Page 17 of The Captain's Bounty
I care!she thought back desperately.
Bruwes’s face did not soften, and neither did his stance. “I am not leaving.”
“Untie me,” she demanded. “I swear, I won’t do anything, but you can’t expect me to… to…”
“You will do as you are told, when you are told,” he said flatly. “You are my prisoner, not my guest, and after what you did down there, there is no way you’ll ever be unbound on my ship.”
The heat in her belly burned all the way to her face. “That wasn’t me, I swear.”
Careful…
Black eyes flashed faintly red and his tone dropped with the kind of disapproval that made her stomach clench.
“I was standing right there when that ship went flying,” he said flatly, still waiting.
Turning her face away, Lissa stared at the shower tube, appalled then grudgingly resigned. What difference was there, really, between this and a hole dug for two with nothing but a tall rock slab in the middle for privacy? There were times a girl couldn’t afford to be picky or modest.
Closing her eyes, pretending she was anywhere else, she forced herself use it.
Done, she glared at him again, mortified and subdued, only to be burned all over again by the smug victory smile curling the corner of his mouth.
“Good girl,” he rumbled.
Sarcasm dripped from every syllable, making her shake.
“Behave like this, and our time together will pass quickly and without any undo unpleasantness.”
Pushing off the wall, he came back to her she snapped her legs tightly together when he hunkered down in front of her. One big hand on each of her knees effortlessly prized them open again, long enough for him to wipe her clean.
“Behave like this,” he noted, “and I will have you back over my knee.”
Her face would never be anything but a burning scarlet from now until the end of her life. And it only got worse the longer the tingling effect of his touch echoed between her thighs.
Can I kill him now?the being in her asked.
No. More. Killing!
She was an archeologist, not a murderer, and yet the burning embarrassment only got sharper when Bruwes bent, bringing himself down to face level with her pubis. One quick tug and he had her underwear back up into its proper place. Was it her imagination, or did he pause just a little when he turned his nose toward her sex and sniffed?
Humiliation scalded her face, chest, and god, her pussy as his fingers lightly caressed their way down her thighs. That was probably her imagination too, because when he took hold of her pants, he seemed nothing but all business as he jerked them up.
Youlikedthat?the being asked, astounded.
“No!” She stumbled into the toilet when Bruwes grabbed her arm.
“Yes,” he countered, hauling her back out of the bathroom and into her equally small cell, decorated with little more than that bed, the table and the chair he’d been sitting on. With an almost gentle shove, he dropped her once more to sit on the edge of the mattress. “Thirsty?”
She didn’t bother asking again to have her hands untied. Judging by that glitter in his black eyes, he was waiting for her to and thoroughly enjoying the power he had not to allow it.
You like this, too?
Lissa shook her head, refusing to agree, but there was something weird about the pulsing heat in her belly. It throbbed hotter and harder as Bruwes picked up the cup from the table beside her empty bowl. He stepped in close to her, bringing the cup to her lips. It looked like water, but tasted almost sweet.
What is there in this to enjoy?
Embarrassed by her inability to hide her reactions from the being inside her, she rejected it—physically, mentally, instantly and foolishly. She spat everything in her mouth back at Bruwes. The act felt hollow, but if she was supposed to be his prisoner, then she may as well act like it.
Unimpressed, Bruwes didn’t flinch, though he did look down on the mess she’d made of his shirt. The wetness soaked into the white fabric from chest to stomach. She’d even got his pants.
