“I let you think that I was a nun so that we would be concentrating only on the safety of the orphans.”
“My ass. You lied to keep yourself safe from my pawing hands.”
“All right, yes!”
“And my leering glances.”
“Yes!”
“Not to mention all those kisses you claim to have hated.”
“Yes!”
“See? By your own admission, you just went on lying.”
“I tried to tell you,” she cried in self-defense.
“Funny, I don’t remember that occasion.”
“When you kissed me that last day. Just before we heard the airplane. I wanted to...tried to tell you then.”
“Not very hard you didn’t.”
“I didn’t have a chance. Everything started happening so fast.”
“It was a long airplane trip from there to here.”
“We argued over the money and I was too angry to tell you.”
“What about since we got back? Cage and Jenny would protect you from me, wild animal that I am. Why haven’t you told me? You’ve had dozens of opportunities.”
“Because I knew you’d react just as you are. That you’d be angry and abusive.”
He lowered his voice to a sinister whisper. “Baby, anger doesn’t even come close to describing the way I feel. And you don’t know me very well if you think I’d be abusive.”
To her humiliation, her lower lip began to quiver. “I never intended for it to go so far. Honestly. I’m sorry, Linc, truly I am.”
“It’s too late for apologies, Kerry.”
“I know I misrepresented myself, but I had no choice. I was desperate. I needed you, but I couldn’t cater to your desire. My first obligation was to the orphans.”
“Do you think I’d fall for your claims to noble sentiments now?” he asked with a humorless laugh. “No way, sweetheart. I want you humbled. I want you to sink as low on the ego scale as I’ve been lately. Only that will satisfy me.”
?
??What...what are you going to do?”
“What I told you that first morning I was going to do,” he said silkily. “I’m gonna make you beg me for it.”
“No!”
The husky exclamation died on Kerry’s lips when he pushed her back onto the blanket and followed her down, covering her with his body. He trapped her hands between them. They were useless to her when he secured her jaw with one hand and lowered his mouth to hers.
She struggled, but only succeeded in exhausting her supply of strength sooner. Even her best efforts didn’t budge him. Kicking didn’t help because he sandwiched her thighs between his. His knees kept hers pinned together. She couldn’t turn her head in any direction.
She tried to keep her lips pressed firmly together, but failed. He used his tongue like an instrument of tantalizing torture. It flicked softly over her lips, delved into the corners of them, outlined their shape until her unsteady, frightened breaths became gasps of pleasure. Finally, her lips relaxed and parted, without any force from him.
“That’s it, baby. Enjoy.”