“God damn, bloody females!”
He stormed out of the room and the three men watched him run outside and down the patio stairs. Shane noticed Madison in one of Logan’s tee-shirts walking in the direction of the pilot’s cottage and laughed.
Logan reached her and without a word lifted her over his shoulder, turned and started back to the house. He totally ignored her failing arms hitting him on his back and her loud shrieks demanding to be put down. Even over the distance they could see the anger on his face and Shane pitied her that she was the one to bear the brunt of his anger.
Logan carried her into the kitchen and dumped her unceremoniously on one of the high breakfast chairs next to the breakfast nook. Madison immediately opened her mouth to shout at him until she saw the fury in his eyes and she closed it.
“I am glad to see you do have some sense at least! Thomas, please prepare something for Madison to eat. I am still in a meeting. Don’t. Move. Not until I come and get you.”
She nodded and sat subdued on the chair with her hands folded on her lap.
“I’ve had it with women! They are nothing more than a bloody irritation! Lord … enough is enough!”
He grumbled as he walked away and she frowned. His fury was definitely not only because he caught her trying to sneak back to her cottage or her reckless behavior the day before. There was much more to his highly strung body than there were the night before.
She introduced herself to Thomas, who told her he has been the Dalton’s chef since the day Logan bought the Ranch and moved in. She was surprised to hear he bought it. She always assumed it belonged to his father and they all lived together.
“No, only the two boys live here. Shane always jokes that once he gets married he will have to build a house on the furthest corner of the ranch for him and his bride. He would not want his wife to be around Logan all the time! They joke around a lot those two.”
“And what if Logan gets married?”
“That one? No, that will never happen. He has never even brought any woman home with him, and he always sleeps in his own bed, even if he arrives in the early hours of the morning. No, Logan Dalton has no intention of ever falling trap to the holy matrimony.”
“So does the Ranch belong to both of them?”
“No, it’s Logan’s. But he has always maintained that it is and will always be Shane’s home as well. He bought this place when he was twenty five years old. It is home to them and they are very close. He will never chase his little brother away.”
She nodded and her heart shriveled a little further. How would she get past his hate that was ingrained so deep in his heart? Not just for his mother, but for all women, because of his mother. He would never learn to trust. Without trust, there could be no love.
She finished her food and he took the plate away. Her mind wandered back to when she woke to find her in Logan’s bed. She knew immediately it was his room. It was as if his essence engulfed her. She was immediately angry, especially when she realized she was naked. How dared he take her to his bed and undress her. Worse, he must have bathed her too. She distinctly remembered how filthy she was from soot and oil. It was also very clear that he slept next to her the whole night and she blushed, just thinking about it. What would Shane think?
Stop being a hypocrite, Madison. The way you have been carrying on with Logan, Shane knew long ago something happened between the two of you. The little red devil on her shoulder berated her.
She sighed and started to feel slightly lightheaded and slumped over to lay her head on her arms. Thomas immediately rushed to the study and knocked on the door.
“Yes, Thomas.” Logan acknowledged him when he peeped around the door.
“I think you better take the little lady back to bed. She is sleeping on her arms on the counter. I think she is still a little weak.”
Logan jumped up from the chair immediately and rushed to the kitchen. She startled when he picked her up in his arms and complained immediately.
“I can walk! I just waited for you to …”
“Please stop your whining, Madison. I don’t have the energy for it today.”
“Whining! Put me down! I don’t want you to waste your precious energy carrying me around!”
“Hallo Maddy. How are you feeling?”
Madison blushed and desperately pulled at the hem of Logan’s tee-shirt she wore; certain it was not covering everything it should.
He chuckled and whispered in her ear. “Don’t worry, Wildcat, I won’t leave your butt bare for others to ogle at. That privilege is for me alone.”
She nearly strangled in indignation, but glanced at the three men standing behind them.
“Morning, Mr. Dalton. I am feeling better, thank you.”
“I just want to thank you for what you did yesterday. Even the guys at Keller already know about it. You’ve become a Dalton Oil celebrity overnight, my dear girl.”
She blushed. “That was not the intention. I only wanted to help.”
“Enough of this chit chats. She needs to rest and I am not strong enough to stand here with her in my arms while you exchange niceties.” Logan deliberately taunted her.
She gasped and glared at him. “Are you saying I am fat?”
He sighed and started climbing the stairs. “I didn’t say that.” But the humor was clear in his voice.
“I’ll have you know I weigh fifteen pounds less than I should for my body build!”
“Then I will instruct Thomas immediately to start feeding you more. I don’t want it known that my employees are underfed.”
“Oh … go to blazes, Logan Dalton. And I am not staying in your room! Take me to one of the spare rooms!”
“Good Lord, don’t you ever stop whining?”
“I am not whining. I am stating a fact!”
“Then stop stating bloody facts! You’re giving me a headache and no, you are not staying in another room!”
Their bickering voices disappeared the further they moved down the passage and Shane chuckled. He shook his head.
“Yeah … the cracks are showing!”
“Do you really think so?” Jonathan asked with a hopeful expression on his face.
