Название: The Phoenix Project
Автор: Jacquelyn Frank
Издательство: Ingram
Жанр: Короткие любовные романы
isbn: 9781420148718
isbn:
Realizing more than his own life would be at stake if he let them kill him without examining all possibilities of escape, he had complied. Nick was beginning to wonder if that had been such a good idea.
The department shrink said he had a “hero complex” and that it was going to get him killed one day, or worse.
This was definitely bordering on worse.
His eyes opened the tiniest fraction, and he closed them instantly. Damn. This place was so white it hurt. Everything was white. Monitors, computers, bottles, and tubes. All of it. The only things not in white were the little lab rats in heather gray tees and sweats running around like whipped dogs.
Except for Amara. She had kept her long blond hair, and whether she knew it or not, it was an act of sheer defiance. He had instantly liked that about her. Of course, in the “not dead yet” category, he’d thought she also had a killer body. He wondered if he could still be considered a “hero” if he had spent a good amount of time thinking the damsel in distress had nice tits. Really nice tits.
Then he remembered he hadn’t been the only one to notice and a rush of fury balked through him. Oh, he was going to get that miserable fucker who’d touched her if it was the last damn thing he ever did.
Nothing “complex” about that.
Well, best to get on with this mess, he thought wryly. He was starting to get hungry, to add to a roaring case of thirst, and the sooner he dealt with the business of getting to his feet, the more likely it would be that they’d feed him. Nick opened his eyes and bore the glaring shock of white as it pounded into his head. He realized immediately that he was back in his room, dumped in his bed facedown and totally naked.
“Ah, shit.”
He hated waking up naked without knowing how he’d gotten that way or what’d happened since then. It made him paranoid. Especially when he hurt so bad he couldn’t figure out what kind of damage had been done and where. He felt like they’d taken him out and beaten him with clubs. He rolled over and tried to see if any bruises accompanied the way he felt. That was when he heard the locks on his door snap open. It slid free with a hiss and then, with a shout, the pretty little blonde Amara was shoved into his room and the door was locked after her.
“Shit!” Nick jolted upright, reaching for his blanket to cover up, but then realized Amara was just as stripped as he was. “You fucking prick bastards!” he shouted out to the powers-that-be he knew watched everything he did.
They did.
Despite the agony he was in, Nick forced himself to his feet and reached to wrap the shivering girl in the blanket. She flinched away at first, until she realized he was helping her cover up. Then she was clutching at the thin excuse for a blanket like she would a life preserver after being dumped in rough seas.
“Did they hurt you?” he asked gently, momentarily ignoring her efforts at resisting and pulling her close after the blanket was snug around her. He immediately began to rub warmth into her, hoping he could at least ease the chattering of her teeth.
“I don’t know. I just woke up and they grabbed me and threw me in here,” she said in a shivery voice. “I’m sorry.”
“For what? You didn’t do anything.”
“But I will. Or you will. Why else would they force us into the same room like this? They are expecting something to happen. They are going to watch while something happens.”
“Something? Like what kind of something?” he demanded, not liking the things that began to filter into his guessing mind.
“Maybe you’ll rape me,” she whispered.
“The hell I will!” he exploded.
“You won’t be able to help it. They do that. They give drugs that do that. I’ve seen it. God, I am so scared.”
She was. He realized the chill of the room was nothing compared to the way she was shaking in terror. Frankly, if he was her and had been locked up with a man of his size and strength thinking what she was thinking was going to happen, he’d have probably pissed himself in fear.
“Hey. Listen to me. If I start getting nasty or anything, you just feel free to bash me in the balls as hard as you can, okay? Consider it a personal favor to me. I would hate myself if I did anything to hurt you.” He drew her over to the bed and sat down with her. He grabbed his pillow and dragged it over his lap. It was the only other cover left in the room, and a quick glance had shown him that the towels in the small bath had been removed. It made him sick to his stomach to think of what it was they must have planned for by throwing them together like this, purposely eliminating all sources of cover except for the single blanket. “How are you feeling?”
“Like death chilled over,” she sniffed. “And I can’t get warm.”
Nick immediately moved as close as he could, insanely grateful for his hyper body heat for a change. Apparently he processed energy really well. She could benefit from that. Despite her curves, she was pretty small. Generous breasts, nice round hips, and a killer ass didn’t serve as a large enough percentage of overall body fat. It might attract the hell out of a man like him, but it wouldn’t keep her warm in these conditions.
He drew her in tight, and after a moment she threw caution to the wind and snuggled up hard against him. She leaned in to burrow a cold nose against his neck, and after a moment he heard her sniff. It was different than the upset, chilly sniffling she had done. It was slow and soft, accompanied with a little rub of her nose.
“You smell nice,” she said, actually seeming surprised. It surprised him, too. Usually these tests not only made him feel like hell, but he would smell like it as well. Truth be told, she smelled kind of nice herself. He couldn’t place it as a particular fragrance, but maybe it was her shampoo. Whatever it was, it was rather delicious. He turned his nose into her hair so he could breathe deeply of the aroma.
“So do you. Are you warming up?” he asked.
“Actually, I think I am,” she said, rubbing up even closer to him, if that was even possible. Now, not only did she smell good, but he was realizing just how good she felt as well. The abrupt understanding that he was feeling aroused just by the nearness of her made him suddenly jerk away from her. He abandoned her to slide the length of the bed away from her, his fist clutching the pillow tightly against his stirring cock as it began to harden with its interest.
“Shit,” he hissed, running his free hand through his hair as he looked wildly around the tiny room for some way to put more distance between them.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, those coppery eyes studying his agitation curiously as her grip on the blanket became negligent, allowing it to slide off one of her pale shoulders.
“Nothing,” he lied quickly. “Just trying to think what I can put on.”
“I know. They only give you one set of clean clothes every morning. Once you lose them, that’s it until the next day. God, I’m so thirsty right now. And I’m getting really hungry.” She stood up and paced the confined space a little. Every time she came close to him, Nick was overwhelmed with the scent of her and how amazingly sexy he found it to be. It was almost like the lusty smell of sex, only far sweeter and even more alluring, if such a thing were actually possible. His heart began to beat a rapid and worried tattoo. Lately, he hadn’t noticed anything СКАЧАТЬ