My nightly craft is winged in white, a dragon of night-darksea.
?Anne McCaffrey,Dragonsong
Oh God,this is bad.This is so bad. I’ve committed a crime, and now I’m on the run with a jewelthief.
The thought kept racing through Piper’s mind in an endless loop. Somehow this man had convinced her to help him steal the Cheapside hoard. All of it. How the hell had he donethat?
He just looked into my eyes, and I went allgooey.
She couldn’t erase that feeling, the heavy compulsion to do exactly what he’d asked. Had he hypnotized her? Didn’t someone need to swing a pocket watch or something to do that? She was in a hot mess, and now he was taking her to God knows where against herwill.
But he’d also kept assuring her she was safe. Her natural instincts were torn between trusting him and wanting to knee him in the balls andescape.
Mikhail still had her trapped beneath him, his hands gripping her wrists. She’d stopped screaming once the car started moving. Some part of her was staying rational despite everything that had happened tonight. That voice was now warning her to save her energy. No one would hear her. She was being held hostage in a black Range Rover. Getting free was going to be difficult, and she wouldn’t make it far, being barefoot in a partydress.
Mikhail watched her intently, his gaze hot and frightening. Dark hair fell into his eyes, and he licked his lips. How could she have fallen for a jewel thief? She’d been head over heels for him, kissing him and letting go of her control to justfeeleverything with him, only for it all to have been a lie. He’d been using her and had somehow gotten into her head. The memory of his mouth on hers now tastedbittersweet.
“Are you ready to behave?” heasked.
The word sparked a new fire inside her. Even though he’d hauled her into the car, she didn’t think he would hurt her on purpose. It gave her the courage to stand up tohim.
“Behave?” she echoed, her voice dangerously silky. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you? A little slave who would do whatever you tell herto?”
Mikhail chuckled. “You are no slave, not unless you wish to be.” His own tone now turned dangerously soft. “Doyou?”
It was then she became truly aware of her body in relation to his. He was lying on top of her, her thighs parted, his slender hips cradled by her body with her skirt bunched up to her waist in black and red ruffles. Memories of their kisses came back to her, and she hated how much she already missed them. Kissing a damned jewel thief. She was going to need some serious therapy after this, because his damned natural dominance was turning heron.
“You said you wouldn’t hurt me,” she warned. If he tried to do anything to her, she would castrate him, no matter how good a kisser hewas.
“And I keep my promises, but sometimes a bit of pain intensifies pleasure.” He let go of one wrist to twine his fingers in her hair and tug lightly, prompting a rush of heated memories from their kiss earlier when he’d done the same thing. It had felt so good, so hot, and it spiked new desires insideher.
She shook off the memories. This was not the time to let her fantasies play out. He’d made her help him steal a fortune in jewels somehow and then kidnapped her. Shame filled her at the thought that she was still turned on by him. She’d always thought Stockholm syndrome took longer to set in thanthis.
Piper turned her shame into anger. “Get offme!”
Under other circumstances, if she’d trusted him, the thought of him dominating her would have made her wet, hot, and panting. Right now she was just angry. He wasn’t going to abduct her, turn her into a felon, and just expect her toswoon.
Mikhail’s eyes softened. The strange gold gleam swirling at the edge of his pupils faded, and the summer-green jadereturned.
“Easy, easy now.” She felt that strange desire to do exactly as he said wash over her again. For a long while they simply stared at each other until she felt relaxed and collected. Not brainwashed, just…calmed.
He sat back, let go of her wrist, and loosened his fingers from her hair. She scrambled to the opposite side of the seat and curled her arms around herself. Strangely, being farther away from him made her feel vulnerable in a way that made no sense. As mad and scared as she was, when he touched her it felt…safe. Why the heck would it make her feel safe? Not having an answer to that question wasn’t exactlycomforting.
“Where are we going?” sheasked.
“Cornwall.”
“Cornwall?”
“Yes. To my home.” His haunting green eyes entranced her even as they frightenedher.
“Why…why are we going there? Are you planning to sell the jewels there? Have you already found a buyer? Or is that your hideout?” She didn’t understand why he had brought her with him unless he was worried about witnesses. Didn’t witnesses to crimes usually end up dead? The thought made her stomach roil and blood roar in herears.
He chuckled. “All understandable guesses, but no. I’ve no intention of selling them, and I would never call my home ahideout.”
“Whynot?”
Mikhail smirked. “Perhaps it is, after afashion.”
