handkerchief.
Checking the wound, Abby was happy to see only a small trickle of blood welling up. The wet washer had helped to remove the handkerchief without causing too much damage. She was curious about why Ryan wanted Montoya dead, but sensed his reasons were far too private to share with a virtual stranger. Even one he’d brought to an intense orgasm more than once, not that he knew about the first two instances.
Ryan was surprised when Abby didn’t badger him with questions. She accepted the little that he divulged without complaint. Her touch was delicate as she slathered antiseptic ointment on his wound. It didn’t need stitches, thankfully, and she placed a dressing over it then taped it in place. Clearly, she’d done this before.
Abby tried hard not to stare at Ryan’s shoulders, chest and sculpted abs as she treated his wound. She wanted to push him onto his back and use her body to take away his misery, but she knew their time together was almost over.
Ryan reached behind him and took something out of his back pocket. He handed the small blue box to her. “I thought you might like this as a memento of your trip to Brazil,” he said with a half-smile.
“As if I’ll need any reminders,” she said almost beneath her breath. Opening the box, she stared down at the small yet exquisitely crafted pendant on a golden chain. The pendant was a lioness with blue-gray eyes that seemed to stare right at her. “It’s lovely,” she said with a puzzled frown. Why on earth would he give her a gift? She had the distinct feeling that she’d played a part in his failure to kill Montoya. She’d come between his instinct to get the job done and to protect someone that he thought was a helpless victim. If she’d told him who she really was, he’d have concentrated on eradicating his target rather than on keeping her safe.
Shrugging, as if he wasn’t sure why he’d given it to her, Ryan winced at the stab of pain that went through his torn shoulder with the movement. “It reminded me of you,” he said quietly. “Fierce and beautiful.”
Moved by his explanation, Abby was torn. For a moment, she debated about giving it back to him, then decided to keep it. No man had ever given her a gift before and she found she did want a reminder, but of Ryan rather than Brazil itself. “Thank you,” she said then stepped into the bathroom. She wanted to wash his blood off her hands before she touched the necklace.
Lying down, Ryan closed his eyes with the intention of resting for a few moments and instead slid into an exhausted slumber.
Washing then drying her hands, Abby fastened the neckla ce around her neck. The lioness’s eyes were almost the exact same shade as hers, which was most likely why he’d been drawn to it. It looked expensive and she wondered how much it had cost him and what his girlfriend would think if she knew he’d given a gift to another woman.
Abby felt a strange and unwelcome tenderness sweep through her when she stepped back into the bedroom and saw that Ryan had fallen into a deep asleep. Handsome, masculine and extremely capable, he nevertheless looked like a lost little boy. Moving over to the bed, she gave into temptation and ran her fingers through his hair.
“Miranda?” Stirring from his poignant dream of the past, Ryan murmured the name of his long dead wife before subsiding back into sleep.
Abby drew her hand back when Ryan said another woman’s name. He wasn’t hers and he never would be. It would be best for them both if she just walked away without bothering to say goodbye. They’d shared an experience that had been intense and fraught with danger. They’d momentarily been drawn together in mutual passion that they hadn’t dared to fully consummate. Now that their peril was over, it was time to return to whatever passed for their normal lives.
₪₪₪
Chapter Fourteen
Using the small hotel notepad and pen to leave a note, Abby took one last look at
Checking the wound, Abby was happy to see only a small trickle of blood welling up. The wet washer had helped to remove the handkerchief without causing too much damage. She was curious about why Ryan wanted Montoya dead, but sensed his reasons were far too private to share with a virtual stranger. Even one he’d brought to an intense orgasm more than once, not that he knew about the first two instances.
Ryan was surprised when Abby didn’t badger him with questions. She accepted the little that he divulged without complaint. Her touch was delicate as she slathered antiseptic ointment on his wound. It didn’t need stitches, thankfully, and she placed a dressing over it then taped it in place. Clearly, she’d done this before.
Abby tried hard not to stare at Ryan’s shoulders, chest and sculpted abs as she treated his wound. She wanted to push him onto his back and use her body to take away his misery, but she knew their time together was almost over.
Ryan reached behind him and took something out of his back pocket. He handed the small blue box to her. “I thought you might like this as a memento of your trip to Brazil,” he said with a half-smile.
“As if I’ll need any reminders,” she said almost beneath her breath. Opening the box, she stared down at the small yet exquisitely crafted pendant on a golden chain. The pendant was a lioness with blue-gray eyes that seemed to stare right at her. “It’s lovely,” she said with a puzzled frown. Why on earth would he give her a gift? She had the distinct feeling that she’d played a part in his failure to kill Montoya. She’d come between his instinct to get the job done and to protect someone that he thought was a helpless victim. If she’d told him who she really was, he’d have concentrated on eradicating his target rather than on keeping her safe.
Shrugging, as if he wasn’t sure why he’d given it to her, Ryan winced at the stab of pain that went through his torn shoulder with the movement. “It reminded me of you,” he said quietly. “Fierce and beautiful.”
Moved by his explanation, Abby was torn. For a moment, she debated about giving it back to him, then decided to keep it. No man had ever given her a gift before and she found she did want a reminder, but of Ryan rather than Brazil itself. “Thank you,” she said then stepped into the bathroom. She wanted to wash his blood off her hands before she touched the necklace.
Lying down, Ryan closed his eyes with the intention of resting for a few moments and instead slid into an exhausted slumber.
Washing then drying her hands, Abby fastened the neckla ce around her neck. The lioness’s eyes were almost the exact same shade as hers, which was most likely why he’d been drawn to it. It looked expensive and she wondered how much it had cost him and what his girlfriend would think if she knew he’d given a gift to another woman.
Abby felt a strange and unwelcome tenderness sweep through her when she stepped back into the bedroom and saw that Ryan had fallen into a deep asleep. Handsome, masculine and extremely capable, he nevertheless looked like a lost little boy. Moving over to the bed, she gave into temptation and ran her fingers through his hair.
“Miranda?” Stirring from his poignant dream of the past, Ryan murmured the name of his long dead wife before subsiding back into sleep.
Abby drew her hand back when Ryan said another woman’s name. He wasn’t hers and he never would be. It would be best for them both if she just walked away without bothering to say goodbye. They’d shared an experience that had been intense and fraught with danger. They’d momentarily been drawn together in mutual passion that they hadn’t dared to fully consummate. Now that their peril was over, it was time to return to whatever passed for their normal lives.
₪₪₪
Chapter Fourteen
Using the small hotel notepad and pen to leave a note, Abby took one last look at
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