Read Online Kidnapping His Bride by Karen Erickson - Free Book Online Page A

each other for the next few days, though. He’d thoroughly enjoyed her earlier when they’d woken up together on the plane. Soft and sweet and agreeable, her obvious reaction to him had been a tremendous turn on. He’d been tempted to take it that much further right there on the bed when the plane’s captain had warned them they were ready to land.
    That interruption still irritated him, though she’d seemed blissfully unaware. Of course, he was the one who still walked around with a perpetual hard-on while she acted like that moment had been completely forgettable.
    Damn, he felt like such a simpering fool. For the first time in his life, had he actually encountered a woman who couldn’t give a shit about him? She’d more than proven that when she walked away from him just last night.
    But he’d turned around and more than proven himself by convincing her to leave the country with him. If that didn’t earn him some points, he didn’t know what would.
    This isn’t a game, asshole. There’s no need for keeping score.
    He knew this. But he couldn’t help himself. It was the middle brother in him, the constant need to compete, strive toward greatness. Strive toward winning. And right now he was desperate to win back Catalina as his fiancée.
    And, eventually, as his bride—his wife.
    “Well, if you don’t want to rest, let’s at least get you settled. I can show you to your room.” He stopped just behind her, settling his hands on her slender shoulders. She went rigid beneath his palms, her muscles tense, and he gave her a gentle squeeze. “Don’t worry,” he murmured close to her ear. “I won’t bite.”
    A soft laugh escaped her. “I’m not sure how to act around you, especially after what happened between us last night.”
    “Are you referring to when I kissed you?” he joked. He knew exactly what she referred to.
    “No.” She tensed once more and he began rubbing her shoulders, trying his best to ease her discomfort. “You, uh, know what I’m talking about. After I…rejected you.”
    “My heart is still wounded from your cold and callous behavior,” he teased, though it really was, not that he’d ever admit it.
    “Please. I don’t matter that much to you,” she murmured.
    He gave her shoulders a meaningful squeeze. “That’s emphatically untrue.”
    She glanced back at him. “What do you mean? As I told you repeatedly last night, we don’t even know each other. How could I matter?”
    “We may not know each other well, but you’ve been a part of my life for years. A goal I worked toward, a life I looked forward to.” He pressed his lips together, not willing to reveal more. He’d end up sounding like a sappy idiot and he refused to show his hand this early in the game.
    There he went again, referring to this life-altering situation as some sort of contest.
    “Really?” She sounded surprised. Foolish woman. “I always believed you never thought of me at all.”
    He was shocked. “Now why would you think that?”
    “We hardly ever spoke to each other. You’ve ignored me for years,” she explained. “I always thought if I really mattered to you, you would’ve sought me out more. Tried to spend time with me.”
    How could he explain his behavior over the last few years without sounding like a complete jerk? He had his reasons. But would she believe them?
    With nothing else to lose, he went ahead and tried to explain. “I was working. Trying to better myself by moving my way up the ranks of the family business so I could offer you whatever you wanted as my wife. I wanted to provide you with a good life,” he said. “And…I’m a man. It wasn’t right, seeing other women. I know this. But what was I supposed to do? I wasn’t sure if we would really be together.”
    She turned to face him and he let his hands fall away from her. “You’re serious.”
    Rafe nodded. “I’m sorry. I’m an ass. It all sounds foolishly old fashioned, doesn’t it? I guess our entire