《Taken by a Beast》


 Chapter 1

    There once was a girl who worked very hard to achieve her dream. And that was to save her father from his illness. It was Friday night when she worked late and she was ready to go home. But something unexpected happened, which truly changed her life forever.


    "This came for you again," her friend spoke beside her, giving her an envelope.


    She took it from her and opened it with an excited grin. She wasn''t surprised at all. There was almost a hundred bucks inside.


    "Someone has a secret admirer," her friend sang, giving her a wink.


    For the past few weeks, someone had been giving her a large tip and she still didn''t know what she did. Had she been such a good waitress to receive this kind of generosity?


    "Do you know who it is?"


    She looked up at her friend and shook her head. "I have no idea."


    Every other day, it was always given to her in an envelope. At the back, a name was written ¡ª DB.


    This person, whoever it was, just kept giving her these tips without introducing themselves. As far as she knew, most people liked getting recognition for doing a good deed. She would have liked to thank them, or ask why she was getting too much.


    She had never received this kind of generosity before. But somehow, it made her feel special.


    Despite everything, she needed this money. Her father was sick and she needed enough to pay for his medication. He needed her and she was the only one left to take care of him.


    And so, she promised herself that she would always be grateful to her secret admirer, whoever he was.


    Shaking away her thoughts, she looked at her friend and gave a sweet smile. "You know what, it''s getting late. I should probably go home."


    Her friend was also smiling down at her. Sometimes, she felt like her friend pitied her, knowing her situation. She was the youngest waitress working in this restaurant and everyone knew how much she needed the money.


    "Sure, would you like me to give you a ride?"


    "Oh, it''s okay. I can handle myself." Besides, her home was far away so she didn''t want her friend to get exhausted from the long ride.


    "You take care on your way home."


    With a nod, she quickly put the envelope to her bag and began to prepare herself to go home.If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.


    She remembered the first time she got a big tip. It was a few weeks ago and it was from a man that came to the restaurant and sat at the far side of the room.


    Now, she never knew him nor did she see his face. But it seemed like he was a shy guy. And then, he kept visiting the restaurant again and again. She never really got the chance to talk to him.


    One thing she knew for sure was that he always wore a black hoodie and he was so tall. She had a feeling that it was him who kept giving her these tips all along. Thanks to him though, her father was now getting better.


    Finally, she was walking down the street on her way home. The darkness at night never really bothered her and she was used to it. But it was only this time that she felt so conscious. It felt like someone was watching her.


    Her heart was beating fast inside her chest as she tried to quicken her pace. But then, she felt it in an instant.


    She began walking towards a corner when large hands suddenly grabbed her waist and she slammed against a hard chest


    Instinctively, she pushed against him but he kept his strong arms around her, keeping her locked and unable to escape.


    "Don''t scream," she heard a deep voice whispering in her ear. A shiver ran down her spine as she felt something cold against her neck. When she tried to look up, she saw nothing. The darkness shadowed over the man''s face and his eyes were dark and cold.


    "Please, le-let me g-go," she begged, her voice breaking. "I''ll give you anything you want. Just let me go."


    "Apparently, there''s no way for me to do both, sweetheart."


    Light tears gathered in her eyes and swiftly rolled down her cheeks. She couldn''t stop it. "What do you want?"


    In the darkness, his eyes sparkled with mischief and she saw his lips forming into an evil grin. "Revenge."


    Revenge?


    Her mind was muffled with confused thoughts. All her life, she''d been a good girl, obedient to the rules, never rebelled against her parents. As far as she was concerned, she never liked violence. So how come there was a man claiming to partake an act that she never asked to be a part of?


    What was she doing? She shouldn''t be this weak. She had to fight him. Without thinking, she pushed him hard with all her strength. He was like a brick wall. He didn''t stumble back nor move. He was just surprised and she used that to her advantage.


    Turning around, she ran away quickly. She reached about a few meters down the street when she felt strong arms around her waist. "Wrong move, sweetheart," he stated, his deep voice rumbling into her ear.


    Try with all she might, she struggled against his hold but he only tightened his grip around her. He was obviously so strong compared to her. Just as she was about to be lifted up and taken away, the man was suddenly thrown to the ground with a loud thud.


