My soul was drawn into those golden eyes and I felt an inescapable weakness moving over me.
I swallowed, but my tongue felt thick and my throat was dry, and I couldn’t get out the speech I’d prepared.
A tick in his jaw and the tension of his muscles told me all about how enraged he still was. I’d made a mistake coming for him, I realized belatedly. He wanted to be alone. Or maybe I had interrupted him with one of his blonds and pissed him off.
“Uh…”
Come on, Selene, you can do better than this, I thought.
I jerked my chin toward the bag of pistachios I was crushing in my hand and then looked back at him.
“Can I come in?” I asked uncertainly.
It wasn’t exactly what I’d planned to say, but at least I got my point across. I realized something then: Neil had done nothing but ignore me since I arrived. He didn’t give me the warm welcome that everyone else in his family had. At lunch, he hadn’t even looked at me.
Had he known that I was coming back?
Did he know I was going to be there for two days?
I assumed he did because Matt always called ahead to announce my arrival because he couldn’t contain his excitement.
But Mr. Disaster hadn’t even acknowledged my presence.
I tried to keep those fears at bay and focused on Neil, who was looking me up and down. I could never tell if he liked what he saw or not. He was good at concealing his thoughts. After a moment that felt like an eternity, he stepped aside and gave me his answer without words:Yes,you can come in.
I stopped a few steps inside when I heard the door slam behind me. I flinched, swallowing hard.
There was no one else in the pool house.
Everything was in perfect order.
Silence enveloped us.
I sniffed the air, and…there was no fruity Jennifer smell. No sex smell.
Neil was alone, and a part of me delighted in that and felt relieved. I felt him lurking behind me then, and I turned to face him. I considered the breadth of his shoulders, the toned arms that spoke to his incredible power, and his defined pectorals. His body had changed; it had become somehow even more powerful and vigorous.
Had he stepped up his training?
I watched him admiringly—I really couldn’t help it—and frowned when I spotted a purple bruise near his ribs. It was a true hematoma, spreading out into a visible darkened spot.
Who did that to him? What happened?
I took a couple of steps closer and reached for him. Neil did not rejectmy touch by any means. So, I gently explored the spot with my fingers, and his abdomen twitched in pain. Once the immediate stab of pain faded, I stroked his smooth, warm skin. My hand looked very pale on his luminous, bronzed chest.
“Did you get this looked at? It’s a bad bruise.” I continued touching him, and he breathed gently through his nose. I had to tilt my face up to look him in the eye. He was staring fixedly at me, and he still hadn’t said anything. Maybe he didn’t want to talk to me. I chewed my lower lip, more embarrassed now than ever, and I timidly handed him the bag of pistachios.
“I brought these for you. I noticed that you seem to like them, right?” I whispered, staring into his luminous eyes again. Neil just watched my hand, and for a second, I thought he was going to go into a rage. Maybe I was pushing too hard? I could never be sure of anything with him.
To my surprise, though, he snatched up the bag. He looked it over, frowning, and I couldn’t tell if he was pleased, surprised, or irritated. Then, he tossed it onto the couch, leaving me uncertain.
He hadn’t appreciated my gesture.
I shook my head, trying to push past him, but I didn’t get far before Neil, with his characteristic dominance, grabbed my face with both hands and stopped me in my tracks. His eyes bored into mine, and I knew immediately what he was going to do next. Despite my previous angry outburst, I had always felt protected when I was with him. I could feel his warmth and his desire, and it was enough to have me melting in his hands.
He licked his lower lip and breathed in deeply, closing and opening his eyes. He looked like he was struggling with something insurmountable. There was so much in his eyes, so many things that Neil would never tell me but that I would nevertheless try to learn.
My heart began to throb in my stomach. I was at his mercy, not only physically but mentally as well. He had gotten into my soul, and I belonged to him. It was over for me every time when he looked at me like that: lusty, angry, fragile, and confused.
