Bound by Elisabeth Naughton Read Free Book Online

ground, pinning her hands above her head so she couldn’t move. “Stop!”
    “Let me go!”
    “Not on your life.”
    She wriggled beneath him, but he held her tighter with his gloved hands. She stared hard into his eyes. Several second passed where the only sound was her labored breath, the only movement the rise and fall of her chest. And though her muscles remained tensed beneath him, and he didn’t doubt for a minute she wasn’t plotting a way to escape—or a way to crack his head open with a rock—relief spiraled through him. “That’s better.”
    “Get,” she said through gritted teeth. “Off. Me.”
    Not exactly calm. But better than before. If only slightly.
    “When you tell me what you were doing in Argolea, I’ll be happy to. Until then, I think we’ll stay right where we are.”
    Her eyes flashed. “You saw what I did to that guard. If you want to live, I suggest you let go. Now.”
    Yeah, he’d seen the guard’s burns, but he had a hard time believing she’d done that to the ándras on purpose. Granted, her skin was warm—warmer than he was used to—but it wasn’t burning. And it definitely wasn’t smoking, by any means. There had to be a logical explanation for what he’d witnessed back at the Gatehouse.
    His bet was magic. She could be a witch, a sorceress, even someone just dabbling in spells. Gods knew he’d seen enough magical shit to know anything was possible. And she’d definitely looked as shocked as that guard, so he was pretty sure singeing someone wasn’t a power she could just conjure at will.
    “I told you back at the half-breed colony that our conversation wasn’t over.” He gripped her hands tighter and leaned down so their faces were only inches apart. “I suggest you start talking , ligos Vesuvius .”
    Her eyes sparked at the nickname—little volcano—and he smiled at her reaction. Oh yeah, it definitely fit. He tried to read her mind. Couldn’t. A fact that only intrigued him more.
    “You want me to talk?”
    “Start with what you were doing in Argolea. And why you’ve been hunting Maelea.”
    “How about I start with this?” She cracked her forehead against his. Pain spiraled across his scalp, throwing him off center. In a flash, she flipped him to his back, freed her hands and pulled a dagger he hadn’t bothered to check her for from the small of her back. The blade pressed against his throat with deadly precision. “And this.”
    He froze beneath her. Shocked, awed and vibrating with excitement because when she’d slammed her forehead against his the only thing he’d felt was his own pain at the impact, not a single emotion seeping from her.
    And, fuck , that was so freakin’ hot. Not just the fact she could still touch him, but that she could kick his ass doing it.
    “Not exactly what I had in mind,” he managed. “Especially after I rescued you back at the half-breed colony.”
    “You—” Her eyes widened then narrowed to thin slits. “You didn’t rescue me.”
    He fought back the amusement. And the desire roaring through his veins with the force of a freight train. She weighed less than half what he did, and even with the blade against his throat and not totally healed from his injuries, he could easily take her. But he didn’t want to. He was enjoying her weight pressing down on his stomach and chest. Enjoying her bare hand pushing against his shoulder, her fingertips just barely brushing his collarbone at the edge of his shirt. Loving the absolute absence of any emotion transfer.
    He worked to stay focused and not get lost in her. Worked to keep his brain online. “I all but carried you down to the infirmary after that panic attack.”
    Her eyes flashed again. She leaned closer but didn’t move the blade. And holy Hera, this close he could smell her. Roses and…lemons. Underneath the floral scent he remembered from the colony, she smelled citrusy. And her eyes weren’t just green. There were flecks of aqua floating in those