    It was dark and she couldn''t see clearly. But to her amazement, her heart knew in an instant that she was being saved. Yet she couldn''t see her savior. In a second, the evil man was gone quickly, as if he teleported to somewhere else without leaving a trace. Perhaps she was dreaming. She hugged herself, feeling her heart beating fast inside her chest. It was the first time that something like this happened to her.


    It was so surreal that she almost felt like fainting.


    A warm coat was being wrapped around her. When she looked up, she met deep brown eyes. She couldn''t see his face clearly and she badly wanted to. She didn''t have the strength to speak, didn''t have the courage to thank him.


    Tears began to pool in her eyes and she began crying silently. She couldn''t process what was going on and couldn''t think of anything else. Right then, she felt strong arms wrapping around her, giving her warmth and safety. He caressed her hair and rubbed her back as she buried her face to his chest.


    "You''re safe now, baby doll. No one''s going to hurt you," he assured her over and over again.

 Chapter 2

    She woke up to the sunlight sipping through the cracks of the white curtains from an unknown room. Sitting up, she looked around the room and at herself. She was only wearing a large black shirt, which she didn¡¯t own, and her pink underwear underneath.


    What the hell?


    Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion as she tried to remember what happened last night. As soon as images flashed back to her memories, her eyes widened in shock. She must have fainted in her savior''s arms but what she couldn''t understand was why she was here now in an unknown room.


    Where was she? Was last night only a dream? She needed to find a way out of here. She had to go to work too. With quick breaths, she stood up on the floor and headed to the door. Thankfully, it wasn''t locked. She could see that there were no people outside. Carefully, she walked towards the end of the hall and down the staircase.


    She was left in awe. This place seemed like a really large house. The ceilings were high up and the furniture showed royalty.


    Soon enough, she ended up in the kitchen. Her stomach grumbled loudly when she saw the fridge. She ignored her hunger, knowing it shouldn''t be an issue right at this moment. In case of danger, she searched the cabinets for knives. None.


    She leaned against the counter and stood on her tiptoes, searching the cupboards. When she heard a silent curse behind her, she froze. Turning around, she saw a man standing there, staring at her.


    Her eyes widened in surprise.


    He was tall and handsome. His hair was a wild chaotic mess but it was beautiful. She caught his eyes and they were dilated. She had never seen someone''s eyes this dark before.


    What totally shocked her was that he''s half-naked. His bare chest is ripped and his muscles were well-defined. Every indent was killing her.


    He eyed her up and down and her whole body melted underneath his gaze. Could you blame her? She was only in her underwear. How would she not feel naked underneath his stare?


    He began walking towards her in a predatory action and she backed away, hitting the counter with her back side.


    "Baby doll."


    She froze. He was the man from last night? She called her baby doll! All this time, she thought he was an old man. And he looked kind of young, perhaps around his early 30s.


    Why did he look so much like a fallen angel right now when he acted so strong like a beast last night? She vaguely remembered it but she knew how strong he was. The man who tried to kill her was forcefully thrown on the ground. Was he that strong?


    But did he also change her clothes? Did he perhaps touch her indecently? Oh, god, what was she thinking?


    "About last night, thank you for saving me," she muttered under her breath. "I must have fainted," she laughed. "Can you take me home?"


    "You''re staying here," he stated. "We''re not sure if you''re truly safe yet. That rogue¡ª" Then he stopped himself as he looked at her. "That man will come back for you. And there''s no way for me to protect you if you''re not with me."


    That man? She barely even knew the man but how come that he wanted to get to her? This man bust be crazy.


    "Look, I appreciate your concern, sir. But I need to go home. I''ll promise to be careful from now on."


    "I can''t let you do that."


    What? The anger was slowly gathering inside her chest like a storm and she desperately wanted to punch him. Slap him. Anything.


    He must have sensed her anger because she knew very well how she was glaring at her too much. It felt as if she wanted to shoot daggers at his forehead. But that didn''t stop him from walking towards her.A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    He neared and stood in front of her, towering above her small figure. It wasn''t a surprise that she was too small for his height, so she came face to face with his bare chest.


    Right then, she remembered last night. How he hugged her and tried to calm her down. How she felt his breathing underneath his palms and heard his fast beating heart underneath her ear. Despite everything, she was glad he came to save her.


