Page 49 of Tainted Desire

Right?

My phone beeped, then died. I stared at it, my mouth gaping. How? Why? I didn’t even think about checking the battery.

Damn. Now what?

I should’ve used my resources to book a flight instead of cyberstalking Mr. Cocky. I searched for a charger—I did not find one.

Then I slouched down on the sofa and stared outside the window at the illuminated casino in the not-so-far distance.

And suddenly, the events of the day, the fresh air, the alcohol, and the long hours caught up with me, and my eyelids got impossibly heavy.

When I woke up, the first thing I noticed was the weird sense of weightlessness I was feeling. The second thing was the darkness and shadows passing by through my eyelids. And then there were the strong arms, slung around me like steel bands.

I popped my eyes open. Stared at the moving lights, which were indeed lights, then focused on the man carrying me.

“What are you doing?”

Alex looked down at me with a frown. “What I should’ve done the moment you set foot on this island. Setting some boundaries.”

I narrowed my gaze. What the hell was he talking about?

The moment I sat foot on this island, he did nothing but tell me what I could and couldn’t do.

Mostly what I couldn’t do—according to him.

The real question here was what carrying me had to do with setting boundaries.

“Let me guess, the boundary you’re enforcing right now is I can’t set foot in any establishment that belongs to you? And since the whole island is yours, you’re throwing me off a cliff?”

He chuckled.

I froze.

Seeing Alex chuckle, feeling the vibrations against my body, triggered something inside of me.

Something dangerously like…desire? No, it was more than just physical—more like a deep longing for…

For what?

His attention? His lips on mine?

Not good.

“You’re funny even when you’re sleepy.”

I glared at him. “I’m not sleepy. And I would much rather walk, so please, let me down.”

“No.”

“No?”

He gave a single nod.

What the hell?

“Are you for real? I’m not asking here. This Italian wannabe macho-mafioso shit you’re pulling might work with other women, but it sure doesn’t work with me.”

Another chuckle, then he shifted my weight and opened a door with a key card.