Page 36 of Covert Vengeance

A strong hand closed around hers, denying her. “Uh-uh,belleza.”

Confused, sure she’d heard him wrong, she jerked her gaze upward. His eyes blazed with molten desire and he was hard as steel against her belly, both things completely at odds with the set look on his face. “What?”

The left side of his mouth kicked up in a sexy half-smile. He pulled her hand from his waistband and leaned in to kiss her again. A slow, liquid kiss that melted her insides, then he lifted his head and gently set her away from him.

It was like having a glass of ice water thrown in her face, the shock startling. “What the hell?” she said, the sudden punch of anger sweeping away the daze of confusion. He was seriously stopping this now? When he’d just set her on fire, worked up higher than she’d ever been in her entire life, and now he was going to leave her hanging?

His fiery stare made her over-aroused body whimper with unfulfilled need. “I’m not interested in being with you for only one night. So when you’re ready for more than just scratching that itch, let me know.” Then he nodded at the door behind her. “Thanks for the rubdown. Good night.”

She gaped at him. Good night? He was freaking dismissing her?

Outraged, Amber spun on her heel and took her aching, frustrated body down the hall to her own room. When she was ready for more than scratching an itch? What guy hadeversaid that, in the history of mankind when a willing woman was standing in front of him, dying for more?

Fuck him and his games. “Scratching an itch,” as he put it, was all she was willing to give him.

Except it would have been more than that to her. It would have been unforgettable, and he’d robbed her of it.

She stripped and got into the bed, cursing him, then thought of the mass of bruises on his back.

Good. At least he would suffer more than her tonight.

Chapter Eleven

Birdsong.

Amber’s eyes sprang open and she jerked up onto her elbows in the bed, listening to the unfamiliar sound of it as she reoriented herself. The clock on the nightstand read five-nineteen. That meant she’d only gotten three hours of sleep. After being dismissed by Cordova, she hadn’t been able to sleep, so she’d spent most of the night working.

Early morning sunlight streamed around the edges of the blinds covering the windows on the east side of the room. All around her, it was quiet. No traffic noise or muted voices, or even people moving around the house. Just the birds singing outside. Pretty. Cheerful. Peaceful.

The quiet was damn near eerie, a jarring contrast to what she’d become used to after living on edge in various cities and in constant danger for the past few months. Her body was tired, her system drained after being on constant overload for so long.

With a groan, she flopped back down on the bed. She was as safe here as she was going to get, yet she hadn’t slept well for the few hours she’d been in bed. It was hard for her to turn off that ever-present internal vigilance, and the situation with Cordova hadn’t helped any.

She’d kept busy hacking Stanislav’s stuff and hunting down his money so she could send the intel to Trinity, in addition to widening her search net to find more Valkyries who might still be out there.

Still wired after that, body frustrated and unsatisfied, she’d finally been forced to take care of business herself just so she could sleep, and it hadn’t been a tenth as good as it would have been with Cordova.

She scowled up at the ceiling. What was he playing at? Did he expect a declaration of undying love before they slept together or something? Because that wasn’t happening. Freaking arrogant, sexy bastard.

Slipping from the bed, she walked to the window and pulled up the blind to see outside. A thin veil of mist covered the rolling green fields that spread out for as far as the eye could see beyond the main house. Apparently Marcus had two-hundred-acres or so here.

She wouldn’t mind exploring some of it. It would be nice to recharge a little. Her nervous system had been on constant alert for such a long time, it deserved some time to unwind.

She showered in the en suite, changed into jeans and a light sweater, then went down the hall to check on Kiyomi. Cordova’s door was open as she passed by, his room empty when she glanced in. It annoyed her that she even cared where he was after the stunt he’d pulled last night, but the man made it impossible to forget or stop craving him.

Pausing in front of Kiyomi’s door, she tapped lightly before pushing it open. She found Megan there, sitting on the end of the bed. Kiyomi was sitting up against the headboard, a breakfast tray spread across her lap. The bruising on her face was worse but the swelling had gone down a bit—both her eyes were open now.

“Hey, look who’s up. You look like you’re feeling a bit better,” Amber said.

“A bit,” Kiyomi said with a tiny smile.

“It’s good to see you eating. Did you wind up needing the bucket last night?”

A faint smile lifted the edge of her mouth. “No.”

“She’s polished off two bowls of oatmeal already. I wanted to give her toast and fruit, but Marcus insisted on oatmeal and made it for her himself. And since he’s master of this castle, oatmeal she got,” Megan explained.

“It hit the spot,” Kiyomi said, setting her spoon beside the empty bowl. She winced slightly as she leaned back on the headboard and put a hand to her ribs. “Think I’ll attempt a shower, then sleep for a while more. I’m pretty tired.” Her gaze slid to Amber. “I never did thank you, you know. For getting me out of there the other day. Thanks.”

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