Chapter 2 – Hans Gruber
Marianne pushed the door open, entering the first floor of the building. She decided to take the stairs instead of the elevator since it was closer. Her boots clicked along the floor as she continued to dig through her purse. So far, so good...Argyle is definitely trustworthy – whoa! Marianne came to a nearly screeching halt when she nearly plowed into a tall, good-looking man wearing a long gray coat over his black suit. Her heart nearly came to a stop from both fright and attraction.
"Oh, crap! I'm sorry! I wasn't watching where I was going..." she gasped, taking in the man's handsome features. He had soft dark hair that was neatly combed back, a well-trimmed beard, a pair of intense, glittering hazel eyes, and a beautiful face. He smiled and let out a chuckle.
"And who might you be?" he spoke. His voice was deep and velvety with a German accent. So...hot... Marianne snapped out of her brief spell, and attempted to answer his question.
"Uh...I was just heading up...I had to get my purse..." she stammered, her cheeks flushing. She watched him take his time looking her over: her legs, her small waist, her chest, her face, and even her hair. Marianne felt weak.
"I'm pretty sure I know where you are going," he said slowly. "But what I would love to have is your name."
"Oh!" Marianne mentally kicked herself. "Marianne...McClane."
The man smiled, revealing a set of white teeth. Oh my God, I love his smile! Marianne felt giddy. He extended his hand.
"Hans Gruber," he said. Marianne took his hand, and he covered her hand with his other hand while he shook it. "A *pleasure* to meet you..."
She felt like melting from his touch...
"Would you care to join my friends and I in the elevator to the thirtieth floor?" he asked, still smiling. So...kissable...
"Um...sure!" Marianne chirped. "I'd love to!"
Hans looked her over again, and then, leading a dazed Marianne by the hand, headed for the elevator. It was already crowded by several casually-dressed men holding large bags. But Marianne was very distracted by Hans to notice them – except that they took up a lot of space in the elevator. Oh, if we were only alone! I wonder what would happen?
One of the men standing by the entrance of the elevator pressed the button. The doors shut, and the elevator started to move. Marianne's heart skipped a beat as she shifted her weight towards Hans so that she was barely leaning against him. He glanced down at her and smiled.
"Do you work here?" he asked. Marianne glanced up at him. Their eyes locked, and butterflies fluttered in her stomach.
"No," she answered. "My mom does, though. I'm here with my dad from New York to visit her."
"Your parents aren't together?" he questioned, a hint of mock sadness in his voice.
"Unfortunately, they aren't," she replied, looking down at her feet. "I'd love for them to get back together, even if just for Christmas..."
There was silence. Marianne had the strongest urge to throw her arms around him, and bury her face in his neck, but she held herself back. Cool it, Marianne! She mentally scolded herself. He's still a stranger!
Then, the strangest thing happened – Hans pulled his hand out of his pocket, and rested it upon the center of Marianne's back. She felt shivers travel up her spine from his touch. Whoa, is he a mind reader, or just feels the same way I do? A hint of nervousness snuck into her system as she felt his hand slowly slide downwards...until she felt it stop right on top of her backside. Her eyes were watering from being held open so wide.
GROPER! Her mind screamed at him. As if to make matters worse, she could hear Hans's friends snickering quietly behind her. These guys are getting a kick out of this! And probably a boner, too...
She glanced at Hans out of her corner of her eye. He was focused on the elevator door, a somber expression on his face. Then – she felt his hand move again...downwards until he had a good handful of her left cheek. That's enough, Casanova.
"Don't get me wrong, Hans, but would you mind not doing that?" she asked as sweetly and as politely as she could. Hans faced her, a slight scowl on his brow. He snapped his hand away and shoved it into his pocket.
"My apologies," he curtly replied before turning away.
Shit! I knew it would piss him off. Marianne thought as she watched the floor numbers... "25...26...27...28...29,"
Just then, the men in the elevator started to unzip their bags all at once. Marianne felt her breathing stop when each man pulled out a machine gun out of their bags. What the... She felt Hans grab her tightly by the arm. She flinched as she turned and tried to glare at him, but she looked more fearful and confused than angry.
"Now, you promise to behave yourself when we give Mr. Takagi a little..." he smirked. "...Christmas surprise."
Terrified, Marianne kept her eyes on the elevator door. Ding! The doors opened, revealing the Christmas party. No one noticed them enter, their guns held ready. She found her Mom in the crowd, and tried to pull away from Hans, but he yanked her back against him.
"I'll let you go to her when I feel like it!" he growled into her ear. The closeness of his face and body to her own, and the feel of his breath against her cheek made Marianne shiver. She could see him study her lips during their 'close moment' before he pulled away, still holding her arm. Oh, God! Why do I always get myself involved with the wrong guys?
Yeah, I know. The chapter was short, but I wanted to get her meeting Hans before the fun stuff starts! Thanks for reading...and don't forget to leave a review!
