Heart of the Dragon (15 page)

“Sure! I’ll try anything that’s not embarrassing, illegal, or immoral.”

“That cancels most of my plans for the day. Oh, well.”

As he led her up the path at a brisk, enthusiastic pace, she stared at him in fascination. This was a side of him she’d never seen before, and she followed him more recklessly than ever.

She figured this was a small elephant, as elephants went. But from the rug-covered platform atop the animal’s
back, the ground seemed miles below. The owner, a young Thai man dressed in baggy cotton trousers and a brightly colored shirt, rode the elephant’s neck as easily as a cowboy rides a horse. He kicked his bare heels into its shoulders occasionally, to guide it up a terraced path sheltered by magnificent rain forest.

Kash lounged with disarming ease on his side of the platform’s wooden back, his long legs crossed in a lotus position, rocking comfortably with each of the animal’s swaying steps. Rebecca leaned back beside him, her knees drawn up, her shoulder pressed tightly against his, her hands gripping the edges of the seat.

“Where did you learn to ride elephants?” she asked wryly. “Are there classes for this in Asia? Like driver’s ed?”

“You have to believe that you won’t fall off. Then you can relax. Confidence is simply a matter of trusting your elephant.”

“There’s a moral in that, somewhere.”

“Relax, Becca. Enjoy the scenery.”

Becca
. He’d remembered the nickname he’d given her in bed the other night. Surprise and delight warmed her. Rebecca realized abruptly that she was grinning and he was watching her. “I’m glad I could cheer you up,” he said, but sounded puzzled.

“I trust my elephant,” she said, deadpan.

The land rose in a beautiful panorama of wide terraces dotted with rice paddies. The shimmering emerald ponds stair-stepped down the hillsides, while above them the shadowy forest beckoned with the crooked limbs of enormous, gnarled trees. The elephant nimbly followed an invisible path into the woodland, and eventually arrived at a glen overlooking the terraces.

At its trainer’s instructions the elephant knelt. Kash jumped off and held up his arms to Rebecca. She decided she could learn to love riding elephants, considering the fringe benefits. She put her hands on
Kash’s broad shoulders and inhaled softly as his hands settled on her waist.

The intensity in his eyes hypnotized her as he lifted her down. For one wonderful second she was against his torso as he set her on the ground, with her head tilted back and her gaze locked on his. Nothing else existed except him.

“I will set up lunch,” the owner said cheerfully, untying a bamboo hamper behind the platform’s seat.

Kash let her go, and she busied herself smoothing her lose green shorts and top. When the driver had placed a colorful blanket and the hamper’s contents on the soft forest floor, he made a
wai
and went to eat lunch with his elephant, tethered a dozen yards away.

She sat down beside Kash and looked hungrily at rice delicacies wrapped in banana leaves, bamboo tubes stuffed with baked seafood and vegetables, and cups of sliced fruit with coconut cream. “This is the most fantastic meal I’ve ever seen.”

He popped a piece of fresh pineapple into her mouth. His fingertips brushed her lips. She forgot about the pineapple dripping sweetly on her tongue and drew her lips together. Without planning it, she sucked his fingers lightly as he pulled them away.

His hand stopped in midair. He looked startled and hypnotized at the same time. Rebecca was captured by the spell between him and her. She stared back at him in wonder, while inside she dissolved into helpless desire.

Kash took a deep breath, then abruptly distracted himself by arranging food on thick linen napkins. “Did Leon ever tell you that you could set his plaid sports coat on fire with a technique like that one?”

She laughed shakily. “No, but one time he said I was a good, clean date with no bad habits.”

“That was the most romantic compliment he could think of?”

“Yes. It pretty much summed up our relationship.”

“You’ve developed some wonderful bad habits since you ditched Leon.”

“I had a great teacher, Mr. Santelli.”

“Me? I said I’d civilize you, not teach you to make naughty with my fingers.”

“And I said I’d turn you into a wholesome dragon. We’ve both failed so far. But there’s plenty of time. Lunch is just getting started.”

“I think I’ll move to the far side of the blanket.”

“Coward. I won’t bite.”

“Your lips are dangerous enough. Don’t bring your teeth into this argument too.”

She leaned toward him. “A brave man loves a challenge.”

