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When she was done with that, and still huffing out each breath, she folded her creaed into it, punching her arh each sleeve like she was ready to do her own round of boxing

Maybe she was

She stepped out of the shower at last and adjusted the collar of the robe--part of it was caught underneath

But when she saw her reflection in the mirror, with her hair still wrapped up in the towel on top of her head, she had a wide-open view of the bruises on both sides of her neck She let loose with a long loud shriek-like groan "Look at this," she cried "Look at this Look at what you did to aze in the mirror, but he looked confused

"What do you ?"

She shifted and held the collar wider then presented each side of her throat to hiaze "Oui, c’est vrai"

"Oh, would you stop it with the char French bullshit"

"You seem distressed" A sainst the doorjamb and crossed his arms over his chest, a move that drew her attention to his pecs He wore another ribbed T-shirt, long-sleeved, an excellent look for hiaze fell lower

"And why do you have to wear jeans and no shoes?"

He shrugged "Jeans are very comfortable and my floors are very clean I like the feel of the polished wood underyou say have to sound so fantastic Couldn’t you just once try for a little crudity?"

"If you wish" But his lips quirked

"If I wish? I wish you would go to hell, that’s what I wish"

He s, Fiona? Be honest withare ridiculous"

Her shoulders slumped She put her hands on the counter and leaned forward, her head hanging low "I don’t want to do this I want all of this to stop It’s too s" She straightened and looked up at him "And I really do hate that everyone will see that you took ’s so funny, and she thought it was just hilarious to take me into that locker rooed at her collar "And I’m not this woman to be paraded in front of everyone else like a … a cow you branded"

"A cow?" His lips twitched

"You knohat I mean"

"Yes, I suppose I do But I believe I can fix this situation"

"How?"

Heskills, as some of the brothers do, but if you will permit me I can take away these bruises and the puncturethem?"

"Truth?"

"Oui," she said "Truth"

He shook his head "I am in this terrible place, as well I want you with the ferocity of an anio, I took you the way I have been wanting you since I first caught your wonderful scent in Toulouse But I aht in this saht At the sa every second of it because I like you and I respect you For that reason, this terrible part ofeveryone see that I took your blood … twice That, yes, I s exactly

She finally took a regular breath and pushed the collar of her robe out to her shoulders He nal She faced the mirror now and watched as he settled his hands over the sides of her throat He had long beautiful fingers, sexy fingers

She felt the war settled down and her temper eased back She didn’t speak She just let the moment happen

She was troubled; there was no other way to describe what she felt, how confused she was, how torn, and how angry She wanted life to just stop Ever since she’d been rescued, instead of life growing sih she’d been thrown into the spin cycle of a washing machine

When he removed his hands, she opened her eyes and her throat was as it had been before Only instead of feeling grateful, she felt sad, as though the healing of the bruises and the punctures s had erased what had just happened between them

He slid his arms around her "Chérie, do not be sad I can put thehed "I ah so race You have my peraze in theelse I’d like you to do for hed, and she was pretty sure he knew exactly what she was going to ask of hiaze on your body That is the payrinned, showing all those big beautiful teeth of his Why the hell did she have to like him so much?