Revenger by Tom Cain Read Free Book Online

stormy, sometimes as cold as Arctic ice.
    She was almost certain Carver had no idea of the effect that his face and body had upon her. It was simply not an issue he even considered; he never for a moment thought of himself as something to be looked at or judged in the way that every woman in the world was constantly obliged to do.
    They’d met more years ago that she really cared to remember, one summer’s night in Paris on the Left Bank of the Seine. It was a perfect setting for romance, but far from a conventionally perfect introduction . She’d pointed a loaded Uzi in Carver’s direction. He’d replied by smashing her face-first against a bus-shelter before she could open fire, knocking her to the ground, rolling her over and cuffing her hands behind her back. Then he’d sat her up against the side of the shelter and interrogated her; someone wanted him dead and he needed to know why. She’d been furious with Carver for the brutal, impersonal efficiency with which he’d rendered her helpless, furious with herself for letting it happen, furious with the whole damn world for the way it treated young women like her. But there’d been an immediate, overwhelming connection between them. No matter how hard she’d tried to deny it, she hadn’t been able to. It’d been obvious he’d felt it, too. And all these years later nothing had changed.
    He had reached her now and circled her waist with his arms. ‘Are you sure you want to do this?’ he asked, pulling her close to him.
    ‘Not you as well as Grantham?’ she protested.
    ‘We don’t need the money.’
    ‘Yes, but the people who work for me need their pay cheques. And that means I have to get new business. Anyway, I promised the President.’ She ran her fingers down Carver’s face. ‘Don’t worry. I’m not going to rush into anything. And I’ll know if Adams is telling the truth or bullshitting me. I’m not some innocent, naïve little schoolgirl.’
    ‘No, you certainly are not,’ Carver said, with a wicked grin, holding her even tighter, letting her feel his hardness. ‘So why don’t you show me just what a grown-up, experienced woman you are?’
    Alix felt herself starting to melt. She had about five more seconds before he kissed her, and then any feeble attempts at resistance would crumble. It took every ounce of will she possessed to deny herself what she very badly wanted and pull herself out of his grasp.
    ‘No,’ she said with a certainty she did not feel. ‘I’ve got a car coming to pick me up in twenty minutes, and I’ve got to shower, change and get myself ready by then. You’re just going to have to wait.’
    ‘I don’t think I can,’ he said, taking a step towards her.
    ‘Well, you’ll just have to.’
    Alix dashed to the bathroom, slammed the door behind her and locked it before he could charm his way in. At that moment she would happily have cancelled the meeting, let her business go to hell and spent the rest of the night with Carver. But there were people who depended on her, people with mortgages to pay and families to feed. And as much as she might have been tempted, she wasn’t going to let them down.
    Carver stared at the bathroom door, feeling the throb of his frustrated desire. He wanted to take her so badly: on a bed, on the floor, up against the nearest available wall, he wasn’t choosy. It didn’t help knowing that she’d felt it too. In fact, it made it worse. How did women do that – say no to sex they obviously wanted? Let the driver wait outside for a few extra minutes, for Christ’s sake. It was only just past six o’clock now, and the main event wasn’t due to start till eight. There was plenty of time to make everybody happy.
    Alix wasn’t going to change her mind now, though. He knew her well enough to be sure of that. He wandered off back to the suite’s living room and picked up his mobile phone from a side table. He pressed speed-dial and waited for the call to be answered.
    ‘Evening,