The Temptress

Chapter One

Christiana Montgomery Mathison put her hand in the tub of water to check the temperature and then began to disrobe. It was going to feel good to bathe after a day of hard riding and hours of sitting huddled over a desk writing. She had her story finished now and tomorrow she'd start the arduous journey back home.

When she was nude, she realized that she didn't have her dressing gown and went to the big double-doored wardrobe to get it.

When she opened the right hand door, her heart seemed to skip a beat, for there was a man standing inside the cabinet, his eyes wide, his mouth open as he looked at Chris's pretty little body in its unclad state. Chris, alert from years as a reporter, slammed the door shut and turned the key in the lock. Softly, obviously not wanting to be discovered, the man began to pound on the inside of the cabinet door. Chris had one foot toward the bed where she planned to take the spread off and cover herself, but then things happened too quickly for her to react.

The left side of the wardrobe opened behind her and out stepped another man, and he had her in his arms before she could even take a breath or see his face. Her face was buried in his chest, his arms around the back of her, one hand on her bare shoulders, the other resting just above the curve of her buttocks.

"Who are you What do you want " she asked and was appalled at the fear in her voice. The man was large and she knew she'd have no chance of success if she tried to escape him. "If it's money you want--" she began but his arms tightened on her and she didn't finish the sentence.

His left hand began to stroke her hair as it hung halfway down her back, gently tangling his fingers in its soft blondness, and even through her fear she found herself relaxing somewhat. She managed to turn her head sideways so she could breathe more easily, but he didn't allow her to move the rest of her body as he kept her pinned close and intimately to him.

"Let me out of here," hissed the man locked in the wardrobe.

The man holding Chris didn't react, he just kept stroking her hair, his right hand inching down her back toward her buttocks. She'd never had a man touch her bare skin before and his rough, calloused hands felt good.

She recovered herself and began to struggle against him, trying to get free, but he held her firmly, not hurting her, but showing no signs that he ever intended to release her.

"Who are you " she repeated. "Tell me what you want and I'll see if I can get it for you. I don't have much money, but I do have a bracelet that's worth something. Release me and I'll get it." When she again tried to move, he held her fast.