Stormy Challenge (7 page)

"Do you think I don't know how far gone you were last night?" he snarled, disregarding her futile efforts to free herself. "I didn't have to let you go back to your own room, Leya! With very little effort, I could have kept you with me until morning and we both know it. I was the fool last night because I was trying to play the gentleman. It seemed to be what you wanted, and I, like an idiot, wanted to please you. I took a risk and let you go, and look where it's landed us!" His very male indignation would have been humorous if Leya hadn't felt equally indignant.

"How dare you act the injured party!" she nearly shrieked.

"Because I'm feeling injured!"

Before Leya fully comprehended his intent, Court had pinned her head in the crook of his arm, dragging her back against his shoulder and holding her immobile for his kiss. Even as her mouth opened in angry denial, he was crushing the resistance there with his own lips.

Leya, whose recent memories of his kisses comprised images of tantalizing, haunting, teasing caresses that urged and beckoned, was stunned by the devastating domination Court now exerted so effortlessly. Instinctively, she tried to wrench her face away from the marauding punishment, but she couldn't move so much as an inch in his grasp.

"No!" she shouted into his throat, her single word muffled in the warm heat there.

Instantly, she was disciplined for her verbal rejection, Court's teeth closing painfully on her lip until she opened her teeth and allowed the invasion of his tongue. It found hers hiding in the dark cavern and forced it into a hot, savage duel that brought a moan from deep in her throat. Only when he seemed satisfied that he had subdued the defiance did he withdraw, his voice grating on her mouth.

"There's no point in fighting me, little Leya. I'm staking my claim, putting my seal of ownership on you, and you're going to learn the limits of my chain!" His hand went possessively to her breast.

The silvery green eyes flew open to glare into the molten brown ones so close to her own, Leya's flaming anger sparkling clearly. Too clearly, if she had but known it.

There was far more than anger in the gems of green. There was a feverish brilliance reflecting the depth of her passionate outrage.

"You egotistical, overbearing, arrogant creature! Take your hands off me this instant!

And don't have the gall to talk to me as if I were some sort of pet or slave you can own!"

He grinned with feral savagery, his fingers on her jacket splaying to cup the whole of the breast underneath. "But I am going to own you, honey. It's the only way with a woman like you. You have to be quite certain which one of us is in charge or you'll run me ragged. I'm much too lazy to let you do that to me!"

With a quick movement he obviously hadn't expected, Leya jerked one arm free and swung it. Not in the typical, useless feminine slap, but in a short-arced, forceful punch to his ribs. The thickness of his sheepskin coat blunted the impact somewhat, but there was nevertheless a satisfying thud and she heard the sharp breath between his lips.

"You little vixen!" He snagged the offending hand and crushed it in his own. "I'm going to wind up doing something we both might regret before this is over, and you'll have no one but yourself to blame!"

His head came down again, bruising her mouth. When she went taut in protest, he deliberately moved to bury his face in the curve of her throat, forcing her to accept the burning string of kisses that he trailed from the pulse to the nape of her neck. He held her tightly against his shoulder, trapping one of her arms between their bodies and holding her flailing wrist in the manacle of his grip. With his free hand, he began unzipping her down jacket.

"Court! Don't!" Leya's voice was muffled in the sheepskin. He paid her words no attention, sliding his hand smoothly under the yellow sweater and up to her breast.

At the touch, her breath was suddenly blocked. When his fingers undid the front clasp of her bra and slid across to begin a rough teasing pattern on the nipple, she could only suck in air on a gasp.

"Listen to your body, not your head, sweetheart," Court ordered thickly as he held the prize of, the hardened tip of her rounded breast. "God knows mine is screaming loudly enough at me! I can't believe yours isn't clamoring just as madly. We want each other, little Leya. Why shouldn't we satisfy that want?"

