Deception Island Read Free Page A

fist and slammed it into his stomach. Her arm bounced off, pain ripping up to her shoulder. He barely flinched. His arms tightened around her, jamming her nose into his chest. He hooked his legs around hers, pinning her with solid weight. She couldn’t even wriggle.
    â€œI’ll take that as a no,” he said, huskily.
    â€œLet me go.”
    â€œSure. We can’t lie here all night. But know that you can’t overpower me. Run and I’ll catch you, fight and I’ll win. You are coming with me tonight.”
    â€œWhy are you doing this?”
    He paused. “Money. What else?” His tone was flat with bitterness. “Cooperate, and no harm will come to you. You have no choice but to trust me.”
    Trust him? She’d never met a man she could trust and wasn’t about to start with a pirate. He released his grip, though his muscles remained tense. She coasted down his body and sat up. He sprang to his feet, towering over her. Just what was she up against? The balaclava shaded dark eyes. A tight black T-shirt outlined the taut chest she’d landed on. No wonder his stomach was impenetrable—even in the moonlight she could count the ridges of his six-pack. His sleeves cut across biceps that looked sculpted from granite. How the hell would she escape that?
    â€œWhat happened to your friends?” she said.
    â€œGone to a better place than the shit hole they came from.”
    â€œI’m sorry.” What a way to die.
    â€œI doubt that.” He grabbed her wrists and yanked them behind her.
    â€œOw!”
    â€œI do not trust you to cooperate.” He deftly tied a rope around her wrists, tighter than handcuffs and just as unyielding.
    â€œI can see trust is going to be an issue between us.”
    The odds were better now, one-on-one, but he was right—if it came down to a battle of force, he’d steamroller her. He was iron strong, icy calm. Military, probably—and proper military, not some amateur militia. Wasn’t capitaine French for captain? A battle of wits might be a more even fight.
    He moved swiftly to her feet and bound them, then secured her to a railing, disturbingly practiced at restraining a human being. Could some foreign military be behind this? Was it a declaration of war, a political statement? Instinct told her he was lying about doing it for the money. He moved to the bow, surprisingly catlike for a man of his build. Definitely military.
    â€œYou have a satellite phone on the yacht? A laptop? GPS? Weapons?”
    â€œIf I had weapons would I be sitting here like this? But, yeah, sat phone, laptop, GPS. Knock yourself out.”
    â€œWhere are they? Tell me everything I need to grab so we can take them.”
    We? A tense edge had crept into his voice. Should she answer? Her options numbered roughly zero. Besides, when she escaped she’d need the sat phone to make a rescue call. She gave him a rundown.
    â€œWhat else should I pack for you?”
    â€œSorry?”
    â€œWhat else do you want to take? You know I’m kidnapping you, yes?”
    â€œI’d figured.”
    â€œYou’ll need some dry clothes. Ah, I’ll grab everything.”
    â€œChapStick,” she said, automatically. Two men just got eaten by sharks and you’re asking for ChapStick?
    He paused. “This is some kind of lipstick?”
    â€œYeah, because that’s the first thing I’d think about when I’m getting kidnapped.” She jammed her salt-scoured lips together. Shut up . He’d expect her to be hysterical, not snarky. “Forget it. Get clothes, whatever. Why am I giving packing orders to a pirate? Or are you technically a terrorist?”
    The inch of brown skin visible beside his eyes crinkled. Was he smiling? This had to be the most surreal night of her life. “Go with pirate.”
    â€œWhere are you taking me?”
    â€œYou’ll see. There’ll be no escape for either of us until your