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“But I gave you ample warning, Zane,” she said quietly. “I told you over and over again that I wouldn’t be coerced, threatened, kidnapped or held hostage. But you didn’t believe me, did you? You know, maybe if you’d just have asked me—invited me to spend a few days with you—things would have been different.”
“You would have come with me?” he asked, one dark disbelieving brow arching skeptically. “Do you really expect me to believe that you’d give up your precious job, even for a week or two, to spend time with me?”
“Yes!” she cried. “If I would have thought there was any chance that we could have recaptured the good parts of our marriage. If I’d believed for an instant that we could create something wonderful again, I’d have come with you!”
“But you don’t believe we can recreate that happiness, do you?”
She shook her head, her heart twisting. “You showed your true colors by kidnapping me, Zane. You’ll never change. You’ll always smother and overprotect and try to force me into doing everything you want.”
“Like I forced you last night?” he whispered, and her gaze was drawn to his Adam’s apple as he swallowed.
Mesmerized, Kaylie was vaguely aware that he smelled of soap and a cologne that brought back far too many memories of lying naked with him. She noticed the rise and fall of his chest. Only a few hours ago, she’d touched that chest, a chest that had been bare and taut, with strong, strident muscles and covered by a mat of dark, swirling hair.
When she glanced up, his features had softened. “Oh, Kaylie…” He sighed. “What am I going to do with you?”
“Nothing, Zane. You can’t do anything with me. That’s the whole point. It’s not your choice. You don’t own me!”
“I’ve never wanted to own you.”
“That’s not the way I remember it,” she said, though she felt a flicker of doubt. For seven years she’d thought of her short marriage as a prison, but now she wondered if she had only been stronger during the time that she was Zane’s wife, if she had stood up for her rights, would those prison walls have crumbled?
“You didn’t stick around long enough to know, did you?” he flung back.
Stung, Kaylie said, “I think I’d better leave before we say things we’ll regret.”
“Leave. And what about Johnston?”
“I talked with Dr. Henshaw. Whoever this Ted character is, he’s all wet. Henshaw assured me that Lee Johnston will be locked up for a long, long time.”
“And you believe him?”
“The man has no reason to lie.”
Zane’s expression grew thoughtful. His fist clenched as he attempted to control himself. He didn’t trust Henshaw. No, he put more stock in crank phone calls than medical opinion. “I should never have let you escape.”
“Let me?” she mocked.
“I was crazy to trust you. To let down my guard.” A muscle worked in his jaw. “You know,” he said slowly, “I had the ridiculous idea that if you and I spent enough time alone together, we could work things out. No matter what it was, we could handle it.”
“We didn’t before,” she reminded him.
“I know. But we’re older—wiser, I’d hoped.”
“More mature?” she pointed out sardonically. “Think about the past few days! Nothing we’ve done can qualify under the ‘mature’ category.”
He shrugged. “I guess we haven’t acted much like adults, have we?” Shoving his hands into the back pockets of his jeans, he added, “Maybe I was wrong. I thought there might still be a chance that you could love me.”
Her throat closed. If only he knew. A tide of emotion swept over her, and she realized she had to get away from him and fast, while she still could. She picked up his keys from the carpet and dropped them onto the desk. “Goodbye, Zane,” she said, and the words, as if barbed, stuck in her throat.
“Why are you always running from me?” he asked suddenly. “Do I scare you so much?”
She couldn’t lie. “Yes,” she said, her voice raw.
He closed the distance between them, and his lips crashed down on hers so swiftly, she gasped. Her breath was trapped in her lungs, and immediate traitorous heat fired her blood. He pressed her back against the door, and his thighs fit familiarly over hers, his chest crushing her breasts. Memories of the night before enveloped her, and desire swept through her bloodstream in wicked, wanton fury.
Her heart pumped gloriously, her blood rushed through her ears. She pressed her palms against his chest, intending to shove him away, but all her strength fled, and she found herself clinging to him instead.
When at last he lifted his head, his face was flushed, his eyes shining with a passion that seared right to his soul. “Dear God, why can’t I get over you?” he rasped.
