One thing was for sure. She and Sawyer needed to talk. It was necessary that he knew what had happened. He’d been sleeping for twenty-four hours now. He could get up whether he wanted to or not.
She supposed, in exchange, she could make him dinner. That way, they could talk while they ate.
She found beef in the freezer and spaghetti sauce and noodles in the cupboard. She even found an onion in the crisper. Spaghetti was something easy to make, and it would fill them up. Well, it would fill her up. Sawyer ate a lot, going by the amount of frozen meals he’d eaten the night before. They would just have to find something else if Sawyer was still hungry after all the food was gone.
She fried the beef, added the spaghetti sauce, put the noodles on the stove, and decided it was time to wake up Sawyer. First, she grabbed his clean clothes out of the dryer. Then, she went up to the second floor and turned the light on in the hall to help her see. She entered the guest bedroom and saw Sawyer was once again sleeping on his stomach.
She threw his clothes on the opposite side of the bed. Then, she sat on the edge of the bed and touched his shoulder. “Sawyer? It’s time to get up.”
Nothing.
She sighed. This again? She might as well smack his cheek and skip all the steps in between.
But before she did that, Kenzie hesitantly touched Sawyer’s shoulder again. When he didn’t stir, she moved her hand down and over his back. She only wanted to touch him for a second or two.
Sawyer had a little bit of a problem with control and giving it to others. The two of them had never had sex, but they’d had a couple of bouts of angry third base. Technically, Sawyer had gotten to third base. Kenzie had never even gotten to put her hands on him. The first time, she’d been so overwhelmed and caught off guard that she didn’t even try. She’d been too busy coming to even try to touch him. But going by the second time, when he’d held her hands away from him, he hadn’t permitted it anyway.
So, now, she was going to enjoy the fact that he was sleeping, and she could touch him. Just a little. She trailed her fingers down to where the blanket covered his butt and then started the trip back up to his shoulder. He was softer than she had thought he—
Kenzie yelped as Sawyer whipped an arm up and pulled her underneath him. He buried his nose in her neck and wrapped his arms around her, squeezing her tight. Then, he didn’t move.
He had fallen back asleep, if his deep breathing was any indication.
It took some maneuvering, but she freed her arms from Sawyer’s hold and pushed on his shoulders. “Sawyer, you need to wake up and get off me.” She pushed again, but it was like trying to move a rock. She tried to kick her feet out, which ended up being a bad idea because Sawyer landed right between her legs.
The man was hard and definitely not small.
Crap. What was she going to do now?
Drastic times called for drastic measures, so she reached up for a chunk of Sawyer’s hair and pulled his head up. “Sawyer, if you don’t get off me, I’m going to rip off little Sawyer and shove him in your ear.”
His eyes slowly blinked open. Threatening a man’s body parts worked every time.
Sawyer smiled. “Hi, mate.”
Mate? Oh God. Not only had he lost his memory, but he now also thought that he was Australian.
She sighed. “Sawyer, we’re not mates. Can you please get off me?”
He frowned. “Yes, we are. You can’t lie to me.”
She rolled her eyes. They were more like frenemies than friends, but it would just be easier to agree with him. “Fine, we’re mates.” She emphasized mates with an Australian accent, so he would realize how ridiculous he sounded. “Now, will you please get off me?”
“No.” He kissed her.
God, he tasted good, and even though she should stop, she kissed him back.
He grabbed her hair in much the same way that she had done to him, but instead of trying to wake her up, he used his grip to angle her head the way he wanted.
She loved a man who took charge in the bedroom, and she reached up to touch his back, his shoulders, and his chest. Apparently, Sawyer had forgotten his dislike of humans and his revulsion of her because he didn’t stop her.
She knew she shouldn’t keep going because, once Sawyer regained his memory, he’d be pissed, but she was greedy, and he’d started it by kissing her. She slowly moved her hand down his chest, then onto his side, and across his hip. As if he knew where she was headed, he rolled the tiniest bit to the side, and she took the opportunity to grab his cock.
He was even bigger than she had originally guessed. There was no doubt about it. The man was hung.
She touched him just like she’d always fantasized about, and he broke their kiss.
“Holy shit, that feels good,” he said.
Kenzie smiled with satisfaction. Unlike some women who only liked certain aspects of sex, Kenzie liked it all. All of it turned her on. She loved giving just as much as receiving. She liked touching a man, and she even liked giving head. But, right now, she loved the sounds that Sawyer was making. She loved that she was the one making him feel this way.
He put his mouth next to her ear. “Take off your clothes. I wanna fuck you.”
Her breathing sped up more than it already had. Now, he was talking dirty to her. She loved dirty talk, and the fact that it was coming from Sawyer made her hot as hell. She’d never thought that she would hear him say naughty things in the bedroom. Strong and silent was his normal MO.
She really wanted him to fuck her, too, but she was starting to feel like she was taking advantage of the situation.
It was one thing to touch a guy’s penis when he couldn’t give full consent, but it was another thing to have sex with him. With her luck, Sawyer would cry rape once his memory returned.
She let go of his dick and tried to push him away. “We can’t.”
