Page 10 of When He Hunts

“Show you…what?”

“The wound,” he bit out. And why was he so mad?Because she was hurt. I don’t like for her to be hurt.

Hell. This wasn’t good. Or rational. Maybe he needed to calm down, back off, and sleep.

Instead, he leaned ever closer.

Her left hand rose. She pulled at the top of her shirt, angling it down to show the jagged scar on her shoulder. “The vet wasn’t very good at stitching. Probably because animals don’t complain about wonky lines.”

Ronan’s back teeth clenched. “No wonder you don’t like knives.” His hand lifted toward her.

“Promise you won’t hurt me.”

His hand froze. Their gazes collided. He could almost hear the seconds ticking by. Finally, he asked, “You gonna believe the word of a hitman who drugged you and kidnapped you?”

“Well, when you put it that way…” Her lips pressed together. She shook her head.No.

“Didn’t think so.” His fingers reached out to touch her shoulder.

She flinched at the contact.

Silken skin. A scar that enraged him beyond reason. “I promise not to hurt you.” The words rumbled from him.

Her breath whispered out. “Does that include not drugging me again? Because I’d really prefer not to be drugged, thank you very much.”

How the hell is she this polite?“Are you always so courteous with your kidnappers?” His fingers kept brushing along the scar, almost as if he could take her pain away.

He couldn’t, of course.

Why am I still touching her? Why do I like touching her so much?

“You’re my first,” she said, those incredible green eyes staring at him without a blink. “Figured I could try courtesy instead of hysteria. Thought it might work better.”

She fascinated him. He sat on the side of the bed. With an immense force of will, Ronan made himself stop touching her.

Luna continued to crouch on her knees. “How did I get here?”

“I drove you in my car.”

A nod.

“Full disclosure,” he added, aware that his voice was gruff. “You were unconscious in the trunk at the time. Well, technically, you woke up once, but then I had to drug you again. So, yeah, here we are.”

Her delicate nostrils flared. Her only sign of fear. Well, that and the frantic pulse he could see racing along her throat. She was trying very hard to appear controlled and calm, but Ronan realized that was just an act. Luna was completely terrified of him.

And I’m fascinated by her.What. In. The. Hell?

“Where, exactly, is here?” Luna inquired in her ever-so-polite tone.

“A cabin in the bayou. Far, far away from civilization. You know, one of those places where no one will hear you scream.”

Silence.

“So there’s not much point in screaming. Or running. Because either you’ll stumble straight into a gator, or I’ll just catch you. And if I have to hunt you through the bayou—dodging snakes and sinking in smelly sludge—I will be pissed. Know that.”

“Oh, no.” Zero emotion in her voice. “I’d hate to piss off the hitman-slash-kidnapper who drugged me. Who knows what he might do next?” Her eyes had gone extra wide.

Suspicion hummed through him. “You’re a good actress, Luna. Guess you had to be, huh? Wasn’t that your thing?”

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