Samhain Publishing Ltd, Ebooks and Books in Print

It grew uncomfortably silent in the kitchen for a few minutes.

To break the silence, Robyn spoke again. “Um…do you know of any local shelters around here? One that would take me in?”

The man frowned deeply, staring into his coffee cup that he had picked back up from the counter. His expression showed that he was pondering the question for a few moments before answering.

“You don’t really want to go there,” he said in a low tone, which almost sounded like a growl. “It’s not a place for a young woman who’s by herself.” He continued to stare into his coffee mug.

“Well,” she said slowly. “Can I borrow some money to get a place to stay until I find a job? I promise I’ll pay you back. I’ll send the money here, I swear.”

Trigg uncrossed his legs and pushed himself up from the counter. He walked to the sink, emptied and rinsed his cup, and left it there.

“You’re staying here until something can be arranged. I’ll find your bag tonight,” he said flatly as he walked out of the kitchen.

Robyn blinked. Was that an order he just gave her? Who the hell did he think he was?

Angry at his presumed authority over her, Robyn got to her feet and stomped out of the kitchen to tell him what she thought about his arrogance, but he had already gone up the stairs and into his room. “Humph!” she said as she walked back to the kitchen. “That man needs work on his social skills!” She glanced over her shoulder to his closed door and narrowed her eyes. “Either that or a good kick in the pants!”

Robyn rinsed out her cup and placed both of theirs in the dishwasher. Her stomach growled, reminding her that she was hungry. He had told her to come down and eat, but hadn’t bothered fixing her anything. “Men,” she quipped.

She peered into the refrigerator. Her choices seemed to be eggs and bacon, or bacon and eggs. Robyn pulled out the carton of eggs and the package of bacon from the refrigerator, grabbed the loaf of bread sitting on the counter and popped two slices of bread in the toaster.

Although she was still miffed by the man’s extreme lack of manners, she fixed enough bacon and eggs for them both. He must have smelled the food, because he emerged from his room a few minutes later, fully dressed in faded blue jeans and a black T-shirt, and popped his head into the kitchen.

“I’ve made enough for both of us,” Robyn said coolly as she loaded up his plate and set it on the table. He walked over and picked it up, muttered what sounded like “thanks” and walked out of the kitchen. She gave an exasperated sigh and fixed her own plate.

After she finished eating at the kitchen table, Robyn loaded her dirty dish, utensils and the frying pan she had used in the dishwasher. Seeing it was almost full, her Suzy Homemaker persona took over, she rooted through the cabinets until she found the dishwasher detergent and started the wash.

Robyn dried her hands and left the kitchen to find Mystery Man. She had to stop calling him that and find out his name. She hadn’t really thought about it until now. Her biggest worry had been who brought her here and why, and the location of her clothes so that she could leave.

He was sitting on the couch in the living room with his boots propped on the coffee table. On the large screen television were two beefy men in Speedos and tights pummeling each other in a wrestling ring while a scantily clad, large-breasted woman stood outside the ring and yelled at the men grappling on the mat.

Robyn glanced at the carnage on the screen then walked over and sat in one of the overstuffed chairs.

“So,” she began. “What’s your name?”

Trigg looked at her for a moment before turning his attention back to the television, grunting his approval as one of the men held the other in mid-air and did a pile driver on him. The other man rolled around on the mat grimacing in pain.

“Trigg,” he said curtly.

Robyn nodded and waited, but he didn’t say anything else. After realizing that was all the information she was going to get out of him, she spoke again. “I’m Robyn.”

She sat up and extended her hand, but he just glanced at her and made no move to shake it. He seemed too interested in the wrestling action on the television to conduct a conversation.

Robyn dropped her hand, then gathered up his dirty plate and fork. She took them back to the kitchen, pressed PAUSE on the dishwasher and added them to its contents to be cleaned.

Trigg watched her walk away from the living room to the kitchen. Her small, round butt, faintly outlined under the shirt that she wore, swayed slightly as she walked. He continued to follow her with his gaze until she stopped at the dishwasher.

When she bent over to place the items inside, Trigg felt himself harden again at the sight, picturing himself standing behind her, taking her in the most primal way.

His control snapped. Before he could stop himself, he was off the couch and in the kitchen, standing directly behind her.

Robyn felt the hair on the back of her neck stand on end. She straightened slowly and pushed the RESUME button on the dishwasher to continue the cleaning cycle.

Taking a deep breath, she turned around and was eye level with Trigg’s massive chest. She could see the quick rise and fall of his bulging muscles and heard his ragged breathing. Slowly, she lifted her gaze until she met his.

He was staring down at her, his eyes glowing, this time more red than hazel—as they had looked earlier.

Robyn stood very still, like a rabbit caught in the stare of a coyote. From somewhere in the back of her mind, memories began to come forward. Memories of seeing that hungry, smoldering look in a man’s eyes and the fear it had caused her. Not this time, she thought to herself. Now, she had the power to stop it. She was no longer under someone’s control and she would never let anyone abuse her again, even if her life was at stake.

Show no fear, she told herself. It quickly became her mantra. Wasn’t that what you were supposed to do when facing a wild animal?

Robyn clenched her fists. She would not be a victim again. Raising her chin, she glared at him. “Back off!” she said through clenched teeth.

Trigg stared at her for several minutes then blinked as his hot blood began to cool. He slowly regained control of his primal urges. Urges that had him on the verge of pouncing on this little creature who was enticing to him—a definite game of cat and mouse.

The glow of his eyes faded and the original hazel color returned, red haze slipping away and his normal vision returned. A slow, one sided grin spread across his face as he took in her attempt to thwart his advances—spine fully erect to make herself seem taller, chin set and raised and those big blue eyes narrowed at him.

He put his hands in his pockets and backed up a step, and then stepped aside to let her brush past him as she left the kitchen.

Trigg watched as she tried to hold on to her cool composure while she made her way back to her room. He was amused at how she climbed the stairs with a little more speed than normal while trying to hide her hasty retreat.

Shaking his head, he walked back to the living room, sat on the couch and pondered over what to do next about his little guest.