When school ended for the day, Keeley was about to head towards the subway station as usual. She had to take three connecting trains and walk another six blocks to get to and from school every day.

　　Her dad hadn't been happy about this at first—he was overprotective since her mother and brother pa.s.sed away in a mugging gone wrong when she was younger—but Keeley insisted that he needed to go to work and that everybody went to school like that.

　　He relented when she promised to check in with him every twenty minutes since it took more than an hour to travel each way.

　　A hand shot out and grabbed her by the arm, hauling her into a waiting limousine. A kidnapping?!

　　She wasn't even one of the rich students here but if someone just went by the uniform and grabbed her by mistake…

　　"I know karate!" Keeley shouted in a panic.

　　This was only partially true. She quit when she was ten. Her karate skills were extremely rusty but if worst came to worst she could aim a decent kick.

　　"Do you really want to use it in here?" a cold, slightly amused voice asked.

　　Aaron. He stared at her with an eyebrow raised as if she was stupid and it made her flush slightly.

　　"What are you doing? I have to go home."

　　"I'll take you there. Based on everything I heard earlier, the subway sounds terrible. I don't know how you can even stand it."

　　His words were disdainful, haughty, and raised Keeley's hackles. Millions of New Yorkers used the subway every day! It was a perfectly valid mode of transportation!

　　"That's unnecessary," she sniffed. "Let me out."

　　"Drive, Carlton," Aaron said loftily, ignoring her demands.

　　The car sped away from the curb and Keeley jolted forward and practically landed on Aaron's lap.

　　She immediately backtracked and put her seatbelt on since there was no way she could leap out into oncoming traffic while they drove. She would find a way to get out the next time they stopped.