Her Druid Desire (The Amber Druid Series) (23 page)

           
She ignored his hand, from what he sensed was cautiousness, not her wanting to
be rude, and walked up the lowered steps to enter the plane. She was skittish
and totally closed off from him. He knew it had to do with their talk from last
week. Never before had he hinted at any attraction to her and in one phone
call, he had blasted her with not only that truth, but the knowledge that he
was burning up sexually for her also.

           
Drake sensed that he would be apologizing for their conversation pretty soon;
otherwise, Nadia would never smile at him again.

***

           
Talk about things that don’t have to do with the way his jeans fit him so well,
or the way the sunlight had glinted off of his tiger eyes. Don’t concern
yourself with thoughts of that phone call last week or the naughty things he
could
have said to you on that phone.

           
Nadia glanced around at the more than spacious and luxurious interior that she
had stepped into. She had heard him say private plane, but she hadn’t been
expecting this. This was sumptuous leather, rich wood accents, and generous
space. This plane was a beautiful and costly expression of Drake and what kind
of life he led. He wasn’t only the owner and proprietor of an animal
shelter/vet office. He was a ruthless businessman and investment guru. He
probably had the ear and favor of more than a few Wall Street icons.

           
“With the way you’re staring at it, I assume you must be pretty thirsty?”
Drake’s voice knocked her back to the present, and Nadia noticed a young, dark
haired woman offering her a drink. She thanked her and took the cold water
bottle.

           
“I’m admiring your plane. I wasn’t planning on seeing such an opulent affair.”
She took a sip of her water and congratulated herself on not spitting out,
‘I
wish I wouldn’t have hung up the phone the other night. I wish I would have let
you keep talking. I wonder now what would have happened, what would have been
said.’
She shut her mind off.

           
“
Darlin
,’ this is a G500, a very nice plane, not to
mention, mine.” His eyes held humor, but a spark shone in those caramel depths.
“I’m a very private man, and I don’t like sharing my personal space with other
people.” Those eyes burned along her length and Nadia controlled a tremble.
“But right now, I’m not minding the intrusion one bit.”

           
“Your privacy is obviously something that you pay exorbitantly to insure,” She
told him as she took another sip of water and watched him over the edge of the
bottle. Brilliantly beautiful eyes catalogued her every feature while she took
in his jeans and the soft, dark colored tee shirt that covered his large frame.

           
“Money is no object if something is important to me.”

           
Apparently
not
, Nadia thought as she turned her head and watched
the flat low land rush by as the plane taxied down the runway. It obviously
wouldn’t take them long to get to Dallas, since he had this very nice plane.
Thank God she had turned; she could feel his eyes lingering on her and she knew
he was going to bring up their phone conversation, knew it like she knew the
burn of desire in her gut would never go away.

           
“Angel, I’m sorry about the other night,” his gruff voice begged her to turn
back around. Her eyes slid back to his. “I know we have known each other for a
long while now, but what I said slipped out. For a minute there, I forgot I was
talking to you, my past employee’s child, instead you were a beautiful woman…”
He stopped talking and Nadia was kept in limbo, wanting to hear what else he
had to say…but she couldn’t allow him to keep going. She had to stop this now.

           
“Apology accepted.” She let her eyes stay on his. “I guess we both thought of
things we shouldn’t have.” Then she turned back and tried to ignore the warning
in her gut that was screaming at her that this wasn’t over yet.

           
He chuckled deeply from the other side of the plane and Nadia bristled. “
Thinkin
’ is sometimes just as bad as
doin
.’”

           
The condensation on the water bottle pooled into her hand, jarring her back
into reality. She knew better than to get herself worked up over a few things
he had said on the phone. Just because they had spoken with such erotic intent
didn’t mean that she should let her shield fall and do whatever she wanted with
him.

That
was like inviting the Devil over for supper. You knew you shouldn’t do it, but
boy were you tempted. And no matter how much Nadia wanted, yearned, and ached
for Drake, she knew in her heart that she would be deathly hurt if his flirting
was something that he was using just to try and get a reaction out of her with.
If she ever got a chance with him, her whole heart would be tangled up in
whatever they were doing. It would knock her blindsided if his intentions
changed and he left her hanging on by a mere thread, trying to pull him back to
her with all she had. She would never be that woman-that woman that was left
broken and bleeding while the man she loved waltzed away without a care in the
world.

The
chirp of Drake’s cell pierced the silence of the cabin. He answered the call.

His
deep drawl was short, precise, and pure business. Long fingers held the cell to
his ear while his other hand grabbed a sheaf of papers that was sitting in
front of him on a small desktop. Within minutes he and the other person were
speaking of contract terms and disputes while Nadia studied him. The no
nonsense businessman that she knew was back. There were no hints of a
seductively naughty crooked grin, no hooded glances from under long black
lashes. This was Drake at his most ruthless. He had always seemed faultless and
slick when it came to the world that she had entered only a few years before.
Nadia envied his smooth, unruffled approach.

She,
on the other hand, had to build up her energy for monthly board meetings and
group events. She loved her job, but it had taken determination and drive to
succeed in something that she hadn’t been prepared for. She liked to think that
she had done a decent job of it. With the ratings out every month on magazine
sales that showed a steady uphill climb, and retail sales of her boutiques
topping what they had made in previous years, she came to the conclusion that
whatever she was doing was more than enough. The small town girl that had been
born into a working middle class family was now running a top company and
keeping it afloat. That was success to her. That was what her life was now.

