"This is all there is," he said, his tone injured. "You didn't need it a few short minutes ago."
The words were indignant, as if she'd wounded his pride somehow.
"But.--I was asleep. You took advantage."
"No, babe, I took nothing you didn't offer."
"Offer? I volunteered nothing, I--"
"I treasured every soft sigh, each moan of pleasure," he declared softly
She understood the error of her words and turned away in frustration. "I did nothing of the sort."
"I was there. I heard your sweet compliance, felt your arms around me, pulling me close."
She was getting nowhere. The teasing undertone was there within each word, each subtle gesture. She let out a deep sigh, and spoke then, resigned to the situation, reminding herself he was right in his assumptions even though she wanted so desperately to deny him and Cameron Savage. Sometime in the long hours since her rescue, she'd learned to care for this man, and she knew she'd have to disown the feelings, push all thoughts of him aside.
She faced him. "Please--you and I both know this isn't right."
"I risked my life for you."
"For me? No--you've done it for money. Just as most men, you risk little unless you would gain some monetary value from it," she returned swiftly. "I've little doubt you'd turn me over to Morray if he offered more money for me."
He lifted his hand, a mocking gesture. "So, you think so little of me. How many men would have risked that old rusty ladder and scaled the tower?"
"With plans to turn me over to someone else," she said, "after taking advantage of me."
"We are back to that?"
There was a curious tone to his voice, some deep note of warning. She was too distraught to acknowledge it.
"What does Savage plan on paying you? I suppose he gave you leave to have sex with me too."
"More than you are worth, Victoria. At this moment I cannot begin to understand why he'd want to tie himself to someone as unbending and unwilling to listen as you."
"You're unconscionable and arrogant. I don't know what I saw in you?" she said, before she realized just what she let slip.
She saw the very slow curl of his smile, and to her chagrin, she knew that color suffused her cheeks. How could he evoke such a myriad of emotions in her in such a short span of time? "Of course, let me think back on it," he murmured. "In truth, I did not hold you. But your slender arms did comfort me..."
"No!" she cried out, her temper suddenly getting the best of her so that she shook.
To her great distress, he moved forward. He was an imposing figure, perhaps even more so because of the mystery surrounding him. "Cameron Savage, Victoria, is loyal to your father."
"I see. You've uncovered the truth of the matter. He has no feeling for me other than to steal my thoughts--my research," she replied, dismayed her voice should sound so passionate. She was not going to cower before this man, just because he was the epitome of strength and power, just because she could feel the dangerous presence and depth of him. Feel his eyes. Even feel, despite the distance between them, the beating of his heart, a pulse that was unending.
Perhaps she should retreat.
She pushed back against the cold wall, holding tight to the one small blanket, the only barrier separating them. She held her chin at a determined angle, despite the fact that she must look vulnerable and forlorn.
"My, my," he murmured thoughtfully as he moved closer still. "I think Dr. Cameron Savage will be pleased. With such a submissive..." he paused, his hand reaching out as if he meant to brush her hair from her eyes. His lips curved with amusement. "Perhaps submissive isn't the right word," he finished.
She didn't think her heart would ever beat at a normal tempo again. "I don't want to argue."
"Then?" He lifted his hands. "Babe! You are far too suspicious."
"Am I? Well, I am sorry my life has not allowed me the freedom of trust. I would not offend anyone."
"Why I derived the greatest pleasure from listening to you denounce your intended. I digested each word--"
"You just said--“
"While I found the last few hours almost pleasurable, I would never possess what is not mine."
She tilted her chin even higher, swearing softly. "What do I have to do to convince you I did not intend to fall into your arms? I was frightened. I thought--I thought..."
"What?"
She cried out in frustration. "That you were different."
"I am. That is not the point. You are to marry Cameron."
"I detest the very idea."
"But you condemn your sister to a life of loneliness."
"She is no more bound by the codicil than I am."
"If you don't marry him, how will you regain access to your computers and laboratory?"
Her frustration overpowered all common sense. She cared not for her appearance or the repercussion of her act. What difference did it make? They'd spent the long hours in each other's arms. She'd wanted him with a depth and longing she'd never before experienced and now he rejected her. He rejected not just her body but also her soul. He was giving her to Savage. With all her strength, she threw the blanket at him.
It amused him. He lifted a hand to ward off the projectile, laughing, and the blanket fell to the floor. She stood before him, left with no protection.
Suddenly, his laughter faded. She was near naked once more. His eyes raked her from the tip of her toes to her eyes then back again. "Babe, take the cape." He swept it from the floor and handed it over to her. He walked back to the mouth of the cave, smoothing his half-angry fingers down the mask's lacing at the back of his head. "There's a nice little pool a few yards from the cave. If you'd like, I'll take you there and you can refresh yourself."
