Defenseless (Salvation, #5)(37)

Our bodies press together as he keeps me secure. “Mark,” I purr.

“Shut up, Charlie,” he says before he grips my neck, pulls me to him, and kisses me.

I keep hold of my control because this kiss has to be mine. This one is a means to an end. All of this is. I need information, and I’ll screw it out of him if I have to. I glide my tongue across his lips, but he resists me. My head is being held tight—I’m at his mercy.

I know he feels me fighting him. My hands push against his chest, but he doesn’t budge. After a moment, his lips part and allow me in. That’s when his hands move. He cups my ass, lifts me, and before I know it, he’s standing, carrying me back to the bedroom. I want to cry. For the first time in my life as a spy, I wish I could abandon my mission. I realize, right now, that I would forsake it all for someone like him.

“What are we doing?” I ease the pressure of our kiss to speak against his lips, but return my mouth before he can answer.

Mark keeps me in his arms effortlessly. He kicks the door shut with his foot, walks toward the bed, and gently lays me down, causing my heart to kick into overdrive. I can do this. I have to do this. I will get the information I need at any cost. I’ve never done this, though. Sure, I’ve toyed with men, but never like this. Not with one I care about.

“You underestimate me, beautiful,” Mark says while undoing the buttons on his shirt.

“What?”

He stalks toward the bed. “You think I can’t see.”

“You sure like to tell me what I can see and can’t see.” I rise up on my elbows.

Mark climbs onto the bed and hovers above me. “Tell me, do you think I’m an idiot?”

I lie back and slip into my mind where nothing can touch me. He can’t even get close, because this act is for information, not pleasure. “No,” I reply. “I hate how you make me feel. I hate that you make me want you.”

His smirk falls as his head descends toward my lips. I think he’s going to kiss me, but he shifts his face to the side, his warm breath tickles my ear. “You’re going to hate a lot more than that, princess.”

Out of no where, he grips my wrists and pins them above my head. At first, I think nothing of it, until I realize it’s not sexual. I try to fight him, but he’s so much stronger than I am. Without breaking a sweat, he ties his belt around my wrists and rests his weight on my hips so I can’t move.

“I’m going to gut you like a fish.” I try bucking my hips to move him, but to no avail.

“I like dirty talk.” He chuckles.

“I hate you.”

“Another lie. See, you tell so many that it’s hard to keep up after awhile,” he muses. Mark’s one hand holds my arms up, while he rests his head leisurely against his other. “Here’s what I figure. You like me. I can see it. I know it, you know it. But you’re afraid. So you play these mind games with yourself to push me away.”

“If I did like you—which I don’t—I hate you now.”

“As I was saying, you really need to see things between us for what they are.”

“Over?”

“Not even close.” Mark moves so I can feel his erection against my core. God help me, it turns me on. “You want me so much right now. I can feel the heat coming off you, see the color in your face change. It’s all there. I clearly want to f*ck the stupid out of you, but I won’t just yet.”

“That’s called rape.”

“You can’t rape the willing, baby.”

“Untie me!” I push against him.

“Why did you think trying to seduce me would work?” Mark asks. “Did you think you’d find out something you want to know? Did you think I would give it up so easily? We could’ve been back here while I suck on your tits, eat your *, f*ck you until you see stars, but you wanted to play this game. Remember that . . .”

I loathe him. I wish him nothing but to burn in the fiery pits of Hell. Satan can use him for a damn pig roast for all I care. He’s ruining me. I’m better than this, better than him. “I swear, you better leave me tied up the duration of the flight, or I’m going to butcher you.”

He digs his hips deeper, rubs against my clit. I try to fight the moan. I try to bite it back, but it escapes. “You’ve tortured people, haven’t you, Charlie? You’ve pulled information out by using any means necessary, huh?”

Mark moves again, and shoots a current through every limb. “Fuck you. You’re dead.”

“I thought so, but see, so have I. I’ve had to use methods against people in order to fulfill my mission. And right now . . .” He leans against my ear as his voice drops to a menacing whisper. “You’re my mission.”

He’s out of his ever-loving mind if he thinks I’ll tell him anything. “For someone who thinks he’s so smart, you’re awfully dumb. I’ll die before I tell you a thing.”

“I won’t hurt you,” he explains as his hand travels to my breast. “I’ll pull every ounce of pleasure your body can handle. I’ll show you why I’m right for you. Why you want me so much that you hate yourself. Why you think about me, because we both need answers, and we’re going to get them now.”

His words, his heat, his touch makes me want to sob. I want him more than ever. I’m soaking wet, turned on, and pissed off. It’s not a good combination. “Mark,” I pull his attention to me.