Instead, he watched as she threw her sweater over her head, every movement rapid and stuttering. She was upset. Hunter scowled. Her mood wasn’t about the lamp. She hadn’t been thrilled, but whatever bothered her now went deeper. She reached back to the foot of the bed for her leather mini. The silent treatment had gone on long enough.
He clamped a hand around her wrist. “Kata, talk to me. Look at me.”
In silence, she tossed her head back, and her dark tresses brushed that sexy back, making him want to get her flat on it again. But not until he knew what the hell was wrong.
“We’re done here.” Her voice cracked as she yanked her wrist from his grasp, then ran out of the bedroom, picking up her bra and shoes as she went.
The hell they were.
Getting deep inside her had been the most singularly amazing experience of his life. For him, sex had always been just that. Kata reached him on a chemical level he couldn’t explain and didn’t bother to try. Coming deep inside her while staring even deeper into her eyes, he’d known for the first time in his life what it was to feel something beyond desire. No way was he letting her walk out of his life without a fight. He wouldn’t be the same brokenhearted fool as the Colonel, who had no one to blame but himself for his misery. Hunter knew Kata didn’t feel the same devotion right now, but he damn sure hadn’t thought she would dart out of his bed like her ass was on fire.
Stark naked, Hunter vaulted out of bed and raced down the hall after her. “What’s wrong?”
She didn’t answer, just kept running until she disappeared into the kitchenette. He followed her around the corner to find her slipping her shoes on, her purse perched on her shoulder. She splashed water on her face—and her hands trembled. She still refused to look at him, but he knew she’d felt the connection between them. Then he understood: He’d reached her on a level that disturbed her.
Shoving down his triumph, he approached her on silent footfalls. “It’s okay, honey.”
Finally, she turned to face him. Her eyes were red, slightly puffy. She’d been crying. Shit.
“Of course it is.” She flipped her hair over her shoulder. “It was fun. Thanks. But now it’s over, and I’m still in the mood to party. See you around.” She shouldered past him, focused on the suite’s front door.
Hunter hooked an unyielding arm around her waist and reeled her close again. He didn’t believe her for a second. “Tell me what I did to upset you.”
Kata hesitated, then tossed him a stare full of mock confusion. “No idea what you’re talking about. I had to get you off of me. You were heavy, I couldn’t breathe, and time is wasting.”
“And you’re going to party with who? Ben is passed out, your girlfriends are out on the prowl, and your sister is asleep.”
“What is this, an interrogation? You may be used to calling the shots when you go on your missions, but I told you, no one controls me. I’m ready to leave, so unless you want me to scream down the entire floor of this hotel, take your f**king hand off me.”
Everything she’d said since crawling out of bed made his bullshit meter ring. What she didn’t say was even more interesting. Her entire body was taut. She tried damn hard to repress a shiver as she licked her lips, looked at his. Definitely, he’d reached her on a level she hadn’t expected. That connection between them had her panicking. Even if he couldn’t get the why out of her now, he’d be god-damned if he was going to let her leave this suite alone wearing that curve-hugging sweater sans bra and those f**k-me shoes.
“Give me a minute, and I’ll get dressed. We’ll find a party and have all the fun you want.”
She leveled a stare at him as if he’d lost his mind. “Look, thanks for the bedroom tango. But I’d rather spend my birthday with people I know. No offense.”
He tightened his arm around her waist. “We’ve been as close as two people can get. Why don’t you get to know me better? I want to know everything about you.”
Kata shoved at his hold. “There you go again with your ‘everything’ talk, like this is some meaningful relationship. We f**ked. It was nice. Now go away.”
Nice? He snorted. “Walks on a sunny day are nice. Orgasms so powerful they incite tears aren’t. We both know what’s going on.”
“I think you may have overestimated your prowess.” She raised a dark brow.
“Yeah? So all the gasping, clawing, and screaming were you just stroking my ego? Okay . . .” He shrugged. “I think you’re lying, but I’m more than willing to f**k you again if you’d like to prove me wrong.”
Her mouth pursed with fury—then suddenly she went limp. Had she fainted? He nearly stumbled at the unexpected shift in weight but found his balance and brought her upright.
As he lifted her hair aside and whispered her name, she elbowed him in the belly. He released her to clutch his middle. The tricky woman darted out of the suite.
Vixen. Damn, he was used to fighting enemy combatants, not sexy females.
But by the time Hunter worked into his clothes and hit the door at a run, Kata was nowhere to be seen. He charged down the hall and made his way to the elevator, but all of the cars had moved to lower floors. He watched the indicators as one of the cars descended to the lobby. The ugly certainty that she was on that one sliced through him.
No way he could leave her upset. He’d come on strong, he knew. He was a soldier, and subtlety wasn’t his forte. But once he found her, he could let her breathe a little. He just needed to know exactly what had spooked her so they could work through it. And he couldn’t know that without getting her to open up.
Glancing at his watch, Hunter wondered where the hell she would go at this time of night, even in Vegas, alone and on her birthday. She’d said that she wanted to party. Pounding on the elevator’s down button, he waited. Finally, a ding announced its arrival. Empty. He prowled inside, hit the button for the lobby, then scanned all the hotel’s advertisements for its many bars and restaurants. In short order, he found one for a club that looked trendy and loud, with pretty people dancing and lots of alcohol. His money was on that place.
After picking up another person or two on the way to the bottom floor, the doors opened. Hunter surged outside, scanned the area, and cursed. Fucking people everywhere, milling around the lobby, checking in, flooding the casinos that flanked the bank of elevators.