Elliott followed Vanessa Grant into the room, but his body had reached its limit. He had only just managed to slip on the jacket when his legs buckled beneath him. He would have crashed to the floor if Vanessa hadn't stepped forward and caught him. The weight of him drove her back a step, but she steadied herself and guided him slowly toward the bed before pushing him down unceremoniously as she tried to catch her breath.
He looked at her with hazy eyes, still unsure whether to trust her or not. His hands clenched at his side. If she tried to so much as touch him, he would fight her, drugged or not.
But Vanessa didn't touch him again. Instead, she stepped back a pace, then bent to grab his legs. With surprising determination, she lifted them and shoved him fully onto the bed. Her breath escaped in a small huff of exertion.
"For a man so slender," she muttered under her breath, "you weigh a tonne."
Elliott blinked at her, confusion flickering across his features. He had not expected this... What had he expected then? He had no idea...
She glanced down at him then, and a faint smile curved her lips. She leaned closer, giving his cheek a light tap with her fingertips. "Only you," she said softly, "would make Vanessa Grant care for you."
Her words only deepened his disorientation. His mind, already clouded by the drug, scrambled to make sense of her tone and her words.
Elliott's eyes followed her warily as she walked away. His instincts told him to stay alert, to get up, to prepare for whatever came next. But the weight dragging at his limbs was relentless. His vision blurred, and his eyelids grew heavier with each passing second. He fought to keep them open, to keep her in sight, but darkness threatened at the edges.
Just when he thought he was slipping under, a cool sensation touched his skin. A damp cloth pressed against his forehead, then slid gently across his cheek. The shock of cold drew him back, his eyes fluttering open again.
Vanessa's voice reached him, steady and calm. "You already know what's happening. You've been roofied." [1]She dipped the cloth again, wrung it out, and dabbed along his temple, her movements efficient but not unkind.
He tried to speak, to demand answers, but his tongue felt thick and uncooperative.
"I've already sent for an antidote," she continued, glancing down at him with an unreadable expression. "It'll be here soon. You just need to hold on until then."
Elliott stared up at her, bewildered at the words and the gestures.
Why was she doing this? Why prepare for something like this, unless she had known what would happen to him tonight? His instincts screamed not to trust her, yet the careful way she held the cloth, the quiet assurance in her tone, unsettled him.
Vanessa Grant looked down at the man and smiled. Even now, with his mind hazy and drugged, she could see his fight for dominance and his control. She had no doubt that even if she had not helped him tonight, he would have managed to escape unscathed.
She patted his cheek with the wet towel and smiled sadly as she thought to hersef, "But how could she allow that? Only by making him be thakful for her protection could she get what she want..."
As his eyes closed, unable to stop herself, she traced a finger lightly over his face, caressing his high cheek bones and his jawline before moving downwards over his neck. Her hand paused at his Adam's apple and she tapped him once.
She wanted to kiss him so badly... Her gaze moved towards his lips and she bit her lips. What would he taste like?
Clenching her hands, she reminded hrrself the man was drugged and that she needd to stop mooning over him... for now...
Soon, he would be hers...
Just then, there was a knock at the door. Vanessa stood quickly and crossed the room, her steps brisk. Elliott's head turned on the pillow, his heavy gaze following her as she moved. She cracked the door only a little, took a small parcel from her assistant, and shut it again without a word.
She came back to him at once, lifting the bag slightly with a faint smile. "Look what I have," she said, her voice light but firm. "An antidote for you."
Setting the bag on the table, she pulled out a small vial and syringe with practiced hands. Elliott watched her through the haze, his body tense despite the weakness dragging him down.
[1] For everyone who has been lucky to not know this... roofied is slang for been slipped a date rape drug called (flunitrazepam) which causes confusion, loss of strength etc, making it easier for predaors to ra*e people. This is the drug one needs to guard against in bars etc because it takes effect within a few minutes...