Chapter 51

Claudia threw her purse at him and whirled around, sprinting for the back door. Luckily, her perpetually on-edge brain had taken note of its whereabouts. She heard Tyson running behind her and tried for more speed. Her bare feet easily gripped the floor as she rounded the kitchen and reached for the door. She turned the lock, losing precious seconds, and flung it open. She hurtled into the darkness, heedless of the fact that she was unlikely to get far even if she managed to make it to the car barefoot.
"Oomph!" The air rushed out of her as she ran headlong into the rock solid body of Daniel Mercer. The guy she had vowed never to run into in the dark. So far she was doing a terrible job of taking care of herself.
Daniel didn't even flinch when she hit him full tilt. He simply absorbed her weight, his arms coming down around her, trapping her against his hard body. She squeaked in fear and tried to extricate herself from his punishing grip. He seemed quite determined to hang onto her until his boss arrived, which was a few seconds later. She realized from his terrifying strength that Daniel could snap her in two with little effort. He easily handed her off to Tyson and then melted into the darkness without a word.
Tyson re-entered the house, holding her easily in an iron grip. He shut the door and locked it behind him. Claudia found it disconcerting that Daniel wasn't coming in the house. She felt certain he, and maybe others, would guard them in the darkness. But whatever Tyson King had planned for her would take place in the privacy of the house. They might be able to hear her screams, but she knew without a doubt that not a single one of them would interfere. She was once more under the control of a very powerful man. And he wasn't happy with her.
She tried pulling her arm from his grip, but he held her tightly, dragging her along with him as he secured the front door and hefted a bag up over his broad shoulder. Claudia shivered as the cool air caressed her damp body. "Let me go," she demanded, pulling her arm harder.
Tyson ignored her completely and pulled her along as he turned lights out on his way to the staircase. He dragged her up the stairs and into the bedroom. He finally let her go, pushing her toward the bed. "Stay," he snapped when she hit the edge and tumbled onto the mattress.
Claudia righted herself and sat up straight, watching warily as he dropped his bag on the floor, turned his back on her and knelt in front of the fireplace, opening the flue and swiftly working to set up kindling and newspaper. Claudia stood, hugging herself uncertainly and looking toward the stairs. She could probably make it at least partway , maybe all the way , before he caught up with her.
"Don't," his voice rumbled. "Mercer isn't happy with you right now. I wouldn't recommend giving him a reason to put his hands on you again. He may be my man, but he's also a viciously effective militant that doesn't distinguish between the sexes when he decides to take down an enemy."
Claudia shivered in apprehension and let her legs collapse underneath her until she was perched on the edge of the bed. She decided it would be best to give Daniel some time to forget how she took off on his watch. Even though she sensed an implacable element in Tyson's movements that didn't bode well for her future comfort, she knew he was far less likely to do her irreparable harm than his terrifying bodyguard.
"Where did you find him?" she asked curiously, trying to break the heavy silence of the room with conversation.
Tyson didn't say anything for a minute and she thought he wasn't going to answer her idle question. When he spoke his voice was low and thoughtful. "His team was recommended to me when I had business in the DPRK. Something came up while we were trying to get back out of the country. Most of Mercer's guys were killed, cut down in front of us, but he worked like a machine. Taking the attackers on one at a time. He was shot twice. It still took awhile for him to go down, but eventually he weakened. I was able to finish them off and pull him out. He's stuck by my side ever since. I think he would stay even if I refused to pay him."
Claudia wasn't sure why he decided to tell her the truth of their grim story, but somehow it softened her toward them. They had overcome bad odds and made it out alive, forging a bond. Mercer would watch the back of the man he saved, and who had in turn saved him, like a loyal dog ready to rip out the throat of anyone that threatened the giant man. Together they maintained Tyson's empire. One built it while the other protected it.
Tyson struck a match and lit the paper, sitting back on his haunches and watching as the kindling caught fire. After a moment, he gently added a log to the fledgling fire, then pushed himself to his feet. He turned and looked at Claudia where she sat on the bed, her body enveloped in one of his shirts, her long bare legs bent in front of her.
"Come here, Claudia."
