Chapter 8- Her Refusal

IT HAS been twenty-four hours since Tami woke, and over thirty six hours since she has eaten anything.

She refused to eat, and it frustrated Raphael completely. She had refused lunch and dinner over and over yesterday, and when Raphael returned to her room this morning, the dinner he left was still sitting there.

Now, it was the same thing with breakfast, and he didn’t appreciate it.

"Tami, just have the food please?" He asked again, trying to get her to eat the breakfast he had prepared himself. She glanced at him from the side of her eyes, before directing her gaze in front of her, not answering him.

He sighed, placing the plate of pancakes on her nightstand before sitting beside her. She scooted over with a look of contempt, not wanting his skin to touch hers at all. His chest clenched at the action, but he brushed away the feeling quickly.

"Tamika...Look I know you don’t understand now, but you have to eat something" He pleaded. He couldn’t stand the thought of something happening to her.

What if she grows ill because she refuses to eat, and ends up in the hospital? For one, that couldn’t be good for him. The police would surely get a hold of him, even though he didn’t fear them.

Was this why she refused to eat? She was studying medicine, after all. Did she want to pass out, so he had no choice but to take her in for medical care? His heart broke at the thought, and fear rose in him at the thought of losing her.

"What do you want me to do? I'll do anything"

She turned to face him at that, her face stoic and her eyes cold--something Raphael had never seen.

"Let me go," she spoke softly. Raphael sighed deeply, directing his gaze away as he shook his head.

"You know I can't do that Tami"

Instead of replying, she turned away again, showing him just how stubborn she really was.

'Is it worth it? To have her suffering like this for my own benefit?', he thought to himself as doubt rose in him. But when the thought of never seeing her again struck him, he was back to phase one.

After all, it's not only the fact that he probably won't see her again, but the thought that she'll hate him forever if he should let her go right now.

"I need a shower" Tami spoke again, this time she had a plan. "I'll have a shower and then I'll eat" She lied, just wanting him to uncuff her from the bed. Her wrists hurt anyway, and it was a brutal thing to do.

However, Raphael wasn’t seeing the untruth in her eyes, he was just happy that she was going to eat. Without a second thought, he grabbed the keys from his pants and brought it to her hand. She thought of hitting him over the head with something when his back was turned, knocking him out long enough to escape. But she didn’t know if he had people outside guarding the doors. He could obviously afford it, after all. So she didn’t put it past him.

Plus, she didn’t want to stoop to his level. She wanted to escape , but not like this. Raphael's fingers tickled her wrist as he opened the wretched metal things on her hands, and she hated that her body still reacted to him when a shiver ran down her back.

How could she still be attracted to him? She wasn’t! It was just the cold--she was sure.

"Can you throw those away?" She eyed the cuffs in contempt, and his eyes involuntarily flickered to her wrists. His lips tilted in a frown when he saw the small indentation from where her hand hung from the handcuffs, and it just occurred to him that they were hurting her. However, he had no other way to ensure her compliance.

"Will you stay in the room? No trying to escape?" He asked as she stood. It was obvious that she had been crying a lot, and he hated it.

"Where is the bathroom?" She asked, avoiding his question completely.

He sighed, but pointed to one of the attached doors nonetheless. The other door led to a mini library of her own if she liked reading, and the final door led to the balcony. Tami could tell, since through the thin curtains, she could see the structure of a balcony just passed the double doors. However, those doors were held by a huge padlock. He considered her trying to escape through it.

"Where exactly am I supposed to get clothes from?" She snapped, batting her lashes in a 'dah' way.

He walked over to the huge walk in closet across the room, pushing the fold doors open to reveal numerous shopping bags and boxes. Her eyebrows shot up at this. He really thought of everything.

"Everything that you'll need is here. If you want to watch TV, you have unlimited access to cable and Netflix. I also got you this" He picked up a laptop from a table across the room and brought it to her. "Of course, you won't have access to communication. But you can use it however you please."

He then walked further into her closet, motioning for her to follow. Inside, was a small cosmetology table, packed with combs, brushes and numerous hair products and appliances that she might need. She had no intention of staying around to use them all, but she was too engrossed by everything to refuse to look.

