“I’ll just go now. I’m sorry I was a bother. I caused a... scene. I won’t be back. I promise. You won’teverhave to worry about me showing up here—or anywhere—again.”
She tensed in his hold, fully expecting him to let go and let her walk out. When his grasp remained intact, panic kicked in and she looked frantically up at him, blanching at the rage in his eyes.
“Please. Let me go. I swear to you I’ll never come back.”
His expression was carved in stone, that hard jaw she’d observed earlier much more noticeable now.
“Then whydidyou come?” he asked bluntly, making her cringe at his crassness.
Was he really going to make her spell it out to him? Give him a play-by-play of her lack of worthiness to grace the premises of his club? And damn her propensity for always blurting out the truth, no matter how painful. It was a flaw she would be thrilled to be rid of. But no. Before she was even cognizant of what she was saying, the whole ugly story came pouring out.
“The man who assaulted me is my ex... boyfriend. Lover. Whatever. Though I’d hardly consider us lovers,” she said bitterly. “I was a challenge to him.Wasbeing the key word. He knew I was a virgin, and so he coaxed me and wined and dined me, pretending interest because he wanted to be m-my f-first,” she stammered out, heat scorching her entire face.
Drake cursed savagely, startling her with his vehemence, but she plunged ahead, only wanting to be done so that maybe he’d finally let her go.
“As soon as I finally gave in, stupidly thinking that he was someone special, he dumped me on the spot. He said I was a terrible lay. I overheard him complaining to his friends, people. I don’t know who they were,” she said painfully. “He said that sticking his dick in my c-cunt—” She broke off, mortified over her use of the offensive word. Then she took a deep breath and closed her eyes. “He said it was like fucking a snowdrift. And it definitely wasn’t worth the three months he had to wait for me to give it up. He repeated the sentiment tonight to my face.”
“So you came tonight to see him?” Drake asked incredulously. “Why the hell would you want to do that? For fuck’s sake, did you want him back?”
Her head snapped up, her anger surging hot through her veins. “No,” she hissed. “Not now. Notever. My girlfriends talked me into coming. Said I needed to get back some of my own. Steph had a VIP pass, and they spent an hour making me up. Shoes, killer heels, hair, makeup, the works.
“They thought I should let him see what he’d shit on,” she said dully. “I told them it was stupid. This place is for beautiful people. Even the people who work here are gorgeous. Everyone is freaking perfect. And then there was me, sticking out like a sore thumb. The people in line outside knew I didn’t belong. The people inside knew I didn’t belong. And you obviously knew I didn’t belong because you sent your goon to get rid of me. So if you’ll just let me be on my way, I’d appreciate it. I’ve already promised I’ll never darken the door of your club again. This has been a humiliating enough night as it is, and I can only take so much.”
He gave her a look that was a combination of bewilderment and super pissed off.
“You don’t think you fucking outshine every bitch out there and that they don’t know that?” he clipped out angrily. “You didn’t see that the skank with your ex was ready to rip your hair out by the roots because she isn’t as gorgeous as you and never will be? There isn’t a bottle made thatcan duplicate the kind of beauty you have. And those bitches in there don’t hold a candle to your kind of shine, and they hate you for it.”
She looked at him absolutely stunned, her eyes wide with shock.
He swore viciously, causing her to flinch again.
“No, it’s obvious you don’t see it,” he said in a grim voice. “You don’t see your own goddamn appeal, and that makes you even more attractive to men.”
“You don’t have to say that to make me feel better,” she said softly. “It’s kind of you, but the truth is always better. I prefer to keep it real. I know what I am and what I’m not. I accept that.”
Before she could process what the ever-loving hell he was doing, he pulled her roughly into his arms so she landed with a soft thud against his chest. He tilted her chin up, his hand nearly covering half her face it was so large, and then he crushed his mouth to hers, devouring her lips as though he were starving.
It was the equivalent of being struck by lightning. Every nerve ending in her body promptly jolted, and she gasped, opening her mouth to his advancing tongue. He probed delicately, with patience that contradicted his impatient, seemingly angry movements.
She let out a delicious sigh because thatmouth. Oh God, but she’d been so right about his mouth and lips, but now that she’d experienced his tongue, suddenly her attention wasn’t quite as focused on his lips.
He tasted—and smelled—divine. Hot, alpha, badass male. Arrogant. Confident. And so yummy looking she couldn’t fathom that she was standing in his office while he was thoroughly kissing her in a way she’d never been kissed before.
And she’d only known him for all of five minutes!
She put her hands up to his chest, her intent to ward him off, but as soon as her palms made contact with the muscled wall, they stopped and simply absorbed his heat as she leaned further into his kiss with a soft sigh of surrender.
•••
Drake had heard all the not-good-enough, not-beautiful, don’t-belong bullshit he was going to put up with for the night. Evangeline, Angel. Yes, her name suited her to perfection. She was the most beautiful woman in the entire goddamn club, and here she stood spouting shit that she truly believed. And in no way was he going to be able to change her mind with just a few words, so he did what he’d been dying to do ever since he’d seen her walk through the door of the front bar.
He hauled her against his body so she landed against his chest, the plush softness of her breasts searing his flesh even through two layers of clothing—his and hers. Then he crashed his mouth down on hers and feasted like a man long deprived of such beauty.
His lips lightened and he licked delicately over the full plump bottom lip, nipping lightly with his teeth, a request for her to open her sweet mouth so he could get inside where it was even sweeter.
With a stuttered gasp, she complied, though he wasn’t sure if she’d actually made the cognizant decision to allow his tongue access or whether she was merely starving for air, since she hadn’t taken a single breath since his mouth had crashed down on hers. But he wasn’t waiting around to find out.
He thrust his tongue inward, nearly groaning aloud as she tentatively met his thrust with just the tip of her tongue. A brush so soft, it was like a butterfly’s wings.
