"Laurentians. That's Canadian, isn't it?" She glared at him over her shoulder. "You mean I'm not even in the United States any longer?"
"You're only a few hours in flight time from New York," he said soothingly. "The senator decided the chateau's seclusion would be safer for Ryker. Not many people are even aware that he owns it. He inherited the property from his great-grandmother, who was French-Canadian, and he thinks it's more politically advantageous to stress his American antecedents."
"It may not be as safe as he thinks," she said grimly. "And you don't have to worry about my being cold, Mr. McCord. At the moment I'm generating enough heat to
melt the snow off those damned mountain peaks out there." This time the door's closing was definitely a slam.
By the time she'd crossed the courtyard and the extensive formal gardens, Tania was even more enraged. McCord should have furnished her with a road map. She'd lost her way twice in the chateau's winding corridors before she'd found her way down that sweeping staircase that would have done justice to a czarist palace. At least the paths in the garden had been laid in a more orderly pattern.
The birch trees were bare of foliage, their white branches lifting with stark asceticism against the azure of the sky. The little grove appeared to be on the very edge of the mountain itself, and offered a spectacular view of the valley below. There was a tranquil beauty here that would have been soothing under other circumstances. Now she scarcely noticed her surroundings, her attention focused on the slender, graceful figure of the man who was seated on the ground, leaning against the trunk of a birch tree.
He didn't see her, his head turned toward the valley below. The preoccupied expression on his brutally powerful face gave her a little jolt of shock. She hadn't allowed herself to think of Ryker's actual physical presence since the moment she'd regained consciousness. Now, like a double exposure, she had a brief searing memory of Ryker's expression as it had been only a short time ago, his eyes glazed and hot, his face heavy with sensuality, his naked muscular body hard with desire. Superimposed against that vision was the Jared Ryker before her now, his expression almost as coolly ascetic as his surroundings. Faded jeans molded the strong line of his thighs as he sat with his knees drawn up, his arms linked loosely around them. A dark blue flight jacket that was zipped halfway revealed the cream-colored sweatshirt beneath.
Warm color flooded her cheeks as she had a sudden memory of him pulling that sweatshirt over his head and throwing it carelessly aside. It was possible he felt the emotional turbulence that thought was generating, for suddenly stiffened as if she had spoken, his crystal-gray gaze flicking warily to where she was standing. "Hello," he murmured. There was no surprise in his face. "I thought you'd be here a long time ago. Kevin must have been more eloquent than I'd thought possible to keep you from venting your righteous rage on me before this. Come and sit down."
His manner was as calm as if he were inviting a chance acquaintance out for a sociable drink! The swift indignation that surged through her immediately dispersed the odd shakiness that had afflicted her at the sight of him. She strode swiftly to stand before him. "It would take more than McCords 'eloquence' to do that," she said, her voice trembling with anger. "How can you sit there so calmly after what you've done to me? Don't you have the least notion of right and wrong?"
His eyes were regarding her gravely. "I'm sure Kevin made it plain to you that I had no prior knowledge that you were being brought here. It was a complete surprise to me to find you in that bed this morning."
"But it didn't stop you from taking advantage of the situation," she said hotly. She bit her lip vexedly as she saw his mouth curve in an amused smile. She hadn't meant to mention those blindingly sensual hours she had spent in his arms. She'd wanted to confine their conversation to a straight demand for her immediate release. Yet she hadn't been in the man's presence for two minutes before her unruly tongue had placed them both on exactly the terms of intimacy she'd wished to avoid.
"I didn't take advantage of you, little Piper," he drawled. "As Betz would say, I did what was necessary.
And I hope to God I never have to do anything that painful again. I must have walked ten miles after I left you, just to forget the taste of your breasts and the way you felt cuddled against me."
"Necessary?" She felt her cheeks burn with shock at the casualness with which he referred to those intimacies. "I'm afraid I can't agree with you. I don't think many people would regard taking sexual license with an unwilling woman as necessary."
