“Pack a bag,” Nathan instructed as he pushed the door open and strode into the room.

Yani closed the door and sighed internally. This man has no manners she thought for the thousandth time.

Nathan did a quick sweep of the apartment. “We’re leaving in 30 minutes,” he stated without looking at her.

Yani hesitated for a moment, her lips poised to challenge him. The rigid set of his determined shoulders had her moving towards her bedroom instead. Yani grabbed her trusty leather tote bag from under the bed and began to methodically fill it with only her most essential items. There was no point asking him any questions. The only answer she would receive was silence.

True to his word and even though Yani was not quite finished, when exactly 30 minutes had past, Nathan came to the bedroom and collected the tote bag. Making for the front door, he didn’t even bother to look behind him. Of course, there is no question that I will follow, Yani thought derisively, grudgingly shouldering her handbag and following him out. He didn’t even grant her the time to have a farewell look around the place that had been her home for the past six months.

Nathan deposited Yani’s bag in the trunk of his luxury car, while she entered the pre-opened passenger door and took a seat. He was such a contradiction, a man who would open a passenger door, but not provide an explanation when barging into a woman’s apartment and ordering her to leave.

“Keys” Nathan demanded through the open passenger window, his large palm outstretched.

For once, Yani was able to hand him the keys, without having to scramble in her handbag while he glared at her impatiently. However, there was no word of thanks or acknowledgement of her efficiency. He simply palmed the keys and deposited them into the landlord’s postal box.

When he took his place behind the steering wheel, the atmosphere within the spacious car instantly seemed to contract. His 6’4” athletically muscled frame appeared to take up far more space than physically possible and Yani immediately felt hemmed in. It wasn’t a new experience, Nathan seemed to have this effect in every environment, whether it was the small rooms of her apartment or the secluded park land where they usually met, whenever he was near, Yani felt her surroundings shrink.

As Nathan effortlessly and silently manoeuvred the city’s traffic, Yani lowered her thick lashes and took some time to covertly observe him. She watched as the controlled movements of driving caused his powerfully muscled thighs to strain slightly against the smooth fabric of his suit trousers, his biceps and triceps subtly outlined in his cashmere jumper.  As Yani unveiled her eyes to look ahead at the night sky, her dark brown gaze collided with Nathan’s intense blue one in the windscreen mirror. Feeling as though she’d been caught doing something forbidden, she hastily looked away towards the scenery outside the passenger window. In time, the monotony of the endlessly passing cars lulled her into a dreamless sleep.