Читать книгу The Desert Virgin - Сандра Мартон, Sandra Marton - Страница 8

THE laughing crowd of barbarians parted like the Red Sea as the American strode through it.

Leanna had come up with a plan, but it had all gone wrong.

A hand reached out, fondled her bottom. She shrieked. The pig who’d touched her said something that made the others laugh even harder.

“Please,” she gasped to her captor, “please, you’ve got this all wrong.”

He grunted and shifted her weight. For all she knew, he couldn’t even hear her. She was hanging over his shoulder like a bag of laundry, bound hands clutching desperately at the ragged ends of her bra.

As if modesty mattered at a time like this.

As if anything mattered, except forcing this man to listen.

A couple of hours back, it had all seemed so clear. What she’d do, how she’d do it. The giants had brought her to the sultan who’d looked her over and smiled as if she were a mouse in the paws of a cat.

“Very nice,” he’d said softly.

Then he’d told her that he’d have to put off their first time together, as if, dear God, as if being raped by him was something to look forward to.

“I have a guest,” he’d said, “an American business associate. Take him to bed, keep him occupied so that he hears and sees only you. I will reward you by having you taken to the airport and sent home.”

And Santa and the Easter Bunny were kissing cousins.

Asaad would never set her free, but Leanna had decided that seeming to go along with things was her best bet.

She’d be brought to the American’s room like a gift-wrapped package. The door would shut, he’d smile at his luck and she’d say, very softly because the walls surely had ears, Thank God you’ve come. I’m an American, I was kidnapped. I’m supposed to keep you busy so that you’re deaf and blind to whatever the sultan is planning to do to you. We have to get out of this horrible place before that happens.

Instead she’d been delivered like a package, in front of the sultan. Okay, she’d thought. She’d wait until she and the American were alone.

It had never occurred to her he’d refuse Asaad’s gift.

The man’s eyes had glinted with desire when he saw her. His body had quickened. It had been impossible not to notice.

And then his hot stare had turned to ice. She had no idea why. She’d had to do something, and fast.

The way he looked—the hard face and muscled body, the stubble on his jaw, the faded jeans and leather boots—were almost overtly masculine. This was a man who wouldn’t take an insult lightly.

So she’d deliberately taunted him. That was the good news.

The bad was that it had worked too well. He’d ripped her bra in half, handled her with an icy lust that terrified her more than anything that had happened yet…

But it wasn’t too late. He was her countryman.

That had to count for something.

The guards at the palace doors snickered as he marched past them. The doors swung shut and she and the American were alone.

Now, she told herself, and took a breath. Despite everything, she knew she had to stay calm. Sound rational. If she did, surely, she could get through to him.

“Mr. Knight? That’s your name, isn’t it?”

The American began climbing the stairs.

“Mr. Knight. The sultan lied. I didn’t steal anything. I didn’t try to kill him. I’m not even named Layla.”

She knew he could hear her. There was no crowd, no noise, only the sound of his boot heels hitting the marble floor as he made his way down a corridor.

Why didn’t he say something?

“Did you hear me?” Still no answer. “Mister. Answer me. Say something. Tell me you understood what I—”

“Shut up.”

Leanna shrieked and pounded her fists against his back. It was about as effective as pelting a stone wall with pebbles.

“Damn you,” she screamed, and sank her teeth into his shoulder. All she got for her effort was a mouthful of denim shirt, but it got his attention.

“Do that again,” he snarled, “and I’ll reciprocate.”

“You have to listen! I know what Asaad told you, but—”

“You want to be gagged as well as tied?”

Oh God! He was as much a savage as the sultan. How stupid she’d been to think his nationality and hers would create a bridge of decency in this godforsaken place.

She heard another snicker of laughter, saw another pair of grinning soldiers. He brushed past them and stepped through a set of massive doors and into an enormous room.

A room dominated by a bed the size of a stage.

He dumped her on it, walked to the doors and shot the brass bolts.

“Alone at last,” he said coldly.

Leanna scrambled back against the headboard. “Mr. Knight,” she said desperately, “I know what you think…”

He gave a low, dangerous laugh. “I’ll bet you do.”

“But you’re wrong. I’m not… I’m not what the sultan…” Her eyes widened as he began unbuttoning his shirt. “Wait. Please. You don’t—you don’t understand.”

His gaze dropped to her breasts, all but spilling from the torn bra she clutched like a lifeline.

“Let go of it.”

“What?”

“Let go of that thing.” He looked up, his smile icy enough to freeze the marrow of her bones. “I like what I saw in the courtyard, Layla. I want to see it again.”

“My name isn’t Layla. It’s—”

“I don’t give a damn what your name is. We’re not going to have wine and exchange phone numbers. We’re going straight to the main event.” His voice roughened. “Let go of the bra.”

“I’m not a—a whore,” she said desperately. “I’m not anything Asaad said I was.”

Knight’s face turned hard. “No games, baby. You think I’m in the mood to play the barbarian and the virgin, I’ll tell you right now that I’m not.”

