Love Revolution (Black Cat Records Shakespeare Inspired trilogy) (18 page)

JR hesitated, sorely tempted to do just that. She looked amazingly seductive right now with her eyes all sleepy and her hair disheveled. This was the woman he loved though, not just some random one night stand. He wanted the first time with her to be special and private, and he definitely wanted to get that ring on her finger. “You’re exhausted, Princess.” He gently kissed her parted lips. “I’ll see you first thing in the morning. Alright?”

Her lips formed a provocative pout. “Ok.”

When he softly closed the door, Sam unsteadily kicked off her shoes and unzipped her dress, leaving it and then her undergarments in a heap on the floor. Stumbling toward the bathroom, she stopped when she heard a knock on the door. She grabbed a robe out of the closet and pulled it on, belting it tightly. Opening the door, John’s name on her lips, she was surprised to find Danny standing there instead.

“Hey, we’re switching rooms, remember?”

“Oh, yeah. I forgot.”

“I already had your things moved into the other room.” Danny brushed by her into the room.

She gave him a questioning look.

“Yours is number one.”

She padded out on bare feet into the carpeted hallway. “Where am I going again?” she asked in confusion.

He guided her down the hall to a room at the very end and let her in. “Night, Samantha.” Under his breath, Danny whispered, “Tomorrow’s not going to be a good day,” and closed the door behind her.

Tired, Sam flopped face first down onto the bed. A shower would have to wait until the morning. She was wiped. As she drifted off, she felt vaguely uneasy, but the thought flitted around the edges of her consciousness and then slipped into oblivion.

A blood curdling scream yanked Chris from sleep. He sat up, disoriented, when a second scream emanated from behind the connecting door.
Holy shit
. It was Sara. His heart pounding, he bolted out of bed and threw open the door.

Concerned about a possible intruder, he quickly scanned the room, but Sara was alone. She was sitting in the middle of her bed with her head tucked down to her chest, her arms wrapped around her body. A creepy, weird-you- out keening sound was coming from her throat.

What the hell?
Flipping on the bedside lamp, he made a more thorough examination of the suite, including the bathroom, but by this point he wasn’t expecting to find anyone.

Chris went back to Sara who was quiet now but hadn’t moved. She seemed really out of it and was rubbing her palms on her legs as if she was trying to wipe something off of them. Confused, he tilted his head to the side, totally baffled by her bizarre behavior.

“Why Papa? Why?” Sara whispered.

His brow creased. Apparently, there was much more to Sara’s past than she’d told him. It obviously involved her father, and whatever it was he knew in his gut, it was bad… real bad.

He sank down on the mattress beside her. Her grey eyes seemed unfocused, and her face was wet with tears. He cleared his throat. “Sara. It’s ok. I’m here.” He scooted behind her and pulled her back against his chest. He wrapped his arms firmly around her. Murmuring more reassurances in her ear, he stroked her hair.

After what felt like an eternity, she peered over her shoulder at him. Her expression was guarded. “I’m ok.” She leaned forward in an apparent attempt to get out of his embrace.

Chris hauled her back. He was sick of her running away from him every time he got close. Whatever the hell this was, he was sure that it was the key to everything.

He turned her toward him, cradling her head against his chest. He rubbed her back the same way he had on the gondola ride. “Stop fighting me, Sara,” he whispered.

For a while, she didn’t respond, but eventually her body relaxed against his. She buried her head deeper into his shoulder and nestled her hands softly against his chest. He interpreted the simple movement as proof that she was letting down her guard with him if only just a little. Now if only he could get her to trust him enough to open up.

Sara’s breathing became regular and for a moment Chris thought she’d fallen asleep, but then he felt her hand sliding down his chest. Her palm was warm against his bare skin and he flinched when she slid her hand beneath the waistband of his boxers. “No,” he said, grabbing her wrist to prevent her from going further. “Sara. Stop. What are you doing?”

“What do you think I’m doing? I can
feel
you, Chris. You want this. It’s why we’re here, right?”

He shook his head. “No. Not right now. Not like this when you’re so upset. I want it to mean something. I’m not looking for casual sex.”

He felt her muscles tense right before she shot out of the bed. He immediately felt the loss of her heat.