"I know your hair is curly, so I had my assistant buy anything that you might need to keep your curls or..." He scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "I don’t really know much about hair"

If she wasn’t close, she would've chuckled at that. But luckily, she dismissed the amusement before it could show on her face.

"Your bathroom is also stacked with things you might need. Like uh-"

"Pads," she said for him, and he nodded at the word. She never understood why men found it so hard to talk about a female's period.

He led her back into her huge bedroom, grabbing a few notebooks from her entertainment center" I didn't know what you're into, so I got these for you if you want to journal. They're also canvas and paint in the library if you're into painting"

She had to admit, she was impressed. He thought of everything.

"I will bring up your meals until you're comfortable enough to let me show you the rest of the house" He ended, feeling proud of himself.

"It's so funny how you think I'm actually considering this." Yes, he had surprised her. But the fact that he had all this here meant that he had intentions of taking her. "You think using your money to buy me fancy clothes and everything that I might want or need means I'll be okay with this? I have a family, Raphael! They'll be worried. I have friends! A life! You can't keep me here"

He sighed again, walking over to her bed to retrieve the handcuffs. "If you see that you'll want anything else, just tell me and I'll get it for you" And with that, he was gone.

He was actually upset? He had no right to be upset about this!

Tami couldn’t believe the nerve of the man. She was the one being kept against her will. He could shower her with all the gifts and material things in the world and keep her in a room five the size of hers back home, but that wouldn’t change her mind. He had to be crazy if he thought she'd ever warm up to him.

It actually infuriated her that Raphael had the gall to be upset with her. How dare he?

Nonetheless, she grabbed a simple dress from one of the bags, having no intentions on unpacking them. She had even considered staying in her own clothes, but they stunk and she couldn’t stand it.

With a huff, she disappeared into the bathroom, but her expression transformed into a smile when she saw a window.

And it was wide open.

***

Raphael felt stressed.

Tami was a stubborn one. This he knew since they were kids, but he never believed it would actually come back to bite him in the ass. He tried hard to get her to speak to him, and though it has only been a day, he was over it.

He had never been challenged before. He has never said please to anyone. Hell, he didn’t even cook for himself! Yet the woman who managed to get him to do all that, refused him over and over again.

The rejection didn’t do him any good either. He could already feel himself sinking back into his own hole--withdrawing himself from everyone, even her.

The other side of him--the positive side of him tried to reassure him that it had only been a day. There was nothing else he could do but let time work. But he still had a mountain to climb--a very steep and slippery one too.

He had to tell Mrs. Garcia.

She was a sweet woman. She was caring and had the biggest heart. He knew that if he explained himself, she might understand. But Mrs. Garcia was a woman of morals. And the last thing he wanted, was to lay her off for the summer until this was all settled. He needed her to do his housework and his other jobs. He could always hire someone from the outside, who will be instructed to stay away from that wing of the building. But he didn’t trust anyone with his personal things. Only her.

"Buenos dias Raphael" The woman's voice broke him from his thoughts immediately, as if she felt him thinking about her.

It was early in the morning--around Raphael's breakfast time. She had a radiant smile on her face as she wrapped an apron around her waist. Raphael returned her morning greeting, sitting at the island as he watched her work.

Her eyebrows knitted together as she eyed the used skillet on the stove. She asked him if he had already had breakfast, but he found himself lying.

"Si. I was extra hungry today" He told the old woman. She could understand English better than she spoke it, so he knew she got what he said.

"No breakfast?"

"Actually...Yes please" He was famished. And despite the questioning in Mrs. Garcia's eyes, he knew she would still make breakfast for him. He watched as she skillfully made an omelet and toast, his favourite on Mondays.

He decided that he would hold out telling her about Tami. The house was large enough for them never to cross paths anyways. And once Tami comes around, he can introduce them as if no crime was committed. What he did was crazy, but he won't let the summer end and she wasn’t his to hold.

She is going to fall for him. And she will soon.

The thought of her had his mind wondering what she was doing at that exact moment.

Was she over with her shower and curled into bed, with her hair down on her shoulders watching a movie or reading a book? Or was she still in the bathroom, soaking in a bubbly, warm bath to soothe her tensed muscles? His lips curled at the thought, as Mr. Garcia placed the food in front of him.

He decided that once he finished eating, he'd surely check on what she was doing. Despite his former irritation earlier, he couldn’t wait to see her yet again.