Page 26 of Rogue Voice

Jesus.Rogue swallowed. His hand lifted of its own accord, close enough now that he could almost skim her cheek.Is her skin be as soft as it looks?

He wanted to touch her. Hell, he wanted so much more. He wanted to take her in his arms. To pull her close and reassure her that no man would ever touch her when she didn’t want him to. Instead, he pulled his hand back.

If she was afraid of Aguilar, if some man had hurt her in the past—and the thought made him see red—the last thing she needed was Rogue pawing at her.

He ground his molars together. How much could he say without breaking character?Fuck it.“I can take care of Oscar Aguilar for you.”

Her quiet laugh was brittle. “Take careof Aguilar? You have no idea who he is, do you?” Rogue shrugged. He wouldn’t lose a night’s sleep over it if he had to take care of the man. She pressed her lips together until they lost what little color they’d had. In the soft moonlight, her skin looked almost translucent.

Her voice, when she spoke, was so soft, he almost missed her next words. “You don’t understand. He’s as powerful as my uncle, if not more. Whatever Aguilar wants, he gets. The only way to break free, is to be gone before he realizes it.”

Rogue shook with the effort of staying still. He kept his eyes on her face, because he’d be damned if he’d make her more scared. Finally, he dipped his chin. “Be ready. I’ll let you know when,” he said, hoping he wasn’t signing his death sentence.

12

Bea

Fear gripped her as she pulled on her thickest socks. Bea forced it to the back of her mind and pulled on her horse-riding ankle boots. She wished, not for the first time, that she owned a pair of thick walking boots—she knew that even those wouldn’t adequately protect her from the multiple dangers lurking in the jungle.

Over a dozen venomous species of snakes. Deadly poison dart frogs. Bullet ants. She shook her head to clear the thoughts. None of that mattered. She would rather die in the jungle tonight than spend the rest of her life with Aguilar.

She knew she should wait. Midnight was still half an hour away. But the thought—the dreadful fear—that Rogue might leave without her, made her want to bolt out of her room. Sheforced herself still. Her uncle and his guests might not even be asleep yet, and bumping into them would be a death sentence.

She’d put on her longest white nightgown, to cover her clothes, but it wouldn’t fool anyone at close distance. Her jeans and boots were clearly visible underneath, and one could tell she’d layered on several sweaters. If anybody saw her, they would know exactly what was going on.

She inched closer to the door and pulled it open quickly to make sure it didn’t creak. She knew where she was heading, she just had to?—

Her body hit a wall of flesh. The man pushed her back into the room, closing the door behind them.

No.

Bea screamed, but her scream was swallowed by a thick hand.

Then she bit down. The man grunted, forcing her to look up at him for the first time. Instead of the dark eyes she’d expected to find, deep gray eyes stared back at her.

Not Aguilar.

Rogue.

The fear left her as quickly as it’d arrived. He seemed to sense the change in her and slowly moved his hand away.

“I said midnight. Where the hell were you going?” he said in a low, dangerous voice.

She decided to go with the truth.

“To find you. I was afraid you would leave without me.”

“Jesus,” he said, under his breath. “I told you I’d come for you.” He shook his head. “But I guess you have no reason to trust me. Come on, get ready. I’ll wait.” He turned his back as if to give her privacy.

“I’m ready,” she said.

He turned around again, eying her clothes. “In that?”

She’d always hated these nightgowns her uncle insisted she wear. She lifted the thick white fabric, revealing the clothes underneath.

Rogue walked over to her closet and opened it unceremoniously, cursing at the contents.

“Don’t you have clothes in a darker color?” he hissed.

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