“I’m not playing anything. I’m just trying to—”

“How do you want to do this?

“I don’t—I don’t follow the…”

“The easy way?” His tone softened, turned to raw silk. “You want, I can make this good for you.”

“I don’t want you to make this anything for me! I keep telling you, I’m an American, just like you.”

“You’re not anything like me.” He bared his teeth in a chilling grin. “If you were, I wouldn’t want you in my bed.”

“Give me a minute. Just one minute. I can explain everything. Asaad said things about me, but—”

“But they aren’t true.”

“Yes!” Her voice rose in excitement. “Oh, thank God! You do understand! You—you… What are you doing?”

It was an unnecessary question. What he was doing was horrifyingly obvious.

He was getting undressed. Toeing off his boots. Shrugging off his shirt, letting it fall to the floor.

Leanna’s heart jammed in her throat.

She’d felt his strength when he carried her but seeing him like this, his chest exposed, his shoulders bare, she knew she had no chance against him. The man who owned her for the night was as sleek as a panther, and just as deadly.

He’d said he wasn’t in the mood for games but he was playing a game of his own, letting her babble and beg for mercy. Maybe it amused him. All she could be certain of was that when he tired of it, he’d overpower her without any effort at all.

“I know you’re angry at me, but—”

“I’m not anything at you, Layla, except tired of hearing you talk.”

“What I said to you down there, what I said to you… I just wanted to get your attention.”

“Yeah. Well, you got it.”

“I had to find a way to be alone with you.”

“I’m touched.”

His hands were at his belt, undoing the buckle. At his fly, opening the button above the zipper, revealing the start of a line of silky hair that arrowed down, down, down…

Terror skittered through her like a small animal clawing for escape but she knew better than to let it show. That might excite him even more.

“I need your help. I swear it! Just hear me out and—”

“You haven’t answered my question.” He started toward her, his gaze moving over her breasts, her belly, her thighs. “I can take you slowly. Or I can take you without any preliminaries. It’s your call.”

Leanna choked back a sob as he reached the bed. She tried to roll away but he grabbed her ankle and pulled her into the center of the mattress.

“The hard way,” he growled. “That’s fine with me.”

“No,” she panted, and gave up any attempt at reason. He was on her now and she fought for her life, kicking, bucking, kicking again, aiming for his groin, catching him in the gut with her knee instead.

“Okay,” he said grimly, “that’s it.”

His hands were quick and hard as he undid the rope around her wrists, then dragged her arms over her head and bound them to the headboard. When she kicked harder, he whipped the belt from his jeans and wound it around her right ankle, securing it to a footpost before rolling from the bed and returning with a scarf, a tie, something bright and silky that he looped around her left ankle and tied to the other footpost.

Terror swooped down on her, smothering her in feathery black wings. She opened her mouth and her scream, shrill and high, pierced the air.

“Scream,” he said. “That’s fine with me. You can damned well bet we’ve got a crowd listening at the door. You scream, you’ll liven up the show.”

“Don’t,” she whispered, because a whisper was all she was capable of now, “please, don’t, don’t, don’t.”

“Why not?” he said coldly. “Because I haven’t got the price of admission?”

He came down on the bed beside her. “Oh God,” Leanna said. She turned her face away, closed her eyes and let the tears come.

All she could do now was survive.

She was good, Cam thought. He had to give her that.

It was one hell of a performance. From sexy temptress to terrified innocent in, what, twenty minutes? Unfortunately the routine was about as real as Asaad’s offer of her as a gift.

Why the big act? The tease, then the turnoff.

The only certainty was that the lady was a fine actress. She was probably an even better lay. How many men had paid for her favors? He let his gaze move slowly over her as she lay spread-eagled before him, those glorious breasts bare to his eyes, her golden thighs spread for his pleasure.

His erection, already hard enough to hurt, was going to kill him if he didn’t get inside her soon.

So, why was he hesitating? Her fear wasn’t real. It was part of the performance. That was fine with him. He’d done a lot of things in bed that had nothing to do with the missionary position. Silk scarves could be a turn-on.

Besides, she’d given him no choice. The kind of game she was playing had only one possible conclusion.

It was a game, wasn’t it?

Was it possible she was telling the truth? That she didn’t want him to screw her? No. Impossible. If that were the case, she could have had her wish without any effort. He’d already told the sultan he didn’t want her.

Why deliberately taunt him unless she wanted to make him change his mind?

Cam’s eyes narrowed.

The whole thing smelled like a scam. Her being dragged in like a criminal, Asaad saying he was going to have her killed, the lady’s aren’t-you-man-enough routine followed by her implausible plea for help.

Had everything that happened been meant to heighten an erotically charged situation so that the stupid American would think with his hormones instead of his head?

If so, it had worked.

But he’d calmed down. He was thinking again. And what he thought was that the door was bolted. The windows, too. He’d taken care of that before his meeting with the sultan. He had a Beretta stashed beneath the mattress and a beautiful woman in his bed.

His body tightened.

And he was going to have her.

