The Mercenary And The Marriage Vow

by Doreen Roberts

  A segment on the national news was coming up, but Valeri was only half listening. Her mind was on Nat, and the promise of hamburgers. After she’d eaten, she decided, she’d tackle once more the problem of getting him to open up.

  Up until now she’d had very little success. There had to be a way to break through those tough defenses. If only she could think of it. Appealing to his sense of chivalry certainly didn’t work. It was doubtful he knew the meaning of the word.

  She had to meet Nat on his level. Maybe if she tried being really nice to him....He’d made it pretty obvious he didn’t exactly find her unattractive. If she really tried, she might just get him to relax enough to tell her what she wanted to know.

  It wouldn’t be easy to be nice to him, of course. The man was crude and obvious, without an ounce of sensitivity in his body.

  Thinking of his body conjured up the vision of him standing in front of her, naked to the waist, his hands on the waistband of his jeans. For a moment she actually sat there contemplating what it would be like to make love with a man like Nathan Thorne. Then, with a start, she pulled herself together.

  She was beginning to worry about herself. Men like Nat had never appealed to her....She had never been attracted to that kind of earthy, blatant sexuality reeking of male chauvinism. She had always hated caveman tactics, perhaps even been a little scared by them. She had certainly hated Dan’s aggressive advances.

  She shivered at the thought. The memory of her problems with Dan were all too clear in her mind. Six years might have passed since her divorce, but it seemed to her to be just a few short months.

  She could still remember the tension that had gripped her during those nights of lovemaking—the aching longing to feel something...anything, the anxiety to get it over with, and the dreadful frustration when Dan finally rolled away from her, leaving her feeling dead and useless inside.

  She couldn’t...she just couldn’t....

  Without warning, she was jolted back to the present in a violent rush. The news anchor’s droning voice had mentioned a name she knew well.

  “The police are no further along in the case and are still trying to establish the whereabouts of Forrester, who is apparently in hiding. Alex Forrester, a noted scientist working for the government, was due to appear in Washington, D.C., this morning in order to request a grant to continue his studies on a revolutionary new process that could replace oil as a major fuel source. This latest development has been a great shock to his peers.”

  Not to mention his only daughter. Valeri leaned forward, eager to learn more, but to her intense disappointment the announcer smiled at the camera and said, “Turning to the local news...”

  She leaned back against the pillows, churning this latest information over in her mind. She didn’t remember anything about Alex’s work. Since he worked for the government, a lot of his projects were top secret, and he had never talked much about them.

  She was still trying to understand what this latest news meant when she heard the key in the lock. She tensed, torn between the hope that it was Nat with the hamburgers and the even stronger hope that it was someone else coming to rescue her.

  Nat’s muscular body seemed to fill the doorway as he paused to look around the room.

  Valeri watched him, intrigued by his cautious attitude. She’d seen that stance before, as if he were in the habit of thoroughly casing a room before entering it It would seem Nathan Thorne was used to walking into danger, and was skilled in the art of avoiding it.

  Her curiosity about the man was growing by leaps and bounds. Somehow she had to get the truth out of him. If he was as experienced in avoiding hazards as she suspected, it wouldn’t be easy to get through his defenses. She had one shot, and that was to charm her way through.

  She wasn’t sure at this point whether she could pull it off, having had no practice in that area. She only knew she had to try. Even if it meant embarrassing herself. She wasn’t sure if she was looking forward to it, or dreading it.

  Nat’s gaze rested on her briefly before he crossed the room and laid the brown paper sack on the table. The delicious smell of grilled hamburger and onions made Valeri’s mouth water.

  “I brought a couple of beers along with the soda, in case you wanted one,” Nat said, pulling a six-pack out of the sack.

  “They sell beer at a fast-food place?”

  “This was a restaurant. Take-out at one end, sit-down at the other—complete with a full bar.”

