Unexpected Places (6 page)

And she would have a good idea of what that price might be. No need to be nasty. Just take what he wanted. Shit, she fucked men for a living. And he knew she wanted it too. She’d wanted him in Sydney, and he knew she’d enjoyed checking him out when he arrived here in her nasty little room.

Luke strolled toward her and placed his hand at the small of her back, drawing her up to him, till the hard line of his body pressed against her soft breasts. She was so tiny. Fragile. The word echoed uneasily in his mind and he argued with it.
I’m not going to hurt her
. He’d make it good for her, he swore.

Though he’d make sure he kept her well away from the emeralds once he found them. As he stared down into her wary eyes, he couldn’t resist reaching out and caressing her soft cheek.

What the hell was he doing? Getting all soft and cuddly with a piranha? Ariana had that sweet, vulnerable act down pat. He reached around and, grabbing her delectable bottom, dragged her small, curvy body against his.

‘The deal is, Moonbeam, I’ll take care of you, and get you home eventually. But I’ll keep the emeralds when I find them.’ As he let his hands roam up to her narrow shoulders and then down the curve of her hips and back to her cute, sexy backside, he decided he might as well spell out all her duties. ‘And you’ll take care of me. You’ll cook for me and serve me my drinks.’ He enjoyed the way she stiffened and narrowed her eyes. He grinned. ‘But your main duty will be me. You’ll give me sex any time I want it. Any way I want it.’

She stared up at him, her eyes huge. Then she swallowed. Her tongue darted out and licked her lips. What was wrong? Why did she seem…scared? Hell, did she think he was into pain? Bending his head, he let his lips skim hers. ‘Don’t look so frightened, sweetheart. I’d never hurt you. And I’ll make it good for you too.’ But she didn’t respond, didn’t melt like he expected her to.

She shivered, pulled out of his arms and backed away. ‘This is blackmail.’

‘Yep,’ he agreed. He grinned, but inside he was frowning. What was her game?

The noise from downstairs was escalating. Smiling, he raised an enquiring eyebrow.

Ariana turned her head in the direction of the shouting. Then she took a huge breath. ‘Okay.’

He sauntered towards her, and he liked the way she stood her ground. ‘You know, my friends call me Luke.’

She glared up at him. ‘Well, our relationship is hardly based on friendship. In fact it all sounds very businesslike,
Mr Donahue.
’

He laughed. ‘Whatever you like, Moonbeam. In fact, I like the sound of it. “Mr Donahue”, “Sir”. This sounds fantastically kinky to me.’ He could feel himself hardening already, picturing Ariana on her knees in front of him, those plump lips she was currently nibbling, now wide and ready to take him. He grinned as his dick stiffened against his zipper. Little Ariana had a wickedly surprising fantasy life he’d be more than happy to share.

Her eyes snapped. ‘Good luck with the “Sir”.’ Then she stared down at her hands, picking at her fingernails. ‘Um. Speaking of that… you know…kinky stuff. You need to know I won’t be very good. I’ve never done it before.’ She bit her fingernail and darted a glance up at him.

He frowned.
‘It?’

‘Um…you know…sex.’

And then he knew. Of course. Her game. With him cast in the role of cruel, mean, rough villain, and her in the starring role of sweet little innocent heroine.

Luke burst out laughing. Then he ground his teeth and forced himself to stop. Little Ariana seemed to be able to make him laugh with a light-hearted genuine amusement he’d never experienced with a woman before, but he had to remember that she worked for Changpu. ‘Sweet little virgins don’t frog march a man up to his apartment with “sex on tap” written right across their faces. So give it up, Moonbeam. It’s getting old.’ He pulled her against him and cupped her bottom again. Then took the next logical step. His fingers wandered up underneath the thin hem of her tiny shorts and squeezed her backside. Ariana stiffened, as did his cock inside his jeans, surprising him that he could get any harder. He forced her up against him, wanting to show her what she did to him, what he wanted from her.

No more games, Ariana.

Then he dipped his head and leant toward her. His lips found hers. She rested a hand on his shoulder to balance herself, and he tipped her head back. Although she tried to keep her lips closed, Luke forced his tongue into her mouth and explored its soft interior. Suddenly, with a tiny whimper of surrender, she melted into him and kissed him back. He smiled and deepened the kiss.