"Swim?" Overjoyed, she stood, the cloak falling past her feet.
The Phantom was a puzzle to her.
He had saved her from Morray. He had comforted her in the night. Despite her frustration with him and the fact that if he'd continued in the manner he could have anything he wanted from her, she was suddenly very grateful.
He held her through her nightmares, giving of himself to ease her fears and he'd asked nothing from her.
Perhaps Savage was paying him very well. What of the computer pins she'd hidden? Had he already retrieved them, selling them to the highest bidder? Was he handing them over to Savage too?
Maybe she had an inflated opinion of him despite his risking life and limb for her twice. None of it made a bit of difference, not when he was offering a cool refreshing swim.
"Your smile is beautiful. Am I to believe the thought of a little water has rendered you so biddable all of a sudden?"
"Enjoy it while you can," she grinned back at him.
"Maybe we could swim together."
"Now you are the ones with dreams."
"Perhaps you forget how terrible nightmares can be."
"If you are going to badger me constantly and keep me from..." she broke off suddenly then stepped forward. "You left me," she accused him. She didn't know why she was angry with him. Except that close up he looked so clean and fresh and.... She realized he had already bathed....
He shrugged. "You were safe enough. The patrols have long since been gone from this area," he told her.
"Then lead the way unless you've decided you'd rather keep me here tormenting me with your words and twisting my own so I'm never sure just what I've said," she informed him regally.
"Aren't you afraid I'll sneak a peek? Or perhaps join you in the buff?"
She paused for a moment, cocking her head to study him more thoroughly. Then she grinned, recognizing the laughter in his eyes was not at her own expense.
"No."
"No? No, you wound me. What about my reputation?" His soft chuckle was contagious.
"Reputation, hah! You're a ladies man then but not a seducer of innocents or of engaged women. I have nothing to fear from you except your teasing. So lead on, Sir Lancelot."
"Then y
ou intend to accept Savage's proposal."
She shrugged uneasily. "Perhaps. But I will continue to look for a way to get out of it. If there is a way, I will find it."
His grin swiftly faded, changing instantly to a frown. "But I've risked so much to bring you to him. I might decide I need more than a monetary reward. Why should I not sample the treasured DeMontville heiress?"
"Because you are a man of your word," she pointed out.
"And you know that for sure."
She inhaled sharply, his words leaving a trace of apprehension in her mind.
"I don't," she told him meekly.
His reply was long in coming, and when it did, it was resolute. "You are right. My honor is my word."
He turned from her. "Come along."
"You will stay close?" she suggested softly.
"To insure your safety, yes." He turned quickly, offering her a deep and troubled smile.
"Unless Savage arrives."
"Here?"
His husky laughter sent chills down her spine. "After all, Victoria, I did radio him when we landed. So I will take every possible care with you. That is, until Cameron arrives."
Again, he turned abruptly to go. With her breath coming in little gulps, Tori trailed behind.
They had planned this. It all fit now, the shelter, the food, everything in readiness for his arrival. She stepped forward, trying to match his strides and catch up to him. "Wait."
He stopped, but this time he didn't turn. His back was rigid, and his fists were stuffed into his pockets.
"What now?"
"When will he be here?"
The silence was almost her undoing, yet she held her breath waiting for an answer. It didn't come. Suddenly he was walking onward.
Sickness washed through her. Her legs trembled and she wasn't so sure she could walk. She wasn't ready to see Savage. Her heart leapt to her throat and she moaned softly, remembering their last confrontation in a forest
The pool was as clear and as still as glass. The banks were dotted with tall grasses, and the sweet perfume of wildflowers filled the air. A beaver dam at the head of the stream had created this beautiful water world.
Victoria held a smooth white pebble in one hand, caressed it with her thumb. After a moment of thought, she tossed it into the water, shattering its smooth glass-like appearance. Rings grew from the center of the stone's contact, rippling gently across the surface.
She grinned delightedly then looked around the clearing. True to his word, he had disappeared. He did indeed plan to leave her to her privacy.
She stared down the trail for long seconds, contemplating. He was a hero of sorts. His glib tongue left her eternally on edge and off balance, but despite his cavalier facade, his conduct was gallant. He had protected her, guarded her life, keeping her from Morray, or anyone else Sheridan might plot against her with.
A titmouse chattered airily in its high perch and dragonflies winged their way across the still surface of the pond. Sunlight filled the space.