“Oh, definitely, Dad … most definitely. He just told me yesterday he has no intention of ever bringing her to his bed and lo and behold … where did he take her when we walked through the door?”
Chapter Eleven
By Sunday afternoon Madison had enough of the bed and the four walls of Logan’s bedroom. Apart from sleeping with her the night before, he stayed away from her. Every time she looked in his eyes, she saw anger lurking in its depths. He was clearly nursing his anger and only waited until she was better to release it upon her.
Her body ached with need. He held her in his arms the whole night, after he ripped the tee-shirt she wore over her head. Pressed skin to skin to him was torture. Every time he moved her skin sizzled, yet he seemed unaffected. She grumbled irritably and sat up on the bed. Logan just left the room with the dirty lunch dishes. She got up from the bed and quickly grabbed another of his large tee-shirts from his cupboard and pulled it over head and stumped her feet into her dirty Cats boots. She was going home!
However much she made up her mind to go back to her cottage, she was very cautious. If only she could get out and away from the house before he noticed her. Both Shane and Jonathan were still there and she could hear them at the swimming pool. She slid down the stairs and headed for the kitchen only the freeze in her steps when she noticed Thomas still cleaning up. She sighed and headed for the den on the opposite side from the pool. She sighed in relief when she saw the big glass sliding door’s key in the lock. She unlocked it quickly and slipped through the door. She giggled and felt like a thief in the night as she huddled the wall then ran down the side path towards the barn where the horses were kept.
She knew the cottage was approximately two kilometers from the main house and set off through the long grass and trees in that direction. Hopefully her se
nse of direction would not lead her astray. She was halfway - in her estimation – when she heard the thunder of a horse closing in on her and she stopped in her tracks. Her shoulders slumped and she sighed. She did not have to turn around to know who just drew a snorting horse to a stop behind her.
“You just don’t know when to quit, do you?”
Logan’s voice was very soft and sounded very, very angry. Madison cringed. Just what she needed; to anger him even more! She refused to turn around and threw her arms in the air with despondency.
“I only want to go to my place so I can get some clothes on! I am fine! I don’t need to be held hostage in the bed anymore!”
Logan nudged the horse around in front of her and glared down at her. The horse was massive and seemed to glare just as angrily at her and she took a careful step back.
Jeez … talk about your animals taking on your characteristics! One glaring testosterone male was intimidating enough, but two … scary overload!
Her eyes rose to meet his and she gestured to the horse. “Did you train him to imitate your glares? Or does it come naturally to both of you?”
“I repeat … you really don’t know when to quit! Come here!” He held his hand out but she took another step back, ignoring the tightening of his lips.
“Now Babe, here’s the thing … generally I don’t mind horsies … I can even ride them, but this … monster of yours is scarier than even you!”
“Are you scared of me, Madison?”
“Ehhm … should I be?”
He sat looking down at her with an expressionless face, his eyes green as laser bolts. He did not even try to hide the anger and it glittered hard in his eyes.
“What do you think?”
“After Friday and what happened, I … dammit Logan, it’s not fair! I knew what I was doing and nothing happened! No one got hurt!”
His expression did not change. He held out his hand. “Come here!”
“No! I want to go to my place!”
“Which is exactly where I plan on taking you.”
She looked at him with disbelief. “Really? You’re not going to just turn around and take me back to your house once I am on that horse?”
“Now why would I do that? It is time for you to learn that I do not take kindly to reckless and irresponsible behavior. Both my Dad and Shane are there and I refuse to be forced to stop because they feel sorry for you.”
“Why … wo … would they feel sorry for me?”
“Your screams would draw a lot of attention and they might feel it necessary to try and stop me.”
“My screams … Logan …”
She heard enough and with a spurt of speed, spun around and ran towards the trees. Within two meters she felt Logan’s hard arm go around her waist as he leaned down from the horse and plucked her from the ground. She screamed and kicked. He ignored her and swung her over his lap like a bag of potatoes, with her legs swinging on one side of the horse and her arms on the other facing down. He pressed his hand down on her lower back and kicked the horse to a fast canter.
Logan was deaf to her screams, threats and smiled when she started begging. He leaned forward and bit her on her neck and she stopped screaming.
“I suggest you save you’re begging for later, Wildcat. You are going to need it.”
“Logan, please, I am sorry! I will never do something like that again!”
“Ahhh … how sweet! Much too early to make that promise Madison. I will only believe it once you have suffered enough to really mean it.”
Much too soon they arrived at the cottage and Logan jumped from the horse. She shrieked when he lifted her from the horse to throw her over his shoulder. He rapped the horse on its flank and he cantered back in the direction they came from. Logan strode into her cottage with long strides, directly to her bedroom and dumped her on the bed.
She held out her hands in front of her. “Babe please! I don’t do well with hidings! I can’t stand the pain!”
He barked a laugh and stood looking down at her with his legs spread and his hands on his hips.
“Well, that is good to know. Hidings definitely have their place and time. This however, is not one of them.”