  She should be grateful he hadn’t come back with a bottle of Scotch, she thought, as she watched him unbuckle her wrists. That would have made her task even more difficult. As it was, now that he was back in the flesh—so to speak—she wasn’t at all sure she could be nice to the man, after everything he’d put her through.

  “You’d better eat this now while it’s still hot,” Nat said, walking back to the table. He picked up her pants and shirt from the chair and brought them back to her. “Put these on first,” he added gruffly.

  When she looked up at him, his gaze slid away from her. “I don’t think my underwear will be dry.”

  “Then don’t wear any.” He dropped her clothes on the bed, then went back to the table and sat down heavily in the chair.

  After a moment’s hesitation, she slid out of the bed, grabbed her clothes and headed for the bathroom. Her panties were almost dry except for the waistband, but her bra was still damp. Hanging next to them was a pair of dark blue briefs. Apparently Nat wasn’t wearing underwear either.

  Damn that sizzle down her spine.

  She dropped the towel and pulled on her chinos and shirt. She’d never gone without a bra before. It was an odd sensation. Actually, she rather liked it. Gave her a sense of freedom. Though what her mother would say, she shuddered to think. Thinking about her mother made her want to cross her arms over her chest. She opened the door and did her best to stroll nonchalantly over to the table.

  Nat had already started on his hamburger. Out of the corner of her eye she saw him staring at her. She was unnerved when he took a bite of his hamburger, choked on it and had to reach for his beer to take a long gulp.

  She sat down hurriedly in the chair and grabbed one of the hamburgers. Sinking her teeth into the bun, she forgot her embarrassment. It tasted absolutely wonderful. She hadn’t realized just how hungry she was until the first bite hit her stomach. She didn’t speak, or even think about anything else, until every bite was gone.

  “You enjoy that?” Nat asked dryly.

  She nodded, grabbing a napkin to wipe her mouth. The fries tasted just as delicious, and she ate a pile of them before sitting back with a sigh. “That was the best meal I ever tasted.”

  “It’s amazing what hunger can do for the taste buds.” Nat picked up a beer and snapped open the lid. He handed it to her, and she took it, deciding she needed a little help if she were going to go through with her plan.

  Now that the moment had arrived, she didn’t know quite where to start. “Where did you meet Sabhad?” she asked, trying to sound as careless as if she were asking him the time.

  He pushed the end of a fry in his mouth and bit off the end. “How did you meet him?”

  “I don’t remember ever having met him.”

  Nat pursed his lips and slowly nodded his head. “Back to square one.”

  “I might be able to remember if you told me more about him.”

  “I don’t know any more about him than I’ve already told you. You know him a hell of a lot better than I do.”

  “But I don’t remember.”

  “So you keep telling me.”

  “You work for him. You must know more than you’re telling me.”

  He narrowed his eyes to slits. “Maybe I do, maybe I don’t.”

  Valeri looked down at her napkin, which she was slowly tearing to shreds. This wasn’t working. She wasn’t being nice enough.

  She made herself relax, pasted a smile on her face and said pleasantly, “You must have a very interesting job.”
<
br />   He deliberately ignored that, and shifted his chair around so that he could watch the TV.

  She had to be doing something wrong. She had to think of a way to get his attention.

  Leaning forward on her elbows, she looked up into his face. “How long have you worked for him?”

  His gaze flicked down to the open neck of her shirt, then away. “I don’t work for him. I work for myself.”

  “Then why are you helping him abduct me?”

  Nat shoved his chair back. “Quit with the questions, all right? I don’t have all the answers, and even if I did, it’s very doubtful I’d tell you. So you’re wasting your time.”

  She noticed beads of sweat forming on his brow. Either she was getting to him, or the thermostat was turned up too high. “Okay,” she said, getting up from her chair. “Then let’s talk about something else. Are you married?”

  The second the words were out of her mouth, she wished them back again. She hadn’t meant to ask him that. She didn’t know what on earth made her ask him that. She didn’t care if he was married or not. He could have three wives for all she cared.