Stress always took its toll. Life in Special Forces and then in the Agency had taught him that. Meditation had its place but there were times you needed more than that.

Some men used alcohol, others used drugs. Cam had learned, a long time back, that what worked for him was hot, raw sex. Sex with a woman beautiful and experienced enough to make you forget the niceties of civilized behavior.

Layla damned well fit the bill.

Some long minutes inside her, feeling her honeyed heat, tasting that soft-looking mouth, and he’d be fine. He’d be better when she stopped playacting and admitted she wanted it as much as he did. She was good, pretending she didn’t, but she’d slipped a few minutes ago when he was taking off his shirt.

What he’d seen in her eyes then wasn’t panic. It was awareness of him as a man.

And that was how he wanted it, now that he was back in control of his emotions. A woman who liked sex was the only kind worth screwing.

Games? Sure. A gorgeous woman, his for the taking but pretending she wasn’t, could be a turn-on.

Rape wasn’t.

It was time for the act to end and the real thing to start.

Cam looked down again at the woman lying beneath him. She was beautiful, a creature of pale gold skin and darker gold hair. She was a dancer, Asaad had said. Never mind the rest. That was how he’d think of her now, as his partner in an erotic dance they’d both enjoy.

“Look at me,” he said. When she didn’t, he caught her chin in his hand and forced her face to his. “Open your eyes.”

Slowly, she did as he’d commanded. Her irises, ringed in black, were the deep blue of a summer sky. Her lashes were long and thick, spiky with tears. Tears? Definitely, she was good at what she did. At making a man want her and, God, he wanted her with every beat of his blood.

“I’ve never paid for a woman,” he said huskily, “but if I did, I might just start with you.”

He reached out, traced the fullness of her bottom lip with the tip of his finger, felt her tremble. He bent toward her, brushed his mouth over hers.

“All the time we were in the courtyard,” he whispered, “I kept thinking about your mouth. About all the things it was made to do.”

Slowly he put his lips to hers again, harder this time, hard enough to feel the swift intake of her breath.

“Stop pretending you don’t want this,” he said roughly. “Kiss me. Let me taste you. Let me do this right.”

She made a little sound and tried to pull away as he lowered his head to hers again, and he thrust his hand into her hair, felt the golden curls twine around his fingers as he held her mouth captive to his.

The game was still on.

He kissed her. Her mouth was warm and soft. Cam groaned, changed the angle of the kiss until she made a little sound and her lips parted.

“That’s it,” he said and slid his tongue into her mouth, felt the sweet delicacy of her shudder as he tasted her.

God, she was driving him crazy.

The feel of her mouth. The smell of her skin. The press of her naked breasts against his chest…

He drew back, cupped the small, perfect mounds. Her eyes flew open; color flooded her face.

“You have incredible breasts,” he said hoarsely.

“Please,” she whispered, “please, I beg you…”

“What?” He watched her eyes as he feathered his thumb against one nipple, saw the black pupils all but swallow the blue irises, heard the catch of her breath.

“Do you like that? Tell me. Tell me what you like.”

He bent to her, licked her nipple. She moaned and he bent to her again, blew lightly against the pearled flesh, then sucked it into his mouth.

It was like touching a lighted match to dry kindling.

She arched toward him and a sob burst from her throat, the sound high and wild and filled with something he couldn’t quite define.

Could it be wonder?

He wanted it to be, he thought fiercely. Wanted to be the first man who’d wrung that sound from this woman who had lain in God only knew how many other men’s arms.

She was breathing raggedly, moaning softly, writhing against his hand as he caressed her. Stroked her nipples. Kissed her warm flesh. She said something he couldn’t hear, whispered it as he touched her.

“Tell me,” he said, his voice urgent with need. “Tell me what I make you feel.”

Cam slipped his hand between their bodies. Slid it up her leg. Felt the heat of her skin. His nostrils flared at the sudden, unmistakable scent of her desire.

“God,” she whispered, “God…”

She raised her head from the pillows. Sighed and offered him her mouth.

With a fierce growl, he took the kiss she’d offered. Sank into it. Felt the first, tentative touch of her tongue against his, heard her sigh and knew he was taking her with him into a dark velvet whirlpool of desire where nothing and no one mattered except this.

He felt her starting to tremble against him.

Stop, a voice deep within him whispered. This is a mistake. For God’s sake, man, stop!

But it was too late. He was aching, as much for her final surrender as for his own release.

She moved against him, a little roll of her hips that made him groan. This—making love to her, feeling her swift response and knowing that the restraints still tied around her wrists and ankles left her exquisitely open and completely vulnerable to him—was incredibly exciting.

But he wanted more.

He wanted her arms around his neck, her legs around his hips as he poured himself into her.

Cam ran his hand higher, heard her swift intake of breath when he reached her thigh. Her skin was hot. Burning, as he was burning. He kissed her throat, heard her make that little sound women make when they stand balanced on the brink of forever in a man’s embrace.

“Tell me now,” he said. “What you like. What you want. I’ll make it happen, I promise.”