Chapter Six

Banter

Tucker

“Do you need another sip?” Tucker signaled to the bottle of water he’d placed in the sleek cup holder between them. Ella had drained most of the liquid when he’d first unlocked the vehicle and allowed her inside. Apparently, his little girl was as dehydrated as she was exhausted. A knot of guilt twisted in his chest at his culpability. He’d been in charge of both her sleep and drink schedule, and he should have done better.

I will do better, he determined as he flicked on the Lamborghini’s headlights and pulled out of its hiding place.

It pained him to leave such a beautiful car nestled on the edge of the forest. It didn’t matter that he had the money to buy a dozen other cars of the same value or that he knew the area well enough to know the chances of anyone else ever stumbling over it were infinitesimal. There was still something fundamentally wrong about leaving such a fantastic vehicle to be slowly overtaken by the trees.

“No, thank you, sir.” Her tone was weary as she settled against the leather seat. “I feel better just being back in a car again.” Her gaze traveled around the classy interior. “Although, I can’t believe you just left this one out here in the woods.”

“No other choice, I’m afraid.” Joining the road, he eased the car into a higher gear. “I love living in my cabin, but I have to be able to get out whenever I want to.”

“That makes sense.” Her voice was a sigh. “And don’t get me wrong, I’m thrilled that you did, but…” She shrugged. “It’s just such a lovely car.”

“I’m glad you approve, little girl.” He genuinely was pleased. Beyond indulging in hedonistic sex and their growing intimacy, this was one of the few times the two of them had seen eye to eye about anything. “What do you drive?”

“You might be surprised to know that I don’t, sir…” Her nose twitched as her lips stretched into a grin.

“You don’t drive?”

“There’s never been a need.” She turned her head to look his way. “I’ve always had a driver if I’ve needed to go somewhere, and that’s been a good thing, given how many champagne cocktails I’ve sunk in the past.”

“Right.” He chuckled. “Fair enough.”

“I like this, though, sir.” She glanced over her shoulder at the back seat. “What is it?”

“This is a Lamborghini Huracán STO.” He couldn’t deny the pride in his voice as he announced the make and model. The Huracán was a beautiful car. There was no doubt the sleek vehicle deserved better than the way he’d treated her.

“Nice.” Her eyes sparkled as she settled back in her seat. “Maybe I’ll look into getting one when I get home…” Her voice trailed away as presumably she, too, stumbled over the end of her sentence.

When she got home …

She swallowed at her apparent certainty. He hadn’t given her any indication about when that would be. On the contrary, at the first sign that Ella might be freed, he’d dragged her across the woods and was now driving her to another location. There was no suggestion that she’d be purchasing her own vehicle any time soon.

“It’s okay.” His hand slid from the wheel to her knee, and squeezing her thigh, he glanced briefly at her bewildered face. “You can say what you’re thinking, little girl.”

The sudden strained silence conveyed the fact they were both considering her future freedom. No one knew when that might come. Not even the man who was effectively holding her hostage—if that was what she still was.

“I…” She hesitated. “It doesn’t matter. It’s nothing.”

“Your future is not nothing.” His chide was gentle as his hand rose to capture her delicate palm. The road ahead was straight and aside from any unexpected animals loitering in the darkness, he could easily maneuver with only one hand for the time being. “I know between Bennett and me, we snatched that away from you. I know that’s not right.”

He felt bad about it, although the thought of dropping her back at whatever constituted her old life filled him with dread. Tucker could conceive a life without his little girl, but the problem was he just didn’t want to.

“Yeah.” She pulled in a breath. “You did kinda change everything.”

“I’ve been a sadistic son-of-a-bitch to you.” He hadn’t anticipated the swelling urge to confess would hit home as he drove back toward the city, but he didn’t deny it, either.

Looking back, he remembered what a swine he’d been the first day of her captivity. He’d taken enormous liberties, and despite the inconvenience she’d inspired, he could hardly blame her for the way she’d tried to flee. Any right-minded person would have run from abrupt incarceration. Ella’s response had been sane, not spiteful.

