Uncut Bundle

by Susan Stephens

  To his surprise, she held to a steady pace for a long time. Well, why not? She was in good shape. Amazing shape.

  Her body was her meal ticket.

  Great shape or not, plodding through drifting sand was tough. Inevitably she began to fall behind. They couldn’t afford to stop, but he couldn’t afford to let her collapse, either. Not if they were going to reach what was rapidly starting to look like a real, honest-to-God hill before sunrise.

  He came to a halt, slipped the pack off and fumbled inside it. He’d just found the water bottle when Salome plowed into him.

  Cam caught her and held her steady. Her breathing was ragged and there was an unnatural flush in her cheeks.

  And she was trembling. From exhaustion, from the night chill—either way, it was a bad sign. She could get her wind back if he sat her down, but the sand was cold. The only solution was to put his arms around her and draw her against him.

  When she protested, he clucked his tongue in annoyance.

  “Stop being an idiot,” he growled. “Lean on me and catch your breath.”

  She didn’t exactly melt into his embrace but after a few seconds, her shivering stopped.

  “That’s it. Let me warm you.”

  She nodded, and strands of her silky hair drifted over his lips. Cam tightened his arms around her.

  He’d known all kinds of women in his life. He wasn’t a fool: he knew that a beautiful woman could also be strong, but he hadn’t expected it from Salome.

  She looked delicate, but she’d held her own from the moment she’d threatened him with that ridiculous nail file. No tears. No complaints. No asking for favors because she was female.

  Cam shut his eyes.

  God, yes. She was very female. She even smelled good, a minor miracle because he doubted anyone could make such a claim for him. But Salome… Salome smelled of flowers. Vanilla. Woman.

  The beat of her heart slowed as he stroked his hand up and down her back.

  “I bet you could use a tall glass of orange juice.”

  Her sigh was almost a groan. “That’s it. Torture me.”

  “And a steak.” He kept one arm around her as he reached for the knapsack. “How do you like your steak, Salome? Rare? Well-done?”

  “Rare,” she said with a little sigh. “But charred on the outside.”

  “Why, ma’am,” he said, putting on a drawl, “y’all must be from Texas, jest like me.”

  She looked up. “Are you really from Texas?”

  “Uh-huh. Dallas.”

  “Aha. That’s why you wear those boots.”

  “You mean, that’s why I wore them,” he said dryly. “But you’re right. No self-respecting Texan goes anywhere without his boots.”

  She smiled. Cam wanted to applaud, which was ridiculous. Why did he give a damn if she smiled or not? It just made sense to take her mind off their problems for a little while.

  “Here,” he said. “Drink some water. More,” he added, when she began to give back the bottle. “Now for that steak.”

  He held out the chunk of halvah. She took a delicate bite. A tiny crumb adhered to her upper lip and she swiped at it with the tip of her tongue, then closed her eyes as the sweet taste bloomed on her tongue.

  When she gave a little hum of pleasure, Cam remembered her making that same sound when he’d bared her breasts and sucked her nipples into his mouth.

  The candy was sweet, but the taste of her had been sweeter.

  His body sprang to full attention.

  He swung away, tilted the water to his mouth for one quick gulp, then capped the bottle and stuffed it into the pack along with the remaining halvah.

  “Okay,” he said briskly, “time to move out.”

  “You didn’t drink enough water. And you didn’t eat anything.”

  “I’m fine.”

  Leanna stared at Cam. He was telling the truth. She’d been shaking with cold and exhaustion; her muscles were on fire and her feet, despite the clever thing he’d done to her sandals, felt as if they were being rubbed raw.

  He had nothing on his feet. His T-shirt was insubstantial. He’d set a killing pace but he didn’t look as if this was anything more than an easy stroll.

  Maybe all those rippling muscles were for real.

  “You—” She cleared her throat. “You do this kind of thing often?”

  She sounded so serious that he didn’t have the heart to laugh. “Well, let’s see. Last time I escaped from a lunatic and crossed the desert with a beautiful woman was, oh, maybe two, three weeks ago. So I’d say, yeah, pretty often.”

  “I didn’t mean…” She saw the laughter in his eyes. To heck with it, she thought, and laughed, too.

  It was the first time he’d heard her laugh and it surprised him. A woman who’d come halfway around the world to play games with a sultan shouldn’t have a laugh so delightfully earthy and innocent.

  “I was talking about this. You know. Trudging across tough terrain without breathing hard. It seems second-nature to you.”

  He thought back to his years in Special Forces, then his years at the Agency. Nothing about those years had been second-nature. A man had to learn how to do all the things he’d done.

  “I was a soldier for a long time.”