"Sit down." He reached up, grasped her hand, and pulled her to her knees beside him. "That's better. All I could see from that angle was the pert little thrust of your breasts beneath your oversized sweater. I assume the sweater was meant to discourage my lust? I'm still in no condition to withstand any provocation, intentional or otherwise." His glance lingered on her breasts before returning to her face. "The whole point is that you weren't unwilling, sweet. That was what made the whole episode so damnable." His expression became grim. "That idiot Betz had you injected with paradynoline."
"Paradynoline?"
"A drug whose side effects are like an aphrodisiac," he supplied tersely. "Betz wanted to make sure you kept me happy and eminently satisfied while he was away from the chateau."
To her amazement her first reaction to this disclosure wasn't anger, but relief. She hadn't wanted to admit even to herself that the needs of her body could turn her into the voluptuary whom she remembered with uncomfortable clarity. The knowledge of her physical dependence on Ryker during those hours chafed unbearably at her sense of independence. It was much easier to accept the fact it had been a chemical, rather than the man himself, that was responsible for that sensual enslavement. It even served to lessen her anger toward him.
"Charming," she said caustically. "Is that his usual method of assuring you of your mistresses' compliance?"
"No, he usually finds money to be the most potent aphrodisiac. I understand he tried that first with you." She nodded. "I thought you were some rich, perverted old recluse." She tossed her head. "Two out of four isn't bad."
"Actually, you did better than that," he drawled. "Though not in the same class as Corbett, I'm considered moderately wealthy." There was a glint in the icy gray of his eyes that might have been a twinkle. "As for be other designations, many scientists have a tendency to be recluses, and I certainly can't deny I've had any number of lewd thoughts since that night I saw you dance The Piper." "I've been told that my performance arouses a number of interesting reactions, but I never thought it would inspire a kidnapping," she said lightly. Suddenly she realized she was actually indulging in a form of playful verbal sparring with the man who had, if not actually kidnapped her, certainly been the catalyst! She belligerently squared her shoulders. "Since you claim that all of this was done against your wishes, perhaps you'll tell me how you're going to make amends. According to your 'eloquent' friend, McCord, you're the one who has everyone bowing and scraping at your every command. Why don't you just tell them to let me go back to New York?"
"I can't do that. Even if I succeeded in convincing Corbett that security could still be maintained if we let you go, it just might be more dangerous for you. At least I can keep an eye on you here." He shrugged. "No security system is fail-safe. If there were a leak, there are certain parties who might decide it would be very advantageous to have a lever in the form of a woman I'd displayed an interest in." His lips tightened grimly.
"There's no way I'm going to let that happen to you, Tania." For a moment there was a glint of ruthlessness so savage in his eyes that it caused a little shiver to run through her. The next moment it was gone, replaced by quick concern. He straightened, his hand going to the zipper of his jacket. "You're cold," he said, frowning. "Why the hell didn't McCord see that you were properly dressed before he let you go?" He was slipping out of the jacket. Ignoring her protests, he draped it over her shoulders and thrust her arms into the sleeves. There was a curious tenderness in the little smile
that touched his lips as he zipped it to her chin and carefully turned up the collar. "We wouldn't want you to risk getting sick, would we? Kidnapping is a serious enough crime. Causing you to come down with a cold in the head would be completely unforgivable."
"Completely," she agreed softly, her gaze fixed in compulsive fascination on Ryker's face. Why was that face so compelling? she wondered absently. It wasn't so much the bold prominence of the bone structure, but the vitality that pierced the guarded wariness of his expression. She shook her head to clear it and edged away from him. "You're absolutely refusing to release me, then?"
"I told you why I couldn't do that," he said. He paused. "But even if your safety weren't in question, I probably wouldn't let you go now."