Still, he had come to her rescue in the breath of time. A moment later, oh, a moment later and it would have been too late and he'd known that, had reminded her of it several times. He was right about Morray. Nothing would make her marry the man, nothing, not even the same threat Cameron Savage held over her. Her father must have had a reason for the codicil, although it eluded her. Now she had to deal with the marriage, with Savage. Even though she hated the idea, in order to escape Savage, she would have to escape The Phantom.
As far as she could tell, only one path led to and from the pond. Shielding her eyes with her hand, she searched for another trail, perhaps an animal trail, something so small that even The Phantom could not find it. She paused a moment then moved along the bank of the pool, letting the water cover her footprints. If she walked steadily down the mountain, keeping to the animal trails, she could come to a village. An outsider's village, she thought with a shiver. Surely, they wouldn't turn her over to anyone, even this hero of the times, if she told them the truth.
She found a path, overgrown with vines and bushes, but that would only suit her purpose. She looked at the pool one more time, then brushing over any trace of her passage, she slipped silently into the forest. Within minutes, it seemed that her plan had succeeded.
Far above the green canopy, the hum of a glider caught her attention. Laser beams hit the grass, starting tiny fires. She stared at the sky for a moment then dashed madly through the forest, seeking shelter, searching for a safe haven. Dirt and pine needles exploded around her. Finding a dense overgrowth, she dived into it, huddling against a tree until the sounds of the barrage finally disappeared.
Now she panicked. In her mad-dash though the woods she had lost track of the path. Everything--every tree, every rock, every blade of grass--looked the same.
She started again, searching for a trail, committed once again to finding a way down the mountain. She discovered a small stream rushing helter-skelter through the forest.
He would miss her by now and he would follow.
Aware of the sharp snap of a branch, she turned mid-stride, frozen. She held her breath. A doe and her two fawns stepped from behind a berry bush, eyeing her apprehensively. When she didn't move, they lost interest and disappeared into the shadows and the foliage. Even as she began walking again, her heart felt as if it would explode within her chest.
She couldn't go on this way, jumping at every little sound, frightened by the shadows that changed with the passing breeze. Another glider soared overhead and she knew they still searched for her. Foolishly, she'd left the shelter of camp and the protection of the cave.
Heat sensors bombarded the earth now, sensors set to stun, she thought. A bush burst into flames a few yards away. She whirled to run. Then before she could get her bearings, she slammed into him and let out a startled scream.
"Little fool," he said but the words sounded strangely tender even when he uttered them so fiercely. He grabbed her arm, pulling her swiftly through the brambles. And even then, his own pace was slow enough to accommodate her smaller strides. "This way, hurry," his voice urgent with warning and impatience, commanded her. He pulled her low, frantically pushing her beneath a large overhanging rock as a laser hit, exploding rocks and water around them. He covered her with his large body, protecting her from the fragments flying through the air.
Then...silence. "What?" she said.
"Hush."
Tramping boots and harsh curses floated their way. The search parties were on the ground now. Tori peeked through a slight opening between his arm and chest. She could see only their legs running by, searching.
Breathe soft, breathe easy, she told herself. She forced herself to calm, hanging on to his warmth and the sweet security his presence gave her.
This couldn't last forever. They had to leave. But even now, what seemed like hours since he had first placed her unceremoniously into this hollow pit, men were still out there, her enemies. Although the sound of their voices gradually faded and she thought she'd heard several gliders lift off, she still trembled.
Another hour--perhaps only ten minutes.
"I've never seen anyone go to so much trouble to put themselves in a more vulnerable position," he told her.
She pushed away from him, from the security and the heat of his body. "You followed me." Furious, she pummeled his chest. He grabbed her hands and held them away. "You let me think I would get away. You don't care that Savage scorns me and that he will simply put me away somewhere and throw away the key."
"Stop this!" But she didn't listen. She continued to fight. But he would have none of it.
Then suddenly he was tugging her from the little alcove where they'd been hiding. He pulled her along with him, one of his huge arms wrapped around her waist for support. For a brief moment, she was frightened, wondering what awaited her. Before she knew it they were in front of the glider, and she was in the passenger seat.
"Not this again."
The glider lifted from
the ground and within minutes, it was above the treetops. Tori pulled against the seat belt harness then gasped when the glider took a sharp dive. It was difficult to breathe. She felt herself pushed back against the seat by a force so great that it rendered her immobile. It felt as if an iron block pressed against her chest.
"You're doing this on purpose," she accused. He ignored her. "You don't have to--" Her breath rushed from her lungs as a rocket exploded to the right. The glider shuddered. "I thought they were gone."
"Only hiding," he said calmly then banked and turned sharply to avoid the explosions.
Rebel Heart Page 21
