Gabe studied her for a long moment. A wicked grin tugged at the corner of his mouth. Her cheeks flushed in response. They warmed to a warm rosy pink that had his dick sitting up and taking notice.
He leaned over and ran his finger over the pulse at her throat that was beating ferociously. He winked at her.
“Ah, Princess, you can keep your money. If I decide to play with you, the stakes won’t be money.”
Ana gasped and jumped back. Dismay flooded her. Just like that, one seductive touch and she was right back where she had been last night. Wanting him. Wanting him to touch her. Touch her in ways she had never been touched. Now that she knew who he was, who he really was, she was infuriated with herself.
She whirled on him.
“Don’t call me that! I am not a princess, and I think it is inappropriate for you to call me anything but Ana or Miss Li.”
Gabe roared. “Oh, baby, we’re a little past Miss Li, don’t ‘cha think?” Wiping the tears from the corners of his eyes, he leaned over and stroked her cheek. When she shoved his hand away and sat up, her back ramrod straight, he laughed even harder.
“Look at you! You aren’t a princess? Oh, honey, you are the epitome of a princess. You are haughty, imperial. You love to give orders and expect to be obeyed. And God help anyone who crosses you. You pin them with that regal stare and they start checking their manhood to make sure it’s still there.”
At her gasp, he sat up as straight as she was and pulled her toward him.
His voice melted to a husky rumble. “Except for me, of course. I know that even princesses have secret layers that can be explored, examined. I’ve already uncovered some of the secrets the dirty little urchin in the barn thought no one knew.”
When she struggled to get a breath and tried to push him away, he shook his head and smiled. “Now I’m working on uncovering the woman that started to show herself last night.”
She held her hands against him, putting space between them. She jerked her chin in the air, realizing with a start that the haughty gesture proved his point.
“You… you are arrogant, despicable. And you are mistaken! It’s up to me what part of myself I reveal to you or anyone else. And I choose NOT to reveal myself to you!”
He released her and stood up. She scooted back, trying not to be intimidated by the huge man towering over her.
His voice was soft. “Ah, honey. You are so wrong about that. I’m damn good at peeling back the layers of even haughty princesses to find the woman buried beneath.”
Before she could respond, to her shock, he unbuttoned his shirt and slipped it off. She swallowed her gasp at the sight of his broad shoulders. His chest and arms rippled with tight ridged muscles. She almost shielded her eyes at the sight of the curly black hairs on his chest that arrowed down over his flat stomach to a place below his belt. Seeing the swell of his erection, she choked. She tried to sound indignant, but her question came out as a shaky squeak.
“What… what in God’s name are you doing now?’ She scuttled back, glaring up at him forcing her eyes from his groin to his face.
He smiled at her. “Relax, sweetheart. I’m being a gentleman. There are no towels here so I’m offering my shirt to dry off your feet.”
She grabbed her stockings and boots and jumped up. “I… I don’t need it. Please put your shirt back on!”
He laughed softly when she turned her back on him and moved a good ten feet away. She bent over, trying to pull on her stockings and boots without falling, hopping from one foot to the other. When she saw him grinning at her, she almost tumbled.
He winked at her. “Need help, Princess?”
“No! And if I did, I wouldn’t ask for it from you.”
He finished buttoning his shirt, then walked over to her. Ignoring her resistance, he picked her up and sat her down on her butt.
He took one stocking and used it to dry off her leg and foot. When he finished he put on her boot and reached for the other stocking. Running his fingers over the bruised ankle, he nodded, as if pleased.
“We were smart to keep that ankle in the cold water, Princess. There is almost no swelling, but you are going to have to keep it elevated as much as possible for a couple of days. Here, let me put this on you.” As he was drying off her leg, then putting on her stocking and her boot, he continued.
“I need to go away for a while, Princess. Five or six days at the most. I’ll be back on Friday or Saturday at the latest.”
His calm assertion, his presumption that it mattered to her what he did, infuriated her. She leapt up, her face heating from the exertion and backed away from him. She hugged her arms across her chest, clenched her hands in tight fists. She bit her lips to stop them from trembling.