I got her back, though. His lips twitched. I have her now, and I won’t fuck things up again.

Releasing her hand, his attention returned to the dark road ahead of them.

“I’m sorry for the way I treated you.”

“Thanks.” Her voice was clipped with emotion. “I appreciate that, sir, yet you still haven’t let me go.”

“No.” He sensed the weight of her stare as she waited for his answer. “I guess I don’t want to.”

He almost laughed at the verdict. He’d concluded the same thing many times in his head, yet hearing it aloud made him want to snigger. What had happened to Tucker since Ella had arrived? Since leaving the military behind him, he’d always been content on his own. How had she managed to come and alter him in such a fundamental way?

“I like having you around, little girl.” It was his turn to shrug.

“You like the sex you mean, sir.” Her tone was wry.

“Yes,” he admitted. “I love the sex, but I mean more than that.”

Wait… had he just confessed to having feelings for her? He’d made that mistake at the cabin in the afterglow of fucking but hadn’t expected the words to escape in the cold light of the evening air.

“Oh.” She glanced away, his admission seemingly having stopped her in her tracks.

His heart pounded as he struggled to find the right words to remedy his mistake.

“I like what we’ve found together,” he corrected. “It was a rocky start, but I think we’ve found our groove.”

“Our groove?” She bit down on her lower lip, although her voice was laced with amusement. “You mean, you ordering me to call you sir while you strip and spank me?”

“Right.” His cock roused at her delicious explanation. “That. But I’ve enjoyed learning more about you as well.”

What’s happening here?

Gripping the wheel tighter, he willed himself some damn composure. He’d been in control the entire trek through the forest. Even when they’d encountered one of Bennett’s goons, he’d handled the situation with more grace than he was managing this conversation.

“Thanks, sir.” She sounded sincere as she went on. “I’ll admit it wasn’t all bad in your crappy cabin.”

“Crappy?” His brow rose at the insult. Tucker had worked on that place for months and had been proud of what he’d achieved out there in the forest. Even though he was glad to have gotten them both to safety, a part of him still longed for its desolate isolation, and deep down, he prayed that the morons following Bennett didn’t destroy everything he’d created. “That comment deserves a spanking in its own right!”

“No way.” She shuffled further away from him with a giggle, folding her arms across her chest. “I’m too tired for that.”

“Hmmm.” He shot her a sideways glance. Sure, he could see how she would be tired. Despite her youth, Ella didn’t seem to have much stamina for physical fitness, and he accepted her last few nights of rest had been broken at best. “Maybe you should get some sleep then.”

“Yes.” She peered at him from the shadows, her expression caught somewhere between concern and excitement.

That one look seemed reminiscent of their entire entanglement so far. There had been so much emotion—resentment entwined with anger that morphed into the hottest passion he could remember.

“I will if you don’t mind, sir?”

“Go ahead.” He forced his gaze back to the road, watching two fireflies dance fleetingly in the illumination of his headlights before whizzing away. “You rest, little girl.”

“But what about you, sir?” She shifted in her seat. “You must be exhausted as well.”

“I’m fine,” he told her. “I need less sleep than you.”

“Okay.” She sounded unsure, but as her eyelids fluttered closed, it seemed as though she was too weary to argue.

That’s a first.

“Oh, and little girl…” He smiled at the way her body jerked.

“Yes.” Her voice caught as her gaze found his in the dark. “Sir.”

“I won’t forget your little remark about my cabin.” There was no real malice in his tone, only a desire for her to understand that her quip hadn’t been overlooked. Her perfect little derriere would pay for the glib comment, eventually.

“Is that a threat, sir?” She sounded brave enough from the safety of her seat, but he’d wager her attitude would change once he had her back over his lap.

“No, little girl.” He adjusted the temperature of the interior so she could rest without being too cold. “That, gorgeous, is a promise.”