She dragged her tongue over the cut on her lip. “I assume Maya and Lann are your other team members.”
“Forget their names.”
“I was just wondering.” She looked at her hands.
“Wondering what?”
“About Maya.”
“What about her?”
“People say…” She looked up to catch him studying her.
“What do people say?”
She rolled her shoulders. “That you’re together.”
“Maya?” He chuckled. “Would you care?”
Guilt heated her cheeks. “Of course not. I’m only trying to figure out how the puzzle fits together.”
“Of course not,” he repeated in a wry tone.
“Is she your lover?”
He frowned. “I see this village hasn’t changed.”
“Some things don’t change.” Like her stupid feelings.
Tracing one of the cuts on her foot with a finger, he asked, “Where did these come from?”
She pulled away her leg.
“Why are you cut up?” he asked, the shadows marring his expression turning darker.
She swallowed. “I didn’t wear the right shoes when I walked through a field.”
“You should take better care of yourself. Are you still roaming the woods alone?”
When she didn’t answer, he uttered a soft curse. His gaze slipped to the mark on her neck, the one he had left. There was no question about what that bruise was. Only a hickey left pinpricks of blue and purple on the skin.
“Do you have a boyfriend?” A deep line formed between his eyebrows. “Is he one of the locals?”
“That doesn’t concern you,” she said with her heart thudding in her chest.
His look was diabolical. “Doesn’t it now?”
“It has nothing to do with your investigation.”
“Maybe not.” He went down on his haunches again, putting them on eye level. “But you and I, Cle, we go way back.” His lips twisted in a wicked way. “Don’t we?”
She stared at him, blood rising to her neck in anger and indignation. How dared he bring that up? How dared he enjoy her embarrassment?
After a beat, he stood, all traces of mocking vanishing from his face. “You need to get out of those damp clothes. A warm bath will do you good.”
He was proposing she—his prisoner—soaked in a bath?
Without waiting for her agreement, he entered an adjoining room. A moment later, the pipes creaked and running water sounded. She considered refusing a bath out of principle, but despite the blankets she was cold. Throwing back the covers, she swung her legs over the bed, but a dizzy spell made her grip the mattress.
“The weakness is temporary,” Joss said from the door.
She looked up to see him standing in the frame.
“I’m sorry I drugged you,” he continued, “but it was for your own protection.”
“How is drugging me protecting me?” she bit out.
“It’s best you don’t know where we are.” He crossed the floor and extended a hand.
She leaned back. “Don’t touch me.”
“I only want to make sure you don’t fall and hurt yourself.”
“I’ll be fine.”
Disapproval settled over his features as he dropped his hand. Her head was spinning, but after a second, her balance stabilized. Keeping one hand on the wall, she made her way to the bathroom, aware of Joss following within grabbing distance. Her legs were stiff from not moving for too long and her back aching from being tackled by a man three times her size, but she wasn’t going to show or admit any weakness.
She entered the bathroom, keeping an eye on him in the reflection of the mirror.
He crossed his arms and leaned in the frame. “Need help?”
The question was clinical, no double nuance evident in his tone, yet more angry heat erupted under the skin of her neck and spread to her face. The damn cheek. Did he think she’d let him help her undress? Glancing at him from over her shoulder, she said through thin lips, “No, thanks.”
A spark of humor glinted in his silver eyes. “You have been naked with a man before, haven’t you?”
She scowled at his misjudgment of the color of her face. “Again, none of your business.” Inwardly, she cringed. Yes, she’d been naked with a man. She may regret it now, but she couldn’t bring herself to hate what had happened.
“I see,” he said with a tinge of surprise.
“You see nothing.” She jutted her chin at the door. “Shut it behind you.”
He straightened, taking his time to do so, and strode past her. His T-shirt stretched over his broad shoulders as he leaned over the bath. He’d always been tall and strong, but now he filled out his clothes with more muscle, like a man who worked out. After testing the water, he closed the tap.
“For how long are you going to keep me here?” she asked.
“As long as it takes.” He dried his hand on a towel hanging on a hook next to the basin and motioned at the bath. “Take your time.” Without sparing her another glance, he left the room and closed the door as she’d demanded.
She stared at the door for a moment, trying to gather herself. She got the feeling he wasn’t always going to respect her demands.
Turning her attention back to the room, she looked around. Unlike the bedroom, the bathroom was brightly lit. It was clean but neglected. The black and white tiles on the floor were cracked and a yellowed mirror on the wall was split in two. The clawfoot bathtub would once have been pretty, but now it looked sad with rusted metal showing through the chipped enamel. The basin was broken too. The window was shuttered from the outside, although slivers of light slipped through, telling her it was still day.
Shivering, she undressed quickly, leaving her clothes in a heap on the floor before lowering herself into the water. The burn between her legs made her suck in a breath, another reminder of last night she preferred to ignore. The warmth seeped into her cold body and loosened her stiff muscles, but she didn’t linger to enjoy it. She
