MisplacedLessons Read Online Free

quietly
parted the curtains, anxious for some light. The person never stirred. Andrew
kept the bat raised as he retuned to the bed.
    With the moonlight shining in, he could see much clearer—and
was shocked at the image of a naked woman in his bed.
    He glanced around to confirm they were alone. The rest of
his room looked normal, nothing touched or disturbed. The only thing out of
place was the beauty who’d taken up residence between his silk sheets.
    Andrew stood for several moments trying to figure out his
next move. The rest of the house was quiet, but part of him wondered if the
woman was here as a ruse, a distraction. Shit. He needed to lighten up on the
murder-mystery books. He’d read two stories in the past three days as he killed
time waiting in airports because of delayed flights.
    He wasn’t even supposed to be here. The only people who knew
he was in Chicago were Mike and Tom.
    The woman rolled from her side to her back, treating him to
an unhindered view of her left breast as the sheet drifted lower.
    His cock responded, stealing much-needed blood from his
brain.
    This woman had broken into his home. Somehow she’d known the
house was empty. He fought down his arousal and decided to take action, to get
some answers. He carefully put the bat down, leaning it against the nightstand
in case he needed to grab it again quickly.
    Then he slowly reached behind the headboard, silently
searching for the straps he knew were there. He hadn’t brought a woman back to
the house in years out of respect for his sister, but he also hadn’t bothered
to remove the restraints he’d had installed when he was younger. Once the strap
was freed from its hiding place, he walked to the other side of the bed,
looking for the mate.
    He took a deep breath, trying to calm down. He wasn’t sure
exactly what was causing the sudden racing of his heart—the anticipation of a
fight or rock-hard, pulse-pounding arousal.
    Moving ever so carefully, he reached for one of the woman’s
wrists, dragging it toward the first restraint. If he could fasten the straps
before she woke, it would make his job of questioning her easier.
    Unfortunately, luck was not on his side. The woman’s eyes
snapped open at his touch. She started to scream, so Andrew covered her mouth
with his hand as she began to fight him in earnest. While he had to have her by
almost a hundred pounds, the petite woman waged one hell of a battle. She
scratched his face as he struggled to reclaim his grip on her hand. Despite her
naked state, she kicked off the covers, freeing her legs to pummel his thighs
with blows strong enough to leave bruises.
    Forced to keep her mouth covered, lest she wake up the
neighborhood with her screaming, he tried to subdue her one-handed. When that
attempt failed, he released her mouth. The woman started to scream again, so he
quickly grabbed her blouse from the floor and stuffed some of the material into
her mouth, muffling her cries.
    Her initial shock at being gagged gave him the precious
seconds he needed to snap a restraint around one of her wrists. When she
realized what he was doing, she doubled her efforts. With one of her hands out
of play, it was easier to capture and restrain the second.
    For the first time, desperation and fear crept onto her
face.
    “I’m not going to hurt you.” His words sounded ridiculous
even to himself. He’d gagged her and was now straddling her naked body, holding
her legs to the mattress with his own after tying her to the bed. Regardless of
who she was or why she was there, she’d be insane not to be afraid of his
intentions.
    She twisted her head, trying to dislodge the shirt from her
mouth.
    “If I take it out, do you promise not to scream?”
    She blinked rapidly then nodded her assent.
    He pulled the material away, ready to replace it if she
broke her vow.
    “Untie me.”
    “No.” Andrew reached up to touch his tender cheek, his
fingers finding the raised welts she’d put there with her long