Resisting The Tycoon's Seduction (The Berutelli Escape) (6 page)

Control was key, she told herself and shifted her shoulders. 

Food was probably a good idea as well.  She took another sip of her wine, conscious of the possibility that she might need to take her migraine medicine.  Mixing alcohol and medicine wouldn’t be good at all.

“You need to eat,” Zeke said, appearing suddenly and placing a plate of something that smelled delicious in front of her before disappearing back through the tall, elegant glass doors. 

She saw him doing something else in the kitchen and thought it might be impolite to eat while he wasn’t with her.  But he’d told her to go ahead and she couldn’t resist the scrumptious smells any longer.  Taking a tentative bite, she was surprised at the warm, gooey taste of cheese and the salty pop of the capers.  She wasn’t sure what this was on the toasted
baguette, but it was delicious!  She ate half the plate before he came back out with two more plates of food. 

“How were they?” he asked, handing her a plate filled with some sort of roasted sandwich. 

Marissa blushed, aware that she’d just scarfed down half the appetizers in a very short period of time.  “They’re delicious,” she replied, trying to swallow quickly.  “I’m amazed at how well you cook.”

“Wait un
til you try the sandwich.  I make the onion balsamic dressing myself.  And don’t worry.  I’ll brush my teeth after lunch before I kiss you again.”

Marissa was just about to take a bite of the savory, cheesy sandwich when his words registered.  Her hand froze and she looked up at him, saw him wink at her and her heart flipped slightly.  Was he serious? 

Of course he was. 

And more importantly, how did she feel about that? 

Instead of replying because her reaction was so confusing, she took a bite of her sandwich.  “Oh my!” she gasped as she tasted the tartness of the balsamic vinegar and sour apples along with the gooey brie cheese.  The way it was all warmed together was heavenly.  “This is amazing!” she said, carefully wiping her mouth with the linen napkin he handed her. 

“Glad you approve,” he said and sat down next to her, taking a bite of his own sandwic
h.  “So tell me what’s going on.”

She pretended to ignore him as she took another bite of the incredible food.  “You’re sitting too closely.  Scoot over.”

He scooted, but the obnoxious man moved closer to her.  She turned to glare at him, but she was really too relaxed and the food was too delicious for her to spend time admonishing him for crowding her.  She took the plate and held it under her sandwich while she leaned back against the soft cushions.  “You’re a wonderful cook even if you’re a horribly irritating man.”

“But you want me,” he countered, laughing
softly when she blushed. 

“I don’t.”
  She wasn’t sure if she did or didn’t, but she absolutely wasn’t going to admit anything to him.  He was too confident as it was and she wanted to prove that she wasn’t just mush where he was concerned.  She was dismissing the fact that she’d just started to strip in his office a little over an hour ago. 

Zeke wasn’t going to take her pushing him away.  He wanted her to accept that they were good together.  He’d never encountered someone who would ignore an attraction as powerful as
what they were enjoying with each other.  “Do you want me to demonstrate once again how much we want each other?”

“No!” she almost shouted, then covered her mouth with her napkin, shocked that she’d been so crass as to speak with her mouth full.  “Just…” she shifted in her seat, “stay on that cushion and I’ll stay here.  At least until I finish this sandwich.  I’m too hungry for another battle of wills at this point.”

Zeke chuckled deeply, thinking she was adorable while she tried to deny her desire for him.  Why she was doing that, he didn’t understand but he’d get to the bottom of all of her mysteries soon enough.  For now, he watched her eat, appreciating that she wasn’t one of those women who nibbled at her food.  She took actual bites and finished the whole sandwich, even drinking more than half of her glass of wine.

She looked so sexy when she put her plate down on the low coffee table then leaned back against the cushions, letting her face lift up to the sunshine.  “That was incredibly good, Zeke.  Who would have known that a man like you could cook?”

