Zoe grew more frantic with every passing moment. Rollo had ruined everything. If he had just minded his own business, she could have taken the jewels to Dimitri and paid off her debt. She would finally be free and then she and Rollo could have had a fresh start together. Now he had jeopardized everything. Not only had he put their future relationship in danger, he had endangered her life.

Dimitri had contacted her, telling her that he wanted her to bring him the jewels tonight or else. She was supposed to meet him back at the lodge where she would give him the jewels, finally paying off her debt. But stupid Rollo had intercepted her right at the last moment.

“Please let me go, Rollo,” she pleaded. “I need those jewels.”

“Tell me what’s going on here, Zoe,” he insisted.

It would be so much easier if she could just tell him the truth. But she couldn’t. He already knew she was a jewel thief, and that was bad enough. But what would he think of her if he knew she had been involved with the Mafia for three years? Catching her and arresting her had effectively destroyed any hope for a relationship. Zoe knew that a police commander could never love a thief. Now she was fighting for her own life. If she didn’t get those jewels to Dimitri, she was dead. She knew that for a fact.

If she was in police custody or not, her life was in danger every moment she didn’t deliver those jewels. Ivanov did not look favorably upon employees who failed him. She had already well-versed in the vile things he did to people who didn’t come through for him.

She had the scar along her side from where he’d cut her the last time they’d made love. If you could call what he’d done to her “making love”. While he was doing it, he detailed what he had done to employees who had failed him. He cut her while he drove himself inside her.

After that, he never touched her again. He treated her like some kind of diseased garbage, and never missed an opportunity to remind her that she needed to pay him back. Every day she continued to owe him, racked up more debt. Then six months ago, he had given her the assignment to come to Fate Mountain and take Caitlin Somerset’s jewels.

She had seen it as a chance to be free, but she had never expected to fall in love with the town, and the people, or Rollo. But she had, and now that Rollo had arrested her, she knew she could never have any of it. If all she got out of this was her life, then that would have to be enough. Rollo had the jewels in his pocket. She had to find a way to get them back and get away from him.

She knew she would spend the rest of her life yearning for his touch, but she would have to travel to the other side of the world and never see him again. That’s what she had decided on by the time they pulled up in front of an extremely rustic cabin several hours later. They had spent the entire drive climbing up steep gravel roads, gaining elevation to where the summer air was cooler. She felt a chill on her face as Rollo pulled her out of the SUV.

“Where the hell are we?” she insisted.

“Somewhere no one can find you,” he said in a gravelly voice.

He pulled her toward the cabin door and unlocked it with an old key. Once inside, the musty smell told her the cabin was quite old. Rollo directed her to sit on an ancient loveseat from the nineteen eighties while he went to the fireplace mantel and lit a kerosene lantern. The light illuminating the cabin allowed Zoe to see the details of her prison.

It was a one-room cabin with a fireplace, a hand-hewn log table, and a rustic queen-size bed. The couch was under the front window, right next to the fireplace and across from the table. The bed was shoved against the wall and the other corner.

“I hope the accommodations are up to your standards,” he said, lighting a second kerosene lantern.

“I’ve seen worse,” she said.

One year, she had lived in a surf shack on the beach in Mexico. But being kidnapped by her cop mate and taken to a crappy cabin was actually far worse than not having indoor plumbing on the beach.

“I’m glad you approve,” he said, kneeling in front of the fireplace to arrange the logs and hearth.

Zoe fidgeted in her seat, her hands still bound behind her back. If she could just angle her hand the right way, she could use her claw to pick the lock. Rollo had a fire going several moments later, stood up, and walked toward her. He gazed down at her, his blue eyes radiant in the firelight. She could smell his desire, and she could see his arousal bulge in front of her as he looked down at her.

“You can’t hold me like this,” she said, her throat dry.

“Why not?” he taunted.

“You and I both know this is all kinds of illegal,” she said.

“By whose standards?” he asked, kneeling in front of her so that they were looking right into each other’s eyes.

“By the standards of the government you work for, jackass,” she taunted back.

“Oh, little kitty, how wrong you are. For one thing, you are obviously guilty of the crime I arrested you for. You yourself told me that you were in danger. I’m protecting you from whatever dangers are out there. Let’s call it a witness protection program.”

“That’s bullshit and you know it. You haven’t even booked me. I’m not even in the system,” she growled.

“That’s exactly the way I wanted it. One more thing, kitty cat, I’ll do with you what I please. You are mine.”

“What makes you think I would want to mate with someone who would treat me like that?” she said, his words sending a hot thrill through her core.

The argument had ceased to be about the law and was now about the power dynamic between them. Hot lust rolled off both of them, and the scent of their pheromones filled the room. She wanted him as much as he wanted her. But she refused to give in to his demands.

No matter how much she wanted Rollo, and how much she was enjoying their little game, she knew she had to get away from here and away from him.

Dimitri Ivanov was waiting for the jewels. He would find her and Rollo. Dimitri would end them both. Human or not, Dimitri Ivanov was a badass motherfucker who had killed his fair share of shifters and humans alike. Zoe did not underestimate his reach or his potential for destruction.

“I’ve got the feeling that’s exactly the kind of mate you want,” he growled into her ear as he stood above her.

“You couldn’t be more wrong, Rollo,” she said.

“Then why can I smell the sweet scent of your cunt, calling out to me?” he said, his massive erection only a foot away from her face.

She bit her lip, he was right. She wanted him now more than anything she had ever wanted in her life. Resisting the urge to spread her legs and invite him on top of her, was killing her. Her jaguar was practically manic with lust. She could almost hear the sound of Rollo’s grizzly growling as well. It all collided in a cacophony of sound that would only drive her madder the longer she resisted it.

“Is this how you get off, Rollo? Arresting women and then holding them hostage until you get what you want? If that’s the case, then why don’t you just take it,” she dared him.

He leaned down to speak in her ear, his voice low and gravelly. “Because I want you to beg for it,” he said.

“We’ll both die waiting for the day I beg for you, Rollo Morris,” she spat back.

“We shall see, little kitty, we shall see.”