"There are a few things missing from this relationship, damn you!" she rasped, knowing herself helpless to continue fighting the effect he had on her for long. It enveloped her, absorbed her, seduced her sense of touch in the same way that the isolated beach did. The heat of his body was a delicious counterpoint to the crisp, chilled breeze. The earthy, tantalizing scent of him filled her nostrils like the smell of the sea, and the feel of his hands was as alluring as the sight of a storm on the waves. He could not have chosen a more overwhelming setting than the beach to make overwhelming, mastering love to her, she acknowledged miserably.

"What's missing from our relationship, Leya?" he whispered beguilingly, his hand slipping down from her curving fullness to'flatten appreciatively on the skin of her stomach. He must have sensed her reaction because in another moment he was letting his-fingertips trespass inside the waistband of her jeans. Leya shivered violently. Desperately, she tried to pull her wandering senses together, too conscious of the new seduction in his lips as they explored the exposed nape of her neck.

"Try love for starters!" she cried into his shoulder.

"It will come in time," he assured her in soft persuasion. "Give yourself a chance.

You can fall in love with me . . ."

"I'm not particularly interested in a one-sided situation!" she hissed.

"You want me to fall in love with you?" Court gave a soft, knowing chuckle. "Even if I were to fall in love with you, I'd be a fool to admit it, wouldn't I? Especially at this point! You'd use the information like a loaded gun!"

Leya ground her teeth, hating the humor she felt in his chest. He was determined to make a joke of it!

"We'll worry about falling in love later," he went on easily, sliding his hand along the edge of the jeans until he reached the small of her back. She could feel him playing with the tiny, fine golden hairs he found there, and her body throbbed in response.

"There are other matters to settle between us first," he concluded, sounding decisive.

"Love isn't the only thing I'd want out of a relationship," she swore forcefully.

"There are a lot of other things you're equally incapable of giving!"

"Such as?" He put out his tongue and touched the small bones of her shoulder with its tip.

"Such as respect and equality, to name a couple!"

"Now that's an unfair accusation," he muttered. "I have every intention of teaching you to respect me. It's one of my highest priorities, in fact."

"That's not what I meant, damn you!" she wailed, wishing she could move just enough to sink her teeth into him or pummel his ribs again. But he still held her caged.

"Ah, you're afraid I don't respect you!"

"It's quite obvious you don't!"

"You're wrong, Leya. I have a very healthy respect for your strength and your intelligence and your independence. The same sort of respect I have for a female lion. But a man has to tame wild things somewhat if he intends to enjoy them in some measure of safety. I wanted to try a gentling approach first. That's why you got off so easily last night. But if that doesn't work ..."

"I'm surprised you are willing to devote the energy it would take to control me,"

Leya ground out bitterly. "I got the impression you enjoyed a leisurely approach to life!"

"I do. It's one of the things we have in common," he grinned and she felt his teeth on her skin. "Don't worry. This little flare-up between us is a temporary thing. Once the dust has settled, we'll both be able to lapse happily back into our normal, serene lifestyles." He sounded pleased at the prospect.

Leya froze in sudden anguish. My God! she thought helplessly, he sees me as some sort of temporary toy to relieve a small stretch of boredom he's passing through!

It was either that or he was convinced she would undermine his influence with Keith.

Those were the only two reasons Leya's agile mind could come up with for Court's apparent interest in her as a lover. She had been an idiot during the past two days to think he was genuinely attracted to her!

And how typical of a man to think that the best way of controlling a woman, whether for one's own pleasure or for business reasons, was to take her to bed!

"If you've quite finished with the explanation you brought me down here for, do you mind letting me go back to the inn?" Leya managed to mumble into Court's shoulder.

She felt his alert silence and then he said carefully, "That depends. Are you going to accept the explanation?"

"You actually want me to forgive you for your deceit?" she muttered disbelievingly.

"I want you to understand why I did it and let us both start over again. Hell, Leya,"

he went on wryly, "I know we've gotten off on the wrong foot because of that contract. . . ."

"Your perception is blinding!" she interrupted scathingly.

"But I'm asking you to forget it and let us start fresh," he persisted doggedly. "I want you so much, little Leya, and I know the feeling is mutual. You can't hide it from me.

