Total pages in book: 146
Estimated words: 136425 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 682(@200wpm)___ 546(@250wpm)___ 455(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 136425 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 682(@200wpm)___ 546(@250wpm)___ 455(@300wpm)
“Not like you did with me. She was the beautiful, perfect woman, and I was available.” It was how she felt. “I was convenient and had the proper last name.”
“This is where we’re going?” His lips curled up in a slightly self-satisfied smirk. “I kidnap you, haul you across the ocean and away from your family, and you’re jealous. Not angry. Jealous. Baby, we’re already halfway there.”
“What is that supposed to mean?” She took a step back as he stood and loomed over her.
It was too bad she’d been wearing sneakers when they caught her. Not that she had them now, but she longed for some four-inch heels. They wouldn’t put her on eye level with him, but they would help.
He simply stood there, that stupid, sexy smirk on his face. “It means I thought it would take weeks to get back into your bed, but if I was betting now, I would say a couple of days and you’ll need more than you can give yourself. We’re stuck on this nice but weird farm and oops, there’s only one bed.”
“Zach, I am not fucking around with you. You sought me out because I was the last Taggart you could hit on.”
He frowned, a look of pure consternation coming on his face. “Why would you say that? Look, the thing with Tasha was probably more about her dad and wanting to belong than I want to admit. But you… I looked at you and I wanted you. I know we met before and I always thought you were beautiful, but that night we connected in a way I have never connected before.”
“Because my cousins wouldn’t give you the time of day,” she shot back.
“I didn’t want your cousins,” he said in an altogether too calm voice. “Kala and Kenz are like sisters to me. As for Tasha, I’m now pretty sure it wouldn’t have worked. She’s too calm and polite for me. I seem to have a thing for brats.”
She shook her head. “No. I don’t believe a word you say.”
“And I can understand that. Devi, I wish I could let you move on with your life. I wish I was a good enough man to not touch you again because there’s no happy ending for us. I’m going to die or go to prison, and if I was a better man, I would hand you back to your uncle. But I’m not. I’m a desperate man, and I need these weeks with you because one way or another this is it, and you’re the best thing that ever happened to me. Ever will happen to me. I’ll do pretty much anything to get back into your bed and have these last days with you.”
He sounded so serious, like he’d spent weeks thinking about what he would say to her. She wanted to sit and talk to him and work this out. What if he was telling her the truth? What if he honestly wanted her and this was a tragic misunderstanding? What if she was his real love?
She needed to kill this part of herself. The part that wanted to believe the best in everyone. The part that thought she should try one more time and everything would work out. “You can go to hell. I consider myself your prisoner, Zach. Every bit as much as I was his prisoner last night, and honestly, for the same reasons. You need something from my uncle. I don’t buy for a second that you’re willing to die or go to prison. You’re a user, and you’ll use me to save yourself from whatever is going on here.” She was feeling mean. Her head hurt, and she wasn’t even sure they were telling her the truth about where she was. Or if Lacey was only a friend. She was probably Zach’s mistress and she was helping her man save himself. “What’s wrong, Zach? Were your mommy and daddy not good enough for you and you need a new family? Poor little boy wants mine? Is that it?”
His eyes closed, and if he was acting, he was damn good at it. “I suppose I deserve that. I’ll leave you alone then. I’ll find another place to sleep. Be careful when you’re walking around. Lacey doesn’t believe in penning in the cows. I’ll see you at dinner.”
He moved around her, leaving the room. The space was suddenly quiet but her mind wasn’t.
“Wow, now I believe you’re a Taggart,” an unwelcome voice said. Lacey stood in the door with a mug of tea in her hand. She walked in like she owned the place, setting the tea down on a coaster on the table by the chair. “It’s something my mum has used since she was a kid. It always helps with headaches. I don’t think it will make you less of a bitch, though.”