Another few shifts, another day. My body felt the lethargy. Every step I took felt weighed down, until I was shuffling up the stairs to the house. It had been a constant battle with my eyelids today, and I was ready to collapse into bed and sleep all day tomorrow. No shifts scheduled for Saturday, and I was both thankful and disappointed.

Thankful I could sleep until noon tomorrow, and disappointed because every penny helped. A drawn out yawn escaped my lips and my uncooperative fingers fumbled with the key. My sweater clad elbow accidentally bumped against the door, and instead of the resistance of hard wood paneling I expected, the old wooden door creaked open slightly.

Shit. That wasn't good.

I knew the house needed an endless amount of repairs. But I also knew that this door was shut firmly and locked correctly when I left this morning. I also knew this was a neighbourhood where you wouldn't want to be caught unawares.

Pausing to listen for any noise, I wasn't sure if I should be relieved or terrified when no sound came from within. No snoring, no creaking of an old bedpost as Tj shifts in his sleep. Nothing.

My heart began to pound. Patting all my pockets, I remembered with a grunt of frustration that I left my pocket knife in a drawer inside my room. Taking a few calming breaths, I slowly pushed the door open wide enough to slip into the living room.

Nothing seemed amiss. Everything was the same as it had been when I'd left for my shift this morning, sans the sleeping giant on the couch. But that wasn't what concerned me. I wasn't concerned about dad at all. The man had never been concerned about me, so why should I extend the same courtesy?

Jogging towards the shared room with Tj, I found it unlocked. Now my heart really began to race. I heard my breathing quicken in the silence and a tremor coursed through my hands when a quick glance of the room revealed the bed still made, and not a thing out of place. It was three am, Tj shouldn't be anywhere but home, and the fact that he wasn't caused panic to blur the edges of my vision.

The door creaked from the living room and I swiveled around in the vain hope that it was Tj coming home from an early morning stroll, safe and sound. The stream of light from outside was enough for me to make out a shape of a shadow as large as a boulder. Definitely not Tj.

Letting out a yelp of surprise, I tried to dodge when beefy arms appeared from the shadows beside me. My head smacked against the wall, and my captor took full advantage of my momentary cloudiness. I really hope it doesn't leave a goose egg.

Those strong man arms wrapped around my middle, pulling me into the living room. They were like a steel band around me, holding my squirming torso and arms still as more figures stepped through the open doorway.

Another man as large as the first appeared in my peripheral vision and I renewed my struggle. I didn't know what the hell was going on, but I wasn't too keen to find out. When attempts to free my arms proved useless, I tried lashing out with my legs. But aside from the occasional grunt when my heel made contact with an unprotected shin, I may as well be held captive by a brick wall.

More shadows stepped through the door and soon the room was crowded with sentry like silhouettes of people. Fear began to suffuse my limbs, my body freezing, realizing this was something bad. Real bad.

I used to joke with Tj about how bad a situation Shaggy and Scooby must have found themselves in for Scooby's classic 'Ruh-roh'. This felt like a Ruh-roh moment.

A light flicked on and I winced from the brightness. Had those lightbulbs always been so bright? I had no clue, considering I tried to limit the electricity use as much as I could, preferring to use natural light from the windows. When the spots cleared from my vision, I felt my mouth dry. Holy hell.

The mysterious shadows, I could clearly now see, were men in crisp black suits. Material strained against their jackets, and gun shaped bulges in a few pants caused a gasp to escape me. I had been considering using my teeth as a method of escape, but I soon realized that was more likely to anger the giant, and there was no way I could out run all these people, let alone the fact they have guns. They could literally snap me in half without breaking a sweat. The front door had been closed behind the final person, and I saw no readily available escape route.

But what had really made my tongue turn to sandpaper and my body to go slack was the man nonchalantly standing in the center of the living room. Hands sunk deep into the pockets of a silver suit that I could only imagine the cost of, and that fit this man's god-like physique like a glove. The synthetic light bounced off of a single sleek, black glove on his right hand. Shoes so shiny, you could see your reflection, raven black hair neatly combed to the side, but a few strands broke free to fall upon his forehead.

A day's old stubble dotted his face and I desperately wanted to feel it rubbing against my skin, anywhere and everywhere. Emerald eyes twinkled dangerously below perfectly shaped brows. He was clearly the boss. It was clear from his posture, the arrogance and power he exuded, and the hint of danger. He was definitely not a man to be messed with.

So I stayed still, silent, no longer struggling. The man's cool gaze swept over me from head to toe, before connecting with my almond coloured gaze. He seemed content to wait out the silence, and that was making me anxious. My palms were sweaty, and if i'd had the ability too, I probably would have wiped them on my faded jeans.

The gorgeous specimen in front of me still didn't seem inclined to speak after what felt like forever-but was probably only a minute or so. I couldn't take the silence any more, my mind was still trying to grasp fully what was happening, and before I could stop it, the words tumbled out with a rasp, "Who are you?"

A touch of amusement coloured the emerald orbs, and a smirk settled on his full lips. I had to push back the desire to taste them. Not the time libido. Not the time.

"I could be asking you the same question." His voice was rich timber, suave and silky, with an undertone of authority.

I felt a shiver travel through me, that this time had nothing to do with the cold, and nothing to do with fear.

My forehead scrunched in confusion when I registered his words. "You broke into my house and you don't know who I am? You're clearly not here to rob me. So what do you want?" I had no clue where that bravado came from. Inside, I was a nervous wreck. A nervous, curious, wreck.

The man openly laughed-dear God it was a gorgeous, sexy laugh. The type of laugh that makes women lift their skirts and men drop their pants-before replying. "You're spunky, I'll give you that."

He gestured with his hand and the lackey holding me unceremoniously dropped me to my feet like a sack of potatoes. Steadying myself with the nearby wall, I glanced up in surprise to find the man that had been holding him captive had stepped backwards, and Mr. Sexy less than an arms length away.

The man was tall. Even taller than myself. If this wasn't whatever the hell this situation was, and I had met him in a bar, I could see myself jumping his bones. He looked even better close up. And the smell. Even his cologne smelled sexy, powerful, and hella expensive. A heat crackled between us as our gazes met. A calculating look fixed itself upon the man's face. His lips didn't move, but I swear his eyes held a flame of excitement before he turned away and headed towards the front door.

A guard opened the door revealing the still empty street, and I felt a little hope spark that all these people would soon be leaving me be. Maybe they got the address wrong? I could only silently pray. But then the flicker died as the man spoke without turning.

"Bring him with us. If Barns' doesn't feel a need to pay the debts, then he'll suffice."