“We could also sit in my car and turn on the heater,” he offered, and the thought of the two of us in his car triggered two completely different feelings. Fear and excitement.
Damn it, Julie. He is your best friend. Where were these bundles of emotions suddenly coming from?
“If you want to kidnap me, go ahead...” I blurted out unintentionally, sounding more confident than expected. “But then you'll have to accept that I'll forever compare you to Zeus.”
Now he grinned.
“Why does it sound like you want to be kidnapped?” he joked, which put me at ease. “Haven't you had enough of my obsession with gods? I wouldn't talk about anything else all the time...”
This time I had to smile, which he replied.
How much I would love to see him without his mask now...
Erik's look became more serious. “But no, J, if you don't want to do that, we can stay here.”
He looked at me insistently.
If it hadn't been so dark, I could have seen the color of his eyes and maybe even hints of the rest of his appearance.
“I want to,” I said firmly and reached for his hand. Warmth flooded my fingertips, which seemed almost numb. He flinched almost unnoticeably, probably at least as surprised by my sudden touch as I was.
“Your skin...” he began in a hoarse voice. “So soft...and yet so cold.”
Instantly, I took my hand out of his, but he pulled it back and drew me even closer to him. And then he leaned forward.
“Next time, I will invite you to my fireplace, and you can have hot chocolate.”
Another wave of heat shot through my cheeks.
His words eased something inside me, the tension I seemed to go through life with. He destroyed it completely. It was the fact that he made me feel wanted. But I didn't know how to deal with it.
“You seem like a good host,” I laughed sheepishly and the right corner of his mouth turned upwards.
“Only with the people I kidnap...” He raised his hand, which held a key. “And while we're at it.” The lights of the large car next to us lit up dimly. “I'd like to take you to the underworld with this.”
He let go of my hand and opened the backseat door, only to gesture to the inside of the car.
“You can still escape from me, J.”
The tingling in my stomach intensified, making my knees go weak.
“I've always wanted to know what it's like down there...” I let myself in on his play on words and climbed into his car, not without the nervousness threatening to swallow me up.
Erik opened the front door, leaned in to start the engine, and pressed a button – the heated seats, no doubt – then he threw in his suit jacket, closed the driver's door again and got in the back with me.
Adrenaline flooded through me, and it felt...good.
I immediately felt the warmth of the heated seats and the soft, smooth leather beneath me. The car seemed rather new.
“It's okay... I'm nervous, too,” he laughed and turned to me, leaning into the seat and looking so incredibly relaxed. “May I?” He pointed at my hands. “I don't want you to freeze and have any negative memories of our first meeting.”
I nodded, and again he took my hands in his.
Damn, this man was warm.
“Trust me, the only thing I'd remember negatively would be a kidnapping where I didn't get the promised hot chocolate by the fireplace and a history lesson from your philosophy books at the end.”
The words came easily from my lips. It was as if we were in the chat and even though I was nervous, I managed to be J. And that felt...good.
Was that the effect of Gloria's serum?
“Does the kidnapped lady have any book wishes?”
“She'd like to know more about Atlantis.”
His smirk softened, and he looked down at our hands. And he hesitated...
“Are you all right?” I asked in uncertainty.
Had I said something wrong?
“I often have wild theories, J, whose origins I can't explain to you. You'd call me crazy...” he began and stroked my hand, lost in thought. “In real life, I think I'm someone you wouldn't like.”
My heart suddenly felt heavy. He had the same worries as I did. And I highly doubted that I would ever be able to dislike this person in front of me.
“I'm shy in real life...” I revealed with hesitation, looking down with warm cheeks.
He paused. I felt his gaze on me, but glanced at his masculine hands.