“Well, that’s all I’m offering.” Sara stood at the foot of the bed with her arms crossed over her chest and glared at him. “You can take it or leave it. But I guarantee if you don’t, it’ll be your loss.”

The tension grew as they stared at one another. Sara was the first to look away, but not before he saw a tear track down her cheek. The woman was a walking contradiction. Tough as nails on the surface, but fragile as a china doll on the inside. “I’m not giving up on having more than that with you.” He moved to her side and put his hands on her shoulders. She stiffened again but didn’t pull away. He gently brushed the back of his fingers across her wet cheek. “Oh, Sara, beautiful Sara…what happened with your father?”

She was out of his arms in a flash. One minute she was there and the next she stood in the far corner of the room, glaring and closed off again. She had one arm around her waist like her stomach hurt, and with the other she pointed at the door. “Get out, Chris. Leave me alone. I want you out of my room.”

“I’m not leaving you in this state.” Expression hard, Chris shook his head and started toward her.

“Go. I’m telling you…” She trailed off as he reached her and threaded his arms around her waist.

“No.” His eyes locked on hers.

“Please,” she begged, bottom lip trembling.

To his ears the word sounded less like a dismissal and more like a plea for help. Her eyes were huge. She seemed spooked as shit. No way was he leaving. Even though both her arms still hung limp at her sides, Chris drew her closer. “I’m not going anywhere. Shh, Sara,” he soothed and lifted her up and carried her back to the bed. “Just sleep. Rest. We can talk when you’re ready.”

JR bounded up the stairs to the B&B at seven the next morning. He had the ring in his pocket and couldn’t wait to see the expression on Sam’s face when he proposed. With the tour coming up, he’d be away for days and even sometimes weeks at a time. He’d never been a possessive guy before but readily admitted he was where she was concerned. He wanted all the other guys to know that she was his and unavailable. He also wanted her to have a tangible symbol of his total and complete commitment to her. He hated how his reputation worried her.

At her door he stopped, surprised to find it cracked open. He entered and immediately spotted the dress she’d worn from the night before crumpled in a heap on the floor, a lacy black bra and thong panties on top of it. His eyes widened. He wished it had been his hands instead of hers peeling that sexy lingerie off last night.
Soon.
JR shook his head.
Very soon
.

It struck him as a little odd that she’d left them there. She was kind of a neat freak. He must have underestimated how tired she had been.

Hearing muffled singing in the shower, he lifted his hand to knock on the bathroom door when he heard a clattering sound behind him. Swiveling around, he was surprised to find Danny standing in the doorway behind him with a breakfast tray in his hands. His brows turned down.
What the hell was going on?
For a moment, like an idiot, he didn’t get it. He glanced at the pile of clothes and then at Danny. The truth smacked him like a cement wrecking ball.

She’d slept with Danny last night. The thought of Danny’s hands on her undressing her, touching her naked skin made him shake with jealous rage. Every muscle in his body tensed. A wave of anger engulfed him. To think he’d turned her down last night, wanting to preserve her innocence. What a fool he’d been.

“You piece of shit!” JR turned toward Danny, eyes blazing.

“Hey, we’re all consenting adults.” Danny set down the silver tray, hands held up defensively in front of his chest. “You don’t own her, JR.”

JR felt like he was going to be physically ill. He’d really fallen for Samantha. Hard. He had thought she was so different from all the other women he’d been with. He’d bought into her naiveté, but obviously he’d been duped. Who knew the countless number of men who’d already had a piece of her? She was probably just as big a player as her sister.

His fingers itched to punch something… someone in particular. He advanced toward Danny with a menacing growl.

“Now wait a minute, JR. I didn’t realize you two were that serious.”

“Bullshit! I told you the night at the Rickshaw to keep away from her,” he shouted, shoving Danny into the wall with a forearm under his chin. One of the pictures fell off and crashed to the floor. The water in the shower shut off. JR jerked his head around. He was so angry he didn’t know what he would do if he saw her right now. He gave Danny another hard shove. “I suggest you stay the hell away from me or I just might have to go ahead with my first instinct and separate your head from your body.” Tossing one last heartsick glance in the direction of the shower, he turned abruptly and stormed away.