In the past couple of days, we've gotten too close."

"And if I don't agree to forgive and forget?"

He sighed deep in his chest. "Then we'll do things the hard way."

"Meaning?" she gritted, as his hand slid out from under the sweater. The loss of its warmth was unexpectedly depressing, and she could have kicked herself for the irrational reaction.

"Honey, don't push me," he replied steadily. "Just give me a chance. Please?"

Slowly, he loosened his grip, not setting her completely free, but allowing some distance between them.

Leya watched him through resentful eyes, disgusted to find a tiny spark of humor flicker to life at the effort he was making to appear encouragingly repentant.

"You don't grovel very well," she noted grimly.

"Is that what you want me to do?" he rapped interestedly, tortoiseshell eyes flickering with an unreadable expression.

"It would be a start, but don't fret," she added quickly, flinging up a hand. "I don't expect it of you!"

"Leya, from now on I guarantee that everything between us will be honest and straightforward," he replied earnestly. His large hands moved to zip up the down jacket.

"Or else they'll be sneaky and underhanded. One of the two, right?" she retorted cheekily, rapidly regaining her nerve as she recognized that his impassioned anger of a few moments earlier was fading.

"I'm trying to be patient ..." he began forcefully.

"Why? Because you're hoping I'll give in to your blandishments and therefore be much less taxing to handle?"

The hint of a smile touched his mouth. "I'll have to admit it would be simpler if you decided to be reasonable."

"Oh! You're impossible!" Disgustedly, Leya thrust her hands into her pockets and stalked back up the beach toward the distant inn. She didn't look up as he fell into step beside her, but she heard the questioning note in his voice.

"Leya?" He was waiting for her ultimate answer, she realized, asking if she was going to make things difficult for him.

And it struck her that Court was still wary of her. True, he had her signature on the contract, but she retained half-ownership of the firm. As long as she held fifty percent of the shares, she could still represent a threat to his control. He himself had pointed out that all she would need to do was convince Keith they'd made a mistake

. . .

Something inside her despaired. She didn't want to think Court was really so unscrupulous. She didn't want to acknowledge the possibility that he was still scheming. With a small inner sigh, she realized why. She was attracted to the man.

Attracted to him in a way she had never been attracted to anyone else. She simply didn't want to believe the worst of him. In spite of the evidence!

But she had to be realistic, she told herself fiercely. The only thing she could be sure of was that Court wasn't completely confident of her. He was prepared to exert himself if she proved rebellious. He was equally prepared to accept her surrender immediately. But what would he do, she wondered acidly, if she didn't give him the clearcut answer he wanted? It was a poor punishment for the humiliation he had put her through, but it was all she had.

"I'll have to think about it," she told him coolly.

"Think about it!" he exploded. "What do you mean, think about it? Either you're going to accept the situation or you aren't!"

"Whatever you say, Court," she replied demurely, trying to take some satisfaction from his obvious frustration. It was hard. She didn't want the satisfaction of punishing him. She wanted the satisfaction of knowing he really wanted her!

"What do you think you're playing at, Leya Brandon?" he growled. "You were ready to commit murder when you opened the door this morning. A few minutes ago you were shivering in my arms. Make up your mind, damn it!"

"I'll try," she promised mockingly. "But first I think I'll have breakfast. There's nothing like a brisk morning walk on the beach to stir up an appetite, don't you agree?"

She watched him out of the corner of her slanting green eyes and saw the look of wariness and confusion tautening his features.

"Then what?" he prodded belligerently.

"After breakfast? Why, then I think I'll make arrangements to head back to Santa Rosa, of course. I'm sure you'll understand when I say my vacation has been spoiled!"

"There's no need to turn tail and run." He had apparently reached the conclusion that she was afraid of him.

"I'm not running," she assured him with forced serenity, "I'm flying. There's a plane out of that little town up the coast that connects with a major airline. I'll be home by noon."

There was a heavy silence.

"I drove up," Court said finally. "I'll drive you back."