Snatched by Sharon Cullars Page B

probably what he had hoped, to calm her down. Liquid courage sometimes did that for her.
    He had finished his own drink, and he grabbed the bottles, tossed them in to the nearby waste pail. The glass clanged against the metal .
    The alcohol had done something for him, too. There was a little something more in his eyes when he looked at her.
    "Tell me, why is n't a man coming to your rescue? I mean, isn't there someone out there calling around frantically trying to find you ? "
    "How do you know there isn't?" she asked resentfully, the resentment rising because the question had uncomfortably hit on the truth. She had no one. Even her relatives were out of state. And she'd gone incognito before so no major alarms were going to be raised for another few days.
    Enough time for her to have gone missing and gotten herself killed.
    "There's been no news about you. No one raising hell. Even with the witnesses."
    The anger was unexpected and painful. She'd been kidnapped in the open and no one had even thought to call the police. As though her life didn't mean shit.
    She had no where to turn that anger but on him.
    "Don't worry about who cares about me. And what's your story? Probably an abusive parent in the woodpile, otherwise why are you where you are right now? No one cared right?
    He winced and she took some satisfaction that she 'd hit a nerve.
    "You know, you can be a bitch when you want to be," he said , his eyes a bit darker . Anger and alcohol, a caustic mix. Not good for him, definitely not for her.
    "Better a bitch than a punk, and that's what you are. Rez says jump and you ask how high. Just admit it, h e owns you."
    "Nobody owns me," he said.
    "If no one owns you, you would let me walk away right now. But you know that you can't so you won't. You're Rez's bitch just like that other bitch of his ! "
    The thunder in his expression told her she ' d gone too far. In two steps, he strode to the door.
    "You want to leave, here' s the door ! Go on, get the fuck out !"
    He unlocked the door, slammed it open. Stood waiting for her to go .
    But s hock glued her feet to the floor.
    Her feet knew there was no way she could survive out there alone even as her brain told her to leave , to get free of the gang, of him .
    "What are you waiting for?" he asked cruelly.
    "I…"
    "You what?"
    "I can't," she said quietly, all of her anger replaced by cold dread.
    The sound of her fear was in her voice. In the visible tremor going through her body.
    One moment he stood sentry at the door, an angry angel ready to oust her from her only haven. But hearing her voice, the thunder left his face . The storm subsided. With a sigh, he closed the door.
    They were at a standstill. She had surrendered but so had he. And neither of them knew what to do next.
    She closed her eyes for a second, feeling exhausted and frightened. When she opened them, he was there in front of her just a breath away.
    "I'm sorry," she said. "I don't know why I keep fucking up."
    "It's because you're scared. I get that. But neither of us can afford to go crazy, especially not now."
    His closeness was a palliative, driving all the crazy away. Looking into his eyes, she saw something steadfast, something comforting. As though he would take away her fear if he could. And in that moment, she decided to trust him again. If only for the time they had together.
    When she reached for him, she knew that it was stupid, foolhardy. Dangerous even.
    This wasn't the place n or the time.
    Y et neither of them care d .
    With quick, desperate motions h e yank ed o ff the jacket he'd given her earlier and maneuvered her out of the bra in as many seconds. Just as desperately, she pull ed up his shirt up and over his head, tousling his hair. Within a minute they both stood topless. The cold fact of their nakedness momentarily gave them pause as the enormity hit them. She started to pull away but he grabbed her arm, pulled her into his naked torso.
    The muscles of his chest were hard and smooth