He drew away. She gave a small, protesting gasp and stared up at him with those huge green eyes. ‘Don’t fight me, Ariana,’ he whispered. ‘That’s not part of the deal. But, like I said before, I’d never hurt you.’ Before he could seal their sexy deal with another kiss, the noise from downstairs became a roar. Luke pushed her away and went to the window. ‘We have to hurry. Those guys are on their way up. Come with me, there’s a back way out of here.’ He grabbed her hand and dragged her along behind him.

He led Ariana down a flight of stairs and into a narrow alley that stank of urine and worse, then made for the jetty where his boat was tied up.

A shout from down the street made them run even faster. The men had seen them. Ariana kept up with him easily. As they dodged around alleyways, he glanced down at her. Her face was flushed with the heat and exertion, but her eyes were dancing. She turned and glimpsed the men growing smaller by the second, and laughed. A delighted, excited laugh. A ‘fuck you’ laugh. Then she fell over.

‘Oh!’

Her breath left her lungs in a scream. As he came to a full stop to help her, they lost their lead. The men started cheering. Ariana accepted his offered hand. He dragged her up, pulling her along with him for those initial limping steps, until she gathered speed and then ran at his side, all the way to the river, to his boat, tied up at the jetty.

‘Quickly, cast off. There and there,’ Luke gasped, as he pointed to the ropes tying the boat to the two pylons, fore and aft. ‘Then leap on. I’ll start the motor.’ He raced up the steps to the bridge and glanced toward the town. The noise that had been following them had made it to the end of the jetty.

Ariana leapt aboard as he started the engine. Wrenching around the wheel, he put it in gear, pulled down on the throttle, and they drew away from the jetty as fast as the powerful engine could manage. The men arrived seconds too late. Amanda waved goodbye and Luke laughed in appreciation of her cheekiness. She clattered up the wooden deck and arrived at the bridge next to him, still panting from her exertions, but grinning widely.

‘Two hundred metre sprint champion, three years in a row!’ She bowed to an imaginary audience. ‘Thank you, thank you.’ Her sparkling eyes danced with fun as she laughed. ‘Goodness, that was so exciting. Nothing like that’s
ever
happened to me. And thank you, thank you! You were wonderful!’ She grabbed his hand and kissed it fervently.

There were a few boats moored to buoys that he had to avoid, so he couldn’t give Ariana the full attention she deserved. But as he glanced at her pretty face, his breath caught in his chest. Her long blonde hair, caught up in a ponytail, was in wild disarray. Unlike the sleek, sophisticated women he knew back in Australia, diminutive Ariana reminded him of a wild, joyous fairy. Despite the danger of running into other boats, he let his eyes wander down her small, lovely body, which was when he noticed her tiny shorts were split in two.

‘Ari, you seem to be missing some of your clothing.’ Luke grinned, glancing at the area between her two slender thighs and enjoying the sight of her bright pink panties. He swerved to avoid a sandbank.

She flushed. And that’s when Luke remembered who she was. Ah, yes, little Ariana, the virgin, all blushing and sweet. What the hell was he doing, smiling at her, joking with her? Mai Ling had caught him out when he’d lost focus, when he’d forgotten about her agenda. It was not going to happen again. ‘Moonbeam,’ he said softly, spotting the shallow water up ahead and turning the wheel to avoid it. ‘You’re a very pretty lady, but you’re a thief. And since you were happy to fuck me in Sydney to get the map, that makes you a whore too. So, don’t forget our deal, okay sweetheart? The only reason you’re here with me right now is for sex. Lots of it.’

It wasn’t a pretty speech and Luke wasn’t proud of himself, especially when her lovely face fell, and that joyous expression disappeared from her eyes.

‘In the excitement, I’d forgotten. But thank you for reminding me,’ she said flatly. She stared out in front of her as they motored along the wide river. Sandbanks lay like hidden mines, ready to grab at an unwary boat’s hull. She took a deep breath, her eyes wide and nervous. ‘When do you want it…er…me?’

Shit. Shit. Shit. He’d scared her again. And no wonder. When had he become so crass and brutal? Since he’d been taken down twice in one week by a woman, that’s when, came his instant reply. Something about her sweet, innocent act brought out the arsehole in him. Maybe he wanted her to be real for once and own up to what she was.

But that didn’t excuse the way he was going about this.