"But you said—"
"I said a lot of things that were coolly logical," he interrupted, a trace of weary impatience shadowing his face. "What I didn't say was that, while Betz may have jumped the gun, it probably would have come down to this anyway. It was only a matter of time before I came for you." His gaze was steady on her bewildered face. "For once, Betz had the perception to read me correctly. I am obsessed by you."
Tania inhaled sharply. A wave of heat coupled with a liquid languor—that sensation she'd known only a few hours before—surged through her. No, it had been the drug, she thought frantically, it had been that para— something or other. She would not let herself be dominated sexually by Jared Ryker. "You want to go to bed with me?" she asked, keeping her voice steady.
Ryker's lips quirked with amusement. "Actually, that particular euphemism isn't quite explicit enough in this case. I've already been to bed with you." His voice became velvet-soft. "I want to be inside you. I want to hear you gasp with pleasure every time I thrust in and out. I want to feel you tighten around me and hold me as if you never want to let me go."
Tania could feel her nipples harden beneath the wool sweater as she listened. Her mouth was dry, and she moistened her lips nervously. "I think you're being more than explicit enough," she said, and to her annoyance there was a thread of shakiness in her voice. "I think I get the picture."
"No, I don't believe you do," he said. "That's only the physical aspect. If that was all there was, I might have given in to temptation this morning and taken everything I wanted from you." His slender finger reached out to touch one winged brow with great delicacy. "This isn't just a yen, little Piper. This is a full-fledged obsession."
She tried to laugh, but the sound came out as a rush of breathlessness. "Impossible. We only met the one time, even if you've seen me perform more than that. What you feel can't be more than a fleeting desire."
"I didn't think so either at first," he said quietly. "I thought it was because I was so damned bored that you had such an effect on me. I told myself that a few weeks in the sack with you was all I wanted." The tips of his fingers were now tracing the other brow with equal
gentleness. "I tried to persuade myself I was only curious when I ordered Kevin to get me every article and story ever written about you." He smiled. "And of course I wanted the video tapes merely because I appreciate your skill as a dancer, as an artist."
"I didn't know about the articles," she said dazedly. The gentle stroking of her brows had a mesmeric effect on her. The action was almost totally sexless, as if he were stroking the plumage of a bird that might take fright and fly away any second.
"It didn't satisfy me for very long," he continued, as if she hadn't spoken. "I found myself trying to find out everything I could about you. I even compiled a list of your actual quotes so that I could build a picture in my mind of what lay behind that pixie face." He shrugged. "It wasn't enough. I began to leave the chateau and fly down to New York to watch you perform in person." His lips twisted. "It made Betz more than a little nervous."
"Just what are you trying to tell me? If you don't believe this is a passing fancy, what the devil do you believe it is?"
"I wish I knew," he said. "All I know is that it's not going to go away soon. It's going to be a long time before I'm going to be willing to let you leave me even for a little while." His smile was curiously bittersweet. "As I said, it's an obsession."
"But you can't do that," she protested, brushing his hand away from her face. "You can't keep me here against my will."
"From what they tell me, there's very little that I can't do," he said cynically. Then, as she would have spoken, he held up his hand. "But that doesn't mean I'm about to pressure you into anything. I've always believed that the only efficient method of wielding power is to persuade rather than bludgeon."
"How very condescending of you," she said tartly.
"And I assume that I'm to be 'persuaded' to occupy your bed?"
A smile that was surprisingly boyish warmed his dark face. "God, I hope so, sweetheart. I'm certainly going to make every effort to have it happen." Then the smile slowly faded. "Hell, yes, I'm going to try to seduce you. I want you so much I'm aching from it. But that's not all I want by a long shot. In the next weeks I'm going to learn you inside out. How you think, what foods you like, the memories and experiences that make you what you are." He grimaced. "Who knows? You may get lucky. Perhaps after I know everything about you, the fascination will fade a little and I'll be willing to let you go. It would probably be better for both of us if I did."
"And if it doesn't?"
