Trapped: A SciFi Convict Romance (The Condemned Book 1) Read Online Free PDF

her
already.
    “You’ve got his blood all over you.” He sounded almost
accusatory. “Go.”
    She wanted to ask why the hell it mattered, but his hands
were already unwinding the cloth at his hips.
    Turning fast, she headed to the water, uncaring that the
temperature was slightly cooler than expected, barely registering the
unfamiliar oily sensation of the water clinging to her skin. Wading toward the
deeper middle, she sunk beneath the surface to her shoulders, the transparent
film giving her little protection, but somehow calming her just the same.
    A splash sounded. Powerful ripples washed against her back
like a surging tide. He’d entered the water. He was coming for her.
    The coward in her wanted to stay where she was, eyes slammed
shut. The officer in her knew she had to turn and face this head on.
    She whirled and discovered only small bubbles on the surface
of the water. An inky cloud of red and brown streamed in all directions
followed by foamy white. Then a dark head broke the surface and he was standing
before her, waist high in the water, a mud man no more.
    Her mouth opened on a tiny o .
    Without the dirt, dark, thick hair shorn close to his scalp
was now visible along with olive skin, a wide forehead, low brows, firm lips,
and a square jaw. Tiny droplets left his long lashes spikey while rivulets of water tracked over chiseled cheekbones, down his sculpted
chest and abdomen, to a small trail of dark hair that snaked from his belly
button to disappear into the water. Scars of various length and width tracked across
miles of pure, hard muscle.
    My God , mud man was
a flesh and blood man—an incredibly masculine one. If she’d met him at the
Academy or the barracks on Earth, she would have been unable to stop staring.
He was that beautiful.
    Then his hand shot out and her daze shattered.
    With a hiss, she stumbled back a step.
    One dark eyebrow rose. “ Here. ”
    She looked down to see a small white bar in his hand.
    “It’s soap.” His tone was brusque. “The drones dump trash
from Earth. Use it.”
    It was another long speech. This one seemed to come easier.
Like his vocal chords were warming up. Like he was remembering how to actually
talk to someone else. But beyond that, she had no idea what was going on here.
Why he was taking the time to give her soap. Clean her up.
    She hated not being able to read him at all. She hated not
knowing if the brief flashes of humanity she’d seen in his gaze were real or
not.
    “Thank you.” It took all her courage to reach out and take
the bar from his hand, the brush of her fingertips against his rough palm
sending adrenaline surging through her. But when he remained still, when he
allowed her to draw back her hand, soap clutched tight, her heartbeat slowed to
something just below painful. “I—I’ve never used one before. The Academy only
allows lasers for cleaning. The use of water was banned a long time ago.” She
stopped short.
    Of course, he knew that. He wasn’t from some distant galaxy.
He was from Earth. He just wasn’t welcome there anymore.
    His lips flat lined. “I’ve been here a while, but not as long
as that.”
    Was that a joke? His expression offered no clue.
    “Of course.” Hands shaking, she took the soap and rubbed it
against her arm. The blood stayed put. She rubbed harder.
    She hadn’t expected this…this talking. Or the kindness of a
bath—with soap. It was confusing.
    “You need the water to make it work.” Rough hands reached out
and took the soap, dunking it under the water, making that same foamy circle
she’d seen before.
    “Turn around.” His voice had gone husky again.
    That overworked heart of hers started up double time once
again. Her feet remained planted where they were.
    He waited for longer than she would have expected before he
spoke again, his jaw locked tight. “Anything?” It was a reminder. A reproach. A
challenge.
    And her last chance to change her mind.
    Her eyes sunk shut. I
can do this. I need to