She forced her voice to be firm, harsh, determined to ignore his slight smile and questioning frown. And especially that gleam in his dark green eyes. “Why should I care if you go or if you stay? Or if you go and never come back?” Angry tears pricked the back of her eyelids. Horrified that she might cry, she turned and ran to where her horse was waiting quietly by the tree.
He caught up with her from behind. He pulled her against him, pressing the hard front of his body against her backside. Ignoring her outraged shrieks, he lifted her up. Her feet scrambled for the ground to no avail. He bent her forward, resting her bottom between his strong thighs. She squirmed, fighting to free herself, but her movements only served to press her soft cheeks tighter against him.
He leaned down, his lips close to her ear. His voice was a husky whisper.
“Why should you care, Princess? Maybe because of this?”
He caught the lobe of her ear and bit down on the tender flesh. She jerked in response, stunned at how quickly the sharp pain turned to stings of pleasure. He ran his tongue over the sensitive swirls of her of ear and blew a puff of air on the damp flesh, sending violent shivers racing to her core.
“Or this,” he whispered. He wrapped one large arm around her just under her breasts and anchored her against him. With his other hand he stroked her breasts, chuckling at her shocked gasp.
“Oh, my God, Gabe. You mustn’t. I… I can’t! I….” Her protest trailed into a low passionate moan.
His wicked fingers traced feathery patterns over her lush mounds. She wanted him to stop. She knew she had to make him stop. But the teasing strokes made her squirm and struggle for a firmer touch. When he rolled one tight hard nipple between his finger and thumb, she cried out, a wave of sensation coursing through her body. Her heated flesh strained against her silky chemise, intensifying the sensations. To her horror, she found herself reaching for his hands, pressing his clever fingers around the beaded throbbing tips. She wanted more! She wasn’t sure of what; she only knew her body was screaming for more.
His chuckle was soft, seductive, his voice a masculine siren’s song.
“Oh, yeah, Princess. See if this makes you care if I come back.”
He drove one strong thigh between her legs and rested her soft folds against his hard erection. She whimpered helplessly at the erotic sensations rocking her core, whispering his name over and over, a passionate supplication.
Just when she thought she would never breathe again if she couldn’t get more of him, be closer to him, he stepped back. He turned her toward him and wrapped his arms around her. His lips nuzzled her ear; his voice was low, gruff. “I’m not going to take you here, Princess. Not like this. Not now.”
He tipped her head back, forcing her to meet his eyes. They were stormy green waves in a wild angry ocean. His lips were close to hers. She longed to touch them, to feel the hungry moist fullness against hers.
He shook his head. “Uh, uh. Not like this, Princess.”
To her dismay, he set her back a few inches. He straightened her shirt with firm fingers, smiling at her uncontrolled shivers.
He reached down and lifted her chin so she couldn’t look away.
“I’m glad, Princess. I’m glad that you care. It’s good to know that it matters.” He chuckled. “That it matters a hell of a lot to you if I come or go.”
To her surprise, he turned her toward her roan. Before she could resist, he boosted her up in the saddle. He adjusted her stirrup and ran his fingers over her knee and thigh, grinning when she trembled. He led her horse back through the brush to where his stallion waited. In one easy motion, he mounted the enormous animal, then came up beside her. She was shaking so hard that she didn’t know how she could possibly ride her horse. He led the way down the steep twisting path. As angry, as upset as she was, she was mesmerized by the sight of his tight ass, his strong thighs moving in a seductive rhythm in sync with the horse’s flanks.
Chapter 15
A tight huddle of worried-looking men stood in the courtyard as they rode up. Chao Li stepped forward, his stern face rigid, his dark eyes flashing, the strain on his face apparent.
Gabe leapt off his horse. He handed the reins to Clem, who stood at an anxious distance. Ignoring her protest, Gabe reached up and lifted Ana off her horse. She twisted free and rushed to her father’s arms with a sob. Gabe’s stomach clenched at the tears on Chao’s face. The dignified man who rarely showed emotion was trembling as he tried to comfort his daughter.
“Chao, if you and Ana want to be alone, I can come back later.” When Chao shook his head, Gabe nodded in agreement. “Let me ask Clem a couple of questions and then you and I can talk.”
He turned to Clem. “I presume your ranch hands returned, in a somewhat compromised condition?”
