Ice_Reaux - Laura Wright Page 0,15
the middle of a wildlife refuge in southern Missouri.” Placing a hand on her lower back, he urged her up the narrow pathway. “The cabin belongs to Belise. I called her to see if we could use it to rest for an hour or two.”
The name sent an odd stab of annoyance through Cammy. Which was ridiculous. She barely knew the female Diplomat. Well, she knew that she was beautiful. And sophisticated. And that most of the males were making idiots of themselves to attract her attention whenever she spent time in the Wildlands.
Did that include Ice?
Climbing onto the porch, she stepped to the side, dislodging his lingering hand. Ice sent her a puzzled glance, then turned his attention to the electronic pad where he punched in the private code.
The door swung open and Cammy stepped inside, her eyes widening at the sight of the elegant furnishings and the priceless antique ornaments displayed in glass cases.
“Wow,” she breathed.
“Yeah,” Ice agreed, stepping in behind her. “My cousin enjoys the finer things in life. She was based in Paris before returning stateside.”
Cammy blinked in surprise. “Cousin?”
He brushed a hand down her back. “You didn’t know?”
She shook her head, and with a smug chuckle that should’ve pissed her off, he moved toward the door leading into the kitchen.
“I’m not sure I know anything about you beyond the fact you traveled with your parents, and that Parish considers you to be one of his most trusted Hunters.”
His fingers cupped her hip, subtly drawing her closer to his hard body as they came to a halt in the center of the tiled floor.
“I assumed you weren’t interested,” he murmured, his brooding gaze sweeping over her face. “Has that changed?”
Cammy shivered, sensing that something had changed.
She just didn’t know what the hell it was.
“I…” Her words trailed away as she bit her lip.
Thankfully he sensed her distress, and with a wry smile he urged her toward the nearby breakfast bar.
“Belise promised the freezer was fully stocked,” he said. “Have a seat at the table and I’ll cook us a couple of steaks.”
He cooked?
With a sigh, Cammy took her seat and watched as the luscious male moved around the kitchen with a competent ease. She was in trouble.
Big, big trouble.
CHAPTER 4
Karen was prepared when the male voice spoke to her from the shadows.
“Did you enjoy your dinner?” the mystery man asked.
Karen pasted a smile onto her lips. During the endless hours waiting for the return of her captor she’d come to the decision that her only hope was trying to forge a personal connection. Unlike the last time she’d been kidnapped, this male wasn’t treating her as if she was a lump of flesh they needed for their sick experiments. He talked to her as if she was a real woman.
I was a long shot, but she might actually be able to convince him to let her out of the cage.
From there…well, one step at a time.
“It was delicious. Thank you,” she murmured, rising from the cot to stand at the door of the cage. She was still weak, and her head still throbbed, but she was capable of standing thanks to the truly delicious food that had been delivered during the day. “I still don’t know your name.”
There was a long silence before he at last answered. “Ward.”
“Ward,” she slowly repeated the name. It wasn’t familiar, but that wasn’t surprising. Few of her captors had ever bothered to introduce themselves. “Do I know you? From before?”
His weird laugh echoed through the empty space. “You could say that.”
Karen frowned. She sensed a double meaning in his words, but she didn’t get it.
“Why won’t you show me your face?” she asked.
“Because I want us to become better acquainted first,” he abruptly snapped.
Karen grabbed the bars, hiding her flare of impatience behind a tight smile. The man seemed twitchy. As if he might shut down the conversation at any moment. It was up to her to keep him there and talking.
“Okay,” she soothed in gentle tones. “What do you want to know?”
There was a shuffle of feet as if he’d stepped closer to the door. “Why did you run away?”
“Run away?” She blinked in confusion.
“When you were working for Benson laboratories,” he muttered. “You simply disappeared.”
Was he kidding?
She gave a slow shake of her head. “I didn’t run away. Indy came and helped me escape. I was being held as a prisoner.”
She heard his sharply indrawn breath. “Don’t say that.”
Karen’s confusion deepened. “Say what?”
“That you were a prisoner.”
“Why shouldn’t