He shrugged. “We’ve all done awful, unforgivable things. Myself included. Hell, talk to Kade about what he did in the city before he escaped. Only difference is, we own up to it. We don’t lie to each other.”
She hesitated, lips parting as if she wanted to say more. Change her tune.
But she didn’t.
“I’ll contribute while I’m here,” she whispered. “I can help you on that raid. Cook, clean, whatever you want.”
“Whatever I want?” He didn’t bother disguising the seductive note in his voice, but at the same time, he wondered why the hell he was toying with her.
“Is that it?” she challenged. “You want me to screw you in exchange for a roof over my head?”
He gave another shrug. “I don’t barter for sex. If I want to get laid, there are countless women who’d be happy to help me out – and they won’t ask for a damn thing in return.”
The relief on her face was hard to miss. But the disappointment… well, that was hard to see, unless you were looking for it. Which he was. He searched those silvery eyes, chuckling when he glimpsed the telltale gleam.
“You wanted me to say yes.” His head slanted thoughtfully. “You wanted to have the decision taken out of your hands, didn’t you?”
Her mouth tightened. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Connor took a predatory step forward. “You’re aching for it.”
She edged backward, until her hip bumped the corner of the table next to the bed.
He moved closer, stopping when they were less than a foot apart. “I wouldn’t get a single protest from you, would I? If I bent you over this table and fucked you hard?” A dark laugh slipped out when he saw her shiver. “Oh yeah, you’d love every second of it.”
Her gaze found his again. “You’d make sure I did. You strike me as a man who knows how to make a woman feel good.”
Connor raised a brow in surprise. He hadn’t expected an answer from her, let alone one so brazen. “I could make you feel a lot of things, Hudson. Pleasure is one. Pain is another. If you bring trouble to my door, I won’t hesitate to throw you out on your ass. Or worse.”
She straightened her back. “There won’t be any trouble. Especially if this place is as secure as I think it is.”
“Good.” With a nod, he stalked to the door.
“Connor.”
He stopped. Waited.
“Yes.”
Frowning, he shifted around so he could see her eyes. “Yes, what?”
Her head jerked to the table beside her. “If you… did what you just described… then, yes, I’d love every second of it.”
The soft, heat-laced words nearly blew the tip of his cock off.
Without a word, he stalked out of the cabin. The rock between his legs made it difficult to walk properly – and confirmed what he’d already suspected.
This woman was very, very dangerous.
“I don’t like this,” Pike announced the next morning. He shoved aside the cup of coffee Connor had dropped in front of him, but they both knew he wasn’t referring to the coffee.
“Me neither.” Xander sounded equally annoyed. “Why the hell would you bring a stranger back to camp?”
Connor frowned as he sank into the chair across from Pike’s. He’d sent Kade to grab their boys from the bar, and the man had apparently used the return trip to tell Pike and Xander all about their new guest, because it was the first thing Pike had brought up when he’d entered the lodge.
“Hey, don’t look at me,” Connor muttered. “These two assholes guilt-tripped me into it.”
“It wasn’t a guilt trip. It was the truth,” Kade said, his normally laid-back demeanor replaced by barely contained anger. “It’s dangerous for her to be alone. It’s dangerous for anyone to be alone. Dominik and his men are out of control.”
Connor couldn’t disagree. They’d been hearing too many nasty stories lately. More rapes, more violence, and a lot less peacekeeping. The Enforcers didn’t seem interested in talking anymore, or giving outlaws the choice to rejoin society. These days they just put a bullet in your head and called it a day.
Kade went on. “Look, she’s smart, and she’s obviously got skills. She might be an asset.”
“You forgot hot as fuck,” Rylan said wryly.
Pike scowled. “Is that it? You brought her here to screw her? Because you can find pussy anywhere, for chrissake. You know, the kind you don’t have to invite to live with us.”