"Then I hope I can make you want to stay with me until it does," he said quietly. "I know you want me. Those particular physical signals are pretty unmistakable. I can build on that. By the time it's safe to let you go, I have every intention of making very sure you have no desire to do so." There was a flicker of sadness in the depths of his eyes. "And if the charm of my company doesn't do the trick, I have a wild card that most assuredly will. You might say it's an offer that you can't refuse."
"You expect me to just sit still while you try to seduce me, after the way I've been treated?" Her dark eyes were flashing fire. "In spite of your research you don't know me very well if you think I'll submit meekly to your neat little plans."
"I know you well enough to realize that you can't resist a challenge," he drawled, his gaze narrowed on her face, flushed with indignation. "I have no doubt that you'll fight me tooth and nail both mentally and physically. But have you considered that an intimacy exists in battle that's as primitive as a sexual confrontation? I can build on that too."
She felt a tiny thrill of excitement run through her as she met the cool confidence of his gaze. Perhaps he did know her after all. Certainly the gauntlet he'd thrown down might be impossible for her to resist picking up. She was filled with heady exhilaration as she contemplated doing battle with him. She'd never been beaten yet, and Jared Ryker would prove an antagonist more worthy than she'd ever encountered.
"Let me understand you," she said carefully. "You refuse to let me go?"
"Yes."
She felt a tingle of emotion that might have been satisfaction. She knew herself well enough to realize it quite probably was. Now that she'd decided to accept his challenge, she would have been disappointed if Ryker had withdrawn it. "And this battle you're talking about," she said briskly, "what are the terms?"
He grinned with frank enjoyment as he observed her face come alive with eagerness. "Seduction, not force. You set the boundaries. Fair enough?"
She nodded with satisfaction. "More than fair," she said. "You're going to wish you'd been a great deal less generous before this is over, Ryker."
"I might at that," he said wryly. "Are you always this happy when you're contemplating an enemy's demise?"
"Always. But then, I always enjoy myself no matter what the circumstances. I decided a long time ago I could only be defeated if I let that joy be taken away from me." The smile she gave him was almost affectionate. "I intend to have a very good time taking you on. Would you like me to detail my battle plans for you?"
"I can hardly wait."
"My first priority will be to escape," she said calmly. She scowled as she regarded the mount
ainous terrain
surrounding them. "I do wish you'd chosen some other obstacle for me to overcome. I've had it with mountains."
"Sorry," he said solemnly, though his lips twitched with amusement. "I'll keep that in mind in the future."
"Do that," she said, grinning mischievously. "That is, if you get the chance, of course. You may have changed your mind about the pleasure of my company by that time. I'm going to make your life perfectly miserable, you know."
"For instance?"
She pretended to consider. "Well, I don't approve of sexual teasing, but I've decided to make an exception in your case. If you think you're aching now, you're in for a shock. I'm going to drive you out of your mind, Jared Ryker." Her dark eyes narrowed determinedly. "And through it all you're going to know that you're never going to get what you want. Never."
There was a glint of admiration in Ryker's eyes as he said softly, "We'll see, little Piper. Remember, you're not doing the choreography this time. The moves may not be what you expect."
"But that always makes the dance that much more exciting. And a triumphant finale is even more satisfying."
He chuckled, and for an instant she thought she saw a flicker of pride in his face. "You're going to be a joy and delight, Tania Orlinov." He stood up and reached out a hand to pull her to her feet. "The crown of thorns and stinging nettles you have in mind for me just might be worth it." He slipped an arm affectionately around her waist and turned her in the direction of the chateau. "Now, though I know it's abominable tactics to reveal one's weaknesses to the opposition, I have to confess I'm freezing my ass off without that jacket." He made a face. I've spent most of my time the last few years on an
island I bought in the Caribbean, and it didn't equip me for autumn in the Laurentians. Let's get back to the chateau and get some hot coffee."