He raised himself up to look at her. “Why not? I know you want me as much as I want you.” He dragged his hand down her body and cupped her between the legs. “I can smell you. I can smell how much you want me inside you.”
“Goddamn it, Sawyer.”
He was making it really hard to say no.
He smiled with satisfaction and used his thumb to press down on her clit.
She moaned when he started rubbing. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad if she let him touch her for just a minute.
Sawyer reached for the top of her pants and underwear, and despite her sexual haze, she was struck with the excuse used by women across the globe.
She put her hand on his, stopping him. “Wait. I have my period.”
She smiled apologetically at him, but inside, she was giving herself a mental high five. Her period was pretty much over now, but he didn’t need to know that.
“So?”
So? There wasn’t supposed to be a so.
While they had been in captivity, he’d seemed to be repulsed by her period, and now, he was saying, “So?”
What was she supposed to say now?
Suddenly, Sawyer arched up and sniffed the air. He looked down at her, brow furrowed. “Are you cooking?”
“Oh my God. I forgot about dinner.” She tried to shove him away. “I have to get the noodles off the stove.”
She pushed against him again, and this time, he rolled off of her. She jumped from the bed and ran for the door.
“Kenzie?”
She paused and looked back at him.
“You go ahead and get dinner, but this isn’t over. Once your period is done, you’d better be ready because I’m coming inside you.”
She felt her eyes go round, and she ran out the door.
He yelled after her, “I’m going to make sure you are good and—”
She didn’t hear the rest as she got too far away, which was a good thing. It was already taking everything in her not to turn around and let him have his way with her.
Chapter Four
SAWYER HAD LET Kenzie go. He’d figured that they didn’t need the hou
se burning down, and truth be told, he was starving. He slowly rose from the bed, testing out his equilibrium. His nap must have helped because his dizziness and headache were gone.
He looked around and saw his clothes neatly folded on the bed. He picked them up and sniffed them to be sure they were clean. Kenzie had washed them, and the thought made him smile. Cooking for him and washing his clothes—he took that as good signs.
As he pulled on his jeans and buttoned them, he saw the time on the clock. He didn’t know what time Kenzie had returned from dropping the car off somewhere, but he didn’t think she would have had enough time to wash and dry his clothes while he slept.
Shit. How long have I been out?
Without bothering to put on his shirt, he made his way to the kitchen.
When he reached the main floor, he paused when he saw Kenzie in the kitchen. She wasn’t classically beautiful. She was kind of plain, her lips were thin, she had barely any curves to speak of, and she had no boobs, but his dick wanted her anyway. His cat wanted her. His cat had chosen her. And who was he to argue with nature?
As he neared, he could see that her face was flushed, and while it could be the heat from cooking, he liked to think that he was the reason her cheeks were pink.
She looked up when he entered the room. “Go ahead, and sit down. I’ll bring your plate over.”
“Thanks. How long was I out?”
“A day.”
“No wonder I feel better.”
“Do you remember me trying to wake you?”
He frowned. “No.”
“You told me you were healing.”
“Yeah, sleep helps us heal faster. My headache and dizziness are gone.”
She looked at him with hope. “Did the sleep help your memory at all?”
He regrettably shook his head. “Sorry.”
She nodded as if she understood.
After they were both seated and their dinner was on the table, he spent the first few minutes shoving food down his throat. He couldn’t believe how hungry he was.
When he felt semi-full, he asked Kenzie, “Why don’t you tell me how we ended up here?”
She sat forward in her seat. “Where to start?” She twirled her food for a second. “Okay, you are part of the Minnesota Pride, and you’re a sentinel for your alpha, Vance Llewelyn.” She paused. “Does that ring any bells?”
He shook his head. “No.”
She looked disappointed but continued, “Vance’s son, Vaughn, is the next alpha. He’s one of your fellow sentinels and your friend. Vaughn is mated to my best friend, Naya. Naya is also the daughter of the king and queen of the vampires. Both Vaughn and Naya are kind of important to the nonhuman world.”
Sawyer held up his hand. “Hold on a minute. You’re saying a cat-shifter is mated to a vampire?”
“Yes.”
He was stunned. “How did that happen?”
Kenzie smiled. “Well...” she started but then stopped. She lost her smile and sat forward in her seat. “Are you telling me that you remember something? You remember that vampires and cat-shifters are enemies?”
She looked so hopeful that he hated to let her down.
“Yes, but that’s not uncommon with amnesia. The part of the memory that deals with facts and concepts about the outside world isn’t usually affected. So, yes, I know that vampires and shifters don’t get along. I also know that cat-shifters live in prides and in secret from humans, present company excluded, but I don’t remember my alpha or my role in my pride.”
She sat back in her seat. He’d disappointed her again.
“Sorry it’s not what you were hoping, but maybe the more you tell me, the more likely I will remember something.”
She picked at her food. “I suppose you’re right.”
He hoped that he was. “So, tell me how a vampire and shifter ended up mated to each other.”
She smiled again, which was good. “They met in a nightclub, and they started as a one-night stand. The night they met is the night that I met you actually.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
“So, were you and I a one-night stand also?”
