“My farm.”
“It’s not worth your life.”
“It’s wortheverything.”
“Sarah, if you want to be a farmer, I will buy this farmland from under you, and you can buy another one elsewhere. We’ll set the deed up with shell companies so the White Russians will never find you.”
Everything he said was logical. Everything he said told her to run. “But my roots arehere.”
“Livingplants grow roots. You can put down new ones, but you have to bealiveto do that.”
She glared up at him, watching his pale blue eyes.“Don’t tell me how to grow plants.”
His gaze sharpened as his eyes narrowed, and he appraised her, surveying from her eyes to her mouth and back.
Blaze’s chin dropped a notch like an engine’s flywheel clicking into place. He asked, “And youcan’tleave?”
“No!”
He leaned down and whispered in her ear, “Sarah, staying here while you are in danger won’t make you a good girl.”
“But Ihaveto.”
“No, you don’t have to, and I won’t let you. We’re leaving. I am taking you away. There will be no more discussion. I will tie you up and throw you over my shoulder if that’s what it takes. As a matter of fact, I can’t think of anything I want to domore.”
He covered her hands with his warm one.
His voice lowered. “From what Logan said, we can wait to leave until tomorrow morning. You can have one last night in the house,and thenwe will leave.”
“Ishouldn’t.”
His voice was dark with the promise of dominance. “Little kitten, youwilldo as I say.”
“No. Iwon’t.”
He stroked one finger under her jaw and lifted her chin to look into her eyes. “Oh, yes. You will.”
With one sweep of his arm, she was off the chair and sitting on the floor.“Hey!”
Blaze sat in his chair and glared down at her. “I’ve been too lenient with you, little kitten. It’s time to be firm. No talking.” He reached over to her plate and loaded her fork with quiche. “Open your mouth. Eat.”
“We have to talk about—”
“Open your mouth for your supper, or I’ll use your mouth for myself.”
Dear Lord, Sarah was depraved because his warm flesh and slight earthy scent filling her mouth and throat didn’t sound like punishment at all.
Nevertheless, she opened her mouth, and Blaze forked the bite in.
Sarah closed her lips around the fork tines and looked up at Blaze. She kept her lips closed while he slowly withdrew it from her mouth.
His eyes caught fire, watching her.
He reached over to her plate again, used her knife and fork to carefully fold salad leaves into a neat green package on the tines, and held it out to her. “Open.”
Sarah dropped her jaw and took the bite. While she chewed, Blaze fed himself a few bites and then offered her another.
With every bite she took from him, his eyes darkened.
