Mastered by Malone (Haven Texas Book 6) Read online

  Some choices.

  She didn’t want to wait until the bath filled. “I want a shower by myself.”

  “That wasn’t one of your options, now was it?”

  Shit. His voice had turned to steel. And she was weak. Weak because she couldn’t resist when he used that tone.

  “What’s it going to be, baby?”

  “Please stop calling me that.” Because she couldn’t resist him when he called her that in that low tone of voice. As though they actually meant something to one another. As though they had some sort of relationship. When, in reality, she was just an obligation. A debt to be repaid.

  Tears stung at her eyes and she blinked, shoving them back. Nothing good came from crying. She’d learned that.

  “This is going above and beyond, isn’t it?” she asked. That fatigue was really hitting her now and it was making her feel melancholy. Because the only reason he cared about her was the obligation his family owed her cousin. No other reason. And while his brothers might be friendlier, she was still just a guest. When she left she’d just be a memory. Hell, mostly, they were more interested in her cooking than anything else.

  But sometimes she could pretend she was part of this crazy family. It made her feel less alone.

  “You’re really not with me, are you?” he murmured. “Okay, sweetheart, I want you to just relax. I’m going to make all the decisions right now and all you have to do is what you’re told.”

  “You like to boss people around, don’t you?” she mumbled.

  “It’s what I’m good at.”

  With that, he pulled off his jeans.

  She immediately slammed her hands over her eyes. “You have no underwear on. Why don’t you have any underwear on?”

  “Mia,” he laughed. “Jesus, in all my years, me stripping has never made a woman cover her eyes and ask me about my habit of wearing underwear.”

  She got that her reaction was maybe a little childish. And probably more than a little insulting. But he was naked. Alec Malone, the man who centered in so many of her dreams was standing there naked.

  And she . . . she was standing there in her underwear, covering her eyes like an idiot.

  “This . . . I . . . shit.”

  “Second time I’ve ever heard you swear,” he commented. “Not sure I like it.”

  She removed her hand from her eyes, looking straight up at him. “Fuck.”

  The little girl had just challenged him. Well, he wouldn’t be ignoring that.

  He cupped her chin, lifting her face up to him. “What did you just say?”

  “I said, fuck.”

  “Careful, little one, you’re playing with fire.”

  Her eyes were wide in her pale face. Shit. He was an asshole. She’d just had a panic attack. She was exhausted. She was swaying where she stood and he was screwing around, making her stand there when he could already have her tucked into bed.

  Question was, which bed?

  He wrapped his arm around her waist and steered her towards the shower. He debated whether to try and get her bra and panties off. But he figured that was just going to create more of an argument, and, right then, he wanted to get her clean and into bed.

  He opened the door to the shower. “In you go.”

  The bra and panties were cheap cotton. He frowned. About as crappy as the rest of her clothes. He knew she probably didn’t have much money. Being on the run cut into funds quickly when you couldn’t hold down a regular job. But why the hell hadn’t her cousin taken care of her?

  Screw waiting for her to tell him what she needed, he’d send one of the boys down to get her more clothes and shit.

  When she didn’t move, he wrapped his hands around her waist and lifted her in. She let out a small squeal. But he stepped in behind her before she could try to escape.

  “Malone!”

  “Easy,” he soothed. “We’re just going to get clean then I’ll put you to bed.” Might kill him. His cock was already hard and aching, even though she hadn’t seemed to notice. Probably a good thing. Even if it was a bit of a hit to his ego.

  He snorted. This was the first time he’d ever been in a shower with a woman who he hadn’t or didn’t intend to fuck. He guessed maybe he was a bit spoiled when it came to women. He’d never really had to work at it. He’d never had one try to escape as Mia was trying to do.

  She brushed against his dick as she tried to turn towards the door, and he gasped in a sharp breath. Fuck, it would be so easy to take her. To push her against the wall and lift her onto his cock. Okay, maybe he was arrogant as fuck, but it was obvious that Mia had little experience with sex. She was innocent. Sweet. Not for him at all— she would be all too easy to seduce.

