Page 12 of Abducted

“You’re not going to hurt me?” Her arms folded across her chest. She spoke slowly, her words deliberate. His spine stiffened. Was that what she feared? Him?

“Hell, no.”

She chewed her lip harder. He dared to reach out his index finger to tap beneath her lip. “Stop that, you’re going to chew a hole right through.” Her lips pressed together, but she didn’t pull away. “Don’t you think I’ve had enough opportunity to hurt you by now?”

Her gaze shifted to her feet, then back up to his face. “Yes, I suppose.”

“And have I?”

Her weight shifted from one foot to the other. “No.”

The vise that had been gripping his heart released. “I want to help you, and I’m going to protect you. No one will hurt you, but you need to trust me.” He held his hand out to her, palm open. “Deal?”

“I don’t even know your name.” Her slight shoulder raised in question.

Shit, how had he not told her that? “Cal Hart. I didn’t tell you that?”

She shook her head. “No.”

She was right. He hadn’t. His career had forced him to live a solitary life, to be cautious and private. Out of habit, he kept details to himself. But if telling her his name made her feel more at ease, it was a small price to pay.

“So, do we have a deal?”

She took a deep, shuddering breath and placed her hand in his. “Deal.”

He squeezed her hand. The temptation to bring her soft palm to his lips arced through him. She was so dainty. The feminine curve of her slight frame just showed in the oversized shirt she wore. His shirt. His dick twitched at the thought of stripping it off her, his hands free to roam her delicious body.

Her hand dropped away.

“Do you have towels and soap here? I really need a shower.”

“Sure.” He led her to the bathroom and showed her where everything was, then left her to clean up. He was going to need another coffee.

CHAPTER 8

Someone wanted tokill her.

Badly enough to hire a professional to do it. She cranked the hot water up and inhaled the steam. Last night, she could have been murdered…in cold blood. Her stomach flipped over. A wave of nausea made her clutch the handrail on the wall.

She would not pass out. She was stronger than that. Tears stung her eyes. It had taken all of her control to keep her emotions at bay in front of Cal.Cal…She finally had a name to pair with his chiseled face and strong, capable hands.

Cal had said the man who’d hired him was named Stamos…but she didn’t know anyone by that name. She had never heard it before, either. There was always the possibility that Cal was lying. What grounds did she have to believe him?

She filled her palm with shampoo and scrubbed the salt and sand from her hair. He was dark, dangerous, and mysterious…but the same traits that made him so sexy were also the makeup of a bad guy. A shiver rippled through her. She had to stay on guard. He was a smooth talker, and his wish for her to trust him weighed on her. Why did he care? Was he playing her? Did he have a bigger scheme in mind?

She turned the hot water up again and finished washing her hair. She let the hard pressure of the water beat into the tension of her shoulders. Her mind churned. If he was telling the truth, then she was lucky to be alive. She pressed her fingers into the taut muscles in her neck and let out a groan. Dammit, she’d always been such a good judge of character. Why was her brain so muddled about Cal? After her shower, she’d try to feel him out and ask more questions.

She turned the water off, and towel-dried, her skin now pink from the heat. Cal was dangerous. He hadn’t outright threatened her, but the pieces of the puzzle didn’t fit. What did he have to gain by protecting her? If that’s what he was doing. Was she to believe he cared about her safety out of just the goodness of his heart? And the way his eyes raked over her… He looked at her as if he was savoring a rich liquor. God, it was hot.

She stepped out of the shower and onto the woven bath mat on the floor. Shit. She didn’t have any clean clothes. Why hadn’t she thought to ask him for something to wear? Oh yeah, she was too busy thinking about why someone wanted to kill her.

The towel covered more of her body than her thin pajamas had last night. She took a deep, steadying breath and opened the bathroom door. Cal stood in the kitchen, a coffee mug halfway to his lips. His eyes found her and widened. His hand jerked, sending a stream of hot coffee down the front of his shirt.

“Shit.” He slammed the mug down on the counter and brushed at the wet brown stain with a paper towel.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you.” She hid her smirk behind her hand.

“You think getting burnt with hot coffee is funny?” The corner of his mouth lifted and slowly worked to a grin.

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