Page 25 of Rough Ride

“From one control freak to another, it’s working.” Having lost her appetite, she dropped her fork with a noisy clatter. “I spent eighteen years of my life feeling trapped in this house, and now look where I am? Trapped again.”

“Come here,” Kye said, tossing his wet shirt aside and opening his arms. Eliana stood and let him embrace her. His skin was warm, and traces of a heady cologne lingered on his neck. She closed her eyes and breathed him in. “I’m going to get you out of this. Soon.”

“I know. I can see you’re working on things,” she said, looking up at him. She loved the way his chest pressed against hers. Lowering her hands to his hips, she absently fiddled with the loops of his jeans. “Are you going to tell me who you keep talking to on the phone?”

“I can’t,” he said with an apologetic tone. “I know it makes you feel helpless, but the less you know the better. For now, just try to keep your mind off things.” She raised an eyebrow at him. “I know, it’s like asking you to hold the ocean back with a broom…”

“It'd be easier to give myself a root canal.”

“Want me to get the pliers?”

“Jerk,” she teased and gave him a playful shove. Kye took her by the hips and hoisted her onto the counter before digging his fingertips into her side. “No, no!” she shrieked and tried to push him away, but he was merciless as he tickled her. Both pushing him away and pulling him closer, she ended up tackling him to the ground, and he both groaned and laughed as they flopped on the tile floor.

“That’s not fair; you have bony elbows,” he protested as she straddled him. Her face was flushed, and she was smiling from ear to ear. He sat up, hands holding her back so she didn’t fall backward. Her smile faltered as they locked eyes, and their intimate hold on each other became charged. “God, I want you,” Kye muttered when his eyes dropped to her lips.

“I want you too,” Eliana whispered and kissed him. His grip was fierce, and the air rushed out of her as he crushed his chest against hers. “What is it?” she asked when he pulled away. “What’s stopping you?”

“Nothing,” he lied and lifted her to her feet before standing. Her eyes were narrowed, and he took her chin between his thumb and index finger. “I’m going to have you,” he said, more like a promise than anything else. “I’m going to take you in every way a man can take a woman and probably some new ones.” She couldn’t help the smile. “Not until it’s safe.”

“Why?”

“Because I want you so bad it’s killing me. Gives me drive to get you the hell out of here.”

“So let’s go,” she pleaded. Kye’s eyes dropped. “What? What aren’t you telling me?”

“Eli,” he began, and she stepped back from him. It was easier to think when he wasn’t touching her. “I wasn’t just out for a ride this morning. I wanted to scout the roads.”

“And?”

“It’s not good.”

“Just tell me!”

“Max isn’t just covering his bases; he’s turned the town into a veritable blockade. He owns the county patrol, and they’ve got squad cars posted on the north and south bridges.”

“What about the eastern road? If we leave town, we can drive the coastal highway.”

“That seems to be the only clear path, but it’s throwing a wrench in my plans. With only one escape route, the minute I get you out of town they’ll know exactly what road we took.”

“Why all the paranoia? This can’t be for me. Max already has me here.”

“It’s not. With Max assembling his predecessors, all hell is breaking loose. Or rather, breaking in. Come the end of the month, every chapter of the Screaming Demons will have members in town.”

“How many?”

“We’ve got thirty chapters from here to London.”

“Fuck,” Eliana said, pressing the heels of her hands into her eyes.

“Don’t get discouraged; it may end up being the distraction we need,” Kye said, placing his hands on her shoulders. “If we time it right.”

“If we don’t, all Max has to do is show my picture around, and I’ve got a lynch mob on my back.”

“Enough,” he said, holding her face, “you let me worry about that. The only thing you’ll have on your back is me.” That earned him another smile from her, and he kissed her forehead.

“Not if you don’t put a shirt on. You’ll be the one on your back,” she muttered as she turned around and made for the stairs. Kye grinned and gave her rear end a hard smack that elicited a yelp from her.

“We’ll take turns,” he whispered in her ear before he raced up the stairs in front of her. Eliana nearly drew blood she bit her lip so hard. If the tension of having her life hang in the balance was doing nothing, it was making her hornier than a cat in heat. God how she longed to take out all her frustrations on that man.