bolt pierced her core. She met his eyes. Her heart thundered and her body flooded with heat.
What did this mean? This wasn’t part of the plan. She was meant to play him then get away. But just the touch of his fingertips had sent her into sensory overload. She inhaled slowly and locked her knees to still their trembling.
“Layla,” he whispered.
“Charlie.” She moved towards him, pulled by some magnetic force beyond her comprehension, crushing his hand between them. She licked her lips, looked at his full mouth. He leant slightly towards her and she raised onto her toes. She was drawn to him like a bear to a bee hive. Instinctively. She just wanted to be near to him again. Encompassed by his strength and vitality.
“Layla.” He spoke again and her heart plummeted as his eyes changed. For a moment she could have sworn she’d seen something akin to tenderness, or even desire there, but it had gone as quickly as it had appeared. “I thought you wanted to…uh…”
She blinked. Of course. She had to get a grip. She’d only just met this man and she was acting like a wanton light skirt. She should be playing easy not actually falling for him. He was just so attractive. It must be the lack of food and water making her irrational. She’d feel better once she’d eaten. But she couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something about this man that she was reacting to on a level that she was unfamiliar with. It was like a primitive part of her was responding to him, as if the female instinct to be with the alpha male was rousing its needy head and pulling her towards him.
Human contact was a powerful aphrodisiac. Contact with Charlie had muddied her brain and sapped her ability to think rationally.
She sank back onto her heels. “Yes. I do. I’ll just be a moment.” She tore herself away from him and forced her feet to turn.
Visibility was better now than when Charlie had found her. Although the moon was thin, the clouds had cleared completely and everything was bathed in a silvery glow. It made the woods appear a little spooky and reminded Layla of tales she’d heard in her youth about the hills being haunted. According to legend, the souls of Sioux warriors seeking revenge wandered through the trees. She shuddered. Good job she had some male company. Being out here alone overnight would have been pretty scary indeed. Though in fact she should be afraid of the company she was being forced to keep.
Once she’d walked a little way off, Layla attended to her call of nature. Her breasts throbbed beneath the tight binding that she’d wrapped around her chest and she needed to get it off. Stupid disguise. Charlie had known she was a woman straight away. She should have put more effort in. But then, falling asleep during the afternoon and leaving a trail behind her…it was as if she actually wanted to be caught.
But she hadn’t. She had wanted to get far away from it all. To start afresh. If it was possible for a woman to start over in this crushing, horizonless society.
She unbuttoned her shirt and tugged it out of her trousers then hung it on a branch. She had dressed in her father’s clothes and they hung off her female curves but they were all she’d had. She reached around her rib cage and unwound the torn sheet she’d used to flatten her breasts. When they were free, she rubbed them hard, trying to relieve the aching. She’d abandoned her corset when dressing up as a man but she still wore her chemise. The gauzy material offered little protection against the night air and her nipples stiffened like mountain peaks.
She pulled the shirt back on and buttoned it then tucked it in. It no longer hung straight down over her chest. Instead two large mounds protruded, showing quite clearly that she was in fact a well-rounded female. Well, maybe her curves would serve her well and allow her to get her own way. Or at least to indulge in some fun as she tried.
Fun. Something she might have forgotten how to have. Since Henrik’s betrayal.
She emerged into the clearing to find Charlie waiting for her. He pushed his Stetson back on his head and appraised her.
“Well, Miss…uh…Layla. You look…kind of…”
“Different?” She put her hands on her hips in an attempt at confidence.
“For sure,” he smiled. “But I can’t quite figure out what it is.” He roamed her body with his eyes and her heartbeat quickened as he paused at her breasts. He couldn’t exactly not notice them.
Layla flashed a smile as she walked past him. “Well, when you do, you let me know.”
She hoped that she was projecting a confident manner. That Charlie would believe that she was being honest about her reasons for running. But she couldn’t tell what he thought. He smiled and laughed but his smiles didn’t seem to reach his eyes. They were alert, wary, calculating everything. Constantly.
But maybe she could use her femininity to her advantage. Maybe.
****
“So why exactly do you need to tie me up?” Layla seethed. In spite of her hopes, it seemed that she’d had no impact at all upon Charlie. He didn’t trust her. He believed that she would try to escape and he had decided to tie her to a tree.
“Look, I’m sorry, Layla.” His voice gave nothing away as he sat her with her back against the thick trunk. “But I can’t take the risk of you running off.”
“But I won’t!” She realised that she sounded like a petulant child and she cringed inwardly.
“Now…I know you’ve given me m…I mean…Mr Jackman’s money back but he’ll still want a word with you. So, I’ve got to ensure that I can take you to him in one piece.”
“Do you really think I’m stupid enough to try to escape?” Layla raised her eyebrows. Hot tears stung the corners of her eyes and she was mad at herself for becoming emotional. She thought she’d got something of the measure of this cowboy, even though she wasn’t certain of it. He’d given her food and coffee and seemed to be friendly enough. Etu had been quiet but she was sure she could befriend him too…if she just had a bit more time. Although time was a luxury she really didn’t have.
“Trouble is, Layla,” Charlie said, pulling the rope around her middle so that her arms were pinned to her sides, “I don’t know you at all. So whatever I might think or want to believe about you…I have to take care.”
Layla sighed. He was right. He couldn’t trust her just like she couldn’t trust herself. She was all action and no thought for the consequences, no matter how many times she decided to be sensible and to assume the air of a prim and proper young lady. It just wasn’t her. If she’d been as wise as Charlie clearly was and not been so hoodwinked by Henrik, then she mightn’t be here right now bound to a tree.
“There you go.” Charlie crouched in front of her. “How does that feel?”
Layla wriggled under his gaze. The rope was bound around her middle and try as she might, she could not lift her arms. The bark of the tree was rough behind her but the ground beneath her bottom was soft and spongy with moss. As she shifted, the top length of rope slipped upwards and settled beneath her breasts. It pushed them higher and she bridled as Charlie watched.
“Is the rope okay there, Layla?” His voice was husky. His eyes darkened.
“I guess so,” she huffed. But she’d never get out of it.
“I don’t want you being uncomfortable. It’ll be a long
