Edge of Passion by Tina Folsom Page A

felt aroused when she’d fantasized about him earlier, liquid heat now pooled at the juncture of her thighs. And he could probably feel the heat through his clothes. It was madness.
    The distant siren of a fire engine brought her back to her senses and made her pull her head back, severing the contact. He stared at her, his eyes hooded, his lips red and moist from the passionate kiss they’d shared.
    Then he suddenly turned his head as if he heard the siren only now. “We have to go.”
    Above her head, she glimpsed the flames shooting from her apartment window. She tried to free herself from him, dropping her legs to the ground and pushing against him, but he was stronger. “Let me go,” she begged.
    He shook his head, his expression dark. “No. Twice somebody tried to kill you tonight. I’d be crazy to let you out of my sight.”
    What had he said?
    “Kill me?” was all she could echo, darting nervous looks around her, desperately hoping for the fire engine to shoot around the corner, so she could find help from them or the police that would surely arrive instantly.
    “I’ll explain everything later, but we’ll have to leave now. You’re not safe here. They know where you are.”
    Ignoring her protests, he carried her to a parked car across the street. A click and the car’s lights flashed briefly, indicating that the doors were now unlocked. Without ceremony, he dumped her into the passenger’s seat and slammed the door shut behind her. In the darkness, her fingers fumbled for the handle, her shaking noticeable now. Before she could open the car door, he was already in the driver’s seat and yanked her hand toward him.
    His dark eyes bored into her. “You might not trust me right now—God knows, the circumstances don’t speak for me—but if you want to live, you have to stay with me.”
    Without waiting for an answer, he engaged the engine and pulled the car into the street. In the back mirror, she saw the fire engine careen around the corner. They’d finally arrived to save the building from total destruction, but it was too late for her. She was at Aiden’s mercy now. And who knew what his plans were.
    Leila glanced to her side, her eyes falling onto his groin once more. The bulge in his pants was barely noticeable now. Not that it was any consolation. Once he brought the car to a stop somewhere, once they’d arrived at whatever destination he had in mind, he would do what he’d planned all along. Forcing her …
    Would she react the same way she’d reacted to his kiss? Would she simply let it happen without giving any resistance? Would she allow him to take her without putting up a fight? Hell, she’d allowed the kiss; not just allowed, she’d participated with more enthusiasm than she’d ever kissed a man with before. It could only be the drug that had made her react like this, dulled her defenses so he could do with her what he wanted.
    “What did you drug me with?” Maybe if she knew what it was, she could somehow fight its effects.
    He didn’t take his eyes off the street as he weaved through traffic. “I didn’t drug you.”
    “The drink at the Irish pub,” she insisted.
    He shook his head. “It was pure whiskey. The bartender poured it for you. You saw it. He brought you the glass. I couldn’t have put anything in it even if I wanted to.” He paused and gave her a sideways look. “Which I don’t. I want you in possession of all your faculties.”
    So she would feel pain? Humiliation? “Why are you kidnapping me?”
    “I’m not.”
    “Could have fooled me,” she mumbled under her breath.
    “I heard that.”
    She shrugged, resignation rearing its head. What did it matter what she said to him? He seemed determined to do what he wanted to do. None of her protests would fall on fertile ground. She might as well save her breath. Or not. “Where are you taking me?”
    “To a safe place.”
    Suddenly he removed his hand from the steering wheel and clasped it over hers. Her