Royal Obsession

|| Eliana's POV ||

I flinched at the ominous racket of glass shattering downstairs. All I wanted was to run far away. After a long wistful sigh, a wry smile formed on my lips.

“Well, there’s no use of thinking like that. It’s absolutely impossible,” I grumbled aloud.

Mother was still here and she needed me. Why she was still here with that bastard, I’ll never know. And, to be honest, I didn’t want to know. But, she needed me and I knew that I would never leave her. “Family” surrounded us like a bunch of ravenous wolves, waiting for her to die. Another loud bang echoed through the halls and shook the windows. Whatever he did, that son of a bitch better not hurt her. My mother had long told me to never go near my stepfather when he was in one of his moods. My eyes narrowed at my door. Clenching my fists, I started to shake with rage. It was all I could do to not bolt out of my room and run to my mother’s side. However, per her instructions, I just stood there and stared at the door with gritted teeth.

John Mayer had married my mother a few years ago and, unknowingly to us, was a drunk—a really, really bad drunk. He hadn’t laid a hand on her the last few months, but he still hurled the furniture around. The first couple of times he raved about like this had scared me. However, with his behavior becoming a daily occurrence, my fear had been replaced by hatred and anger. Frustrated with it all, I rubbed my hands down my rumbled jeans. I needed to leave. I needed to get out of this hell hole and fill my lungs with fresh air. With my exhibition tomorrow, I needed to calm down and relax. To paint serene and beautiful pictures, one couldn’t be surrounded by crashing and banging noises all day.

I rubbed my temples in an attempt to stave off the slight beginnings of a headache. Peace… I just want some peace, I thought to myself.

As another loud thud reached its way into my room, I snatched up my phone. I scrolled through my contacts until I got to Max’s number and then slammed down my thumb. I met my best friend, Max Carter while going to school. We were in the same department at the time and found that we had a lot in common. Never being interested in my family or my money, he proved to be one of a kind. He was a true friend—my only friend, actually. I never got along with the girls in my class. They either approached me to use my money or family prestige to get into high-class parties. Their actions didn’t hurt too much. After all, I came from the upper crust of society and that meant that anyone could get away with anything if they possessed enough money. Which, they normally did. The phone kept ringing and I lowered the phone to disconnect the call, but then I heard him.

“Hey, baby girl! What's up?”

I rolled my eyes. He was only a friend to me, but I knew that he had some hope of moving forward to something else.

Groaning in frustration, I asked, “Where are you?”

He chuckled softly at my impatience. “I’m heading to the Underground, love. Why? Miss me?”

My eyes lit with excitement. Max had two favorite hobbies; irritating me and boxing. He excelled at both. He would invite me to his matches sometimes and I found that I also enjoyed boxing. It always fascinated me to watch Max go up against competitors that resembled the Hulk and not only win but beat them senselessly. Maybe it was because he was so fast. He wasn’t a professional boxer. He just did it because he liked it. Rather like me and my painting. Smiling and shaking my head, I cleared my throat.

“Can I come?”

He paused and then with a concerned tone asked, “What’s wrong, Eliana?”

Tears pricked my eyes. This is what I loved about Max the most. He could easily sense what I was feeling without me saying anything.

“It’s nothing, Max. I just need some fresh air.”

Switching back to his carefree self, he exclaimed, “My dear loyal fan, you are always welcome! Who else would cheer for me? Should I come over to pick you up?”

I giggled while grabbing my jacket. “No thanks! I’ll just take my bike. Don't start the match until I get there!”

He laughed. “I wouldn’t dare! You had better be on time unless you want me to lose the match.”

“I’m never late! See you soon!”

Disconnecting the call, I stood still and listened. The racket had stopped. Maybe he’s passed out now? Sighing in relief, I grabbed my bag and stuffed a couple of dollars in my pocket. Standing in front of the dresser, I glanced up to check my appearance. I wasn’t wearing any makeup and my oversized jacket made me look more like a teenager rather than an adult.

Oh well, there’s no time to change and Max won’t care anyway, I thought as I turned and walked to the door.

Poking my head out into the hallway, I took a cautious step forward and closed the door gently behind me. Stealing along the wall as quietly as I could, I made my way downstairs to the back door in the kitchen. As I crept out of the house and ran towards my motorcycle, I felt giddy. No one had seen me and my lungs were filling up with the crisp autumn air.

I hopped onto my bike and whirred towards the main entrance. The guard respectfully opened the gate for me. Luckily, Mother never gave the guards strict instructions regarding my comings and goings. I glanced back at the house and then tore through the gate at a rapid speed. Not even a block away, my body immediately started to relax. Hell, I still couldn’t believe I left undetected.