  “In this part of the world?”

  “Among others.” Cam frowned. She was shaking again. “You’re still cold. Here.” He reached out, grasped the lapels of the shirt and tugged her to him. “Button up. It’ll help.”

  “I can do it,” she said, but his fingers were already at the buttonholes, brushing lightly against her breasts. She inhaled sharply; he saw color race into her face, felt the answering rush of blood rush to his loins. Now, he thought. Right now. He could tumble her onto the sand, rip away the thong, bury himself inside her…

  Salome took a step back.

  “I’m fine,” she said quickly. “All I need is to start moving again.”

  Silence fell between them. He felt a muscle jerk in his cheek. “Why?” he said hoarsely.

  “Well, because of the energy I’ll—”

  “Why did you sell yourself to Asaad?”

  She flinched, as if he’d struck her.

  “It’s an easy question. Why did you do it?”

  Why did it hurt, to know he believed the worst about her?

  “Were you desperate for money?”

  “You mean, is my grandmother dying of some disease nobody’s ever heard of? Is my mother about to lose the family homestead to a mustachioed villain?” Her eyes flashed. “Sorry. I’m fresh out of tearjerkers.”

  “For God’s sake,” he said roughly. “What kind of woman are you?”

  “The kind who should have known better than to think you were different than your friend, the sultan.”

  She gasped as he pulled her to him. “You’re right. I’m no different. A woman like you teases me with what she’s got, I damned well intend to take it.”

  Cam’s mouth captured hers. She tried to turn away but he was relentless, cupping her face, then sliding his hands down her back so he could lift her into him. She struggled hard and then, suddenly, she gave a wild little cry, wrapped her arms around his neck and opened her mouth to his.

  Mercilessly, he plundered its sweetness, changing the angle of the kiss, taking it deeper and deeper while the last stars of the rapidly fading night wheeled over their heads.

  He was the one who ended the kiss, clasping her wrists, easing her hands from his neck, bringing her palms to his mouth and biting lightly on the soft pads of flesh.

  Then he took one of her hands and placed it over his throbbing erection.

  “What happened in that bed isn’t over, Salome. We both know it.”

  He took a last look at her. The softness of her mouth. The swift rise and fall of her breasts. Then he swung away, picked up the pack and began walking.

  CHAPTER SIX

  THEY reached the hill just as the sun rose.

  “It’s real,” Leanna said softly. She spun toward
Cam, eyes bright with excitement. “The mountain’s real.”

  Cam grinned. “I wouldn’t call it a mountain but yeah, it’s as real as rain.”

  It damned well was. A little while ago, he’d started wondering if they were seeing the same mirage. Out here, anything was possible.

  But the hill, the mountain, the heap of rocks and stunted trees, was directly ahead of them, and it was the closest thing yet to salvation.

  “You up to a climb?”

  Salome nodded. He could read exhaustion in her face but she was smiling. A pale gold curl hung over her temple and without thinking, he tucked it back behind her ear.

  She was amazing, his Salome, and—

  His Salome?

  Cam’s grin became a glower. He forced his eyes elsewhere. At the hill, at the sun, at the sand…

  At her feet, where he found just the right distraction.

  “For God’s sake, your shoes are falling apart.”

  Her gaze followed his. Of course they were. Why did he sound so surprised?

  “You can’t climb those rocks like that.”

  Wordlessly she flashed a deliberate look at his bare feet.

  “That’s different,” he snapped.

  “How is it different?”

  Cam’s Special Forces training had involved walking barefoot over rougher terrain than this, but he didn’t intend to explain himself to her.

  “It’s different because I say it is.”

  Her eyes narrowed. “Have you ever spent hours rehearsing a new dance routine?”

  “What?”

  “Dancing. Do you know anything about it?”

  “No. Do you?”

  His tone was hard and flat. So was the look on his face. A few minutes ago, she’d been thinking that only a man like Cameron Knight could have gotten them both this far.

  How could she have been so stupid as to think nice things about him?

  “Yes,” she said coldly, “I do. If you knew anything at all about my profession—”

  “Trust me, Salome. I know a lot about your profession.”

  Her hand whipped through the air. He caught it just before it connected with his jaw.

  “Don’t,” he said softly. “Not unless you’re prepared for the consequences.”

  “I wish I’d never laid eyes on you!”

  “Right.” His lips drew back from his teeth in a cold parody of a smile. “Except, according to you and Asaad, you’d be marching to your execution right about now.”

  “If you really believe that, you’re a fool.” Her voice trembled with tightly suppressed anger. “I’d be in the sultan’s bed.”

  “I’m glad to hear you admit it.”