  She’s an obligation. A responsibility. And she obviously had PTSD, a fact nobody had seen fit to share with him. If he’d known he’d have been keeping a closer eye on her. Aside from a few issues, she’d pretty much been a model guest. She hadn’t disobeyed him once. Hadn’t tried to murder him in his sleep, even when he’d been a complete ass. She’d stuck to the ranch. She liked to please people. And she tended to put everyone else first.

  That needed to stop. Damn woman needed a keeper.

  And that can’t be you.

  “Oh my God, you’re hard.” Her horrified voice cut through his thoughts.

  He sighed. “If I wasn’t such a confident person, you’d be well on your way to giving me a complex.”

  “What?” She couldn’t move her gaze from his dick.

  “You’ve seen one before, right?” he asked, a bit more impatiently than he’d intended.

  “What?”

  “Mia. Eyes. Now.”

  She shot her gaze up to his then groaned and winced, her hand coming up to her temple.

  “Headache?” he murmured, turning her around so she faced away from him. Having her stare at his dick wasn’t helping him regain control. He reached for some shower gel and started washing her shoulders. He then massaged the tight muscles in her neck and shoulders.

  She let out a low groan of pleasure that went straight to his cock. Yep, seemed like he was in for a case of blue balls tonight. He washed down her back and undid the clasp of her bra.

  “Malone,” she said in a low voice.

  “Just washing you, baby. Nothing more. I promise.” Even if it fucking killed him, he’d keep that promise.

  Obligation. Responsibility. Fragile.

  Yeah, that last one really got to him. Because while there was a core of steel at the heart of her—she couldn’t have gotten through what she had without it—there was also an air of fragility about her. He didn’t do fragile. Or needy. Not that she clung in any way. Or demanded anything of him, which for some weird reason pissed him off. But he felt a need to provide for her.

  Obligation. Responsibility. Fragile.

  He needed to get that tattooed on his brain. He left her panties on. That was just one step too far. Okay, it might be argued that he’d already stepped way over that line, but it was a last line of defense.

  He turned her around. She held an arm over her breasts, keeping her bra pressed against them.

  “I can wash myself,” she told him quietly.

  “All right.”

  He saw a flare of surprise in her eyes. He kept a close eye on her. He didn’t want her keeling over on him. She slowly reached for some gel and half-heartedly rubbed it over herself, keeping one arm over her breasts.

  He sighed and turned his back. “Wash yourself properly. You have thirty seconds before I turn back around.

  “O-okay.”

  He waited, listening to the sounds coming from behind him and took that moment to try and calm himself. He needed a trip to the club. Hell, he’d spent more time at the club these last two weeks that he had in the last four months.

  When he turned, she had her bra in one hand, her arm back over her breasts. She was swaying again, and he knew she was going to crash.

  Yeah, the club was out tonight when she was in this state.

/>   “I’m sorry to be such a nuisance, Malone.”

  “I’m used to dealing with nuisances,” he replied.

  She frowned up at him, a hint of red entering her pale cheeks. That was better. He turned away to hide the grin trying to form. Teasing her was fun.

  Teasing her? Was that what he was doing? He never teased anyone.

  “Thanks a lot,” she muttered as he turned off the water and stepped out of the shower, quickly grabbing a dry towel. He held it out to her. She quickly took it while he turned away to get another towel. When he turned back, the towel was wrapped around her, her panties and bra in her hand. He took them and threw them into the hamper.

  “You’re welcome.”

  She huffed out an irritated breath. “You know, sometimes I can’t tell if you’re really obtuse or just trying to annoy me.”

  “Come on. Time for bed. You’re exhausted.” And he was willing to bet that headache was getting worse.

  “Okay, sure.”

