Carson blinked at the direct order. Even Katie heard the power in her tone and wondered exactly how she pulled it off.
“I will,” he told her.
“Promise?”
“I promise.”
“You already broke one promise to me. Don’t break this one.”
Carson jerked his head back in surprise. “When did I break a promise?”
“I think it’s written somewhere you can’t leave your girlfriend tied up in a shack, promise no one will find her, and then let her get kidnapped again.” She said it like she was berating a subordinate, but Carson pursed his lips ruefully as he recognized the playful tone through the stress.
“OK, you got me there.”
“Good. Now, you better not let me down again, because you’re the only man in my life I can trust anymore.”
“Thank you. That’s very flattering.” His eyes shimmered at her compliment. As well they should, she thought. She meant it and… more.
“Do you remember what you said to me at the shack, when you said you couldn’t let anything else happen to me, and I flipped out on you?”
Carson furrowed his brow and his eyes volleyed back and forth like a tennis ball at Wimbledon as he struggled to recall the details of their contentious conversation. Katie was about to remind him when he froze like a statue.
He stared at her, white visible around both pupils, and finally he nodded. “I think I do.”
“Tell me again.”
Carson drew in a breath to speak, but paused for a moment, his face a fascinating mix of hope and fear. “Are you sure you want me to?”
“Only if you meant it. Only if you were sincere. If you said it to make me feel better or to buy my cooperation, then don’t. But if you’re the man I believe you are, I don’t have to worry about those things.” She affixed her gaze to his and waited to see if her instincts were right.
His body and expression changed. Gone, as if blown away by a refreshing breeze, were any sign of hesitancy, worry, or doubt. In fact, a serene look came over his features, as if this realization solved all of his problems and issues and delivered him to a Zen-like state. His strong, warm hand caressed her cheek and neck with a delicacy that nearly made her swoon.
“I love you, Katie. I thought it wasn’t possible for me to love anyone else again, but I was wrong. Pam will always have a part of me, but it’s like my heart and soul expanded to love you just as deeply, just as fiercely, and just as much. You’re a special woman – no one else could have affected me so much – and I owe you all the love and passion I can muster.”
She smiled and reached up to grip his hand as he continued to caress her face. “That’s good, Carson, because I’d hate to love a man so much and not have him return it. Yes, I love you too.”
Carson pushed his lips together and squinted as tears threatened to run down his cheek. “You know,” he said, his voice breaking, “shit like this doesn’t exactly help me stay in my tough-guy persona.”
“That’s a shame,” she told him, letting her finger trail over his muscular shoulder and upper arm, “because I kinda like some of the things tough guys do to me.”
Carson’s mouth stopped trembling and one corner curled up lecherously. “Well, far be it for me to deny you any of the things you might like,” he told her before grabbing the sleeves of her shirt and pulling it off her. His eyes wandered over her chest for a second before he moved his caressing hand to the back of her head and pulled his lips to hers.
No longer fettered, Katie was determined to take more control than she had during their previous encounter. She returned his kiss and massaged his back, pushing her fingernails into the skin, sliding her hands up so she could caress his short but soft hair. It wasn’t exactly soft anymore; sweat and rainwater made it stringy and tough, but it was the hair of her man, and right now she wanted everything from him.
Carson moved his strong hands to her bra, working the clasps to free the treasure they contained. He pulled it from her body with gusto, allowing her breasts to fall free.
“Ohhh, yeah,” she moaned quietly, surprised by the heat that surged through her at having Carson undress her with such savagery. Katie arched her back both to ensure her upper body was on full display and to demonstrate her lover was free to do as he wished with her, so it came as a surprise when she felt both of his hands at her right hip, one blocking her arm while the other removed the loaded .22 pistol she had tucked under her belt. The delay frustrated her, but it was smart and the right thing to do. Carson must have felt the same way, because he gave her a very sheepish, “sorry-but-this-is-important” look before removing the magazine and racking the action to remove the last bullet from the chamber. Only after placing the weapon on the nightstand did he resume his enthusiastic attack on her body.
Her belt, pants, and panties were no obstacle to Carson who, after disengaging one belt buckle, one snap, and one zipper in record time, pulled them from her body with such energy her tennis shoes came off with them. Katie realized she was naked except for her socks, one of the least sexy conditions anyone, male or female, could be in, but Carson either didn’t notice or didn’t care.
“That’s the way I want you,” he stated. “Naked and ready to be taken.” He pushed her back on the bed, but she raised her head to watch him run his right hand up and down, ranging from her hips to her shoulder. She giggled at his tickling fingers despite the burning passion between them. His touch both aroused
