Satisfaction Delivered

When Vi woke, it was to the smell of something delicious. It took her a moment to gather her thoughts, and while she sought clarity, she remained still, not wanting to look awake.

Her memory was fuzzy. A run-in with her pursuers, then Hammer, her journey to this fine hotel, a bath, then nothing.

“Well, well, beauty finally wakes.”

Crap. She couldn’t move her arms or legs. Silk sheets told her she’d been bound naked, in bed. But she’d been covered up and wore…socks? The bastard had tied her to her bed, naked, and covered her feet so she wouldn’t be cold. She’d never in her life put socks on the bare feet of a target. What the hell?

Normally she’d feel unnerved, anxious at being so vulnerable with a man so close. With Hammer, rage became her world. She seethed with emotion, unable to understand how the blasted man could make her feel so out of control.

See? Should have killed him earlier. “Untie me,” she ordered through gritted teeth and opened her eyes.

He smirked down at her, standing next to the bed holding a plate of something. He wore jeans and a tee-shirt that showcased thick, muscular arms and those big hands. “Now, now, sugar plum. I think we have other things on the agenda.”

She snarled, “I will kill—”

“For a piece of this chicken?” he said as he took a bite. “I get you.” He speared a piece and shoved the fork at her lips. It was either open up or have the chicken mushed over her mouth.

She opened and tasted a lemon garlic chicken to die for. At that moment, her stomach rumbled.

“Yeah, you look hungry.” He looked over her, as if he could see through the bed cover, and she fought the urge to blush. “I mean, you’re sexy as hell. Love your body, truly. And those breasts, they’re full. Such pretty nipples.” He sighed. She wanted to brain him. “But you need to eat to maintain your strength.”

“You’re an asshole.”

He squatted down, his dark eyes gleaming with humor and, yes, satisfaction. “Not so much fun being drugged, is it, Nurse Ratched?”

“Will you quit calling me that? You’re such a—oomph.”

He shoved more chicken in her mouth, then propped some pillows under her head, making it easier for her to swallow by allowing her to partially sit up. “There. Can’t have you choking, can we? Unless I’m the one doing the strangling of course.”

Hammer pulled up a chair and sat next to her, alternating between taking a bite then feeding her the next. They cleared the plate before he brought over another filled with steamed and buttered vegetables.

To her surprise, he didn’t ask her any questions. He fed her, shared his water with her, and made sure she ate everything on the tray that sat near the bed.

“What’s under there?” she asked, nodding at the last plate covered by a steel dome.

“Dessert.” He smiled, but she caught the mean edge of his expression all the same. “That’s your reward for telling me what I want to know.”

“And if I don’t?” Better to get the details out ahead of time.

“Oh, I’m hoping you don’t.” He kept smiling.

This time she felt something she hadn’t felt in a long time. Fear. The look he gave her didn’t seem to belong to the Hammer she knew.