He picked up another piece of pineapple and eyed her thoughtfully. The arousal darkening his eyes made her ache to touch him. Rebecca gave him a small, saucy wink. “You asked for trouble. Now what are you going to do about it?”

He exhaled slowly. A dam of restraint seemed about to break inside him. “Feed it some pineapple, and see what happens next.”

He lifted his hand to her mouth.

Trembling, she parted her lips.

And suddenly the day exploded with gunshots.

Rebecca screamed. Bullets zipped overhead, snapping leaves off the trees, tearing bark from the tree trunks. The elephant bolted back in the direction of home, with his lithe owner clambering aboard his neck and clinging desperately.

“Get down!” Kash shoved Rebecca to the blanket and flattened himself on top of her. They lay there, breathing heavily, and listening to the forest. There were no more shots, but birds screeched in alarm. Their transportation had disappeared. Kash cursed softly under his breath, feathering her ear with terse, raw words. “I should have brought a gun. Dammit, I was careless.”

“Shh. This is nuts. Who’d have thought anyone would bother us?”

“I’m supposed to be protecting you.
Dammit
” She’d never heard such fury and tension in his voice before. She thought she felt his heart beating powerfully against her back. Her own heart pounded a furious rhythm. “You
are
protecting me,” she joked weakly. “If the elephant comes back, he’ll step on you first.”

“We can’t stay here. We’ve got to find some cover. Follow me.”

He pulled her to her feet. Crouching, they ran down the hillside and leaped onto a terrace. She ran behind him along a narrow strip of land between two small rice paddies. They zigzagged down the hill, splashing through ponds, slipping on the soft, wet earth. Another shot zipped over their heads as they dived into the foliage at the base of the hill.

She fell into mud and slick, clinging plants. Kash immediately dropped beside her and slid an arm around her waist. “You okay, Corn Blossom?”

Rebecca wiped mud from her lips. “Never happier, Dragon.”

“Good. Let’s keep moving. We’ll take the long way back, and confuse them.

“Look out!”

She shot a hand forward and snatched an orange snake that was coiling near his free arm. Clutching it behind the head, she flung it in a long arch. It landed nearly a dozen feet away.

Kash exploded with anger. “Dammit, don’t grab everthing that moves around here! That snake might have been poisonous.” Then he cupped her head toward him and kissed her grimy mouth.

She gave him a shaky smile. “Grabbing snakes got me a kiss. Sucking your fingers didn’t. You’re a strange man.”

“A crazy man. And it’s your fault. Come on.”

On hands and knees they crawled deeper into the
forest, then got up and sprinted through the trees. He stopped her before her breath gave out completely, and pulled her to him. Rebecca leaned against him gratefully. Her face rested against the center of his heaving chest, where his shirt was open enough to allow his sweat and matted chest hair to tickle her cheek. She found the feel and scent of him comforting, and from the way he held her, she suspected he liked the reassurance too.

“Rest. We have a long way to go,” he said softly. “No more running.”

“No more running,” she agreed, tilting her head back and looking at him calmly.

“You aren’t afraid?”

“No. I trust my elephant.”

He began to laugh.

They arrived at the Vatan estate long after midnight. Bewildered servants stared at them as they trudged through the foyer, exhausted and dirty. Kash told someone to bring food to his suite. To Rebecca, he said, “Why don’t you take a bath, then come to my room? I’m going to make some phone calls.”

She nodded, too tired to speak.

In her room she dropped her damp, muddy clothes and ruined tennis shoes on the floor, then climbed into a hot bath filled with cinnamon crystals and thick white suds. After halfheartedly scrubbing herself, she put her head back on the tub’s wide marble rim and fell asleep.

She awoke quickly when a hand touched her head. Kash was sitting on the floor beside the tub. She could see a black silk robe over his bare chest. His black hair, still a little damp from his bath, glistened in the soft overhead lamps. A thin red scratch ran across the bridge of his nose, giving it a more brutal appeal. In contrast, his fingers were very gentle as he stroked a strand of her wet hair away from her forehead and studied her with concern. “When you didn’t come to my suite, I was worried.”

She glanced down at the suds that covered her like a
fluffy white blanket. They lapped at her breasts just above the nipples, a fact she was vividly aware of. “How are you?” she asked huskily. “You must be sleepy too.”

