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Finally, Lindsay pulled his lips away. His breaths came in little puffs that made Alex want to grab his cock. Instead, he restrained himself. He had things to do, places to be.Later, he would consume Lindsay top to bottom like the hearty feast that he was.

“End it,” Lindsay whispered. “There’s no sense in torturing her like this.”

“Pony,” Alex said, smiling as he took Lindsay’s face between his hands. “You know who you’re talking to.”

“Yeah,” he said after a pause. “I do.”

“I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a thousand times–don’t get attached.” Alex kissed him one last time before he turned away.

“Too late for that,” Lindsay said softly.

Chapter fourteen

Evie

She couldn’t stop shivering. She was cold, cold on the inside, cold on the outside. Despair was settling over her like a fever. Her one chance at escape was gone.

Gone, gone, gone.

Well, Alex was wrong about one thing. She hadn’t intended to leave the key there. But Ryan had tied her up so quickly after she’d hidden it that she hadn’t had a chance to do anything else with it. So there it had stayed.

That poor guy. It hadn’t occurred to her that she could actually get him killed. One more thing to add to her list of unforgivable sins.

A tear traveled down her face.

Another chill went through her and she hugged herself, wishing she could disappear.

The offbeat sound of Lindsay’s footsteps coming back into the bathroom caused her to raise her eyes. He and Ryan passed each other as Ryan left silently, smoking a cigarette as he went.

“Close the door,” Lindsay said in a sharp voice.

Though she couldn’t see Ryan’s face, she could see Lindsay’s, and the look of disapproval he shot at Ryan as he left.

Perhaps it was her imagination, but she thought she saw Ryan hesitate. Then, he sped up and the door closed behind him. Her stomach flipped unpleasantly and she put her head in her hands. A strange swell of emotions was rising in her.

Lindsay walked toward her slowly and then eased himself down into a crouch, hinging his brace as he went. She didn’t realize until he gently took hold of her wrists that she was shaking. With deft, graceful fingers he began to untie the knots of the rope that bound her.

“Let’s get you out of this,” he said softly. Kindly. He began to gently peel the wet silk of her robe from her body. “It’s all wet.” Like a doll, she mutely allowed him to maneuver her arms and pull away the wet cloth. Though she was totally naked now, it felt better than wearing that thing for another second. She had come to loathe it intensely.

“How does a bath sound?” His soft voice was like a hand petting her gently. Kind and chaste.

Slowly, she raised her shaking hands and ran them through her hair. Without any preamble, she began to sob. The force of her grief and humiliation over having her hair forcefully taken from her shocked even her.

“Oh, sweetheart,” Lindsay said. He pulled her against him while she cried and pressed one of his large, beautiful hands against the side of her head while she pressedher cheek against his chest, enveloping her in the rich, beautiful scent of his body. “He’s such a shit.”

“He’s a fucking bastard,” she sobbed. “My hair. My hair! Who the fuck does something like that!”

“If it’s any consolation, you still look beautiful,” Lindsay said. His voice was a soft, beautiful rumble in his chest.

For one moment, the fact that he said this buoyed her heavy heart. But then it sank again.

“I look awful,” she moaned, her whole body shaking with her crying.

“Truly, you do not,” Lindsay said, firmly. “You look charming. Though he isn’t the most skilled stylist, so we’ll even it out for you, but I think you’ll be surprised at how flattering short hair is.”

“That’s not the point,” she said, a touch heatedly.

He was silent for a moment. “I know.” Another pause. “I’m serious about the bath. Would you like one?”

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