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“I’m a mercenary that specializes in high-risk situations. People contract me for jobs after other mercenaries have turned them down.”
There was a certain pride in his voice that bothered her, made her defiant. “How many females have you kidnapped? How many have youtrained? You told me that Jevara had ordered you to begin my training. Why did he think you capable of such a thing?” She needed to hear him take responsibility for his actions. There was no way this could move forward until he did.
Kern took a deep breath and met her gaze. “I have done many things in my past that I am not proud of. Training pleasure givers is the one I regret the most.”
“How long did you do it?”
“Twenty-two months.”
Her jaw dropped. “You couldn’t have regretted it too badly if you kept doing it for almost two years.”
“I was in a very dark place at the time and…” He stopped speaking and stared off into space, his jaw tightly clenched. “I was blinded by pain so it took me longer than it should have to walk away.”
The fact that he was damn good at it likely had something to do with his reluctance to leave also, but nothing was gained by pointing that out. He had effortlessly bent her to his will, making her crave—that wasn’t fair. He hadn’t created the longings that had been smoldering inside her. He had simply released them.
What she really wanted to know was what had caused him so much pain. There was no way in hell he would make himself that vulnerable, so she moved on, “Where did you go when you walked away?”
“I realized that being self-employed would allow me to control my missions,” he went on. “The only reason I agreed to kidnap you was to keep Jevara from getting his hands on you. That is the truth.”
Again, she found his justification irritating. “You rescued me from Jevara, but planned to give me to Laidon. That’s almost as bad.”
Kern’s chin came up and warning flashed in his eyes. If she continued to push, she would likely find herself bent over his lap again. “You must form a triad. It’s a biological imperative, and your time is nearly up. I am sorry that you were frightened by what took place last night.”
“You didn’t just frighten me, Kern. You caused me physical pain.” That was true, but it wasn’t what bothered her. She’d lost control, surrendered her will to his. And she was afraid that with little effort he would make her do so again. “Am I supposed to forget your abuse simply because you insist that you saved me from a greater evil?”
“I never abused you.” His hands clenched on the tabletop and his brows drew together. His dominant nature was stirring, urging him to take control. “I explained why I took you and demonstrated what would have happened if I had not. Do we really need to go over it all again?”
“How did you cause her pain?” Cylex wanted to know. His eyes narrowed dangerously and he reached over and placed his hand on Raina’s forearm. He had relaxed his mental shields now that the danger was passed and the physical contact amplified his emotions. Protectiveness and annoyance combined with a possessive sort of hunger that made her ache. “She better be talking about discipline or you and I have a problem.”
Rather than respond to Cylex, Kern kept his focus on Raina. “You brought this up, pet. Tell Cylex exactly what I did. In fact, tell him all the things we did last night.”
She just glared at Kern. She had stepped into her own trap and couldn’t see a way to escape it.
A wry smile twisted one corner of Kern’s mouth. “What were you doing when I Flowed into your bedroom? Let’s start there.”
“Stop it,” she sneered. “I’m not going to relive that horrible night.”
“Then why did you bring it up?”
Her nipples tightened and her core clenched. Goddamn it. Why did this keep happening? Every time Kern started acting like a macho alpha-hole, her pussy slickened and her breasts began to ache. “I was hoping for a sincere apology. Obviously, I’ll never get one out of you.”
“I apologized already,” he reminded.
“I said sincere apology.”
Kern continued as if she hadn’t spoken. “She was fantasizing about you, Cylex. She was rocking her hips and had her hand inside her panties.”
“How do you know she was fantasizing about me?” Cylex asked, but his eyes began to smolder. “Did you scan her mind?”
“I didn’t need to,” Kern insisted. “She admitted it. Told me I didn’t have a chance with her because she had a crush on her bodyguard.”
Cylex fought back a smug smile, but his mind revealed the pleasure he found in the idea. “Really?”
She gasped and glared at Cylex. She’d expected him to defend her, not join in. “I won’t bond with either one of you!” She stood up abruptly, toppling her chair as she headed for the bedrooms.
Kern moved so fast his body blurred and effortlessly caught her arm. “If you are ready to go to bed, we are coming with you. Do you need me to take control and feed you energy or would you rather talk? I will oblige you either way.”
Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and let her defiance melt away. She had started the power struggle. All she had to do was return to the table and the tug-of-war would end. “I would like to talk,” she said as she opened her eyes.