She looked at him like he had sprouted horns. “Sawyer, you couldn’t get away from me fast enough.” She shook her head and laughed as if the whole situation was funny. “Now, I know for sure that you’ve lost your memory.”
Sawyer wasn’t laughing, and he didn’t think it was funny.
Seemingly unaware that he didn’t like this news, she continued, “Naya and Vaughn had a one-night stand, and then Naya got pregnant, found out that shifters existed, and gave up the throne to her cousin. Now, she and Vaughn are mated and just bought a house. You and I were at their new house, getting it ready for them to move in, while Naya and Vaughn were at an appointment for the babies...” She trailed off.
“What’s wrong?”
“I just realized Naya and Vaughn had found out if the babies were boys or girls the night we were kidnapped.” She set her fork down as a look of sadness crossed her face. “I don’t even know what she’s having.”
Sawyer reached over and squeezed her hand. “Kenzie, I’m going to make sure that you get home and find out about your friend’s babies.” He didn’t know how he would do that yet, but he was going to try his best.
She looked up at him and slipped her hand out from under his. “Thanks.”
She didn’t sound like she believed him, but he didn’t press the issue.
“Why don’t you continue with what happened that night?”
“Some men broke into the house and kidnapped you and me. They shot you with a tranquilizer, and they knocked me out, but before they did, one of them had called me princess, so I knew that they thought we were Vaughn and Naya. Because both of us were unconscious while they transported us, neither of us knew how long we had been in the back of the van. Of course, now, I know we’re in Wisconsin.” She looked at him. “We’re in Wisconsin, by the way. I just remembered that you were passed out when I saw the sign, and you had no idea where my brother lives.”
“Good to know.” Sawyer felt himself tensing up. The thought of these men putting their hands on Kenzie was starting to piss him off.
“They kept us locked in a room with a bathroom in the basement. They had video cameras, so they could watch us, but after some testing, you and I discovered that they couldn’t hear us. We pretended to be Vaughn and Naya, so they wouldn’t realize that they had grabbed the wrong people.
“We finally escaped when I got my period. We pretended that I was miscarrying and needed to go to the hospital. It worked, but in the process, they managed to drug you, and then you got cracked in the head. Thankfully, we were already in their car. They must have ditched the van that they’d kidnapped us in. I drove like a bat out of hell until I saw a sign for Hudson, Wisconsin, and I brought us here. When they’d kidnapped us, they had taken our phones along with your wallet and ID. My purse is probably still sitting on the counter at Naya and Vaughn’s house.
“We are very lucky that my brother lives here. I figured, once you woke up and my brother got home, we could call someone to come and get us. I hadn’t taken the time to learn anyone’s number in years, thanks to cell phones, but I had hoped that you would know someone we could call.”
“Did they—” Sawyer cleared his throat as he clenched and unclenched his hands under the table. “Did they touch you at all?”
“Did they touch me at all? You mean, did they try anything sexual with me? Oh, no. They stayed as far away from us as possible.”
Even though the situation was still upsetting, he was relieved to know that Kenzie had gone untouched.
“I don’t think they knew that you were a shifter, but they knew something was up with you. They were prepared for someone strong. The door to the room that we were in was made of steel. That was probably the reason that they drugged you. They didn’t even open the door to give us food. They shoved stupid granola bars through a hole in the door.�
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“That would explain my hunger.”
“Speaking of food, why don’t we finish up and then you can ask me anything else you can think of?”
The two of them finished their spaghetti and cleaned their dishes.
Sawyer looked at the clock, noting the time and the fact that he had slept a whole day, and thought he should bring up his earlier suspicions. “Kenzie, what time does your brother usually get home from work? I have to tell you, after you left to get rid of the car, I looked around the place, and it felt like no one had been here for a few days. He didn’t come home last night, did he?”
Kenzie leaned back against the counter. “No,” she said with a humorless laugh. “It would seem that my brother is out of town.” She rubbed her eyes. “You and me—we have all the luck.” She scoffed. “Every plan I’ve come up with to get us home has been a bust. I thought we could call for help.” She threw her arm out. “You don’t remember anything, but it’s not like we have a phone anyway. I thought maybe I could email Naya in hopes that she would check her email, but my brother always takes his computer with him on business trips.” She threw her other arm out. “Even though I’m worried our kidnappers are out there, watching for us, I thought my brother could drive us back to the Twin Cities while we hid in his backseat or something, but he’s not here, and neither is his car. We can’t even drive ourselves.” Now, both arms came out, flying wildly. “We are so fucking screwed.”
Sawyer stepped forward and engulfed her, pulling her arms around him.
She buried her face in his chest. “Why us?”
Sawyer ran his hand down her hair. “I don’t know, baby.” He pulled her back, so he could look her in the eyes. “But I’m going to do everything I can to make sure that we get home. Right now though, I need you to remember that we are safe. I’m not going to let anyone hurt you. Okay?”
“Okay.” She turned her head to the side. “Why are you being so nice to me?”
Forbidden Temptation Page 3