  Yep, she was really gone. Her eyelids were drooping. He took her hand and led her out into his bedroom. When he stopped, she did the same and just stood there. He searched through one of his drawers and pulled out a T-shirt, popping it over her head then pulling the towel down. He turned down the bed.

  “In you go.”

  “Into your bed?” She looked up at him quizzically, although she didn’t appear alarmed or like she was going to bolt. Definitely out of it.

  “Yes, Mia. Into my bed.” He made his voice deliberately hard. She needed rest and he wasn’t fucking around with her anymore. He was fully prepared to tie her to the bed if necessary. Although probably not a good idea considering what she’d been through.

  Fortunately, she didn’t argue, just climbed up into his huge bed and settled down on her side, facing him. She drew her legs up to her chest and held them there. He didn’t like that she had curled up into a defensive position.

  He grabbed some underwear, in concession to his bedmate since he liked to sleep naked.

  “Baby, you got any painkillers for that headache?”

  “Yes, in the top drawer in my bathroom.”

  “All right, I’ll be back in a minute. You stay right where you are.”

  “Uh-huh.” Her eyes remained closed; her face even more pale than before. That headache had to be a killer. He walked out of the room and down to the other end of the hallway to her bedroom. The alarm for the house was already on. He’d do another check of the house once he got her settled though.

  He walked through her bedroom which was neat as a pin. She sure did like things tidy. The house had never been so clean, not even when he’d employed someone to do it.

  He shook his head as he moved into the bathroom. She was getting to him. Kicker was, he knew she didn’t even mean to. She wasn’t doing anything deliberately. Wasn’t being anyone but herself.

  Just as he suspected, there wasn’t any feminine shit strewn around. Just a toothbrush and hairbrush by the sink. He opened the top drawer and grabbed the three bottles in there. All of them prescriptions. One a strong painkiller for headaches and migraines. The other was a sedative.

  His gut tightened as he looked at the third container. An anti-anxiety drug. He opened the lid, and saw it was nearly empty. Shit.

  Why the fuck hadn’t her cousin told him she had anxiety? Not that it wasn’t understandable. Did she have PTSD? She should be having therapy. But, then, she couldn’t do that without a paper trail, could she?

  Except, he knew a shrink who would help him out without any paperwork. Part of this was his fault. She was his responsibility now. He should have asked her when she first came here if she had any medication. Anything he needed to be aware of. That was on him. He’d been too busy avoiding her and he hadn’t taken care of her the way he should have.

  Of course he’d expected her to come to him if she needed anything. The fact she’d kept all this hidden pissed him off. And he’d be letting her know that. Once she was feeling better.

  He grabbed both containers. She had a bottle of water by the bed and he got that too before returning to his bedroom. He’d left the light on by the bed. It looked like she hadn’t moved at all.

  “Still awake?” he asked quietly.

  “Hard to sleep when there’s a jackhammer trying to crack a hole in my head,” she told him.

  “Got your painkillers and the water that was beside your bed.” He put the anti-anxiety drugs on the bedside table then shook out a couple of the strong painkillers and handed them to her. She took them and swallowed some water before laying down again.

  “I’ll turn the light out.”

  “No, wait—” she said urgently, trying to sit up, then groaning with obvious pain.

  “Easy, lie still.” He placed a hand on her shoulder.

  “I . . . the light . . . I should go to back . . . to my room.”

  Yeah, that wasn’t happening. But he got the gist of the problem.

  “You don’t like sleeping in the dark.”

  “Not anymore. Not since . . . ”

  His jaw tightened at the reminder. Not since she’d discovered a bunch of dead bodies and found herself on the run from the fucking mob. Yeah, he should have guessed the dark wasn’t her friend.

  “Bathroom light be enough?”

  She looked up at him. “You don’t think I’m being ridiculous? I know it’s childish and silly, but I—”

  Yeah. Enough.

  “Babe, you’ve been through more shit in the last six months than most people go through their whole lives. You need the light on, the light stays on. Now, bathroom light? It enough?”