She
looked at Drake and took in his massive frame. Long ago she had come to terms
with her feelings for this man. The phone conversation from the other night
slipped into her mind, but Nadia ruthlessly pushed it away. It didn’t matter if
he had only been playing with her or truly flirting, the truth was that she
would probably never know. Nadia looked away and out the window. She told
herself to be happy that she was allowed this close to him, that he considered
her a friend or even someone as close as family.

She
told herself this but that small, young and impressionable sixteen year old
that had fallen in love with him still lived inside her, and she knew better.

***

           
 After arriving in Dallas, Drake and Nadia made their way to his condo.
The morning was hot and stifling, but the air conditioning in his condo was
blessedly on and cooling the huge area, as per his instructions.

           
The large space was comfy and inviting. It should be. He had spent lots of time
and money to get the look just right. The spaciousness and decor resembled that
of his log house in Beaumont. He was sure that Nadia was comparing the two
similar looks as she walked towards the extra room she would stay in.

           
The slow, sweet way that she walked drew his attention, and the punch of
emotions that tried to tell him she was off limits was lost amongst the surge
of raw, hot lust that permeated his body. She was a pocket Venus, darkly
attractive and sweetly shy. The mix of innocence and a smoldering sensuality
that he sensed hadn’t been tapped yet burned under his radar. Drake wanted more
than anything to give her everything that he sensed she wanted. It didn’t
matter if it was only one slow dance or something more; as of right now, at this
moment, he had committed to being there for her.

           
“Thank you again for letting me
stay
.”

           
Her soft, smooth voice snapped him out of his trance. “No problem. I would
rather you be here anyway.” She visibly shuddered as she placed her bags on the
large bed. Donavan still managed to crawl into her mind every now and then.
Drake knew she was worried about the other man.

           
“Now I see the wisdom in being here.” She turned to him, her green eyes warm
with a friendly light that sometimes she didn’t let show. “I think we both know
he won’t try and mess with you. And even though I have that restraining order,
I still feel safer with someone else around.” The words ‘with you’ were there
in what she said. Drake heard them loud and clear, even if she hadn’t actually
voiced them.

           
His mind brought up images of the night he had found Donavan pushing her
against the vehicle. Battling down the rage building inside of him, he cooled
his thoughts and focused on getting that man’s name out of her vocabulary once
and for all.

           
“From now on, he doesn’t exist.” Her eyes widened slightly then relaxed as she
tried to show him no expression again. “That
man
was part of your life.
You trusted him, you confided in him, and you did all of that because of me.”
Now shock stiffened her body. There was confusion in the green depths of her
eyes and he knew he had truly surprised her by stating what he knew as fact.

           
“I realize now that you were trying to show me that you didn’t need anything
from me. You wanted to make it without my help, which I still don’t understand
why, but it doesn’t matter anymore because all of that is in the past.”

He
slowly walked closer to her and stopped when he was near enough to grasp her
hand in his. The coldness of her fingers shocked him, but he held on anyway.
Not a whisper emerged from her lips.

“I
don’t know exactly what went on between you and Donavan, and more than likely
it isn’t my business, but as of right now…” Drake’s fingers rubbed over her
soft, cool ones and he looked deeply into her wide green eyes. Her emotions
were rampant, her blood singing hotly through her veins, telling him that she
felt something, he just wasn’t exactly sure of what it was. “You are under my
roof, and he isn’t allowed between us.” A slight jolt traveled through her
system. “He will never…
ever
hurt you again. I will not allow it.”

With
a slight rub, he caressed the small, delicate fingers of her hand and leaned
down, wrapping her body in a slight hug. She resisted, keeping her hands
between their bodies, but her heart was pounding and he could hear the rush of
her emotions, like a breeze along his body.

This
woman was his and his alone. No man would cause her harm ever again. A wild,
fierce protectiveness bloomed deep in his chest as he brushed his hand down the
silk of her hair. It scared him, the way she had crawled under his skin so fast
without even knowing it. Drake had never been able to turn her away. With the
emotions sliding through his system now, he knew that he would do anything for
her.

His
chin settled right over the crown of her head and with the alignment of their
bodies, Drake knew he had never felt anything so
right
before. Strands
of her hair tickled his mouth and he knew he should move, right now, before
other thoughts turned this moment into something much more than friendly.

“Go
ahead and unpack your things. Whenever you need to head out for the ballroom to
make sure things are running smooth, let me know.”

He
unwillingly released her and left the room without looking back. If he did
that, he might just turn into something that she couldn’t handle yet.

***

The
annual Black Tie Gala was an all star event. Held in Dallas, it catered to the
fabulously elite and wealthy, but the rewards were enormous for charity. It was
a good thing that the event was held at the Ritz-Carlton because the ballroom
there was the largest in Texas, a massive 9,500 square feet.

Since
yesterday, Nadia had worked in conjunction with her assistants and Derek,
making sure the hotel and her staff were all working in sync with one another.
There were only a few moments when things went wrong, but Nadia managed to get
it under control. She was determined to make everything run smoothly before she
had to return to Drake’s condo and get ready for the gala tonight.

The
incident yesterday morning had stunned her completely. To know that he knew
part of the reason of why she turned to Donavan still sent tremors sliding over
her skin. For a moment there in the guestroom she had thought she would lose
all sanity. She had expected him to say that she had used Donavan as a wedge
between them because of the way she felt for him. When he had told her that he
didn’t know the true reason for why she had done it, a small bit of relief had
slipped inside her body. What really scared her though was that Drake was now
determined to keep her within his sights. She would be in close proximity to
him from now on, if he had any say so.