"What is this?" he said, wondering at the anger that surged through him.
"A cut."
"I can see that. How did you get it?"
"By being stupid." She shrugged, her gaze on his, as if searching for something. He frowned and forced himself to concentrate on trying to get rid of her, rather than trying to understand the puzzle she presented. He skimmed his fingers across her flat stomach, his gaze holding hers as he gradually worked his fingers inwards, reaching, but not quite touching the hard, pebbled center.
"I can feel your desire, little one. Do not try and deny it."
"I'm not." She moved with a suddenness that surprised him, pushing him backwards as she hooked her foot around his leg. He ended up on his ass at her feet, just as she'd warned he would. He couldn't help laughing. "The whore has spirit."
She crossed her arms, but made no attempt to cover her breasts. "Just why do you think I'm a whore?" He rose and dusted the hay from his butt. "Because the only women in this town are whores, and because no decent woman allows a complete stranger to undress her." One dark blond eyebrow winged upwards. "What if that woman knows the man in question will play a major role in her future?"
He laughed again. Maybe he should keep this woman around, just so her inane comments could lighten the darkness of his life. "I do not need, nor do I want, a woman in my life. Not as a partner, not as a lover, not even as a short-term bedmate." Not until he'd avenged Christine's death, anyway. He owed her that much.
Her gaze skated down his body, and a smile tugged her lush lips. "Sections of your body are denying that statement."
"Something no decent woman would say out loud."
Her smile grew. "I never claimed to be decent, just that I wasn't a whore."
"Then, Miss Whatever-you-are, I suggest you return to your house and lock your doors. Night is coming on, and this town can get mighty unpleasant."
"I told you before. I need to rescue the two men."
"Then do it on your own." He half turned away, then stopped. He couldn't let her go without tasting her again, even if every instinct said it was wrong. Wrapping a hand around the back of her neck, he pulled her roughly into his arms and claimed her mouth as fiercely as he wished he could claim her body. Then he released her, spun and walked away.
* * * *