Page 46 of Freedom Fighters
The men were stirring and talking among themselves behind him.
Carmen felt a reluctant admiration. She hadn’t for a moment thought Garrett was trying to teach them something about themselves. Everything he said was true, though. She had been blind with fury. It had over-ridden the tiredness and aches and the heaviness in her limbs. Shehadfound the energy to roll out of the way whenshe thought he would kick her. A few seconds before that moment she would have sworn nothing short of a nuclear holocaust would move her.
“Get up,” Garrett said. “I want to talk to you face to face.”
Carmen scowled at him. She wasn’t ready to forgive him. Even if the morning hadn’t been pointless, he had still singled her out for the brunt of his “lesson.”
Garrett didn’t give her the option.He leaned over and gripped her arm, then hauled her to her feet, lifting her as if she weighed nothing.
Stiff muscles creaked in protest as she straightened up. She forced her arms to move, so she could put her hands on her hips. “You’re still an asshole,” she told him.
“Good. That’s exactly where I want your focus.”
He kissed her.
Carmen’s breath rushed out of her, so surprised was she. Blanknothing enveloped her mind.
She heard cat calls and whistles and cheers from everyone who was watching. Confusion swamped her.
Garrett’s hands were on her face, in her hair, holding her steady so he could kiss her properly. And damn it, she was responding. The tingling at the base of her belly started up. Her heart leapt.
When he let her go, his expression was neutral. There was a warmth inhis eyes, though, that made her heart thud even harder.
He picked up her hand. His fingers curled over hers. “Come with me.”
Garrett walked over the stone floor, skirting the fire and all the men sprawled around it. They all grinned, except Angelo, who watched the flames.
When Carmen realized Garrett headed for the interior door to his office, she dragged on his hand, alarmed. He kept pullingher toward the door. He opened it and stepped aside and let go of her hand. “After you.”
Carmen moistened her lips, doubt tearing at her.
Garrett’s gaze was unflinching, with none of the cynicism she had grown used to shadowing his expression. He simply waited.
She stepped through and he shut the door behind her.
She whirled to face him. “What thehelldo you think you’re doing?” she demanded.“In front of everyone, like that?”
He pressed his hand against her back, shepherding her gently along the corridor. “I would have had a bigger morale problem if I hadn’t.”
Carmen glanced at him sharply. “Why do you say that?”
“You’re the only woman under forty in the camp. You stopped sleeping with Angelo once we…after we had sex,” he said. “Yes, I noticed,” he added impatiently. “You weren’tsubtle about Angelo. I know you flaunted him so the rest of them would leave you alone. Once you severed your connection with Angelo, though, it wouldn’t have taken long for one of them to try their luck. Or more than one. That’s a problem I didn’t want to have to deal with.”
“So you kissed me in front of them to keep up morale?”
He opened the door to his office and let her go through first.The lantern was turned down low and it was warm. Garrett shut the door and moved so he was facing her. “I kissed you in front of them because I don’t like sneaking around any more than you do. Putting a stop on any carnal intentions they might have been forming was a small bonus, as far as I’m concerned.” He brushed stray hair from her face.
Carmen shook her head. “I don’t understand,” she saidflatly. “You were an absolute bastard this morning. You were way tougher on me than you were on any of the others. Efraín sat on his ass for most of it and you didn’t make him run an extra two miles.”
“Everyonesawhow tough I was on you. Now they know that just because you’re in my bed, I’m not going to give you any breaks at all. I won’t play favorites.” He stepped away from her, a small pace,and crossed his arms. “That wasn’t the only reason I did it.”
Carmen frowned. She didn’t like it that she agreed with him—to a point. “That doesn’t make sense. Okay, sure, don’t play favorites. You werevicious,though.”
“I had to be to snap you out of it,” Garrett said.
“Snap me out of what?”
“You stopped hating me,” he said. “You started to think about me during the day the way you do whenwe’re in bed. You were getting soft. You were getting distracted.”