Making my way through downtown, I started to hum my favorite song. Being almost midnight, the roads were almost deserted. It was so beautiful and relaxing to not have cars buzzing around. I loved riding at night. Quickly, I made a mental note to include neon street lamps and the way that they cast a soft orange glow onto the street in my next painting.

Coming up to a red light, I shifted into neutral and came to a stop. Looking around, I only spotted two cars that had stopped aside of me. My mind started to race with ideas for my next painting when suddenly I felt my bike dip slightly. Someone had gotten on the back! Preparing myself to let out a scream, I felt a warm hand on my back and heard a deep pleading voice.

“Please… don't. Don’t scream. I’m not going to hurt you. I just really need a ride. Please! It’s extremely important.”

What the actual hell? I squeezed the brake and contemplated if I should shift roughly into first and send the stranger flying backward. How dare he get on my bike and demand a ride?

______

Instinctively, my muscles tightened as I heard the man grumble incoherently behind me. He was saying something about bad timing. I tightened my grip on the handle bars. I should just knock him off and run the light. In all reality, who wouldn’t? It was late at night and some crazy bastard jumped on the back of my bike. Not only did he almost give me a heart attack, but he practically begged me to give him a ride like he was facing a life-or-death situation. Maybe he was. I let out an exasperated breath. If Max found out about this, he would never let me come to one of his matches again! Well, at least not by myself. The light turned green. I lifted the visor on my helmet and started to turn to tell the guy to get the fuck off of my bike. But before I could do so, I heard three very loud and angry voices booming behind us.

“Where the hell is he?”

“Fuck! How is he that fast?”

“Do you guys know if he recorded everything?”

I groaned and shook my head. “Friends of yours?” I asked with all the sarcasm I could muster.

He swore under his breath. Leaning forward, he ground out, “Unless you want us both to end up in some deep shit, I suggest we go. Now!”

Revving the engine, I nodded my head vigorously. Those men didn’t sound like they just wanted to talk. My foot slammed down on the shifter and we bolted down the street.

“Where to?” I yelled.

“Anywhere away from here! Just don’t stop!” he shouted back.

He sounded… afraid? No, not exactly afraid. He was impatient. Just who the hell was he?

“Hold on,” I grumbled.

|| Eliana's POV ||

Immediately, his arms wrapped around my waist and I shifted up to fifth gear. A warm fuzzy feeling started to churn deep in my stomach. I wasn’t sure if it was due to the stranger’s arms around my waist or if it was due to how fast we were barreling down the road. I loved racing through the night on my bike with the wind whipping against my body. The voices of the men quickly disappeared and I didn’t dare to look down to see how fast I was going. Sending up a silent prayer for all the policemen in the area to be busy with something else, I sped up. Thankfully, the roads were fairly empty so I wasn’t afraid of getting into an accident.

“Where can I drop you?” I asked loudly.

“Anywhere!” he shouted and tightened his grip around my waist. “Just keep going!”

Grunting in aggravation, I made my way toward the Underground. Fine. If he didn’t have a specific place in mind then he was just going to have to be okay with my destination. I just wanted this lunatic off my bike.

About ten minutes later, I pulled into the Underground lot and parked. Hoping off my bike, I looked toward the entrance and took a deep breath. This place was a local stomping ground for boxing enthusiasts. Most of the participants were from prominent families who wanted to enjoy their hobby without dealing with the disapproval of their parents. Thanks to my input, Max had been able to get in and quickly became a regular member.

Taking a step forward, I took off my helmet and with a sly smile thought of how my mother would kill me if she knew that I was here. She thought that people came to places like this to have illicit relations. Well, she wasn’t wrong. But, Max and I always steered clear of things like that. We just came for the boxing.

Remembering the idiot behind me, I spun around. My breath caught in my throat as I looked at the man getting off my bike like he fucking owned it. He was so tall. Over six and a half feet at least! How in the hell was he able to stay on the back of my sports bike? My eyes fell on his expansive chest. No doubt in my mind that this man was extremely fit. I could even make out his taut muscles despite the fact he wore a hoodie. Looking up into his face, which was halfway covered by the hood, I noticed a small amount of stubble lining his chiseled jaw. I took a self-preservation step backward. Seeing me move away from him, he pulled down his hood so that I could see him better. Instantly, I met his gaze and froze. His eyes were a dark bluish greenish—ocean. Yes, his eyes were the same color as the ocean. My throat felt dry, so I cleared my throat. For whatever reason, that seemed to snap me out of my stupefied state.

