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broke as she curled against him for protection against an enemy he couldn t slay.
 C mon honey. Let s go to my room.
Her pale face contorted as grasped at his collar.  What if they come back?
 It won t matter once we get you to my room.
 Wh-what about my things? Her gaze darted around to the mess those men had
created.  They ll come back. I know they will. They ll destroy everything.
Considering the recent incident, he could understand her attachment to the few
familiar items that gave her comfort, via her carryon.  It s okay, sweetheart. I ll get your
things. From now on, you ll stay in my room. With me.
Chapter 4
Clearly in shock, Mindy looked around her room as if the shadows would come alive
and strike her. He needed to reassure her before he uprooted her from the space.  Sit
down, sweetheart. You re shaking.
Though she took a step toward the bed, her hands seemed unable to let go of his
shirt.
Clutching her tight, he moved with her to the edge of the mattress and sat down with
her. He smoothed a hand down her hair, loose and tangled from the encounter with the
thieves.  You ll be all right. Take a deep breath.
The air she inhaled sounded like a cross between a gasp and a sob.
It wrung his heart.  Did they say what they wanted? Why they were here? Could you
understand them at all?
Slowly she lifted her shell-shocked gaze to him. He hated seeing fear in those
innocent pastel eyes.  They wanted the security device.
 The SOS thumb drive?
As she nodded, a tear shook loose from her lashes.
 How the hell would anyone else know about it? he muttered more to himself than to
her.
Two reasons struck him. Either the Markovs were shady and they wanted to steal the
technology instead of paying for it. Or a rival with a grudge had learned of their security
alliance and planned to one-up the Markovs by getting their hands on the device first. A
third possibility left a bad taste in his mouth a personal connection higher up in the
Markov crew was stabbing them in the back and using a vulnerable woman as a means to
an end. Possibly one of the men who d been at the table tonight.
Come to think of it, Marcus had been talking with Mindy much of the night until she
revealed she didn t have the device on her. Soon after, he d left the table to take a phone
call. To take one or to make one updating a third party to look for the device in her
room?
This deal concerned him more by the minute. Except his family had vouched for the
Markovs, had put Isaac in touch with them. While his extended family had its share of
spats and disagreements, they were a tight group. No one would set Isaac up like this.
Not knowingly, anyway.
 Sit tight, he said and reached across her for the phone on the nightstand. He dialed
the front desk and instructed them to cancel her room, because for the remainder of their
stay she d been sharing his. When the concierge asked if anything was wrong, Isaac laid
into the guy for the hotel s crap security then slammed the phone in its cradle.
He gave his head a shake to dislodge the sharp anger clawing him.
 Did they call the police? she asked.
 No, he said with a sigh.  Attempted robbery won t be high on the politsia s list of
priorities. We might not want to get the authorities involved when we re leaving in a few
days. That could piss off some bad people, depending on how deep this goes, and I don t
want the situation to get worse.
 Worse? Her tone filled with dismay.
 For now we ll stay together. Let s grab your stuff and move you into my room.
The tawny wings of her eyebrows lifted.  You want me to stay with you?
 I want you safe. That s about our only option.
Her face fell.  I see. Then she shrugged.  I guess that makes sense.
When she seemed unsure about the idea, he sighed. The scenario would be a lot
harder on him than her. Proving his point, his cock hardened at the idea of her lying in
bed next to him. His hands begging him to caress her creamy skin. Her scent on his
sheets tormenting him. Her made-for-sex body fraying every thread of restraint he
possessed.
Misery. That s what he had to look forward to all night. Sleepless, restless longing that
he couldn t do anything about. She d just endured an assault. She needed the security of
his presence, knowing he would protect her from anyone who dared to cross him. She
didn t need to know he also had to protect her from himself and the sexual thoughts
chasing through his mind.
 Okay, sweetheart. Time to get you out of here. In case they re stupid enough to
come back and try again.
That got her moving. She rose and went to the bathroom to collect her things. He
righted a lamp, straightened a picture frame, and plucked up clothes strewn across the
floor from the thieves rampage.
God, she must ve been terrified. Caught completely off-guard, subjected to a rough
pat-down and physical threats against her life if she didn t give them what they wanted.
Some colorful Russian phrases flashed in his mind to describe the cowardly bastards
who d attack a small, sweet, unsuspecting woman to serve their greed. Fury frosted his
veins while he finished packing her things in her suitcase. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]