Despite the fierce set of his jaw, the anger burning in his eyes, the strength of his body, and the sheer power that radiated from him, she was amazed to discover that she wasn’t afraid of him. That she wasn’t the least bit scared of him. For some reason, she was certain that he wouldn’t hurt her.Try to intimidate her yes, but he wouldn’t harm her. She knew it with every ounce of her being, and the realization shook her more than the feelings he had awakened in her ever could have. Some of her defenses melted,as for the first time she began to see him as a man, and not just her enemy. It was a scary comprehension that dissolved some of her resistance against him.
Stefan was very close to shaking some damn sense into her. She was absolutely the most aggravating, annoying woman that he had ever encountered. He didn’t understand why she wouldn’t just answer his question. Why she couldn’t be like every other woman he had ever met that had tripped all over themselves to get near him, and relent to him just a little. Instead, it seemed that she purposely went out of her way to avoid him, or exacerbate the hell out of him. He forced himself to take a deep breath, and not to rattle some sense into her thick skull.
“I told you that I wouldn’t hurt her,” she replied softly.
That was it. He had officiallyhad it! He pulledher up so that her face was a mere breath away from his, and only the tips of her toes touched the ground. To his surprise, and admiration, she didn’t flinch. Hell, she didn’t even stop glaring at him as her eyes spitviolet fury. “I didn’t ask that.I don’t care about her.I care aboutyou, and I don’t want to see you like that again!”
He was shaking with anger by the time he was done yelling. Her eyes widened in surprise and her mouth parted slightly. For a moment,he simply stared at her as his words echoed loudly in the room.He was startled to realize exactly what he had just shouted. Shock registered quickly, and his eyes widened in surprise as the truth of his words slammed home with a sickening horror. She opened her mouth, looking like she was about to say something.
He didn’t want to hear anything that she had to say. Didn’t even remotely want to think about what he had just said. Nor did he want to think about the fact that it might even be true. All he wanted to do was show her, once and for all, that he was the one in control. He seizedhold of her mouth with a fierce, punishing savagery.
She whimpered softly from the shear brutality of his kiss as she began to squirm in his arms. He didn’t ease his hold on her, didn’t lessen his bruising onslaught. He was still extremely mad at her, and himself. He wanted to punish her, to show her that he was stronger, that he was the one in control. When she whimpered again,andher hands flutteredup to push at his chest, he finally eased the force of his mouth against hers.
His hands loosened on her arms as he lowered her to the ground, refusing to relinquish her mouth. Her hands pushed against his chest, but he wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her tightly against him. He seized her thick hair to keep her mouth firmly against his. He ran his tongue lightly along her lips, but she refused to open to him, refused to yield.
He moved slowly over her, licking and tasting, determined that she would give into him. She gasped slightly as he nibbled at her bottom lip and he used that opportunity to slip his tongue into her mouth. For a moment she remained stiff in his grasp, then her hands stopped shoving against his chest to curl into his shirt and her tongue hesitantly came out to meet his.
He groaned softly as a bolt of desire shot through him, hardening him instantly. She tasted so good, felt right as she melded against him. Her full breasts pressed against his chest as her tongue entwined with his in a thrusting,matingdance. He was certain that no woman had ever felt as wonderful, never been so soft, or sweet. She moaned softly, the erotic sound causing his hard shaft to jump in anticipation.
He released her waist to lightly stroke the exposed skin of her flat stomach. She trembled slightly as he moved steadily higher, tracing his fingers over her delicate ribcage before skimming across the lacy edge of her bra. Her trembling grew stronger as he molded his hand over her firm breast and gently began to massage it. Her nipple hardened beneath his touch as her shaking became fiercer. He wanted to smile with triumph, but he was too far gone with her to do so.
He released her hair and seized hold of her waist again, holding her up as he moved his hand to her other breast. He drug her pelvis against his, rubbing his hardened shaft against her. She moaned with pleasure and instinctively arched into him. Releasing her mouth he began to kiss his way across her long, delicate neck. He grew even more aroused by the scent of her blood, so pure and sweet as it pulsed wildly through her veins.
He groaned as he rubbed against her, felt her, tasted her;was consumed by her. Never in his life had he felt so lost with a woman, so totally out of control with want and need. He couldn’t get enough touching her, couldn’t get enough of the way she felt and moved. He wanted, needed, to feel every inch of her, to posses her.
Isabelle jerked in surprise as his mouth descended on her nipple, lightly biting and sucking on it. Even through the thin material of her tank top,his mouth seared into her, turning her into liquid heat. Never had she imagined that something could feel as wonderful as he made her feel, that something could be thisconsuming. Her fingers wrapped into his hair as he nipped at her, causing her body to buck in surprise, and a gasp of pleasure to escape. Causing her to melt everywhere at the same time that she caught on fire.
“Stefan!” she gasped.
The sound of his name on her lips in that erotic, husky tone,damn near drove him over the edge. Hehungrilyreclaimed her mouth as his hand slid down to the edge of her shorts.
“Isabelle!” She jerked in surprise, pulling her mouth away from Stefan’s as her carnal haze was broken by Ethan’s loud pounding on the door. “Isabelle, are you in there?”
“Ye... Yes!” she stammered out in a shaky voice.
“Is Stefan in there with you?”
Her eyes jumped to his, wide, and uncertain. His eyes were impossibly black now, the pupils not even noticeable in the cloud of desire that smoldered within them. “No! Why?”
“Because Jess is up there making a thousandpancakesand we can’t get her to stop! Do you know what’s going on?”
At the mention of Jess’s name she wrenched free of his graspandcast him a scathing look. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to ease the remaining passion in her body. “Yeah, I’ll be right out!”
“Well hurry up! She’s like a damn robot that we can’t turn off, and she’s freaking me out!”
Isabelle would have snorted with laughter at the distress in his voice, if she hadn’t been so angry. She berated herself for lettingStefantouch her, arouse her, when he was such an ass, and she had resolved to never let it happen again. But whenever he touched her, all of her will, and anger, melted. She was beginning to hate herself for the obvious weakness that she possessed.Aweakness she never would have known existed if he hadn’t walked into her life, into her sanctuary. She hated him for it, hated herself for it, and vowed fervently that it would never happen again. He would never touch her again.
She waited for Ethan’s retreating footsteps to fade away before turning back to Stefan. Her body still burned from his touch, but she was determined to stand her ground. She could doit;she could refuse him anything, as long as he didn’t touch her again. It was only when he touched her that she lost all control. She had never thought that lust could be stronger than reason, but she knew now that it was.
“You had better go stop her,” she said coldly.
He raised a darkeyebrow as he surveyed the incensed, distant woman before him. She was back to being angry at him again. Well, by the time that he was done with her, she would be too tired to even think about anger. Hell, she wouldn’t even be able to think. “And why is that?”
Her eyes narrowed as she glared at him. “Because she’s your girlfriend!” she spat.
“Jealous?”
Isabelle nearly screamed with fury. He was the most aggravating, infuriating man to walk the face of the earth. He was also the most sensuous, desirable, and irresistible one too. She firmly shut those thoughts out. She didn’t even know where they had come from. She fisted her hands at her sides as she glowered at him. “Hardly!” she snorted.
