Sheep & Wolves

Chapter Ten

Marissa's POV

Marissa was in the practice studio at the club. It was a small room, but the walls were mirrors which made it seem much larger. There were no windows, just florescent lights—some of which had burned out and no one had bothered replacing. She heard the familiar chime of her cellphone ringing and saw Dana's name flash on the screen. She had been worried about Dana recently. It wasn't that she thought Dana wasn't strong, but seeing what their new boss had done to her shook Marissa to the core.

"Is everything okay?" Marissa asked when she picked up. Dana preferred texting as a method of communication and when she called, it was usually because something was wrong.

"No," Dana said, her breathing unsteady as if she were running. "Lucas knows where I live, he left flowers at my front door."

Marissa grasped her phone hard. "Who does he think he is?" She hated men like that, who thought that women were property and didn't care how their actions affected others. She was obviously around these men constantly and her ability to hide the disgust she felt when they grabbed and catcalled her was something she took pride in. She was a damn good actress. Dana, however, was never bothered by them. When men yelled after her, she didn't even appear to have heard them. Dana's typical behavior towards men made her apprehension about Lucas all the more concerning for Marissa.

"I need you to do me a huge favor." Dana sighed, as if she was uncertain about asking. "I need you to distract Nick so that I can break into his office and find information on Lucas. He must have a file if he's an important client, and that file may have an address."

"Are you fucking crazy?" Marissa asked loudly. Dana shushed her and she lowered her voice. "You're going to get yourself killed confronting Lucas. He could be a serial killer."

"Please," Dana said. "I know what I'm doing, please just help me." Marissa had never heard her friend plead with anyone before. This wasn't a situation that she was comfortable with, but she also knew that if she didn't help out then Dana would just find another more dangerous way to accomplish her goal. Marissa knew her friend too well. "Can you distract Nick?"

Marissa took a deep breath. "Yes. I'll distract him and send you a text when I have him away from his office."

Dana sighed with relief. "You're a life saver," she said and hung up before Marissa could tell her to be careful.

Marissa checked her reflection quickly to make sure she didn't look too nervous. She was no stranger to being a good distraction, but she had never even met Nick before. From what she had heard, she wasn't sure she wanted to. However, after effectively slowing her heart rate and smoothing out her hair, she headed to his office.

His door was open just slightly and she could hear him closing his desk drawers. She knocked lightly on his door. It was silent for a long moment and she felt her nerves start to build. After nearly a minute passed and she was considering leaving, the door opened. Standing before her was the handsomest and most intimidating man she had ever seen. He towered above her, his body built with lean muscle that made him seem athletic rather than imposing. Even his face was pleasantly handsome, with his deep blue eyes, tan skin, and well-kept light brown hair. It was the expression he held in those blue eyes that disturbed her—he was looking at her like she was a deer that had wandered into a lion's den. And, naturally, he was the lion. Men had looked at her like this before, but never so convincingly.

"You must be Marissa," he said. His voice was deep, assertive but calm. Marissa could feel herself shiver in response, but he gave no indication that he noticed.