Watch me

by Writertron

sequel to "Don't worry: I will". I disclaim

Scowling furiously, Alex glared at the wall in front of her. It was bare brick, dark and dirty with discolouration from water trickling down it. Evidently, despite the lucrative aspects of her captor's business, Mr "I'm going to take over the world" couldn't even get a decent architect to build his "base of supreme evil" without leaks. Idiot. But oh no, what was she thinking? He wasn't an idiot or a madman or a mass murderer – he was just misunderstood.

She snorted. It was pretty difficult to misunderstand a gun barrel shoved in your face, and the chains around her wrists were not helping the whole "innocent vibe" the guy had been trying to give off.

She huffed irritably, straightening her posture, hoping to ease the strain in her wrists and shoulders. Her hands were cuffed and hooked above her on a chain suspended from the ceiling, the perfect height to stop her doing anything… untoward, as her captor had said.

"I believe that the wall is already dead, Alex," an annoyingly familiar voice told her dryly.

She stiffened – and no, her heart did not leap, just jolted in shock - then relaxed, angry that she still hadn't heard him coming, and there wasn't even any background noise in this sorry-excuse-for-a-cell to cover his movements. "You seriously need a psychologist, Yassen," she snapped, not looking around.

"Ouch," he said, amused. "That's a harsh greeting." He moved closer to her through the shadows of the cell, and when he spoke again he could see her start at how close his voice was. "What have I done to deserve that?"

Alex ground her teeth and told herself firmly that the chills racing up and down her spine were caused by the fact that it was bloody cold in this damp hole and were absolutely nothing to do with the assassin behind her who was not even passably handsome, even when he had just woken up and was sitting topless beside her on the bed with the dawn sun making his white-blond hair gold and his ice-blue eyes smirking down at her teasingly… Alex hastily shut off her thoughts. No. He was not handsome at all. And how would she know what he looked like topless anyway? "Something to do with the fact that you have yet again managed to turn up even though nobody knows I'm here?" she managed to snark back with her usual level of barely-restrained ire.

He made a soft sound in his throat, and she had to remind herself that she had absolutely no reason to know that particular noise meant that he was smirking. It wasn't like she'd spent any time with him. Or spent any of that time-not-spent-with-him breathlessly memorising his every quirk and feature, like the way his fridge was arranged in neatly labelled containers in alphabetical order, or the way he would sneak looks at her from under his eyelashes which smouldered like blue embers behind a blond grate when she stretched. "I have a feeling that you may be about to quote your belief that I am a stalker," he commented, a sly undercurrent in his otherwise mild, unconcerned tone.

She rolled her eyes. "Are you going to deny it?"

He laughed softly, and she shivered again, and no, it was not because that low laugh made her think of silk and candlelight and warmth and amazing hands gliding across her bare skin, but because ruthless assassins laughing was just plain creepy. End of. "I'm sure I've said this before, cub. Someone needs to keep you out of trouble."

…and the word "cub" was just a word, and didn't associate in any way, shape or form with anything except possibly the hellish eternity she had been forced to spend with the SAS in Wales, since those idiots at MI6 seemed to think that anything constructive could happen when they dumped a fourteen-year-old girl in a training camp for an elite, male-only regiment. She still had no idea how Blunt had pulled that one. "I'm doing just fine on my own," she retorted.

She could practically hear his raised eyebrow. "Is that so, cub?"

Alex heard him move this time, closer to her, so close that she could feel his body heat against her back. She froze, not daring to move, since if he was that close, it would only take a tiny shift back on her part for them to touch, and she absolutely one-hundred-percent did not want that to happen. At all. Ever.

"You're very tense, cub," he murmured in her ear, and she saw his hand out of the corner of her eye, gliding through the air towards her. "And these…" Hearing the thoughtful note in his voice, she couldn't stop herself peeking upwards to see him tap a finger on the metal of her handcuffs.

The clanking of the heavy bolt and multiple locks on the cell door echoed harshly around them. Before Alex could blink, the assassin's presence at her back was gone, although she was pretty certain that he was still around, watching her. She shook her head irritably, focussing her attention on the smirking idiot strutting towards her from the doorway. Her lip curled. That smirk really didn't suit him, she decided. On Yassen, however… She cursed under her breath. Focus! It wasn't like she cared what Yassen looked like when he smirked.

"Good afternoon, my dear," he drawled, probably thinking that he sounded suave and – as sickening as it was – attractive. Alex tried not to cringe at the endearment, which she hated even more than yogodka… Not that she knew how sleepy Russians might be liable to address their bedmates as small pieces of fruit. "How are you liking your stay?"

She rolled her eyes, knowing that he couldn't see. "It's just wonderful, thanks. You have no idea how thrilled I am at your hospitality."

He ignored the dripping sarcasm. "Really, it's regrettable that I don't have more time to spend in your… scintillating presence."

