Arousal moved hot and slow as it coursed through my veins.
“Would you like to get out of here?” He was whispering now, the husky drawl providing a hint of an accent. There was no malice to his question, no promise of danger, only passion.
The answer was easier than I’d expected. “Yes.”
CHAPTER 9
Montgomery
The scent of Fleur Sebastian lingered. It had painted my skin long after she’d stormed away that morning, had been given new life when I’d found myself standing inside her ridiculously cute gift shop that defined a smalltown atmosphere, and had become permanently imbedded in my senses after breaking every rule by kissing her.
One moment of self-indulgence and I’d lost my mind.
Doing nothing more than spanking her had crossed more than one line. I was close to derailing the anonymity I required.
Even worse, I’d crafted the round of punishment in a public place where anyone could have walked in. Maybe that’s the real reason I had, hoping someone would see what I was doing to her. And more important, that she belonged to me. Not one of the local yokels who’d been pining away for her deserved to touch a hair on her lovely head. Every time I was around her I had a primal reaction.
More so at this moment than even before.
A single look of a man as we left had almost cost him his front teeth. Worse if he’d dared try to stop me from taking her with me.
Why did I have a feeling the little French flower was purposely tempting a lion?
Now I had my fingers around hers, pulling her away from the noise and prying eyes into the chilly darkness. I’d barely given her time to grab her coat and purse before parading her through a crowd of men who’d both feared and resented me.
I’d known by the fight in her actions and the venomous look in her eyes that she’d fallen prey to the connection. I’d known by the heat resonating on her skin that she wouldn’t be able to resist. As always, I felt it was my right to take advantage of her body’s betrayal.
As the taste of her sweet lips had lingered in my mouth, I’d known enough about myself and my obsessive characteristics that one kiss wouldn’t be enough.
There was no true comprehension of the attraction other than that she was a complete opposite of me. Yet in many ways we were the same. I’d easily been able to tell she was hiding behind an immaculate façade, pretending as if every aspect of her life was in order. When in fact it was controlled chaos, a direct contradiction to her easy breezy mannerisms.
Except when crossed.
Then she was raw and unpredictable, somewhat desperate for no identifiable reason.
But one I was determined to discover.
I didn’t ask her if her vehicle was in the parking lot because I didn’t care. As soon as I opened the passenger door of the rental SUV, she threw me a heated look but instantly crawled inside. But in that split second, I’d caught another moment of insecurity. She’d asked all the right things for completely the wrong time. Her questions weren’t typical for anyone considering a one-night stand. That also told me she was fearful of the type of malevolence only offered by monsters disguised as men.
Given I’d parked in the empty lot adjacent to the crowded bar, I automatically scanned the surrounding area to ensure we were alone. At some point, whatever Russian mob was after me would discover I wasn’t playing house in New Orleans.
Their befuddlement would buy me a few days, but I wouldn’t put anything past most organizations. We were a sophisticated group of businessmen, our disguises allowing for international connections to be made as well as purchasing security systems rivaling those in the military. And with the influx of power, influence, and extreme wealth, anyone could be bought for the right price. Anyone.
All of that meant what I was doing with this woman, no matter how insanely beautiful or how attracted to her I’d become, was reckless.
As if the rational thought would be able to stop me. When I set my mind on something, I never backed down.
The moment I jumped inside, she shifted towards me. What caught me off guard even more than her agreeing to leaving the bar with a stranger was when she placed her hand on my thigh. Her smile was soft, unguarded. She’d made the decision to allow her veiled mask to fall.
I started the engine, immediately turning on the heat.
Seeing a slight tic in the corner of her mouth, I caught myself staring at her, uncertain what to say. Maybe because I’d never put myself in this position before. The women I’d dated had been for an evening, almost always ending up at her place for a few hours of passion.
Not this woman.
She was real in a way that was breakable. Real being the captivating word. Proven when she crowded closer, pressing two fingers against the very tic on her luscious lips I’d been fascinated with. This was her last few moments of deliberating the insanity of what we were about to do.
Whatever I’d been prepared for was thrown way off course when she crawled her fingers along the inside of my leg until the tips were precariously close to my balls.