‘Ariana,’ he said in a much gentler voice, ‘let’s not worry about that right now. I need to find the river that runs into this one, and navigating around the sandbanks is going to be tricky. Why don’t you go below deck and see what you can rustle up for dinner? The boat is supposed to be stocked for a six-day trip, so there’s lots there.’

She nodded, but didn’t say a word or make eye contact, as she turned.

Shit
.

Luke almost called her back to tell her to forget about it, that he didn’t mean it, that they wouldn’t worry about all that revenge sex crap. But he stopped himself. She was good. She almost had him feeling sorry for her. Who was the victim here? Who’d been drugged, knocked out and robbed? He shut up and let her go.

As she violently chopped up the vegetables, Ariana imagined each and every bean, basil leaf, and bit of bok choy was part of Luke Donahue’s anatomy. She gave a crisp, satisfied nod as she wielded the mortar and pestle to smash up the herbs and lime leaves she’d found in the basket on the shelf. She added the shrimp paste and green onions and continued to pound. Then she snatched up the palm sugar and grater and set to work.

Ouch
. She ran her knuckles under the tap.

You’ll cook for me and serve me my drinks.

Oh, smooth, Mr Donahue. You bas— creep.

In the refrigerator, she found a tray of chicken thigh fillets, from which she tore away the cling film with pleasing ferocity. She grabbed the lot and plopped them onto the cutting board, slicing viciously, until she came to a shuddering stop. What had he turned her into? Some kind of axe murderer?

She tried breathing slowly, like Sister Scholastica always told her to do when she was angry or upset.

She really tried.

After sloshing in the oil and heating it till it was smoking, she added the chicken, attacking the mixture in the pan so vigorously that half the pieces of chicken flew out. Growling, she threw them back in, and stirred till the fillets had browned. Snatching up a handful of bright red chillies from the herb basket, she chopped them into tiny fragments in a blur of fine and furious slicing that would have amazed her boss at her restaurant back home.

So I’m a whore, am I?

She added her spice paste and the chillies to the sizzling pan, then poured in the can of coconut milk she’d found in the cupboard.

The only reason you’re here with me right now is for sex. Lots of it.

She froze, nibbling her bottom lip. Then she stirred the pot slowly, staring at nothing.

Luke was getting no bargain with her. When he got her in his bedroom — is that it was called on a boat? — she wouldn’t have a clue what to do. She’d told him she hadn’t had sex before, but he didn’t seem to believe her. And when she thought about why that was, Ariana had to admit she saw his point. Of course this Changpu would only employ women of…of…dubious morals, if he wanted them to use sex to rob their victims.

Victims. And that’s when she remembered Jason, tied up, frightened, depending on her.

She lifted her head, pulled back her shoulders and smiled grimly. So what if Luke Donahue called her a whore? She would get those emeralds. She would be exactly what he expected her to be. Then after Jason was safe, she’d go home and never have to think about Mr Luke Donahue again.

She frowned, as she remembered, inconsequentially, that she’d have to get a job soon. She’d hated her last bout of employment at Michael Jones Accounting during the university break. But that was okay. Now she was qualified, she’d get more interesting, challenging work, right?

But all her thoughts kept returning to the man currently driving the boat, and what he was planning on doing to her tonight.

She gulped. Would it hurt? Cindi Saunders had assured them it wouldn’t. Way back in final year at boarding school, as she and Cindi and the other girls had sat in a gossipy circle around the house coffee table, Cindi had said the first time didn’t hurt if the guy knew what he was doing. Well, Cindi should know. She’d slept with half the boys from senior form at their brother school.

Luke would know what he was doing, Ariana told herself comfortingly. But why did he want her so much, when he was such a good-looking guy? He’d have women smashing his windows and crawling through the broken glass to get at him.

The horrible answer came right back at her. Revenge.

Her stomach roiled. This whole revenge sex scenario she’d stumbled into was terrifying. Luke was so mad at her. He wouldn’t be too rough, would he? She took a deep breath, rolled her shoulders and, with trembling hands, added some softened noodles and coriander. What if she told him she couldn’t go through with this? Surely he wouldn’t force her?

His tongue, forcing its way into her mouth. His erection forced against the softness of her stomach.

Her mouth flooded with saliva, and between her thighs, well, that moistened a lot too.