Chapter 2: Resurgence
Kat felt the soles of her All-Stars stick briefly to the blacktop as she hurried toward the Houston conference center. Unbelievably, the camo mini and slim white shirt she wore still felt like too much clothing when compared to the unrelenting Texas summer. Her long, dark hair was pulled tight into a ponytail and there was a thin sheen of sweat glistening on her tanned skin. In her bag, she carried several copies of her resume, which she was planning to hand out to any hiring companies inside. Her friends called her crazy, flying all the way down here from her home state of Washington, just in order to get a job. She told them that she was tired of the snow anyway, and that she was more likely to be hired where the market was stronger.
Two hours and countless booths later, Kat had had enough. She was tired, hungry, and had the beginnings of a headache coming on. She was sore from being jostled through the sea of people. More than once had a hand pushed her out of the way, lingering for a second too long on her waist or ass. She stood in line for water, cramped up against other sweaty, thirsty bodies. The din around her faded in and out, in time with the thumping of her headache.
"..she's hot.."
"..told you so, right?.."
What? Kat held her breath, listening intently. That voice had sounded pretty familiar, but no one else had told her they were coming. She, however, had told a lot of people that she was going to be here..so Kat supposed she might know at least someone. On tip toes, she tried to peek above the heads of the people around her but saw no one she knew. 'You're probably a little delirious, Kat' she told herself as she bought her water and left for the hotel.
* * * * *
Lounging on her bed in pajamas after a long shower, Kat felt much better. The room was still a little stuffy so she had closed the windows and blasted the air conditioner on high, hoping to get comfortable. She opened the fridge for a soda and took a long sip.
"Why is everything here lukewarm?!" She stared at the can in disdain. "Why were you in the fridge again, please tell me the point?"
Kat set down the can and picked up the ice bucket. Wedging a shoe in the door to keep it open, she ran down the hall to the ice machine in the hopes of having something cold to drink. Five minutes later, she was back in her room, now with a full bucket of ice and a smile on her face. "Now, you'll see what cold REALLY is!"
"Of course, you'd be the expert on that, Kit-Kat." Before she could inhale to scream, a hand was over her mouth and another was around her waist, restraining her. Roughly, she was pushed toward the bed, where she was made to lean over it. Her wrists were tied together as another pair of hands tied a handkerchief to gag her. "It's really not healthy to be having conversations with a soda can, by the way." Strong arms flipped her onto her back and Kat could finally look into the eyes of her aggressor.
"Mmaaf?!"
"You're so much hotter in person." Matt smiled widely down at her, his prize. She was tied up quite nicely, her arms pulled back behind her and her chest thrust out. He caught her just as she was going to bed, it seemed, noticing the lack of bra. He had hoped that he would.