Read Under Pressure [IAD Agency] (Siren Publishing Classic) for Free Online Page B

she was short-staffed and everything needed to be planned and ready for tomorrow night’s upcoming event.
    She loved catering for the weddings and other big events that the hotel hosted, knowing that a large part of why people booked the hotel was for her. Her talent, her food. Nothing gave her such pleasure like watching people enjoy what she created with her own two hands.
    She was nervous for the job tomorrow and worried about Rick. She had taken precious time to visit him in the hospital earlier and now she was ready to relax. She slipped the key card to her room into the slot and entered her room, putting her knife case on the table as she made her way through the sitting room. As any great chef, her personal knives were always with her and she never left them in the kitchen overnight.
    Taking off her chef’s jacket, she threw it on a chair as she walked to the bathroom, wanting to soak in the bathtub to ease her sore body, but decided against it since she had to get some sleep. She had a meeting with the Special Events coordinator early in the morning to finalize the plans for wedding being held that night. A sound from behind her had her spinning around, her eyes going wide with shocked horror as something slammed against the side of her head, and she felt herself fall as the world went black.
    Waking up, Bella’s head pounded with pain as she opened her eyes. A man sat next to her with one of her knives in his hand. Bella’s eyes were wide with a terrible recognition as the steel gleamed in the faint light. She had never seen this man before, but his eyes, those horrible eyes were glazed with insanity. Bella tried to get up, realizing that her hands were bound to the bed. Her scream was muffled by something he had tied over her mouth. Shocked and frightened, Bella fought against her restraints to no avail, struggling to break free of the ties, her wrists burning as she strained for release.
    “Hello, my beautiful little bitch,” he said almost pleasantly, looking down at her, a sick, twisted little smile on his handsome face. He moved the blade in his hand closer to the light, reflecting her own wild eyes back at her. From the moment he spoke, she knew who he was. He was a fan, a man who wrote her letters and called her, praising her talent. Now, she was at his mercy.
    “You didn’t think you could cheat on me and get away with it, did you? You”—he stroked the knife slowly across the skin of her neck over and over, making shallow cuts that had her screaming in pain—“are mine, all mine.”
    Bella could feel her wrists slick with blood as she tried to free herself from the ropes that held her. She couldn’t understand what he was saying. The pain was too intense.
    “You’re a no good, lying, cheating slut. I loved you. How could you do this to me?” What the fuck was he talking about? Terrified, Bella wondered what the hell was going on in his warped, demented mind.
    “You are nothing without me. No one. Oh, Bella, you think you are such a big deal, don’t you? God damn it, you are nothing without me. All those letters I wrote to you, pouring my heart out, and you abused that love! Now you won’t even take my phone calls! I know why, it’s that stupid sous chef of yours. How could you? I loved you!” She shook her head, screaming in pain as he cut her again.
    “Don’t lie to me! Now you will have to pay. It didn’t have to be this way. We were meant to be together, but you threw that away. All that talent, but no one understands you like I do. No one could love you like I do. You should have come to me when I asked. Now I have no choice. You gave me no choice.” She vehemently shook her head, but he just sighed at her response. The silent pleading for him to stop in her eyes was ignored as he continued to speak.
    God, he was crazy!
    He spoke softly as he leaned down. “I took care of your lover last night. Now I have to teach you what happens when you betray me.” She screamed in denial