Dangerous and full of passion, eager for any dark adventure.
The weight of his gaze had my heart thundering against my ribcage.
Blinking, I did what I could to steady myself, reaching back with my other hand to grip the edge of his desk. “I didn’t mean to pry. Axe. I just…”
“You just had to enter someone’s private space. Right?” When I didn’t answer right away mostly due to shock from his angry, even nasty demeanor, he shook me. Not hard, yet enough my eyes opened wide. “Answer me.”
He flustered me even more than he’d done when I was young. Watching the way his eyebrows furrowed created pinpricks of irritation.
“Why are you so angry with me? I wasn’t trying to pry. I just…” Oh, the man was frustrating. More so than when I’d been around any other man. At least David had been a sulker. This man was like a live wire on steroids.
“Yeah, you were.” He wasn’t backing down.
Exactly as he’d done years before, he opened a locked box where I kept the foolish anger reserved solely for him. My entire mood changed and the words slipping from my mouth were laced with acid.
“Wow. Thank you for rescuing me. I do appreciate it. Why don’t we go ahead and you can take me to my parents’ house and I’ll make sure and have these clothes returned to you. That way, you won’t need to deal with me any longer.” His scent was stronger than before, a delicious mix of testosterone and a deeper section of woods with a dash of moss and more than a hint of the very dangerous adventure from before. “You can take that anger of yours and use it on someone else. I don’t deserve it.”
I was swooning, lightheaded from the fragrance, my legs wobbling. Or was that from exhaustion and continued anger?
The wild look in his eyes lingered for a few seconds longer. So did his tight hold. Our bodies were close enough that the wash of heat was overpowering. There were also tiny sensations, prickles of electricity that shouldn’t be occurring.
We’d both made it perfectly clear years before that we never wanted to see each other again. Even though I’d secretly pined away for him after the horrible day, I’d never tell him that. He’d certainly proven he hadn’t cared about me. Maybe that’s why it was easier to feel some sense of hatred.
Even if he had saved my life.
“I’m not angry!” The words spouted off were most definitely filled with anger.
His glare was almost as painful as his hold, but I refused to look away. What in the world had happened to him to make him so furious with the world? Instead of reacting as I was certain hethought I would, with a dash of my own rage, I curled my fingers, massaging his chest.
There was no reaction at first. The nasty, fury-filled expression remained on his face. Both his mouth and brow were pinched, creating ugly lines on his face. His jaw remained in a hard clench, enough so his back molars had to be screaming in agony. Even the cords on the side of his neck were pulsing wildly.
Seconds ticked by and I was certain we’d remain in the same position for hours.
Finally, his features softened. “I’m not angry. Not really. Certainly not with you. And I would take you wherever you wanted to go except for one small problem.” He pulled me even closer, so close I licked my lips as an involuntary reaction. And what did he do?
He lowered his head by several inches.
What did I do?
I lifted mine as if daring him. Daring him to what?
To kiss me. Just like the fateful day in early August when I’d all but dared him to do the same thing. The day that had changed me forever. How silly. How ridiculous. But it was the truth.
With his lips so close, I was awash with prickles dancing over every inch of my body. The feeling was invigorating and amazing, damning and unwanted at the same time.
“What’s that?” I whispered, wondering if he even heard me.
His chest rose and fell and he lifted his other arm. For a few seconds, I was almost fearful he was going to strike me. Why would I think that way? He’d never hurt me before. Sadly, Ididn’t know this man any longer. When he curled his fingers, rubbing them across my cheek, I think we both shuddered.
And his lips were mere centimeters away, so close. So very close I could almost taste them. Our heavy breathing was in tandem, mixed in a loud yet orchestrated pattern of desire and uncertainty. Seconds ticked by that felt like minutes.
I arched my back, clinging to him as I’d done before. Stars flashed across my field of vision, vivid sparkles that kept me lightheaded.
Just when I was certain he would kiss me, he jerked his head up, ensuring I was leaning against the desk before heading to the door. He stopped just inside, gripping the doorjamb. “The road is completely washed out. I can’t take you anywhere. Looks like you’re stuck right here. With me. Until further notice.”
His words were clipped, still full of animosity, but I sensed something else that surprised me.
A deep, fitful, and mostly unwanted longing.