“What do you mean?  What kind of man am I?” he asked, once more leaning towards her.  He knew she wanted more space, but there was just something about this woman that drew him closer, wanting to smell her soft, feminine scent and examine her expressive, chocolate colored eyes. 

In answer, Marissa picked up his hand, turning it over so her soft fingers could trace the hard contours of his hand.  “
A man with hands this rough shouldn’t know how to roast a brie sandwich.  How did you get these calluses?” she asked softly, too curious to resist asking the question. 

“I worked construction as a kid.”

His explanation made sense if he were still doing that kind of work.  But he sat in an office or conference room most of the time.  “That was years ago.  Why haven’t they healed?  Most men I know have very soft hands.”

He shrugged those massive shoulders, dismissing her observation.  He liked her touch but her soft fingers tracing his hand were going to create a reaction that might make her blush again. 
“I still like to get down with the men and work with them.  Its hard work, but it helps me to understand what they’re going through and how I can improve the efficiency of each project.”

She looked up into his
dark eyes, noting the sincerity there.  “You take good care of your employees, don’t you?” she asked, already knowing the answer.  It was the complete opposite of what her father could say.  There were employees of her father that just disappeared, never to be heard from again.  Their families were worried, she knew.  Whenever she realized something was wrong, she tried to send them money or food, keeping track of things so she could try and make things better.  Even the men who disappeared with blood on their hands, she tried to help their families.  She was one of those people.  It could happen to her just as easily as it happened to the others in her father’s line of business. 

A pain once again shot up from the back of her head and she closed her eyes as the pain tore through her.

“What’s wrong, Marissa?” he asked softly, his body tensing as he watched her face squint as if she’d just been hit with something. 

She waited until the pain went away, then slowly opened her eyes and took a long, slow, deep breath.  “Nothing,” she said, br
eathing hard after that last shooting pain.  Her vision was starting to narrow, a sure sign that this would result in a full-fledged migraine.  “I’m sorry, Zeke, but I really have to go.”  She had to get out of here and take some medicine.  She’d thought the pain would stop with food, but apparently, the migraine was intent on ruining a perfectly horrid day.  Well, except for the lunch.  That hadn’t been dreadful.  It had actually been amazingly good.  Even sitting next to him had been…Another pain shot up her neck, almost as if her brain were being squeezed. 

Zeke knew something was very wrong and she was trying to hide it from him.  He wasn’t going to allow her any secrets.  In the short time he’d known her, she’d become important to him in ways he didn’t completely understand. 
“Marissa, you’re not leaving.”  Zeke stood up and looked down at her, blocking her path into the house and eliminating her escape.  “Tell me what’s going on.”

Another sharp pain hit her and she grabbed the side of the sofa, not realizing that it was actually Zeke’s arm instead.  She gripped the only available surface since she couldn’t control the migraine that was coming on strong now. 

“No sun,” she whispered through the haze of pain as it slowly receded. 

Zeke barely heard her, but he quickly lifted her into his arms and carried her into the living room, sitting down with her in his lap.  “Okay, you’re out of the
sunshine.  Tell me what’s wrong.” he demanded.

Marissa cringed as his voice caused another
wave of pain to hit her.  “Quiet,” she begged.  She leaned down, her body curling into a ball and her fingers gripping his shirt as a new wave of pain slashed through her head, coming down the back of her head this time and radiating outwards.  The pain was so intense she thought she might actually lose her lunch. 

“Are you having a migraine?” Zeke asked softly, lifting her up once again, cuddling her slender body against his as he carried her int
o his bedroom.  He laid her on the bed, about to cover her up but when her fingers refused to let go of his shirt, he turned around instead, settling her against him as he sat down on the bed. 

“Yes,” she finally admitted.  “Too much light.”  She wanted so badly to just curl up into a ball, but she also wanted to stay by the warmth, the strength she wasn’t even aware was Zeke.  All she knew was that she felt safe.  “Medicine.  In my purse,” she whispered, then cringed since talking hurt even more. 

