Kiss of Fire (St. James Family) (17 page)

“
You're funny, Toni,” he said finally, taking another swig of beer. “Really fucking funny.”

“
I'm glad you think it's funny. I'm horrified,” she said, but she couldn't suppress her own laugh. “I need to get Christophe to do a background check on you.” He looked at her sharply.

“
Who's Christophe?”

“
Christophe Van der Kind. My brother-in-law.”

“
Van der Kind?” he furrowed his brow.

“
Yeah, his family is super rich. You've probably heard of them.” She waved a hand, then a thought came to her. “Did that sound douche-y? I didn't mean it to sound like that.” He shook his head, his face serious now.

“
The name is familiar.”

“
My sister, Nat, married him a couple years ago. Not too long after the accident, actually. He was the one who found out your name for me, after you left the hospital so mysteriously,” Toni said, reaching for the beer. He handed it to her, crossing his arms over his chest.

“
So you really are a princess?” he said, raising an eyebrow.

“
What? No.”

“
Your family is rich, right?”

“
They're rich, but I'm not rich.” She rolled her eyes, taking a sip. Her salary from the ballet was decent, and most of it went into investments and savings, but she wasn't rich. Not Van der Kind rich.

“
But they take care of you?”

“
Um.” Toni couldn't really deny it. She hadn't paid rent in two years. She didn't want for anything. But before that, she'd taken care of herself. Mostly.

“
They do, don't they?” He snorted out a laugh and then turned back to the grill. “Food's almost ready.”

“
Wait. Are you judging me?” she asked.

“
You just judged me for being an independent,” he said, his voice low. “But I can't judge you for being spoiled?”

“
I'm not spoiled!” Toni yelled, then realized she was probably acting like a brat. She gnawed at her lip, trying to think of a better comeback.

“
I left the plates on the counter in the kitchen. You think you can handle setting the table, or would that be against your fucking politics,
princess
?” he said, his asshole tone back to full-effect. Toni felt her mouth fall open.

Oh, hell no.

She set the beer down hard on the railing and stood. “You know what? I just remembered I do have plans. I can call a car if you can't take me back to the city.” Without another look at him, she swung open the screen door and began hunting for her clothes, which were scattered around the living room. She was fishing her jeans out from behind the plaid chair, muttering under her breath, when he grabbed her around the waist and hauled her upright.

“
Get off!” She struggled against him.

“
I just fucking cooked for you, you're going to eat it,” he said gruffly in her ear.

“
That didn't sound like an apology,” she said, but stopped wriggling against him when he pressed his face to her neck. His stubble teased her sensitive skin, and damn it all if her body didn't respond to his touch. God, she was such a sap when it came to him.

“
Because it wasn't, princess.”

“
Don't call me that, you asshole!” she hissed, forcing herself not to look at him.

“
You're so hot when you're angry,” he said, kissing her neck. “I think I like angry Toni best.” With those words, all of the wind went out of her sails. But she couldn't let him win that easily.

“
Too bad. Angry Toni has had just about enough of Asshole O'Donovan,” she muttered, but tilted her head so that he could have better access to her throat. He ran his teeth over her skin, sending a tremor through her. She was so weak when it came to him, she realized. Especially now, after she knew how good he could make her feel.

“
Do you want me to apologize?” he whispered, his hands traveling up to cup her breasts through the thin fabric of the T-shirt. She nodded, biting her lip hard to avoid moaning as he tweaked her nipples. He didn't reply, instead silently fondled her until her thighs felt slick and she had to shift her hips. She could feel his hardness against her backside, and more than anything, she wanted him to bend her over the ugly-ass recliner and show her how truly sorry he was.

Like he could read her mind, he pushed her over so that her ass was in the air. Excitement flared through her as she grabbed ahold of the chair to steady herself.
Oh, yes,
she thought. He knew exactly what she wanted. His T-shirt fell away, her nakedness exposed to his gaze. She shivered with anticipation, but she didn't have to wait long.  The sound of the condom wrapper was the last thing she heard before he thrust into her hard. No warning at all. Her body protested at first and she called out, her body still sensitive, but wanting him all the more. His big erection stretched her and filled her, hard and fast. And he wasn't gentle with her, at all. His body slammed against hers, their moans and grunts echoing in her ears as he pounded into her.

Whereas he'd made love to her with his tongue earlier, now he was fucking her, and she loved every minute of it. The man may be an asshole, but he could do no wrong when it came to sex. It was like he knew just what to do. It was so good. Beyond good. It was heavenly. His hands gripped her hips, holding her against him as he swerved his hips. She squeezed her eyes shut, the pleasure too intense.

“Fuck!” he called out and she knew he was coming. She let out the breath she was holding as he jerked against her, all of the anger flowing out of him in waves. He snaked his arms around her, holding her to his chest, as he tried to catch his breath. She swallowed hard as he withdrew from her, immediately feeling too empty. Her body was pulsating but she still wanted more. She didn't know if she would ever get enough of him.

“
O'Donovan?” she said. “Was that an apology?” she asked, and couldn't resist a laugh.

“
I don't know what that was,” he said, and then laughed along, any tension between them gone in an instant.

“
Well if it was, I think I accept,” That made them both laughing more, and he pulled her upright with him when he stood.

“
Come eat with me,” he whispered in her ear, letting his hands drop to her hips. “Then I'll feast on you for the rest of the night.” She felt herself nodding, dumbly, because she was still wet and ready for him. Her mind felt like mush and her body was wound tight. He had her all mixed up. Who knew amazing sex could do that to a person?

“
You're not off the hook yet, you know. I'm still going to make you pay for it,” she said, just to make herself feel better. She couldn't let him think that he'd won that easily, even though he had.

