy, and I felt a bead of sweat run down the back of my neck. Did someone turn on a heater? I was suddenly starting to panic, I could feel my heart rate rising, hear the pounding inside my head. I was about to be fired; I was going to lose the last piece of normalcy left in my life. Then what? I didn’t know what I would do. File bankruptcy maybe? Try and get a job at Costco?

　　“I’m sorry, please don’t fire me. I need this job.” My words sounded pathetic and desperate. But I didn’t have a choice. I lose my job, I have nothing. Maybe they should fire me. I just wish they would speak instead of staring at me, they were making my anxiety go through the roof. I know what’s coming, just get it over with already. Rip that band aid off quick.

　　“We aren’t firing you, Imogen. We are just disappointed you didn’t say anything earlier. We could have helped sooner,” Theo said.

　　I dropped my head in my hands, relief flooding into me. I wasn’t going to lose my job. How could they help though? I got myself in this situation, I can get myself out of it. I don’t want help; they just need to let me be. I can handle this.

　　“I promise I won’t trespass again.” They both looked at me like they thought what I said was absurd. I suppose it kind of was, who lives where they work? Not a normal person, but hey I never claimed to be normal.

　　“No, you won’t. I spoke to Tom who said you would refuse any help, so I took it upon myself to not give you a choice,” Tobias told me. I stared, confused.

　　“You won’t be staying at the storage locker. Actually, there is no longer a storage locker. I have told him to not let you back, and I took the liberty to remove all your belongings to your apartment,” Tobias continued.

　　“I don’t have an apartment?” I told him, confused.

　　“I have moved you into our apartment building. You will be staying on the floor below us. This is nonnegotiable and if you don’t accept our help, I will fire you,” he stated.

　　Why would Tom say that to them, now they were dangling my job above my head like a carrot on a string.

　　I crossed my arms across my chest, defiant. This was absurd. I have barely had any contact with them outside the workplace, and now they were telling me I had to accept their offer of help for my job. Why the sudden interest in my life? Did Tobias follow me after work on Friday? I just couldn’t wrap my head around how he knew where I moved on to.

　　Not having much choice, “Fine,” I said through gritted teeth. This was so degrading and embarrassing. I have never accepted a handout, and it was killing me inside now I was being forced too.

　　Tobias nodded his head, accepting my answer. “Theo will take you home and help you unpack; I will see you in the morning.” He chuckled for some unknown reason. I raised an eyebrow at him. Theo motioned for me to follow and I did. Walking into the foyer, Theo grabbed my handbag that I kept under my desk and helped himself into it, fishing out my keys.

　　“We will go get your car from the storage locker, then head to your new apartment.” I rolled my eyes at him but followed him anyway. The elevator trip down to the ground floor was silent, when the doors opened, Theo grabbed my hand and started pulling me towards the exit. I must admit I like the feel of him holding my hand though is hand was a little chilly. He kept rubbing circles into the back of it while he tugged me along.

　　Once outside he walked through the park cutting through the bush, taking my short cut towards the storage facility. Has he been this way before? I couldn’t really picture Theo walking through here, and what possible reason would he have to walk through the bush to a storage facility? It is literally the only thing there on the other side it.

　　Being dragged along behind him, I had to jog to keep up with his long strides. When we came to the mesh fence, he stopped. He appeared to sniff the air for a second. I observed him closely, it was such a strange thing to do. I went to tell him where the entry was, when he spun around and walked towards the broken bit of fence. He stopped for a second and ran his fingers over a piece of wire that was sticking out. The same wire that slashed me open.

　　“I take it this is where you received that cut?” I nodded, but how did he know? I could barely see any blood on it. Shaking my thoughts out of my head, he pulled the mesh aside and I stepped through the opening.

　　Once I entered, I walked over to my car, which was still sitting in the carpark inside. I turned to retrieve my keys, knowing I would have to use my last twenty dollars in my account to put fuel in my beast. When I turned around hand out, I stopped. Theo cocked his head to the side examining my car.

　　“This is what you drive? It has more dents than a golf ball.” I rolled my eyes at him and snatched my keys from his hands. Unlocking my car, I walked around to the passenger side. Theo followed and watched as I frantically tried to clean the passenger footwell. Throwing clothes and empty bottles of liquor over the seat and into the back. When I finished, I stood back and motioned for him to get in.

　　“What?” I asked when he just stood there staring. He shook his head and climbed in. The seat was all the way forward and his knees were nearly pressed to his chest. He pulled the lever to slide the chair back but grabbed the wrong one and he was suddenly thrown backwards with enough force his head hit the head rest and he was now laying down. I snorted laughing at his unamused face. He cocked his eyebrow, not finding the funny side. I slammed the door and walked over to the driver’s side and hoped in. Theo was adjusting the chair and finally managed to get the seat to slide back giving him enough room to put his legs down. Regardless, he looked squished in my Civic.

　　Putting the key in the ignition, I turned it over. My car started and the fuel light turned on. Pulling out, I started driving to the closest gas station. Theo looked around my car, going through the loads of crap I had stored in it. Opening the glove box, I went to warn him, but it was too late. Paperwork fell all over his lap and the floor. Theo held up the glove compartment door in his hand that was now no longer attached to the car.

　　“You have to be gentle with her,” I said, rubbing my dash. “Now stop going through everything.”

　　“Gentle? There is nothing gentle about this car. What did you do to it? It’s falling apart at the seams I’m surprised it even runs.”

　　“Leave my car alone. Hey, I said stop going through my stuff,” I exclaimed as he started rummaging through the back. Turning back to the front, he held out a pair of my panties and an empty bottle of vodka.

　　“Looks like someone was having fun back there,” he retorted. I snatched my panties out his hand, now becoming annoyed at the invasion of privacy. Pulling into the servo, I got out and popped the cap. Just as I reached the servo doors, out stepped Theo. “Come on, I paid already. Let’s see if that death trap will start again,” he said ignoring me and walking past me towards my car. I threw up my hands, annoyed, and stomped after him.

　　Getting back to the car, Theo walked to the driver side. “You don’t know where we are going, hand the keys over.” I looked at my keys that were clutched in my hand. “I’ll be gentle, I promise,” he said, emphasising the word gentle. I tossed my keys at him and got in the passenger side. The drive to the apartment block wasn’t long, only about ten-minutes. When we pulled up out the front, I gasped.

　　The place looked more like some fancy hotel. All white with beautiful hedges and gardens full of roses. It also had a roundabout driveway with valet out the front. He pulled up next to the man out front. The bloke looked disgusted when Theo tossed him the keys. I suddenly felt more embarrassed knowing a stranger was going to see the state of my car.

　　Theo walked over, my handbag slung over his shoulder like he owned it. Reaching towards me, he grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the entrance.