  He was studying her now, his eyes hooded and glinting with suspicion. “What difference does that make?

  “It doesn’t. Er...I mean, it was just a casual question. I was just trying to make conversation, that’s all.” Feeling as if she needed support, she reached behind her for the table.

  Nat’s gaze dropped to her breasts. “I’m not in the mood for conversation.”

  His voice sounded strained. Remembering she wasn’t wearing a bra, she straightened up at once. This wasn’t what she was aiming for. She might have known he’d misunderstand. Of course he wouldn’t know when a woman was just being nice to him. More than likely the women he associated with couldn’t wait to drag him into bed.

  “You’d better get to bed. You’ve had a busy day.”

  Startled at the similarity to her thoughts, she stumbled over her answer. “I’m not tired. You go ahead.”

  “And let you creep out of here the minute I close my eyes? I don’t think so.”

  “I’m not going to run.” Suddenly she was tired after all. Tired and beaten. She couldn’t remember something as vitally important as where her father was hiding, injured and helpless. She was with a man who could possibly give her the answers, and she couldn’t get him to utter a word.

  She had no money, no ID, no driver’s license and no car. She was at least two hundred miles from her home and had no idea why. Alex was depending on her, and she couldn’t even get this big ox to help her. To her annoyance, a tear slipped out of her eye and down her cheek.

  “You’re not going to cry, are you?” Nat asked in a gruff voice.

  “No,” she said stiffly while tears spilled down her cheeks, “I’m not going to cry.”

  “Then what the hell are you doing?” He strode to the bathroom, coming back a minute later with a handful of tissue. “Here, use these.”

  “Thank you.” She sniffed, took the tissue from him and loudly blew her nose.

  Nat sat on the edge of the bed and patted the space next to him. “Come and sit down. You look as if you’re about to fall down.”

  She did as she was told, taking care not to sit close enough to touch him.

  “Look, I’ll make a deal with you.” He paused, tapping his thighs with his fingers. “I’ll tell you what I know, if you’ll tell me what you know.”

  “I don’t rem—”

  “Just tell me what you do remember, all right?”

  Maybe it was the way he’d brought the tissue to her. Maybe it was his softer tone of voice. Maybe it was her worry over Alex. Or maybe it was just everything she’d been through that day, and the effects of the bump on her head.

  Whatever it was, she suddenly felt a craving to be held, to be comforted by someone stronger than she was. She turned her head into his shoulder and began to cry softly.

  Nat uttered a quiet oath. “God, I hate it when women cry.”

  He shifted his arm and wrapped it around her. “Go ahead, if you must. It will probably make you feel better.”

  His arm felt heavy on her shoulders...heavy and comforting. She could actually hear his heart beating beneath her ear. He smelled of soap and the same shampoo she’d used for her hair. She felt guilty, remembering how little of it she’d left for him.

  She made an effort to pull herself together. She couldn’t afford to let her guard down like this. She couldn’t allow herself to trust him. Alex’s safety could depend on it.

  She sat up and blew her nose again. “I’m okay,” she said, her voice muffled.

  “Let me see.” He put his fingers under her chin and tilted her face up to him. “You’ve got a stray eyelash. Hold on.”

  He took the tissue from her hand and gently wiped the corner of her eye. “There.”

  “Thank you,” she whispered.

  His eyes darkened immediately. She froze as his gaze dropped to her mouth. He brushed the corner of her lips with his thumb—a soft, tantalizing gesture made all the more erotic by his roughened skin.

  She couldn’t have moved now if her life depended on it. She watched his face as he let his gaze wander down to the gap in her shirt. She couldn’t breathe. Her lungs ached with the effort. A thousand thoughts sang through her mind.

  She wanted him to touch her. She wanted to know what it was like to be kissed by him. She would die inside if he didn’t kiss her now.

  As if reading her thoughts Nat leaned in, opened his mouth and gently covered hers.