He nodded. “But I have too many questions to ask. I’ve already made some calls to my people. They’ll see what they can learn about what happened today.”

“Do you think the Nalinats are responsible?”

“Probably. They like scare tactics. They’re harmless, but effective.”

“Man, are they.”

“Ready to give up?”

“Nope. I’m scared, not chicken.”

He smiled. “The unsinkable Rebecca Brown.”

“I’m mad too. I want to meet these Nalinat creeps and ask some point-blank questions.”

He shook his head. “They’d only be insulted. Well have to make some decisions later. It may take time. Nothing happens fast in this part of the world. Try to relax.”

“I might as well. I’m so tired, I can barely think.”

“Me too. That’s dangerous.”

“Or tempting.”

“Both.”

In the silence that followed, she felt as if the water were growing hotter with each second. There was so much she wanted to say to him. Tenderness and gratitude mingled with desire. Her throat was too tight for speech. He remained kneeling beside the tub, his fingers caressing the side of her face. Restraint and bittersweet dilemma radiated from his troubled expression.

“We did well together,” he said in a voice so low she had to read his lips to understand the words. Her hearing aid lay somewhere in the forest near the rice paddies. “You made it feel natural to be a team.”

“Good for me,” she whispered. The breath had stalled in her chest. Every fiber in her body cried out for him.

His lips barely moved. “I should go.”

A broken sound burst from her throat. “
Don’t
. Please, don’t.”

“If I stay, I’ll—”

“You’ll make me happy. And I’ll try to make you happy.” She laid a hand along the side of his face. Emotion glistened in his eyes. “Give me a chance. Give yourself a chance.”

They moved together, she reaching up, he reaching down. She rose out of the water to put her arms around him as he lifted her over the tub’s pale gold rim. Suds slid down her naked body and were absorbed by his black robe. He was already kissing her by the time he laid down beside her on the richly carpeted floor. She opened his robe, then pressed herself to his bare chest.

His fingers drifted up and down her side, stroking her from shoulder to thigh, then flattening around the indention of her waist to pull her closer. She mewled into his hot, searching mouth, as sensations gathered inside her like a star about to burst. Exploring his chest with trembling hands, she stroked the hard points of his nipples, traced the corded muscles along his rib cage, then drew her hands upward and clasped them behind his neck.

His chest hair was as soft as lamb’s wool against her tender breasts, and his thighs, covered in the robe’s silk magic, tantalized hers with each small flexing of his body. When he smoothed his hand over her water-slick hips, she quivered wildly. He drew back and looked deeply into her eyes as his hand caressed her, moving under her, cupping her, touching her intimately with such perfect skill that each stroke of his fingers made sensations shoot through her womb.

“Becca,” he murmured roughly, his voice a compelling invitation. His face was flushed and savage with restraint, but his eyes glowed with infinite patience.

Her feminine instincts welcomed him, her sighs, her body’s smooth, sleek yearning under his hand, the frantic kisses she placed on his chest and neck. They
settled on their sides, facing each other. Untying his robe, she watched one side slip down. The other she pushed with tantalizing slowness up to his lean, angular hip. Then she smoothed her hand on the taut skin and let the silky material cascade down behind him.

Her first sight of his uncovered body brought a sense of wonder. His golden, masculine beauty combined with the primal thrust of his arousal to make her reach for him in awe, her hands feathering over his stomach and down his abdomen, while the rough cadence of his breath told her he was on fire.

She cuddled his hot satin hardness in her palm, marveling at the contrasts. Touching him made her light-headed with anticipation. He tilted her head back, then kissed her with erotic abandon, as if he wanted to taste all of her through her mouth. She cried out with delight.

Need and affection pulsed together in a slow, breathtaking rhythm between them. He got to his knees and bent over her, pulling her into an arch, with his hands under her back. His mouth descended on the taut skin of her stomach. She writhed happily and helplessly under the sweet sucking motion of his lips.

Rebecca thought she’d die with pleasure as he covered her body with those same sensual kisses, lavishing them on her breasts, tickling them across her thighs, then, finally, when she was already losing control in a storm of desire, parting her thighs and delving between them.