Her eyes widened and she pulled her legs up against her chest and wrapped her arms around her knees. He smiled; she looked like a scared little girl.
“Then what …”
His eyes kept hers hostage and she saw the fury slowly building in their depths. It seems every time he thought back on what happened he became angrier.
“Get naked, Madison.”
Her eyes widened. She looked into his eyes and saw he was dead serious. Whatever he intended was punishment and she got scared. What if he secretly had BDSM tendencies? She couldn’t do that! She was a baby when it came to pain and she just knew she couldn’t do it.
“Logan, please! It is not just hidings. I don’t do any pain well!”
He frowned and then barked a harsh laugh.
“Honey, believe me … this is not going to be a lesson in BDSM. I don’t believe in pain to achieve pleasure. But … by the time I am done, you would wish I’d rather do. Now, do as I say. I am not going to tell you again!”
She looked at him for a moment longer and realized his mind was set. Even though he set her mind at ease that he was not going to hurt her, she was scared. Not knowing what to expect was even worse. Whatever he intended, she was going to suffer … she just did not know how.
She unfolded her legs and pulled off the boots and threw them on the floor. She gripped the hem of the shirt and pulled it over her head and it followed the boots to the floor. She felt his eyes on her and she held her breath.
“Now undress me.”
Her eyes shot to him, but his face was still expressionless, his eyes still shards of anger splintering her way. She crawled to the side of the bed and stood slowly. She started with his shirt and unbuttoned it to slowly slip it down his shoulders and let it drop to the floor. He slipped his sneakers off and waited. She took a deep breath, unbuckled his belt and snapped his jeans open then slowly pushed it over his hips and down his legs. He stepped out of them and she threw them on the chair in the corner. Her eyes rose to his and she winced. Lord he was so angry!
“You’re not done.”
She took a deep breath and grabbed his jockeys and pulled them down his legs and they followed the same path as his jeans. She turned to face him and forced her hands not to cross over her body to cover it from his hot eyes scorching up and down every inch of her. She noticed with dread that his shaft was only semi-aroused and she winced when realization hit her and she knew what he was about to do.
“No!” She screeched and swung around, but his hands caught her by her shoulders. She looked into his eyes and shook her head. “No, you can’t! Please don’t do that to me!”
He smirked. “You are very perceptive, my dear. Too perceptive. You just took away half of the fun!”
“How … what did you take?”
“Does it matter?”
Her eyes begged his and she shook her head. “Logan, please rather give me a hiding! With a belt if you want to! I … you can’t do that to me … not you …”
He stroked tenderly down her cheek, but the anger in his eyes remained hard and unrelenting.
“A hiding is not going to teach you the lesson you need to be taught. You are too willful by far. You acted recklessly and irresponsibly. You put the lives of two of my men and your own at risk. It is something I will not, no, I cannot allow to happen again.”
“It won’t! I promise it won’t. Logan, I knew what I was doing. I would not have done it otherwise.”
“Really? Have you tried that maneuver before?”
Her expression was answer enough.
“No? I did not think so; therefore you did not know what you were doing. You had no idea it would really work! Apart from that … you were on top of a burning oil well and that is something you know nothing about! From the moment you lowered that damn chopp
er so close I waited for that fire chute! I knew it would happen … you didn’t! You never play around a fire in an oil well, Madison, NEVER! It is unpredictable. You should have known that! You were given the full induction on do’s and don’ts. You were given a directive before you got in that chopper, which you discarded and decided you knew better!”
He shook her in his anger and she sobbed as the tears fell down her cheeks. “I am sorry!” His anger was too strong to be swayed by her tears.
“Yes, my dear. You will be sorry by sunrise tomorrow.”
Her eyes widened and she shook her head through her tears. “No, no, no … you can’t … not until the morning! Please!”
He lowered his head and said very softly through his teeth. “You better pray that the effect has worn off by then, Madison, because I won’t stop until it does. Then … and only then, will you use your body to beg my forgiveness!”
She gasped and anger reverberated through her.
“You … you’re going to torture me for hours on end with the sole aim to feed my need and desire for you with no release and then you want me … you expect me to … to whore myself on you!”
“You really are clever, my dear. Now, you have wasted enough time.”
She struggled and tried to pull away from him, but he only chuckled and pulled her tight against his naked body. She whimpered when she did not feel his usual strong and hard arousal against her stomach. He really was going to do this to me! Oh God … he was going to kill me! Her body’s reaction to his hands and mouth was always instantaneous and she lost total control of her own body.
His head lowered and he kissed her with a hard and cold deliberateness until she opened her lips under his probing tongue. He pushed deep into the recesses of her mouth, probing and stroking her tongue, tangling, pulling and sucking it into his mouth. His mouth slanted over hers, first this way and that as if he couldn’t get enough and he fed greedily on her lips. When he pulled away she leaned weakly against his strong body, her hands gripped his sides and her body flustered with need.
“It is going to be very effective indeed, Wildcat. You’ve not had any since Houston. How much do you need it, Wildcat?”
The Wildcat that Tamed the Tycoon Page 11