Alex tried not to shudder. He probably thought that was a pick-up line sure to have every woman in earshot drooling over him. She, on the other hand, very much doubted he even knew what "scintillating" meant. "Is that so?" she asked, tone unconcerned. "Pity."

He came closer, evidently trying to showcase his manliness. She drew in a long, slow breath to counter any rising nausea. "You know, if only you would reform… perhaps do me a few favours to show me your conviction…" Her restraint snapped inside her. She turned her head towards him, quirking a mock-curious eyebrow, waiting now, just waiting for him to be in the right place, the lecherous bastard… "Then I'm sure…" He was nearly there now, almost directly behind her, hands reaching around her front towards her chest area, mouth close to her ear. "That we could come to some… agreement."

Yassen watched in amusement, invisible in the shadows as he saw the tension in Alex's body change, recognising it to now be that of a hunter, a wildcat lying in wait. The idiot trying to hit on her had no idea what he was getting into, the poor bastard. He looked on avidly, waiting for the moment… Now. Alex sprang into action, moving like a whip, fluid and graceful as she leaned forwards, shifted her balance and kicked the man full strength in the groin. He smirked in satisfaction, certain that the man had fainted dead away, most likely suffering from permanent damage to the site of impact. That was almost as effective as the castration he had felt the urge to inflict on the man as he had approached the teenager.

He took a moment to appreciate her form as he paused in the shadows, lips twisting into a different kind of satisfied smirk as he recalled how she looked when less… clothed. She was wearing the same sort of clothes as usual, he noticed, although she didn't have her coat at the moment, and was wearing combat slacks rather than jeans. He wondered what it would take to get her to wear a dress. She had the potential to look enchanting in the right style. He looked on as she relaxed back into a neutral stance, no doubt uncomfortable putting force onto the cuffs that held her securely. His eyes strayed back to the restraints in question, his earlier curious thought re-emerging.

"So…" Alex said to the apparently-devoid-of-conscious-beings room, continuing their previous conversation as if there had been no interruption. "You were saying?"

She heard him laugh again. "Very nice work, cub," he remarked. This time he appeared in front of her, walking towards her with a faint smirk on his lips, icy blue eyes eyeing her in a way that made her shift uncomfortably, wishing that she could move.

"I'm glad you appreciated it," she snapped, defensive as he continued to watch her, and no, she did not recognise that look, and she was not aware that it heralded something… inventive. "Are you going to get me down or not?"

He stepped closer, gaze travelling over her body, and she blushed hotly, giving him a sudden death glare. He smirked wickedly, eyes smouldering at her for a moment before becoming reflective again. "Yes, this works," he murmured, tilting his head to one side to get another angle. "Definitely worth exploring…" Alex wanted to hit him, frustrated, but then his hands were suddenly holding her close to his iron-strong body and his mouth covered hers, and all she could do was wriggle and try to slam her foot down on his instep.

He released her, smirking, and she glared, furious. "For god's sake, Yassen, I've told you a thousand times: I'm not interested." He mused on how attractive she looked when she glared, blonde hair mussed, brown eyes spitting fire, cheeks flushed and breasts heaving as she panted angrily. Yes, this was a good idea.

She opened her mouth to continue her statements of denial and he silenced her simply by placing his hands on her hips. "Let's go, cub." He lifted her up, her handcuffs unhooking from the chain holding them, and set her down easily.

Alex rolled her shoulders in relief, taking a step forwards as he turned to walk towards the door before she caught herself. "Not interested, Yassen," she called after him.

He stopped, half-turning his head back to her, eyebrow raised enquiringly. "You're not interested in getting out of here?"

She cursed and strode after him, knowing she wouldn't get out on her own. "Bloody assassin…"

Yassen's lips twitched as he heard the now-familiar insult. "It's not far," he said, leading the way.

Alex followed him swiftly, still muttering swear words. Soon she recognised their surroundings, and then they were in a car park. "Any chance you could let me out of these?" she demanded, annoyed, holding her still-cuffed hands up. She wouldn't be able to get anywhere tied up.

Ice-blue eyes turned to look at her, amusement teasing at the corner of his lips. "I don't think so, cub."

Her eyes widened as she recognised – no, dammit, she did not recognise this tone – the colours in the sound of his voice, slightly husky, definitely not sending chills down her spine. "Yassen…" she growled warningly, shifting her stance, ready to fight or flee.

He took a step towards her, entire expression speaking of faint amusement. "I think they would aid in some… experiments, cub."

Alex took a step back. No, she did not like where this was going, and she most definitely in no way ever felt a thrill go through her, leaving her breathless and wide eyed, butterflies and warmth pooling in her stomach.

She bared her teeth in a snarl. "You wouldn't dare…" She regretted the challenge instantly, knowing what his response would be. Stupid...

He was in front of her before she could blink, easily sweeping her up into his arms. He looked down at her, holding her tighter as she tried to struggle, revelling in the feeling of her body against his. "Watch me."

so, there's a sequel. I hope it carried the same vibe as the last one. look out for more coming... maybe.