Zeke reached for her purse that she’d been clutching, searching through the contents until he found the small vial of pills.  He took one out and handed it to her.  “Do you need water?” he asked. 

She didn’t answer, just popped
the tablet into her mouth and swallowed, then curled back up, pressing her nose against his neck and inhaling his strong, masculine scent filled with his spicy aftershave. 

Zeke pressed a button on his bedside table and the blinds came down from the ceiling, enclosing the bedroom in darkness.  There was a small light coming from the hallway but he didn’t think that would bother her too much. 

He started to slide her down onto the mattress, but as soon as he shifted, she clenched his shirt once again and whimpered.  “Please,” she begged him.  So Zeke shifted back, settling her more comfortably on his lap.  He wasn’t sure how long it would take for the medicine to take effect, but he didn’t want her in pain so he just relaxed against the headboard and listened to her breathing.  When her breaths started to slow down, to become longer and deeper, he knew that she’d finally fallen asleep. 

His mind started working, going through the details of what he’d learned. She was definitely in trouble.  He wasn’t sure about her sister, but Sierra might be as well.  Her proposal this morning was very strange, almost forced but he would get to the bottom of that as soon as
his security director, Dave, got him more information.  Everything always came down to information and Zeke was an expert at compiling data and then manipulating circumstances so that things came out better for his companies. 

As Marissa snuggled on his lap, his body hard and aching for the woman who sighed in her sleep often enough to have him gritting his teeth with the
surging need to feel her soft skin with his hands, not to mention the rest of his body, but he tamped that down.  At least for now. 

His cell phone vibrated and he lifted it to his ear, talking quietly so as not to wake Marissa.  It was Dave, as Zeke knew it would be.  Dave was an ex-Navy seal who knew how to get information fast and act on it efficiently.  He was head of his security who had recruited other ex-military types, all of whom enjoyed the challenge of breaking through their own security measures.  They tested the physical security
of his company buildings worldwide by climbing the walls to see if each buildings’ security guards were on top of their game, they hacked into the computer systems to ensure that the firewalls were adequate, and they tested the employees at various locations to ensure that they were following all of the mandated security guidelines. 

When Zeke ended the call, his mind sifted through the information
Dave had relayed to him.  With a quick mind, he looked down at the woman still sleeping in his arms and made a decision.  She probably was going to rebel at his pronouncement, but he’d get her there anyway.  On a related issue, something was holding her back from enjoying the passion they felt for each other but that was going to have to come to an end.  He knew he wasn’t going to be able to control himself forever. Not the way both of them reacted whenever they touched.  It was a foregone conclusion that they would make love.  It was just a question of when. 

An hour later, he felt her stirring in his arms.  He’d been e-mailing associates about various issues but when he saw her eyes flutter, he put his cell phone down on the bedside table and held her steady while she came out of the medicine and pain induced sleep. 

“How do you feel?” he asked carefully, his hand holding onto her back while her fingers continued to clench his shirt. 

Marissa looked around, trying to get her bearings.  She shifted her head slightly and was relieved that the migraine had abated.  Thankfully, she’d been able to get
to her medicine quickly enough.  Her eyes were able to focus although it was relatively dark in this room so she couldn’t see very much. 

“Better,” she said even though her mouth felt out of sorts.  She always came out of these episodes a little dopey but if she caught the migraine before it became a full-fledge misery session,
the pain left her relatively quickly.  “I’m sorry about that,” she said, her fingers slowly unclenching the front of his shirt. 

She stared at his chest since her eyes were right at that level.  There was something very intimate about her position as well as how sweet he was to have taken care of her, especially since she was still basically a stranger to him.  “I’d better go.”
  She was excruciatingly self-conscious that he’d seen her at her weakest and she just wanted to get away from him and hide somewhere.  Maybe for the next century after the way this day had gone.