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strength.
    “I left Borneo because I didn’t want to take a chance of running into you. I can do my work here, the plants and species I’m looking for are in this rain forest. I needed a guide and the Embera tribe was kind enough to provide one for me.”
    And her guide would have been a man. A growl rumbled in his throat and he turned away from her, unable to keep his leopard from leaping at the scent of her, at the idea of her in close proximity with a man. He closed his eyes, trying not to allow the vision of her body wrapped around someone other than him.
    She shot him a look as he began to pace, trying to rid himself of the ferocious need building in his body.
    He could barely breathe with the intensity of the demand. He’d never experienced anything like it. Sweat poured off of him. Desire was wicked. Sharp—hammering at his skull, until even his teeth ached. His body painful. He was acutely aware of the leopard prowling beneath his skin, so close to the surface, waiting for one moment when he wasn’t on guard so the cat could take what was his.
    “I’m so sorry I’m boring you, but I paid a good amount of money for your time.”
    He knew she was misinterpreting his uneasy pacing as disinterest, but he shrugged, not bothering to explain the danger she was in. “Get on with it.”
    “I became friends with Adan Carpio . . .”
    This time he couldn’t stop the leopard’s reaction, the terrible fury, the jealous rage consuming him. He Generated by ABC Amber LIT Conv erter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
    whirled on her, flames feeding the heat in his eyes. She gasped and stumbled back, flinging one hand out to catch at the back of a chair for support.
    “And his family. His wife. And children,” she added hastily. “Stop it. You’re scaring me. I don’t like feeling threatened. You wronged me, in case you’ve forgotten.”
    His gaze moved over her face broodingly. Dwelled on her soft, trembling mouth. On her throat—so vulnerable. He could sink his teeth there in seconds. His gaze moved down—touched her breasts. Her lush, full breasts—he remembered the soft feel of their fullness. She was a little smaller than most of their women, probably the clouded leopard in her, but he liked her that way. He liked every single thing about her. Even her temper.
    “I haven’t forgotten anything.” The growl rumbled in his voice.
    He was acutely aware of the incessant cicadas. Loud. He could hear the sentries of the forest playing their music. His people were in place, and yet uneasiness crept in. He studied her expression. She was hiding something from him. Color flagged her neck, crept into her face. She veiled her eyes with her long lashes. He knew she didn’t realize the danger wasn’t to her life, but to her virtue—and his honor. But still, she was definitely hiding something from him. Not her loathing. Not pure unadulterated hatred. Those emotions were plain enough for him to see. No, something else, something beneath the surface, and if he didn’t find out what it was, all of them could die here.
    “I was there when Cortez’s men swept into the village. They killed several people, including a woman who was visiting Adan and Marianna, his wife. Their grandson, Artureo, hid me before he went to try to help the others. He’s seventeen, but very adultlike. He ran back to help his grandfather and they beat him down with the butt of their weapons and dragged him away. Everywhere I looked there were people dead or dying or screaming for the loss of their loved ones.” She wiped her hand over her face as if she could wipe away the memory.
    Conner poured her a glass of water and thrust it into her hands. His fingers brushed hers and the air fairly crackled with electricity. She jerked her hand away as if he’d burned her, spilling droplets of water across the floor. Sweat trickled down his chest. Desire clawed at him. Her close proximity in the confines of the small cabin shredded his nerves of