  She was drowning in pleasure. His lips tasted salty, warm and sweet. She returned the pressure eagerly. A second later shock rippled through her as his tongue touched hers. Now she felt confused, excited and afraid at the same time.

  His hands were on her arms, drawing her closer. His mouth grew more intense, more urgent. Alarms started going off all over her body as she felt herself responding.

  She couldn’t do this. She mustn’t do this. She tried to draw back, but he held her closer, one hand reaching for the back of her head. For a second or two she let herself enjoy the heady delight of knowing she’d aroused him. Then she felt his hand move toward her breast.

  Her body reacted instantly, jerking away from him. She raised both hands and pushed against his chest, struggling to draw back.

  To her relief he let her go at once. He didn’t say a word, just got to his feet, moved over to the table and picked up his beer. He drained the can and flipped open another.

  She didn’t know whether she was angry at him or at herself. He didn’t seem to be at all affected by the kiss. She felt a surge of irritation when he sat down again in front of the TV. He was deliberately ignoring her.

  After a while she couldn’t stand his silence any longer. Throwing caution to the wind, she asked loudly, “Where is Sylvan Springs?”

  If she’d expected some reaction from him, she was disappointed. He simply shrugged, his gaze glued firmly on the baseball game playing on the TV. “Down the road a ways. That little town. we came through on our way out here. If you blinked you probably missed it.”

  She stared at him, trying to figure out whether he really didn’t attach any significance to the name, or whether he was just very good at hiding his reactions.

  “You were going to tell me why you’re working for Sabhad,” she reminded him.

  He sighed, leaning forward to put his head in his hands. After a moment or two he switched off the TV. “All right,” he said, getting to his feet. “If you want to talk, then we’ll talk. But I’ve got a few questions of my own. I don’t buy this story of you not remembering anything. I think you’ve been remembering plenty these last few hours.”

  She started to deny it, but he held up his hand. “Lady, sooner or later I’m going to get to the bottom of all this. If you’re not married to Ahmed Sabhad, as you claim, I want to know why he lied to me, and why he’s willing to pay a great deal of money to get his hands on you.”

  “I don’t know—”<
br />
  “I also want to know what it is you’re hiding from me.”

  Caught off guard, she stammered, “I...I don’t know what you mean.”

  “Oh, I think you do.” He walked toward her, his eyes narrowed, his expression hard and dangerous. “I’ve had the feeling you’ve been hiding something ever since we left the hospital, and if you want to get out of this mess with that cute little butt of yours intact, then now would be a real good time to tell me about it.”

  Chapter 5

  If Nat had meant to frighten Valeri, he’d certainly succeeded. He almost felt sorry for her when she shot off the bed with a kind of wild, desperate look in her eyes.

  “I keep telling you,” she said, her voice low and tense, “I don’t remember. I’ve never met Sabhad, I’m not married to him and I’m not the mother of his children.”

  Somehow he believed that now. Out of all the things she didn’t remember, it seemed that this was the one thing she was certain about. He wasn’t going to get anywhere, however, unless she told him what she was hiding.

  He was pretty sure now that she’d remembered something important, and was intent on keeping it to herself. Maybe it was time he told her his side of the story. If nothing else, it could jog her memory enough that she’d give something away.

  Deciding that it was in both their best interests if he stayed on the opposite side of the room from her, he backed off and sat down.

  “All right. Let’s get back to our deal. If you like, I’ll go first. I’ll tell you what I know, then you can do the same. Maybe then we can both figure out what’s going on.”

  She sank on the side of the bed, watching him warily. “I don’t know if I can tell you anything else.”

  “We’ll take it one step at a time. I got the call real early yesterday morning. The message said only that I was needed at Windridge for an interview with Ahmed Sabhad. I was to be there before noon.”

  He saw her expression change, and wondered what had triggered that look of apprehension. He was surprised when she asked in a low voice, “Are you some kind of cop?”