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Chapter One

She heard The Zone staff co Shethe back of his thigh, for suddenly she was vaguely aware of an e under her to release the manacles on his ankles

“Thanks Darken the ceiling on your way out, will you?” Tyler’s voice, the only thing that registered There was the whir of thewhat kind of show they’d just seen

The last performance of the Ice Queen

“They’ll never let me come back You have no choice but to kick me out now There isn’t a rule I didn’t just break ”

“Well, I wouldn’t count on that I told Perry ere planning a dee ” She kneas free now but he didn’t disturb her yet, letting her kneel there, holding hi?” There was a silent moment before he answered “No I didn’t anticipate that I would fall in love with you from the very first moment I saw you ” She closed her eyes “No ” She ducked her head away as he bent down over her, tried to turn her face “I can’t look at you I can’t ” But his fingers insisted, so at length she did Tilting her chin up, she saw his beautiful eyes full of so far too perfect for her to see Then she sawblood, the skin around thery red The second one had left a cut across his eyelid and the bridge of his nose His jaelling, where she well could have broken it with the tawser

Her fingers were on it before she could stop herself “Oh God, Tyler I’ breath into hi, he had it all

“I’ll endure anything for you, angel Anything ” He curved that broad back over her, wrapped his ar the touch, the intensity, her body recognized it as a safe harbor Her fingers latched on to his forear on to a cliff edge

The sobs rolled over her, taking her, her cries of distress that were ht she sounded as if she was being torn apart from the inside

He’d ht path at last But instead of triuuish he could only feel the same pain, the pain of a man who loved her desperately, who only wanted to o away

Her body was shaking as if she had a fever Another woman’s face would be ith tears but it was as if she didn’t kno to cry like that, any o, to allow herself physical fulfillment Her skin was ice cold

As he conificance of that, the door beeped, opened

“Everything under control in here?” It was Mac, his eyes assessing the situation as a cop and a friend At the rateful for a person with both to offer Dan was a quiet shadow at his back, having disengaged the locks for Mac

“I think she’s in a bit of shock Can you bring me my jacket there?” He nodded toward the corner in the shadohere they’d hung it

“Her cloak’s here too ”