She either overestimated her strength, or underestimated his.
Sahara ended up sprawled in his lap, a sexy, squirming armful. As he worked to contain her, he asked, “Easy or hard, Sahara?”
Her eyes flared wide and her lips parted.
Cursing himself over his unfortunate wording, Brand briefly looked away. When she again tried to scramble free, he locked his arms around her and pinned her with his gaze.
Being so close, he saw the thickness of her lashes, how her pupils dilated—he even felt the warmth of her faster breaths.
Her gaze dropped to his mouth.
Fighting his way out of the cage with the number one heavyweight would have been easier, but he managed not to kiss her. “We’re going to talk about what happened tonight, especially what happened while you were alone with them.”
“We are?”
He saw no reason to repeat himself, so he merely waited.
Proving she wasn’t on her A game right now, she cracked. “There’s nothing much to tell. They said Scott owed them money and they were getting it back by ransoming me.”
That sounded true—but no way was it the whole story. “You said someone put you over his shoulder?” Even though he’d done the same thing, it infuriated him to imagine it.
“The boss man,” she confirmed with an indignant nod. “The one in charge. He warned the others not to bother me, and they didn’t. Shoot, they hardly spoke to me. But he explained a few things.”
“About Scott?”
“No, just...the rules.”
Something in her expression, in the way her voice dropped, alerted him. Opening his hand on her back, he soothed a path up and down her rigid spine. “What rules, honey?”
She stared at him. “You’re comforting me?”
“Something like that.”
“Oh.” Suddenly she tucked herself closer, her cheek against his shoulder, her hand sliding up his chest. “This is nice.”
Drawing out her name like a warning, he said, “Sahara.”
“I really don’t want to talk about it. Nothing happened, I promise.”
Brand tunneled his fingers into her hair, then tugged her head back. “I know you better than that.” He wanted her trust. He needed her to know that she didn’t have to be the boss every minute of every day, not with him.
Her searching gaze bounced back and forth over his. “You have really thick, dark eyelashes, Brand. Did you know that?”
“Sahara—”
“And all this sexy stubble,” she said, reaching for his face.
“Enough.” Brand tilted out of reach. “You’re going to tell me what happened to you, so stop trying to distract me.”
Groaning, she whacked his shoulder. “You’re not normal, damn it! Why can’t you just take what I’m offering—”
His mouth covered hers in the most expedient way to silence her annoyance. She immediately sank against him, all the vibrating agitation draining from her slim body.
Perfect.
Too perfect.
Bordering on dangerous...and wasn’t that absurd given the situation they’d just escaped?
CHAPTER FIVE
IT DIDN’T TAKE long for Brand to realize he’d made a strategic mistake.
Clutching at him, Sahara adjusted her position, taking his tongue when he went in for a deeper taste, then giving her own as he tried to retreat.
Her low sound of pleasure made him throb, especially when she twisted so her breasts more fully met his chest and her bottom squirmed over his lap, or more specifically, over his thickening erection.
Whoa, a boner right now would be wholly out of place.
Easing up by slow degrees, Brand kissed the corner of her mouth, her stubborn jaw, the sleek column of her throat.
She was so soft and fragrant everywhere. He could get drunk on the scent of her skin, on the feel of her against him, on the taste of her mouth and the sexy sounds she made...
More prominent than his need, though, was her reaction to his questions. She was usually so forthright that her avoidance now worried him.
Pressing her head to his shoulder, he drew a few deep breaths, giving them both time to recover before asking, “What rules?”
Still limp against him, she muttered, “God, you’re stubborn.”
Her hair felt like silk through his fingers. “If we’re comparing...”
“We’re not.” She huffed, but didn’t try to get away. “If you must know, I bluffed through most of my nervousness. I didn’t want them to know that I was concerned so I acted like they were nothing, less than nothing.”
That didn’t surprise him at all. Sahara could be terrified, and she’d show indifference. “Pride?”
“In part, sure. But I also wanted to find out what I could about Scott, so I kept pushing.”
Like she often did with him. Only he wasn’t a kidnapper, and they both knew he’d never hurt her.
Seconds ticked by before she softly added, “I was told to behave or I’d be stripped naked and tied to the cot.”
Motherfucker.
“Obviously I couldn’t let that happen.”
She couldn’t have stopped them—and that’s why she’d been making the weapons. He gathered her closer, proud of her, impressed and overwhelmed with the need to protect.
Forget beating the shit out of the guy; he’d kill him instead.
She whispered, “It frustrates me that in some ways women are weaker than men.”
When it came to possible rape, she meant, and he wanted to crush her closer still. “I’m sorry you went through that.”
“Even that vile threat wouldn’t have been so unsettling, except...well, I don’t know if I imagined it or not, but he seemed to...” She gave it some thought. “Like isn’t the right word, but then neither is want. It’s hard to explain and I might be way off base but I think he...”
When she curled a little tighter against him, Brand said, “I’ve never known anyone as smart and intuitive as you. Whatever you’re thinking, I’d bet a championship belt that you’re dead-on.”
She pushed back to see his face. “Really?”
“Really.” Sahara always packed a sensual punch, but now, with her hair loose and her eyes vulnerable, she could bring him to his knees. “You have great instincts, honey.”
Her teeth worried her plump bottom lip before she gave it up. “He admired me, Brand. Now isn’t that bizarre?”
“No. I can’t imagine any man not admiring you.”
“I...” She closed her mouth, opened it again and finally said, “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” Seeing that she was a little more relaxed, he asked, “How could you tell what he felt?”
“The way he’d look at me as if I’d surprised him, and the way he’d smile at me. I even made him laugh a few times, and not necessarily on purpose. He constantly warned off the other guys but then he’d touch me when he shouldn’t, when there was no reason to. Like sitting so close that his thigh was against mine.” She shuddered.
To keep her talking, Brand suggested, “Maybe he wanted to play on your helplessness.”
Umbrage brought her brows together. “I was never helpless.”
No, she probably hadn’t been, at least not in her mind. Unfortunately for her, not everyone shared her delusions. “You were a woman alone with six armed men.”
“I guess, but it never really felt like they meant me harm, not really, and that’s why the main guy’s attention bothered me. You know, I’m the first to admit I’ll dive into a battle of wills, but for him it was more than that. I couldn’t gauge him, couldn’t figure out his intentions, and that made him more dangerous.”
“It bothers you that you backed down?”
Again indignant, she asked, “Who backed down? I bided my time wisely and at the first opportunity, I made a weapon.” Under her breath, she muttered, “No one is getting me naked without my explicit permission.”
So damn fearless. It was a serious discussion, and still the corner of his mouth twitched into a near smile. “You were as prepared as anyone could be.” He didn’t stop himself from kissing her again, softer this time. “For the record, Sahara, you impressed the hell out of me.”
She tried to lean in for yet another kiss, but they both knew where that would lead. He controlled himself, and her, which suited him, but was something she disliked.