Glaring at him, I yelled, “Are you crazy!? How can you just hop on a stranger’s bike?”

He grinned. “Hmm, well…” he drawled. “If you think about it, you’re the one that’s crazy. You didn’t even try to kick me off. Don’t you know how dangerous it is to give a random stranger a ride?”

Suppressing the need to scowl at him for his arrogance, I crossed my arms and let out a sarcastic snort, “Is that the sort of thing you say to someone who just helped you out of, and I’m just guessing here, a dire situation?”

He chuckled. It was a deep comforting sound and it warmed my whole body right down to my toes.

Staring at me with those devastatingly blue eyes, he smiled and asked, “Do you want to know why I needed your help?”

I raised a brow. “Are you going to tell me?”

He leaned against my bike and gave me an assessing look. “Will you believe me?” he shot back.

I pressed my lips into a thin line. What was it with this man answering a question with another question?

I shrugged. “I don’t know.”

He seemed surprised by my honesty. Giving me a small smile, he said, “My best friend was blackmailed by her boyfriend in the past couple of months. For some stupid reason, they had made a sex tape a while back and he kept using it as leverage against her.” He shoved his hands into his pockets and let out an exasperated sigh before he continued.

“I broke into his house and took the tape. Unfortunately, I was seen and ended up being chased by those three creeps you heard after I had hopped on your bike.”

Well, that was elaborate, I thought. He sounded sincere and his concern for his friend truly warmed my heart.

Giving him a genuine smile, I said, “I don’t think you’re lying so I’ll believe you Mr. —”

His smile widened and my heart stopped for a second. Jesus, this man was bad for my health.

Stretching out his hand, he said, “My name is Daniel D...” he paused abruptly and cleared his throat. “Daniel Rodriguez. My name is Daniel Rodriguez, nice to meet you.”

Taking his proffered hand, I said, “Nice to meet you, Daniel. I’m Eliana Stewart.”

His hand was warm and at that moment I felt safe. I wasn’t sure if this was a good thing or not because I usually hated meeting new people. But, his whole carefree attitude put me at ease. The loud round of applause that was coming from the Underground brought me back to the present moment and I remembered why I came here in the first place. What was I doing wasting my time with this person anyway?

Wanting to end this bizarre encounter as quickly as possible, I drew back my hand and said brusquely, “It’s been a slice, Mr. Rodriguez but I have to go now. Good luck with your friend!”

Walking toward the entrance, I glanced over my shoulder to see if he had left. But, to my surprise, he was walking right beside me. I stopped and raised my brows in question.

“Are you going into this club, Miss Stewart? Honestly, I wouldn't recommend this one. A lot of… unsavory people spend their time here.”

Irritated, I shrugged off his concern. “You don’t need to worry about me. I can take care of myself and besides my friend is inside waiting for me.”

I could hear the officiator calling Max’s name and I quickly started walking. I promised him that I wouldn’t be late!

Daniel caught up with me and asked, “Can I come with you? I don’t have anything else to do tonight anyway.”

I turned and leveled an annoyed look at him. “Why don’t you just go home?”

He stared down at me and with a sheepish grin, he said, “I just want to make sure that the girl who saved my sorry ass is safe. At least let me walk you to where you’re meeting your friend.”

My shoulders slumped in resignation. It’s not like I could stop him anyway and Max would be there. I chewed on my lower lip and then turned around to show the security guard my pass.

“I guess it wouldn’t hurt for you to come with me but I only have my pass,” I muttered as I dug through my bag for my I.D. “How are you going to get in?”

As if to answer my question, he brushed past me and said to the guard, “Daniel Rodriguez, a friend of Harman Graviel.”

My head snapped up. He was friends with Harman Graviel?! I stared at him in disbelief. Mr. Graviel was one of the foremost prosperous businessmen of the city. He had numerous bars and he even owned the Underground. But, it must have been true because the guard gave us a curt nod and we walked inside. I didn’t even have to show my I.D. That was a first. I stared up at Daniel and wondered about his background. He came from a wealthy family if he was able to announce that he was friends with Harman Graviel. But, my mother’s voice resounded in my head warning me not to pry into his personal affairs. Besides, after tonight, I was probably never going to see him again.

As we walked toward the arena, it became more crowded and I had to move closer to him to avoid getting stepped on. I felt my hand graze against his. It was for a brief moment, but the heat that I had felt radiating from his large hand made me inhale a sharp breath. I could feel my cheeks warming slightly and I instantly shoved my hands into my pockets. I glanced over to his hand, wondering what it would be like to have it engulf mine.