  “Why would I deny it? That’s what Asaad wanted me for.”

  His mouth twisted. “The truth, at last.”

  “What would a man like you know about truth?”

  Cam stared into her eyes for a long moment, torn between the desire to tell her that she was right, he didn’t know a damned thing about truth—and the desire to pull her into his arms and kiss her. What was she doing to him, this witch? Salome wasn’t a woman to whom you bared your soul.

  “Enough talk,” he growled. “You want to climb that rock pile? You need something more on your feet than what you have.” He looked her over and his gaze settled on the thrust of her breasts. “Take off your bra.”

  She looked at him as if he’d lost his mind. “In your dreams.”

  Cam grabbed a fistful of her shirt and dragged her to her toes. “Take it off,” he said softly, “or I will.”

  They stared at each other for a long minute. Then Leanna wrenched free.

  “Your wish is my command,” she said through her teeth.

  Without taking her eyes from his, she did the trick learned by any girl who’d had to undress in a house shared with three brothers. Reach under your shirt, open your bra, tug at the straps, drag one down your arm and out the cuff of the shirt, then do the same with the other.

  The look on Cam’s face was priceless. “What the hell did you just do?”

  “I took off my bra.” She arched an eyebrow as she handed it to him. “Disappointed?”

  Hell, no. Now he could see her nipples, perfectly outlined under the shirt, just waiting for the stroke of his hand.

  The swift tightness in his groin infuriated him.

  “Sit,” he barked. She didn’t move quickly enough to suit his temper. “Damn it, when I tell you something…”

  He squatted, grabbed her ankle and tugged. Leanna landed on her backside.

  “You’re a hateful man.”

  “Lift your foot. Do it, or you can go up that mountain barefoot.”

  “I thought you said you wouldn’t call it a mountain.”

  “It’s whatever I say it is. Hold out those ribbons.”

  “What ribbons?”

  Cam muttered something and grabbed a handful of the slender gold ribbons that hung from the thong. A bunch of small stones lay scattered at their feet. He chose one with a sharp edge and used it to slice the ribbons off. Then he tore the bra apart, wrapped her feet in the cups and tied them on with the ribbons.

  “Oh,” she said in a small voice.

  He looked up. “Apology accepted.”

  “I didn’t—” She swallowed. “You’re right. I’m sorry.”

  He nodded, then stood up. “Okay. Let’s do it. I want to be on the other side of that thing before the sun goes any higher.”

  The improvised shoes held, but the biggest surprise was what they found when they reached the top of the mountain.

  Below them stretched a sea of grass and flowers…and beyond that, the gleaming white walls of an alabaster palace rose against a bright blue sky.

  Amazing, how much faster it was going down than going up.

  In no time, they were standing ankle-deep in the soft grass, listening to bird calls and feeling the gentle caress of a flower-scented breeze. It was like stepping from one plane of existence to another—but something about it made Leanna shudder.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing.” She blew out a breath. “Something. I’m just, I don’t know. I’m—”

  “Uneasy.”

  “Yes.”

  He reached for her hand. Without hesitation, she let him lace their fingers together.

  “That’s good,” he said bluntly. “This is no time to let down our guard.”

  “I keep wondering whose palace that is…and if Asaad’s men are there already, waiting for us.”

  “Yeah. Me, too.”

  “How do we find the answers?”

  Cam swung toward her. “That’s my job. You stay here while I—”

  “No. And before you tell me to shut up and do as I’m told, just remember that I’m the one who got you into this mess.”

  “I’ll let you in on a secret,” he said, with a little smile. “I wasn’t planning on testing Asaad’s hospitality much longer.”

  “If I hadn’t rushed things, you’d have had time to make a decent plan.”

  “Maybe.” His hands came up and cupped her face. “But then I wouldn’t have had as interesting a travel companion.” He ran his thumb lightly over her mouth. “Trust me, baby. It’s best if you stay here. I’ll check things out and come back for you.”

  “No deal.”

  He thought about reminding her that they weren’t making deals, but the stubborn set of her chin told him she’d made up her mind. Arguing would only waste time. Besides, for all he knew, she’d be safer with him.

  “Okay. Come with me. Just stay close, and—”

  “And?”

  “And,” he said huskily, “give me a kiss for luck.”

  She looked up into his eyes. They were a cool, brilliant green. What harm was there in just one kiss?

  Cam let her press her mouth chastely to his. Then he caught her close and took her mouth so that he could taste her. Her arms went round his neck; when he parted her lips with his, she sighed and opened to him.

&nb
sp; He held her for a long moment. When he finally let her go, her face was flushed and what he saw in her eyes made him want to kiss her again.