Page 8 of Caught By Menace

Menace snorted and patted her backside. “Don’t worry about that. I’ve got cuffs and a gag waiting on the ship.”

Her jaw dropped with shock. Indignant, she whacked his arm. “You’re a pig, you know that?”

“Is that the worst you’ve got for me?” Laughing, he shifted her in his arms and threw her over his shoulder.

Forced into the awkward position, she stiffened in fear of being dropped right on her head. “What kind of a dirtbag carries around cuffs and gags?”

“The kind who plans to protect his investment,” he replied matter-of-factly. “I survived some of the nastiest, most brutal battles of the war to gain enough points to Grab a wife. I’m not about to let you run off or get taken by another male. You might not have been the one I wanted, but you’re pretty enough for a consolation prize.”

His words wounded her more than his fists ever could have. Not the one he wanted? His consolation prize?

Suddenly she was taken back to the night her mother had packed her bags and left with the sky trader. Only six years old, Naya had tearfully begged her mother to take her along, to please not leave her behind, but the answer then hadn’t been any different than Menace’s cutting remark just now. Her motherhad revealed she’d never wanted her and had viewed her as little more than an obstacle in her path to happiness.

And then there had been her older brother, Nattie. What had he told her the night he’d chosen to take Sindee, his girlfriend, to the colonies instead of her?I love her.She’s everything to me.

Because, in the end, Naya had meant nothing to him. After she’d risked her life to make the money they needed to run, she’d been disposable. Nattie had easily discarded her in his quest for freedom and a new life with his girlfriend in the colonies.

Forced to relive some of the lowest memories of her life by Menace’s cruel remark, Naya fought the urge to punch him in the kidneys. Just the knowledge that his three hundred pounds of dead weight would crush her on the forest floor stopped Naya from taking some revenge for his hurtful words.

All the fight left her then. She sagged against his powerful shoulder and let his thick, corded arms bear her full weight. This would go down as one of the worst days of her life. She’d been abandoned by the last person she’d loved and trusted and captured by a man who didn’t even want her. Now he was taking her back to his ship where he would force her to do all kinds of degrading and perverted things.

But that didn’t mean she had to go quietly. She’d make him so miserable he’d trip over himself to put her on a transport ship bound for the colonies just for some peace and quiet. Oh, she’d let him think he’d won this battle, but their personal war? It was far from over.

Chapter Three

Menace rubbed theback of his neck and paced back and forth in his bedroom. He had the door to the playroom cracked open so he could hear Naya and come to her aid if she needed him. Not that she’d let him help her. The woman was so stubborn and rude she’d probably refuse his help even if he were the last man in the universe and she faced certain death.

He blew out a frustrated breath and tried to figure out what the hell to do next. He had been warned that some brides could be testy after a Grab, but nothing had prepared him for this. Carrying her out of the forest, he’d felt the fight leave her. He hadn’t been stupid enough to believe she’d willingly submit herself to him as a wife, but he had hoped she would be amenable to giving their new situation a try.

All that hope had been shattered the second he’d taken her onboard the transport ship. Such a string of filth and cursing he had never heard! And that was saying something coming from a man who had served on the front lines with the infantry for nearly two decades. The colorful combinations that she abused him with had left more than one fellow soldier snickering.

Not even gagging her with one of the soft training gags had been enough to shut her down. She had simply grunted and kicked and jerked at the cuffs he had used to keep her in her seat. Worried she would injure herself, he had been on the verge of requesting a sedative from one the medics. Apparently the idea of being drugged scared her because she had quieted down almost instantly.

After the nightmare trip from the surface to the docking station on theValiant, Menace had dreaded taking her through the intake procedure and medical exam. To his utter shock, she’d behaved herself. It wasn’t until she’d nearly completed intake that he realized why she was being so cooperative. That sharp, intelligent gaze of hers was scanning the ship. He’d almost been able to hear the gears turning in her head.

Concerned she would try to run—or worse—Menace had blindfolded her for the trip to his private quarters. As smart as she was proving to be, Menace doubted it would even slow her down if she escaped his quarters. He was certain she’d memorized every step, every turn and every ding of the elevator as it moved between the floors of the med bay and the housing section. Just in case, he had put travel restrictions on her ID chip to prevent her from leaving his quarters without him or one of the escorts on his emergency contact list.

It wasn’t supposed to be this way. After seeing the way Hallie made Vicious smile and laugh, he’d let himself dream of this moment. With envy, he had watched their gentle interactions, the soft words and lingering touches, and yearned for it. He’d yearned for a woman to ease his burdens, to bring him happiness and show him love.

Instead of finding his helpmate, he’d Grabbed a woman who seemed intent on making his life miserable.

But it didn’t have to be this way. She wanted control, right? Well, he’d give her a choice and then she’d be free to choose to be happy with him.

He strode to his closet, pushed aside the sliding silver door and rifled through his sock drawer for the one pair of white socks he owned. A white flag of surrender wasn’t standard issue for the duty uniform. A sock was the best he could do.

Nearing the door to his playroom, Menace realized Naya was being awfully quiet. The fine hairs on the back of his neck stoodon edge. He tapped the doorframe, activating the mechanism that pulled it wide open, and stepped into the room. The sight that greeted him left his mouth gaping wide open. “How the hell did you get loose?”

“Oh, nice of you to come check on me now!” She shot an angry glare his way. With one ankle still cuffed to the chair where he’d placed her after her shower, Naya frantically worked to pick the lock. “What if I’d passed out chained to this chair?”

“There are sensors in the cuffs. They measure your pulse and respiratory rate. If you’d been in any distress, I would have been alerted.” Menace shook himself from the stupor of finding her nearly free. “How the hell—”

“For a soldier, you’re really bad at frisking.” She stuck out her tongue at him. “Always check the cheek, Menace. You’d be surprised how easy it to hide something like, oh, a hairpin in there.”

He remembered the small black pins she’d been wearing in her hair during the Grab. He’d been sure he’d taken them all when he’d pushed her into the bathroom for her shower. Apparently he’d been wrong.

In a flash, she worked the final cuff free and jumped to her feet. She raised her hands as if prepared to fight him. “Get back, Menace!”

“Or what?” He laughed and shut the door. He pressed his thumb to the keypad there, activating the biometric lock. “You’ll stab me with a hairpin?”

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