Read Tender Savage (Siren Publishing Allure) for Free Online

far away, and spray the surrounding area with this.” He handed her a small bottle of insect repellent. “If you don’t, the leeches will make a beeline for your blood. They can smell a sweet, tender morsel like you from yards away.”
    Dumbfounded Eleanor silently took the bottle. “Oh but I…”
    Abraham scrutinised her face. “You what?”
    “Err, well I, err, I’ve already done it.”
    Abraham looked incomprehensively at her. “What?”
    “I’ve been to the loo,” she whispered, trailing off into silence.
    “Best I have a look-see then.”
    “What? You can’t mean you want me to, err, show you my, err, my…”
    “Your bottom.” He lifted a quizzical eyebrow. “Yes.”
    Eleanor bit her lip, undecided. Bloody hell, what was she to do? Should she drop her pants for him, or should she just hope there weren’t any bloodsucking leeches attached to her.
    Decision made, she stood quickly up and, avoiding his eyes, dropped her trousers and her miniscule panties, her face feeling as hot as the sun.
    Her eyes narrowed, she knew he was enjoying her predicament. His hastily suppressed grin was a dead giveaway, and she hated him for it. Abraham indicated that she should bend over, and as she did so, he placed his hand on her coccyx and, bending down minutely, examined her derriere.
    “You’re okay.” He gave her a small smack on her bottom. “Nothing has attached itself to you, but be more careful in future. It’s not only leeches you have to worry about. There are ticks as well—now they are nasty little buggers.”
    Hastily pulling back up her clothes, and without looking at him, she made a quick escape to the shelter and all but scrambled inside. Tiredly still squirming in mortification, Eleanor lay back, falling almost instantly asleep.
    Savage settled comfortably beside her, his thoughts on her and the journey ahead. She was slowing him down, and there was no way he’d be able to go back the way he’d come. The journey would be too treacherous, with landslides and other hazards. Eleanor could barely cope with the easy track of today, so an alternate route was the only option, one which would take longer. Unfortunately, it was also one with other dangers, human ones. Not wanting to frighten her, he had not made her aware of the fact that they were being followed, the documents in his backpack of utmost importance not only to the government but to whoever had brought the plane down. Her stamina was low and her nerves frail. A world of fashion and ease was a long way from a route march through the Amazon rain forest.
    Turning on his side, he tried to block out the scent of her. She smelled of sweat and rain, and her hair smelled faintly of the shampoo she used, a light, clean fragrance of violets. Breathing deeply, he firmly closed his eyes. Sleep was essential. He needed to be fresh and alert, ready to face whatever the morning would bring.
     
    * * * *
     
    Eleanor stirred restlessly as another downpour hit the canvas above their heads, the noise like a thousand tiny tapping feet. Her hip hurt, and so did her shoulder. The ground on which they were lying was lumpy and uncomfortable and felt hard on her already-aching limbs. Mumbling incomprehensibly, she turned over, seeking warmth.
    Snuggling closer, she came instantly awake as the steely heat of a hair-roughened chest penetrated her consciousness.
    “Sorry,” she mumbled, pulling back.
    “No problem, princess. It was kinda nice having you nuzzle up like that, but I’d appreciate it if you would stop wriggling so much. It’s like sharing my bed with a sack of snakes.”
    “Charming!” Huffily, she turned away.
    Reaching out a large arm, Savage encircled her waist and pulled her back up against him.
    “Quit your pouting, princess, and just enjoy the warmth, mmm ?”
    About to argue with him, Eleanor changed her mind and, although stiff at first, soon relaxed, snuggling closer, her bottom wriggling into the curvature of his body as he spooned into