Page 32 of The Captive
Le Clair laughed in delight, letting her pound at him with her fists.She was strong for her size, but Le Clair was stronger and bigger, and it was obvious her attack didn’t cause him an ounce of pain.Instead, it only seemed to amuse him further.His chest rumbled with laughter, the amusement pouring out of him making Deacon ill.
Le Clair let her go at him for a couple of more seconds, then stepped back with a bored expression.“Do you feel better?”he asked congenially.
Lana slowly let her arms drop to her sides.She was sobbing softly.“You’re evil,” she whispered, her blue eyes drifting in the direction of her almost-savior’s body.
“I’ve been called worse.”With a shrug, Le Clair glanced at Echo and Kilo.“Take care of the body.Let’s send our friend back where he came from.”A withering glance atLana, then a sharp order to Deacon.“Get her back to the room.And try and calm our little princess down, will you?”
Nodding in assent, Deacon took hold of Lana’s arms and forcibly dragged her back inside.She was shaking so hard his own body was vibrating.Damn it.He recognized the signs of shock when he saw them.Lana’s blue eyes had become glazed, her face paler than the snow capping the mountains out in the distance and her shuddering was uncontrollable.
“Oh, God,” she said over and over again, her voice coming out in rapid gasps.“I killed him.”
Deacon’s heart twisted in his chest.He forced himself to keep walking, now practically carrying her forward with his hands on her waist.She was so tiny, so fragile.He wanted to murder Paul Le Clair for making Lana witness a man’s cold-blooded execution.
In the bedroom, he set Lana down on the bed, where she immediately curled on her side, her cheeks stained with moisture, her voice dull as she kept mumbling to herself.“I killed him.Oh, God, Ikilledhim.”
Deacon sat beside her.He awkwardly placed a comforting hand on her lower back.She jerked abruptly, wiggling away from his hand.“He said he would let him go!How could he say that?”Sobs racked her slender body.She curled into herself tighter, bringing her knees to her chest.“God, Deacon!”
At least she knew he was with her.That was a good sign.She hadn’t completely gone off the deep end yet.
He reached for her again.“Lana—”
“I killed him!”
Deacon propelled into action, hauling her balled-up body and lifting it into his lap.He wrapped one arm around her trembling shoulders, stroked her cheek with his other hand.“You didn’t kill him, sweetheart.”
“Yes I did,” she mumbled, the tears pouring down her cheeks.
“Hey.Hey!”He grasped her chin with his fingers and yanked it up.“Look at me.Lookat me.”
Her gaze reluctantly focused on his.
Deacon kept his voice low and even.“You did not kill that man, Lana.He knew the risk he was taking when he showed up here.”
“To rescue me!This is my fault, Deacon.My fault!Oh, God…”
Her sobs returned and she buried her face against his chest, soaking the front of his sweater.Deacon held her tightly, letting her cry and shake in his arms.Something shifted in his chest, moved and cracked and made his heart ache.Just when he gave up on deciphering the strange reaction, his chest squeezed and then a dam broke inside of it.Pure, raw emotion filled his body, clogging his throat, tangling in his gut.
He nearly pushed Lana out of his arms.The shock was so immense, so paralyzing, he could barely breathe.He was feeling things he’d thought himself incapable of.Worry.Tenderness.Fear.Desire.And thrown into the mix, something hot and painful, something he’d never experienced before.
What was happening to him?
Better question, what was happening toLana?
As he tried sifting through the kaleidoscope of emotions suddenly spinning through him, Lana lifted her head and practically glued her mouth to his.
A groan lodged in his chest.Her lips were soft, slightly cold from her foray into the chilled night and wet from her tears.And the kiss was almost violent.He was helpless to stop it, latching his mouth to hers, letting her tongue slide through his lips.It was a far cry from the kisses they’dshared in the hotel room.Their noses bumped, teeth clashed, tongues fought a wild, desperate battle for domination.
“Lana—” he choked out, the sound of her name vibrating against their lips.
She didn’t answer.Just kissed him again, while the tears continued to slide down her cheeks and stain his face.
And then she took off her shirt.
CHAPTER 9
Lana Kelley had transformed into a lust-crazed temptress right before Deacon’s eyes.Deep down he knew this had nothing to do with lust, or even desire.She was desperate to erase the memory of what had happened outside the cabin.She was still in shock.Completely beside herself with grief.So beyond the concept of thinking clearly.
But like an ass, he didn’t stop her.
