Daring Time

"Stay still, Hope. Trust me," he murmured. She felt his hand moving ever so gently along the back of her neck. She winced when his fingertips r

an over the back of her skull.

"You've got a nice goose egg back here. Are you dizzy?"

"No, I—" She gasped as memory came crashing back. Panic rose in her gut like a swelling wave and stifled her lungs. "Oh God. Diamond Jack Fletcher murdered that poor woman!"

"Quietly," Ryan murmured. She saw a muscle leap with tension in his lean cheek. His nostrils flared slightly as he stared down at her. "The walls and doors in the Sweet Lash are thin. You saw Jack murder someone?"

"Sadie Holcrum. She worked for him here in the Sweet Lash. I think this is her room.

Diamond Jack sent her to Central Station to lure me. Marvin Evercrumb, one of the men Jack employs for his white slavery operation, hit me over the head once Sadie got me to the ladies' lounge and they brought me here. Did you come through the mirror?" she whispered, abruptly changing the topic. She couldn't get over the fact that Ryan was here, lying next to her, incredibly real and solid. She was wild with curiosity and excitement over his presence, no matter how bizarre and dangerous the circumstances.

He nodded.

"Did you come to save me?"

His small, wry smile caused a delicious heat to spread in her lower belly.

"And doing a hell of a job of it, it would seem. I ended up at the Sweet Lash unexpectedly, but I suppose it makes sense considering you're here. I won't bore you with all the details at present; I'll just say Jack figured I was up to something. We're being held prisoner in this room for the night."

Her eyes sprang wide.

"Don't worry. I'll get us out."

"You know ... I believe you will," she replied softly.

The heat spread to become an ache between her thighs when Ryan's singular greenish-blue gaze sunk to her mouth.

"Hope .. ."

His dark head dipped and she was inundated with the pleasure of his firm mouth moving over her own, shaping her flesh to his, nibbling and plucking at her lips as though he considered them to be the most succulent of sensual delicacies. He lightly caressed his tongue along the seam of her lips. A shiver rippled down her spine and her womb tightened in a spasm of desire. He continued to mold her flesh to his, sandwiching first her lower lip between his own, and then the upper until she reciprocated the caress hungrily.

"Open," he whispered, his breath creating a warm mist on her seeking lips. She parted her mouth although she was confused by his request. His sleek tongue penetrated, just the tip moving inside her mouth and making a gentle sweep to capture her taste. When Hope touched her tongue to his, however, he groaned and leaned down over her.

Her eyes sprang wide at first when his tongue demanded full entrance, probing her depths possessively. He continued to seal his lips to hers, creating a slight suction that created a simultaneous tug at her sex. She gasped at the sensation. For some reason Ryan's penetration of her mouth called to mind how his penis had pushed into her body, how his flesh had rubbed and probed and agitated her own until she'd wanted to scream in mindless need and pleasure.

He came down over her further, his kiss becoming more demanding. He lightly pressed his chest to the tips of her breasts. Her back arched up into him, craving the sensation of his hard planes against her soft curves.

Ryan growled deep in his throat, the sound thrilling her.

When he gently sealed their kiss and lifted his head, Hope pulled against her restraints, her lips instinctively seeking out more of his taste and the intoxicating pressure of his molding mouth. He raised his hand, looking as though he was preparing to touch her face

... her lips. He grimaced suddenly and lowered it.

"What?" she whispered.

"There's a bowl and pitcher of water over there. I need to wash. My hands are bloody."

Hope stared at his knuckles, seeing how they were bruised and cut for the first time. "Oh no, you're hurt. Did you fight someone?" she asked quietly as he moved off the bed and stood.

He nodded. She watched him as he went over to the bureau where Sadie had collected the water she'd requested earlier. Fear rose up in her stomach and tightened her throat in a powerful wave at the horrible memory of seeing Diamond Jack Fletcher murder Sadie in such a callous, cold-blooded manner.

"Ryan, how are we going to get out of here?"

He turned abruptly from his actions of pouring water into a bowl at her question.

"We're going to be safe. I'm not going to let anything happen to you. We're going to walk out of this hellhole by morning. I have a plan. The only thing is ..."