Clem reared up, incensed. “Goddammit, don’t you be calling those pieces of horseshit ‘my’ men, McKenna.”
Gabe held up his hand to stop the certain barrage. “No insult intended, Clem. But, damn, man, we do need to determine how they came to this ranch. Most important, we need to find out who the hell they’re working for.”
Seeing the foreman was as concerned as he was angry, Gabe softened his tone.
“Look, Clem. Give me some time with Chao, and then you and I can talk.”
Clem grunted and turned to go back to the barn, muttering a stream of curses the likes of which surprised even Gabe.
“One thing, Clem, before you go. Where are they? I take it they made it back here alive.”
“Yeah, they did, although they were damned near dead when they got here. Smitty found them up the trail clingin’ to their horses like they was their pathway to heaven. Seein’ the way you trussed ‘em up, McKenna, it’s a goddamned miracle they made it up the road, much less down that windin’ trail.”
Gabe wasn’t interested in hearing about any pain the two cowards had experienced. He met Clem’s hard gaze with his own.
“Where are they?”
Clem shook his head in disbelief. “Hell, they were here about ten minutes. We barely got ‘em unhooked from that rawhide you used, when a damn big Swede and an Injun guy came roarin’ up. Guess from the look on your face, you do know them. They swore they worked with you and insisted they was gonna take those fuckers off our hands. I figured it would take ten of us to stop those two and since they said you was their partner….”
Clem’s voice trailed off.
Gabe gave him a reassuring nod. “No, you did the right thing, Clem.” He flashed the worried man a smile. “Knowing what I know about my partners, they didn’t give you much choice. I’m glad they got here when they did. In case they didn’t introduce themselves, the blond-haired lover boy is Gunnar, and the large rather frightening-looking man is Lucas. We call him Eagle, for reasons that make him the best and scariest partner a man could have.”
Clem jerked his head toward the road.
“They insisted they was gonna take ‘em to town. Asked if we had a jail in our piss poor community. Like a lot of people who come through here thinkin’ they know a lot more than us natives.” He condemned Gabe with a glare and snorted, “I guess they think we’re a bunch of backward heathens.”
“I’m sure they didn’t mean to insult you, Clem. How about you and I meet up in the barn after I have a chance to go over things with Chao?”
Gabe dismissed Clem and the others with a peremptory jerk of his head. Clem’s hard face darkened, then with a nod seemed to acknowledge Gabe’s concern for Ana and her father.
Clem and his men turned to leave, but not without throwing a series of anxious stares at Ana. Neither Chao nor Ana had spoken, but both were obviously listening closely to the discussion between Gabe and Clem.
Gabe walked over to Chao and shot a concerned glance at Ana. She was clinging to her father, her face buried against his chest.
“Chao, I think it’s advisable that we get Ana to her chambers. She needs to rest. I also want one of your healers to check her ankle. Some of those magic poultices will go a long way to keep the swelling down.”
Ana looked up from under her father’s arm and glared at Gabe.
“I’m fine, father. Don’t let Mr. McKenna frighten you about what I need or don’t need. And I am not the least bit tired.”
Before her father could answer, Gabe advanced on her.
“No, Ana, you are not fine. And that wasn’t a suggestion. I’m concerned about your emotional state, as well as your ankle.”
She pushed away from her father and turned on him. Angry spots of pink marked her cheeks, underscoring how pale she was. She wavered for a second and clutched Chao’s arm to regain her balance. When she was steady, she glared at Gabe.
“My emotional state? For God’s sake. Now you are calling me, what? One of those hysterical women? Is that how you men categorize women who insist on speaking their mind? Who won’t allow themselves to be ordered about?”
“That was the last thing I would have called you before you threw this temper tantrum,” Gabe replied coolly.
Ana paled, then her cheeks flushed bright pink. Her eyes flashed, but before she could reply, Gabe stepped forward and scooped her up in his arms and turned to the doorway. The four men who had headed to the barn stopped dead in their tracks, looking stunned at the sight of their feisty mistress squirming in the arms of the big man.
Ignoring Ana’s outraged shriek, Gabe looked over his shoulder at Chao, who was staring at him in amazement. “Where is Ana’s chamber?”