She took the oven mitts off her hands and turned to him with a nervous smile. “Sorry, I know I’m usually done eating by now, but I got held up with orchestra business and couldn’t get home early. You’ll have to watch me eat… unless you want to join me? There’s plenty for two of us. I made a salad too.”
“You were hours late getting home so you decided to just whip up a lasagna?” he asked skeptically.
Damn him and his too quick mind! “Uh… it was frozen. Sometimes I make food on the weekends and freeze it. Daniel, I’m hungry, either join me or stand there and be your usual grumpy self.”
“I’ll eat,” he grunted.
She smiled to herself as she turned and reached into her cupboard for two plates and some cutlery. He carried the lasagna and salad to her table. They ate in complete silence, but she was gratified when she heard him take seconds of each dish. Maybe she could convince him to start coming over earlier in the evenings and eat with her. When she finished she set her fork and knife down and wiped her mouth on her napkin.
Taking a deep breath she broached the subject she wanted to discuss with him. “I won’t be here Friday evening.”
She felt him stiffen across the table from her. “Why?”
“I have tickets for an opera ball, I’m expected to be there. It’s the start of their new season and they always throw an expensive, lavish bash. They invite select members of the symphony each year. Maestro can't go and wants me to go in his stead.”
“Cancel it,” Daniel said gruffly.
Addison rolled her eyes. “I can’t just cancel it.”
He seemed to think about it for a moment then growled, “Who are you going with?”
She hesitated for a moment, then, knowing she was probably about to get verbally destroyed, said, “No one yet. Will you go with me?”
He didn’t say anything for a full minute, then, “Don’t, Addison.”
“Don’t what?” she asked innocently.
“Do the girlfriend thing. I don’t belong in your neat little world and don’t want to,” he snapped, pushing his plate away from him.
“Then what is it about me that attracts you?” she asked in frustration. She stood, reaching for the dishes. “Why can't you leave me alone then if you don’t belong in my world?”
He didn’t say anything for a moment, just watched her put their dishes in the dishwasher. When she finished, she came to stand next to him, her face a picture of vulnerability.
“Stop it, Addison,” he growled.
She reached for him, but he shoved her hands away and stood up, backing her away from the table with his much bigger, harder physical presence. She stepped away from him, hurt that he wouldn't let her touch him. Daniel was unpredictable and dangerous, but if there was one thing he always wanted it was her touch. Now he acted liked he couldn’t stand her.
“It’s your vulnerability that I want,” he growled down at her, backing her up until she bumped into the wall. She tried to slide sideways but her hip hit the edge of the couch. He blocked her on the other side, forcing her to bend over the arm of the couch to escape the angry words he hurled at her. “It’s your fucked up darkness and the chaos you play to with your wild music. When your Maestro yells at you because you refuse to fit in, but makes you First Chair anyway, that’s the Addison I want to fuck raw. Not the fucking woman that wants to go on dates and be sweet to each other. When I hit your body and you moan for me, you come when I hurt you because you’re a submissive that cries out for the fucked up deviant in me.”
A sob escaped her and she brought her hands up almost involuntarily to cover her ears, but he refused to let her hide. He grabbed her wrists and forced them down. He shoved her back against the arm of the couch shoving his leg between hers. Not content, he reached down and yanked her long skirt up until it was bunched at her waist and only a thin pair of lacy panties covered her.
“Your mother fucked you up, hitting you when you were a child, while your father stood by and ignored it. Your parents controlled you so they wouldn’t have to be embarrassed by their defective only child. You grew strong enough to move out and protect yourself, but now you crave the control of a true dominant.” He leaned in, pressing his fingers into her hips and forcing her into his body. “That pussy was just waiting for someone like me to come along and tame it.”
Asshole! she thought angrily, trying to deny the flood of sensations rushing through her body. She bit her lip hard, concentrating on the pain so she wouldn’t feel the pleasure he was playing out on her body.
It was the most conversation he’d ever given to her at once and she hated him for it. She whimpered, but as always the violent passion in his touch turned her on, even if she hated him for the way he treated her. He would yank her closer physically while driving her away with words. She wanted to lash out at him.
“And what’s your story Daniel,” she asked breathlessly. “Why are you so fucked up? Why do you need to dominate me so badly? Why do you deny having an accent and push me away when I ask too many questions, but pull me closer when you crave what all humans need? Even you can’t survive without affection. Isn’t that the reason you follow me around, why you can’t seem to let me go, while denying that we’re having any kind of relationship?”
He froze against her. She realized she must have unwittingly drawn blood. His hands tightened to the point of real pain. When she could no longer stand it, she whimpered and he finally released her, pushing her back until she sprawled across the couch. She curled in a ball worried, that he might really attack her. It was stupid of her to push a man like Daniel so far, but she hated the way he spoke about her parents. It wasn’t fair.
“Fuck, Addison!” he growled. He reached for her and dragged her off the couch. “Is this what you think we’re doing? You whore yourself out so you can get something out of me? An escort to take you places? That what you want?”
She stared blankly up at him, horror etching her features. How could he possibly think that of her? “No!” she whispered hoarsely. “Of course not!”
He ignored her denial. “Then you better fucking make it good, because I don’t date. Give me a reason to want more than a quick fuck, Addison, because I never wanted you for anything else.”
Tears flooded her eyes at his cruelty and before she could think about it, she swung her hand back and hit him for all she was worth. But she was standing too close to really make the hit count. It didn’t help that she couldn’t see and she was pretty sure she clipped his shoulder and only got the edge of his jaw. Still, he understood where her sentiments were. He took her hand and pulled it around her back so she couldn’t try to remedy her aim.
