Page 41 of Protective Heroes

Her body stiffened a little but I could feel it under my hands as she melted into me and capitulated. “Fine. I promise I’ll stop being such a…”

“Bratty little cock tease,” I prompted.

She huffed out a breath and said in a rush, “Bratty little cock tease.”

I grinned and released her when she moved to roll off my lap and scramble to her feet.

In an instant, she changed again from compliant girl to strong, wild woman. Her hands hung in front of her and she jutted her breasts out as she pulled in a deep breath. She whirled and headed for the door.

“I don’t know what your perverted little game is, but just wait until you take me back to my father. I’m going to tell him everything you did to me.”

Amusement made me want to laugh out loud, something I rarely did. But as I got to my feet, I kept my expression blank.

“If you’re going to run and tattle to Daddy, little girl. Then I might as well give you something juicy to tell him.”

Four

Evie

The wind howled outside our walls, and I quietly thanked my luck we had a fire, four walls and not stuck in some ditch somewhere trying to get back to the hotel.

“Are you going to take these cuffs off? My wrists are sore.” I paced between the window and the fireplace, turned and then retraced my steps. My ass was sore too but that caused a surge of different emotions inside me I found confusing. I never thought a spanking would be sexy but the wetness between my legs proved otherwise. And it unsettled me.

A small table and a pair of cracked wooden chairs were pushed up against the wall opposite the fireplace with the king bed taking up much of the cabin. So much for luxury. Gabriel had made another trip to the truck bringing back a large blanket. The hotel and its glorious linens and massive bathtub seemed like a lifetime ago.

I sat down on the bed, giving it a little bounce as I kicked off my Uggs.

Wooden legs scraped against the scuffed-up floors as Gabriel pulled a chair out. “Come here.”

What was his problem? He’d spanked me, after all. I was still waiting for the apology on that one. It wasn’t that it hurt. It was more like such a surprise I still couldn’t believe it happened. And I wouldn’t mind it happening again to see what I thought. I like Gabriel touching me like that a lot. There was something tender about his slaps that made me crave his hands on me again.

First things first. Get these cuffs off.

I got up and sank into the other chair. It was a hard wooden chair and I winced.

Gabriel produced a key and set about removing my handcuffs. His head shot up at my discomfort.

“Did I hurt you?”

I wanted to lie and tell him yes just to see him squirm. But the look in his eyes was of such concern that I caved.

“Pinched my ass in a crack in this high-quality chair,” I murmured.

He was rubbing my wrists lightly with his thumbs. That felt really nice. They were a bit red from the cuffs so I wasn’t going to complain.

“Not everyone lives their life going from five-star hotels to private planes like you do.”

“Despite what you think, it’s not easy being me,” I blurted.

Gabriel raised his head and looked at me skeptically but he didn’t stop the massage of my hands. In fact, now he’d moved to drawing circles on my palms with his thumbs. His touch was tender and I didn’t want him to stop.

“Yeah, getting whatever you want must be a real bitch, Ice Princess.”

“I don’t get everything I want. Far from it,” I protested.

“Really?” He dropped my hands and sat back in his chair. One of his arms casually hung over the back. “Tell me one thing that hasn’t gone your way.”

“Well.” I glanced around the dingy room wildly. My heart pounded so hard in my chest that I was sure Gabriel could hear it.

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