Her breath caught in her throat and she shook her head leaning back, away from the intense heat of his gaze. He took a few steps toward her and reached out to flick off the light. Now they were bathed in the soft glow of the fire. She shivered in the cool air of the mountain night, apprehension pinging through her.
"I said, come here, Claudia." Even though she couldn't see his face clearly in the dim lighting there was no mistaking the hard edge to his voice. He had something planned for her.
"What are you going to do?" she whispered into the darkness.
Impatient, he reached for her and hauled her to her feet. She tried slapping at his hands, but her efforts were useless. "Tyson!" she cried out when he reached for the shirt and easily lifted it over her head, bringing her arms up forcefully, and flinging the shirt into a corner. She shivered, naked in front of him, worried, but also defiant. She had no idea what he intended to do to her, but if he wanted her naked she could probably guess at least some of what he wanted.
"Please, Tyson," she asked as he reached for his bag. "Let's talk. I'm sorry you're upset, but I had to leave. You as much as said you led Dante and Franco right to me. I had to get out of there before they found a way to get to me."
She realized right away she had said the wrong thing when she felt his huge body stiffen in anger. His hand tightened, flexing his taut arm and causing his tattoos to ripple ominously. She felt vulnerable, standing naked at his mercy before him. He opened the zip on the bag, pulled something out then dropped the bag back on the floor. She gasped when he reached up and gripped her by the neck. He pulled her up against his chest, forcing her up on her tiptoes, and taking her lips in a ferocious kiss. His massive fingers flexed against her throat, not hurting, but showing her the strength he was capable of. She was like a butterfly fluttering uselessly against his superior musculature.
He pulled back a scant inch. Her fingers flew to her neck, landing on the steely grip of his fingers. When he spoke, his warm, spicy breath caressed her lips. "I don't want to hear you speak his name again."
Confused, her mind a muddled haze of fear and the beginnings of lust, she asked, "Who?"
"You don't get to speak Dante Marquez's name again. He's out of your life for good. Do you understand?" His intensity surprised and confused her.
"Not really," she breathed, her head swimming with the delicious scent of him. What was wrong with her? The guy was close to wringing her neck and yet her body was begging her to close the distance between them.
Tyson growled and shook her a little, his hold on her neck tightening fractionally. "You belong to me now. After this stunt, I'm not willing to allow you an inch of the patience I was willing to give you at the penthouse. You will learn what it means to be my woman, Claudia. I don't want to hear the name of your ex-lover pass those lips. Do you understand me now?"
Her lips parted in surprise. She'd seen the edge of a barbarian in some of his behaviour when he took her out of the club and chased her through his garage, but she thought that was the worst. She had no idea this savage, possessive side to him existed. She wasn't sure if she should be flattered or terribly worried.
"I understand," she whispered, stroking her hand soothingly over his wrist and down his flexed forearm. "Please, Tyson, what are you going to do to me?"
His grip on her neck loosened and his hand trailed down the front of her body, pausing briefly over the hardened peaks of her full breasts and brushing gently across the well-maintained strip of blond pubic hair. He brought his other hand up and snapped something on her wrist. The fingers of her other hand flew to her wrist to inspect the object. It was some kind of wide leather cuff with several short chain links, a few inches long in total, hanging from it. She frowned and felt around for the latch, but her agile fingers quickly discovered that it would not open to her. He had locked it.
"Tyson!" she snapped. "Stop it! I'm not playing kinky games with you right now. Get it off me."
His huge hand covered the bare wrist of her other hand and in seconds she was securely padlocked into the leather cuffs, short chains trailing down from each. She tugged and pulled at the cuffs, but they didn't budge. She stared angrily up at the big man. "What exactly do you think you're doing?" she demanded.
"I'm teaching my woman how to relinquish control and trust someone to take care of her."
Claudia's temper soared and she snarled, "Fuck that! Take this shit off of me right this instant, Tyson King! I'm not your plaything."
She felt his temper spark to match hers. She gasped apprehensively and stumbled back in escape. Her legs hit the bed and without her arms to balance her she would have fallen if he hadn't caught her. He gripped both of her wrists tightly over the leather padding. She whimpered as her body weight was dragged upward by her arms.
"You'll learn, Claudia," he snarled, his full lips pulled back, black against the white of his teeth. He looked so implacable in that moment she cried out in fear as he released her to tumble back on the bed.