  “Yes, thank you.”

  He turned on the bathroom light, leaving the door partially open. He wasn’t used to sleeping with the light on, but he could put up with it for one night. Tomorrow night, she’d be back in her own bed. He switched off the light by the bed then walked out to do a check of the house. He took his time, hoping she’d be asleep by the time he got back. He was also hoping that his hard-on from hell would go down.

  When he walked back into his bedroom and saw her lying there, curled up under the blankets, he knew the likelihood of getting his dick to rest was pretty much nil. He sighed. Sure, he could go take care of matters himself, but that held pretty much zero appeal.

  He climbed up into his side of the bed.

  His side. The whole damn bed was his side. He needed to get his shit together. He pulled the covers up and rolled over, facing away from her.

  “Malone?” she said in a sleepy voice.

  “Go to sleep, babe,” he growled at her, hoping to scare her into doing as she was told. He needed to get back to her avoiding him and him ignoring her. Yep, that would be the best idea.

  And he had very little chance of that happening. His protective instincts were well and truly stirred. He wasn’t used to feeling this protective of a woman. But then he’d never had one live with him.

  “Thank you.”

  Fuck. She was killing him.

  7

  “Mia, wake up.”

  She slowly drifted out of the fog of sleep and blinked up at the blurry face of Alec Malone looming over her. She let out a gasp and tried to sit up, but he placed a hand in the middle of her chest.

  “Easy, babe. Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you.”

  How could him in her bedroom not startle her? But wait . . . this wasn’t her bedroom at the ranch. Where was she? Oh, shit. Oh, no.

  “Fuck,” she muttered to herself.

  “Again with the swearing. I don’t like it.”

  “I’ve heard you swear plenty.”

  “Don’t like it on you. Someone who looks like you shouldn’t have filth spilling out of their mouth.”

  “That is a horrible double standard.”

  He sighed. Glared down at her. “I’ve gotta get going, got work to do, but I need to talk to you first. And not about my double standards.”

  Wait. What time was it? She looked around for a clock, spotting it.
r />   “Oh, no, I’m late. Breakfast!”

  “Boys have already been and gone.”

  “I’m so sorry!” Her one freaking job. The only way she had for paying him back—she knew it was a pretty shitty payment—and she’d slept in.

  “I’m so sorry. It won’t happen again. It’s just . . . I don’t . . . hell.” She tried to get up and once again, he held her back.

  “Stop apologizing. I don’t have time for it.”

  She frowned up at him. “Are you always this grumpy when you first wake up?”

  “I’ve been awake for hours.” He stared down at her for a long moment. “How often do you have panic attacks?”

  “Not very often,” she lied.

  His gaze narrowed. “What was the rule about lying, little one?”

  She heaved out a much-put-upon breath and tried to move so she was sitting, since she felt at a decided disadvantage. To her surprise, he arranged pillows behind her back as though he cared about her comfort.

  Don’t let it lull you into a false sense that you mean anything more to him than you do.

  “Fine. I have them every now and then.”

  “Anti-anxiety medication helps you control them?”

  She stiffened. What? How did he know about that? She looked over at the bottle he picked up off the bedside table.

  “You snooped in my drawers?” she snapped.

  He raised an eyebrow and she could clearly see the disapproval in his gaze. Shit. How did he manage to make her feel like a surly teenager with just one look?

  “I went and got your painkillers last night for you. Remember? You told me where to find them and this bottle was next to them. Along with some sedatives that barely looked touched.”

  “I don’t like to take them. I don’t like to feel out of it,” she explained, hating the knowing look in his eyes.”

  “Why didn’t tell me that you were on medication for anxiety. How long you been taking these? Since you witnessed that hit? Anything else going on other than anxiety attacks? Was last night a typical attack?”

  “You sure have a lot of questions.”

  “Which I wouldn’t have if you’d come clean from the start.”