    "Look at me," he ordered, lifting her chin and forcing her to meet his eyes. Even then, she kept her glare but he didn''t budge. He matched her own stare and placed his hands past her sides and on the table, as if to intimidate her and lock her.


    "You''re wearing my shirt, baby doll," he murmured, emphasizing his words by snaking his hands underneath the shirt she was wearing and touching her sensitive skin.


    She shivered and she knew he felt it, because a smirk came up on his face and he said, "I want it back."


    "Don''t touch me," she hissed as he played with the waistband of her underwear. His eyes sparkled like he was enjoying her anger so much.


    He leaned down and looked deeply into her eyes. He was challenging her. His eyes lowered to her lips as he slowly descended. She could feel his warm breath fanning her face and, god, he smelled so good.


    Was he going to kiss her?


    The thought itself by every second was highly appealing. Every common sense she had in her brain was fading away. He smelled so wonderfully but he was too close for comfort and she couldn''t take it anymore.


    Just before he could lower his lips an inch to meet hers, she pushed him away. Hard. With all the strength she could muster.


    He didn''t stumble back too much but it was enough to give some space to breathe and run away from him. She didn''t even know where she was heading to but before she could think about it, large hands enveloped her waist and her back slammed against a rock hard body.


    God, he''s fast!


    He growled and pressed her against the table beside her so that he was locked between him and the table. Wait, did she just hear him growl?


    It couldn''t be possible.


    Last night, she could have sworn she heard him growling too and she heard him growl today. Was he a dog or something? She must be dreaming.


    "Don''t run away from me," he said roughly and she felt everything underneath her shaking.


    "Or what?" she retorted through gritted teeth.


    Was he insane? He couldn''t just order her around. She was a human too and she had dignity.


    "I''ll take you on this table," he warned and to punctuate his warning, he pressed himself firmly against her backside and she felt his little friend hardening against her.


    She froze. Was he going to force himself on her? The thought of her and this beast doing it together in this position made her want to claw her eyes out. She just couldn''t picture it. It was disgusting. She had goosebumps just thinking about it.


    He sensed it, she knew. He could smell her head and perhaps he liked it, because he kissed her bare shoulder which was shown by the large black shirt she was wearing which was his.


    She shivered when she felt his lips lingering on her skin and she felt it all the way down her spine. Butterflies erupted in her stomach. No one had ever kissed her there before.


    He continued kissing her shoulder and brushed his lips up the bare side of her neck. It was a wonder why her hair seemed to be out of his way, as if her body actually wanted this.


    His lips were soft and warm. It was definitely against his physique. His lips ran along the end of her jaw and he slightly bit her earlobe. She had no idea what he was doing but it felt weird and strangely.. pleasurable.


    Gosh, what  was she thinking?


    She didn''t even realize that she was already closing her eyes and tilting her head a little as if offering him more access. His hands went underneath the shirt she was wearing and his fingers brushed against her underwear, rounding her hips and touching her stomach.


    She clenched her fists. "Stop," she rasped. Even she didn''t recognize her own voice.


    Grunting, he turned her around and quickly grabbed her, easily throwing her over his shoulder. She met his bare back. He had a very muscular back, she noticed. And since he was walking towards god knows where, his tattoo and defined muscles rippled in every movement.


    "Put me down!" she demanded, reddening in anger. He just threw her over his shoulder and she knew her butt was hanging over in display!


    This was so embarrassing. She''d never been one to be too comfortable in her own body. Finally, he put her down and placed her on a stool behind a table. A pretty girl walked in and placed a plate of lasagna in front of her.


    She noticed how she didn''t look up at her nor at him. She kept her head lowered and her eyes out of view beneath her thick bangs until she walked out of the kitchen without a single word.


    A hand slamming on the table brought her out of her gaze. She looked up.


    "Eat," he commanded and his voice left no space for discussion.


    Her eyebrows knitted together and her hands clenched on her lap. "I''m not a child," she hissed through gritted teeth.


    "Then stop acting like one," he retorted.


    "And stop acting like you''re my father."


    "You''re being difficult. Just eat the damn food."


    She crossed her arms over her chest. "I''m not hungry," she said stubbornly.


    His nostrils flared and she could almost imagine his ears smoking.


    "Eat or you won''t like what I''ll do to you on this table," he warned darkly, his eyes dilating.