Tower in the Woods Read Online Free Page B

her midtwenties, which still meant he was over a decade older than her, but it also meant she would be able to handle what was going to come. He might be extremely sexually attracted to her. In fact, he was becoming more and more aroused with every minute they continued to breathe the same air, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to treat her like an asset. He was going to pump her for information, nicely at first, and he sincerely hoped she would cooperate. If she didn’t, then he was still going to get the information he wanted out of that kissable mouth one way or another, and he was going to enjoy every moment of it.
    “Yeah. I noticed that,” Dane coldly replied. At the same time the words left his mouth, he grabbed the pistol. His much stronger hand squeezed hard enough for the metal to be jerked out of the sniper’s grip. She put up more resistance than he thought. He hadn’t expected her arms to be that strong, but she was still no match for his strength. Little Nel might be one hell of a sniper, but Dane was a master at hand-to-hand combat. In a single smooth move he dropped the Glock’s magazine and pulled back its slide before lunging into her, his momentum throwing the surprisingly toned body onto the ground. Despite the muscled leanness he felt under his chest, he doubted she weighed more than a hundred and thirty pounds. Once he settled his groin more firmly into those slim legs, he decided she was probably closer to one-twenty, and all of that was lean muscle. Despite her strength she was extremely small-boned so he was able to easily cage her with his much larger body.
    Special Agent Dane Prince finally had a member of the WITCH trapped and at his mercy, and a pretty one to boot. Things were looking up.

Chapter 3
    “I’m going to let you go now, Nel,” the man said calmly as he remained motionless on top of her body. Each time he breathed, she felt that rock-hard chest inflate to crush her against the rough wood floor, pressing against her ribs hard enough she felt each expansion and contraction. He smelled like burning pinecones, the textured scent affecting her in a way she couldn’t quite describe. All she knew was she didn’t feel like struggling, didn’t particularly want to stop feeling the heat coming off his body, didn’t mind the mingling of their breaths as they gazed deeply into each other’s eyes.
    Nel had never thought of herself as fragile before now. She had never been the fastest or strongest in her age group, but she had always performed well enough to be part of the top tier. Her skill with ranged weapons had gotten her noticed, and by the time she was sixteen she was considered one of the most lethal members of the WITCH. She had always believed herself supremely capable of handling her own problems, accustomed to filling the role of protector rather than victim, hunter rather than prey.
    None of that seemed apparent now that she was covered by this man’s body. Compared to his massive size her rib cage was minuscule and fragile, her neck easily snapped, her small fists unlikely to do any damage. No wonder Mother Gothel had warned all the younger members repeatedly about the dangers of men. Nel had never encountered any entity that threatened her more than he. For the first time in her life she felt vulnerable, and the scariest part was she actually liked it. She had never realized before now how tired she was, how heavily the weight of responsibility sat on her capable shoulders, how draining it was to be solely responsible for every minutiae of her life. In this moment, as she lay motionless, trapped and defenseless under this man’s weight, she wasn’t in control.
    Then the pressure disappeared and the man stood looming above Nel’s supine body, his large hand extended as a peace offering. Warily, she looked into those brown eyes, not quite understanding what was happening. Even though he was no longer physically trapping her, his presence was imposing. This was