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“Can we walk?” Trish asked Jordan, feeling far too antsy to sit on his lap while he caressed and fondled her and they watched Alex and Bella in the pool. When Trish had asked to get into the pool, Jordan had told her not today. She couldn’t help but wonder if he was just trying to keep her and Bella from talking again.
“Sure, baby,” he said easily, lifting her up from his thighs and setting her on her feet before he got to his. His big hand engulfed hers, and he turned toward the pathways that ran through the outdoor area. The gardens were big and lush, well-watered, andthere were plenty of places to walk. Trish trotted along at his side, relieved he wouldn’t make her sit there.
Another bonus—walking meant he couldn’t run his hands all over her body and arouse her against her will. The plug shifting in her bottom wasn’t super comfortable, but she was at least pretty used to it by now.
Questions bubbled up in her mind as they walked in silence. Trish had figured out that any conversations—if they could be called that—had to be started by her. Jordan didn’t speak much on his own except to give orders. His version of small talk with the soldiers was listening to anything they had to say and answering any questions they asked.
She could ask him some of the same things she’d asked Laura, but those questions would probe into his past. They would make it seem like she was interested in getting to know him better. She was curious but…
“Why don’t you let me watch thetvvids?” Trish focused on the present and herself, rather than the past and him. Ever since she’d learned Bella and Alex had seen some of the recent news vids, Trish had been a little jealous. She wanted to know what was going on in the world, too.
Jordan scowled, staring straight ahead. “You don’t need to.”
“But I want to.” She kept her voice coaxing. He liked that. His expression softened, although he was still frowning.
“What do you want to watch?”
“The news vids.”
His expression hardened again. “No.”
“Why not?” she asked, a little more exasperated now and unable to completely hide it. “Bella and Alex get to. I know their abduction was reported.” Her voice turned pleading again. Begging. Trish told herself it was okay since it was just an act. “There’s no real information. I just want to know what’s happening out in the rest of the world.”
“She shouldn’t have told you that.” Jordan’s tone was almost vicious. He started to walk faster, as though he had pent-up energy trying to escape through activity. Trish felt like she was practically jogging while she tried to keep up.
“Why not? I assumed it would happen eventually.”
Jordan came to an abrupt stop, and Trish almost squealed with surprise as she stumbled. His hands came out to hold her upright and pull her against him. Trish looked up as he hugged her to him.
When he spoke, his voice was soft. Confiding. Almost apologetic. “The news vids aren’t reporting anything about your disappearance.”
Wait, that’s why he thought she wanted to watch? Trish shook her head. He and Bella were both weirdly naive in the same way.
Whacky.
“I know, Bella told me. I didn’t expect them to be.”
He glared down at her. “You should. Expect. You matter.” He practically snarled. “The Moon is full of fucking dickheads.”
Rather than release her, Jordan lifted Trish and cradled her in his arms as he carried her down the path—not because she needed to be carried, but because he apparently just wanted to. Confused, she wrapped her arms around his neck and held on.
Bella had been angry about the lack of reporting on Trish’s disappearance. Jordan was enraged by it. Trish was the only one who wasn’t because it was exactly what she would have expected. Should she be angry?
An unexpected warmth filled her. A stupid warmth. A confused warmth.
Jordan had been the one to cause her disappearance. He’d been the one to kidnap her and to decide to keep her. Shouldn’t he be glad no one cared enough to report on it, much less showany interest in trying to get her back? But he was angry on her behalf. And Trish was more confused than ever.
Popcorn was delicious.
Buttery. Crisp then melting. Salty. Trish felt like a pig as she scooped it straight into her mouth. Seriously. though. The Moon was missing out. At some point, popcorn had gone out of style up there. She didn’t know why, but it confirmed the people up there were idiots. Holy crap, this was good.
Jordan had left Trish alone in his room and turned on the vidscreen for her. She’d discovered she could watch any channel she wanted as she’d scrolled through them. The only interruption had been when a soldier had come in with snacks, drinks, and a sandwich for her at lunch time.
Trish watched the news vids, many of which mentioned Alex and Bella. Their families and their exes were keeping the search alive, although since there was no new news about her fellow prisoners, a lot of the “report” was speculation based on the eye-witness accounts of short-term visitors to the Wolf’s lair.
None of the reports ever mentioned anyone but the Wolf: not Jordan, not Zadia, and not any of the Wolf’s soldiers. He completely dominated the conversation even though they had no real, solid information on him. There were other warlords and territory leaders on Earth, too, but they were never mentioned.
When Trish switched to channels that were exclusive to Earth, she got a much better idea of what was happening.