“
I look forward to it,” he said, his green eyes already darkening with desire as he zipped back up his jeans.

Chapter 11

O'Donovan felt Toni stiffen as they drove up the West-Side highway, and he realized that they were nearing the crash site. He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, and she was chewing on her lip, one knee pulled up to her chest. He took her hand in his and pressed her knuckles to his lips. She smiled at him, her eyes warming, and he ran his teeth across her skin.

“
I don't go this way very often anymore,” she said, as if an explanation was needed. He nodded, and she turned her face back to the window. His eyes went back to the road, but he didn't drop her hand. Protectiveness flared up in him and he wished he could shield her from any hurt that she felt. But she was strong, and after awhile, he felt her body relax beside him.

She'd woken him at 6:00 a.m., softly whispering in his ear that she had to be at rehearsal at nine. He'd rolled her over onto her back and had his way with her first, their bodies bathed in the orange light of the sunrise outside. They'd joined together slowly, lazily, and he could still hear her soft moans echoing in his ears. She'd been open and wet for him, and their argument the night before was all but forgotten as she teased him with her tongue and came hard against his cock. However, their heated words still lingered at the back of his brain.

He'd been taken aback when he heard Toni's sister was married to a Van der Kind. He'd heard the name before, back in his former life on Wall Street. The Van der Kinds had a Fortune 500 company, and they were old New York money. The kind of high-society that Gwen would give her left tit to belong to. Toni was a member of an exclusive club, as much as she liked to pretend she wasn't. He couldn't shake the nagging feeling that although they were completely compatible as far as fucking, they had little else going for them as far as being a couple.

No, Antoinette St. James was not going to be anything more than a sexy-as-hell fling. And that was a damn shame. He didn't think he would ever tire of licking her pussy or looking into her lively, teasing eyes as he fucked her. Sex with her was fun, plain and simple. Nothing more, nothing less, he told himself. But he wasn't going to give her up until he had to. His only option was to enjoy her as long as he could until the whole thing blew up in both of their faces.

“Are you tired?” he asked as she yawned, slapping a hand over her mouth.

“
I am going to be dead on my feet today,” she said. “If a certain someone didn't keep me up all night, I might have had a chance.”

“
Don't complain,” he said with a smile. “You had a fucking good time.”

“
You're so damn arrogant,” she said, shaking her head.

“
Am I wrong?” he furrowed his brow, in mock concern.

“
No, but you're still annoying!” she yelled. He could only laugh, making the turn off on the  96
th
street exit, heading for her sister's house. He made a left turn onto Amsterdam, and they rode up in silence as Toni nursed her travel mug of coffee. He sure was spending an awful lot of time on the Upper West side, he suddenly realized.

“
I think I'm getting used to your awful driving,” she said, as he pulled to a stop outside of the townhouse that Toni pointed out on West 97
th
. He was surprised at the narrow house. Although he was sure it had cost in the millions, and it was very well-maintained, it didn't look like the house of a billionaire. But still, no matter how modest the house, it was way out of his price range. If this was the life to which Toni was accustomed, there was no way in hell he could compete. Not that he wanted to.

“
Give me a kiss and get out,” he said, turning to her. She narrowed her eyes as she unbuckled her seatbelt. It didn't escape his attention that she was not wearing her bikini top under her T-shirt.

“
Maybe I don't want to kiss you,” she said. Calling her bluff, he opened his door and hopped out. He strolled around to her side of the truck, avoiding a speeding, honking yellow cab in the process. He swung her door open, and grabbed her up. She giggled as he pulled her squirming body against his chest. “You are causing a scene!” she squealed as he buried his scruffy face in her neck. He breathed her in, all of her tantalizing smell, his cock hardening by the second. She softened, like he knew she would, and snaked her arms around his neck. “Okay! Okay, one kiss.”

“
It better be a good one,” he said, then bit her neck lightly. She lifted his face to meet hers and kissed him softly. He knew instantly he'd made a mistake. He couldn't just stop at just one kiss from her. Once he started kissing her, he never wanted to stop. But a blaring car horn cut their goodbye short, as Toni pulled away to look at who was doing the honking.

“
You're blocking the road, fuck-face!” the cabby yelled at them. Toni burst out laughing.

“
Hey, fuck you!” O'Donovan raised his middle finger in salute. The car honking commenced and Toni hopped out of the truck. O'Donovan slammed the door behind her, feeling very grumpy all of a sudden. The cab sped past, the cabby tossing a few more choice words out of his open window. “Say it to my face, motherfucker!” O'Donovan yelled after him.

“
You really are a New Yorker,” Toni said, laughing from the sidewalk. He kept his distance, forcing himself to not touch her. If he touched her, he wouldn't be able to stop himself from carrying her inside the house and fuck her for the rest of the day. But as it was, he couldn't so he didn't.

“
You got everything?” he asked her, from relatively safety beside the truck.

“
Yeah.” She gave a slight nod. “Alright. Goodbye.” He nodded and she turned and walked toward the stoop. He didn't take his eyes off of her, wondering how long he would be able to stay away from her. He didn't think it would be long at all at the rate he was going.

She sent a glance over her shoulder as she opened the big front door, and he felt his heart speed up. She looked as beautiful as she'd ever been, fresh-faced and radiant in the morning light, despite her lack of sleep. Her eyes were bright and laughing, her lips drawn upward in a slight smile. She hesitated, gave a small wave, and then closed the door behind her. He stood there for a long moment, wanting badly to run up the stoop, kick the door in, and take her back. But he didn't. He got back in his truck and headed back to Queens.