The Billionaire's Challenging Beauty (Bold, Alaskan Men Book 2) (3 page)

Tyla wanted to turn around and tell him that she wasn’t a little girl any longer and he needed to stop treating her like one.  But he was too close again, and she retreated.  Again.  “Goodnight,” she said and stepped into her apartment, closing the door behind her. 

Saeger stared at the closed door, wishing that he was on the other side and he was kissing the lovely Tyla until she was gasping for breath.  He wanted to feel her fingers on his arms, just like she’d done earlier in the locker room, but without any clothes between her fingers and his body.  And he wanted to make love to her so badly that he could almost taste the pain radiating throughout his body as the need to possess her filled him. 

But he didn’t do any of those things.  He turned around and walked back down the street to The Rotten Apple.  With a flick of his wrist, he unlocked the door to his SUV and almost threw himself inside.  Revving the engine, he sped out of the parking lot, needing another cold shower after that act of chivalry. 

“You doing okay, Tyla?” Tony and Laura called out, as they walked into the grocery store the following day. 

“I’m fine,” she replied, shifting her bags in her arms.  “Why do you ask?”

Laura laughed a bit but Tony’s grin was huge.  “Heard you had some trouble holding onto the beers last night.  A bit of alcohol abuse, wouldn’t you say?”

Tyla’s mouth dropped open with that comment, and the couple walked into the grocery store, chuckling at their humor. 

She walked away, moving down the street to the hardware store, needing to find a way to fix her toilet. 

“Morning, Tyla!” Tim, the owner of the hardware store called out.  “Rubber gloves are over on aisle three!  I’ll loan you a pair for your next shift at The Rotten Apple,” he said, then walked away chuckling and shaking his head.  A couple of the other patrons were laughing as well. 

Tyla spun around, lugging her groceries with her and forgetting the toilet issue.  Two more people stopped her along the street, both of them laughing about her mishap last night with the lubricant and the beer mugs.  She was livid by the time she unlocked her apartment door and walked inside.  She barely took the time to shove her groceries into the refrigerator before she was walking back out again. 

“Retribution is mandatory,” she mumbled under her breath.

“Hey Tyla!” Violet called out. 

“Can’t stop!” Tyla yelled back, unlocking the door to her beat-up old Wrangler.  “On a mission!” she said and revved the engine.  “And I know exactly how to get back at that rotten man!” she mumbled to herself as she drove down the street.

Poster.  Big marker.  Strong tape.  Yep, that should do it.  Keep it simple.  Keep it easy!

Thirty minutes later, she almost laughed at how easy it was.  Saeger’s truck was parked in the hardware store parking lot and all she had to do was walk across the street, slap the poster onto the back of his SUV and walk away like nothing was happening. 

Saeger came out of the hardware store and heard someone honk.  Looking up, he waved as Nancy Shuman, one of the elementary school teachers, passed by.  “You’re okay, Saeger!  It’s okay!”

Saeger looked across the parking lot, confused.  He waved back and mumbled a response, but he wasn’t sure what the woman was talking about. 

Pulling out of the parking lot, he heard someone honk and he stopped quickly.  But it was only another local nodding his head and waving as he drove on down the road.  That happened several more times and he had absolutely no idea what the hell was going on.  The whole town was honking and nodding to him as if they pitied him in some way.  Oddly, the pity was laced with amusement. 

Walking into The Rotten Apple, he found Knox and Tucker sitting at the table where they usually sat when they gathered but weren’t working the bar. 

Sarah looked at him with a twinkle in her eyes, but she laid a hand on his shoulder and leaned down.  “It’s okay, honey.  It isn’t the size of the brush, it’s the sway of the stroke that makes the difference.”  And she walked away, chuckling at her joke.

Knox and Tucker looked at Saeger and he looked back.  “I have no idea what she’s talking about,” Saeger explained. 

The three of them shrugged and continued eating their lunch. 

For the rest of the afternoon, Saeger couldn’t figure out what was going on.  When Creek walked in with his arm around Violet, he almost groaned with the mischievous look in the pretty brunette’s eyes. 

“It’s hard to admit it, but maybe that’s why you’ve been without a date for so long,” she said as she took one of the empty chairs at the table. 

Creek laughed, shaking his head as he pulled another chair over and sat down.  “Sarah, can you get the poor man a beer?  He needs something to help him ease the pain of his admission.”

Saeger was fed up.  “What the hell are you talking about?  It’s like this whole town has gone crazy, and I’m sick of people honking at me and almost commiserating with me!”

Tucker and Knox held up their hands.  “I’m stumped,” Tucker said. 

Creek chuckled as he took a long sip of his beer.  “Your admission,” he prompted. 

Saeger contemplated punching his friend.  “I have no clue what…” He stopped and looked around.  Sure enough, some of the other patrons in the bar were chuckling, glancing in his direction and looking away as they tried to hide their laughter. 

Tyla!  “What did she do?” he growled out, his body primed and ready to tackle the woman. 

Violet laid a hand on his forearm.  “She’s just setting expectations,” she explained, trying to keep a straight face while Creek laughed outright. 

Saeger rubbed a hand over his face.  “That woman is going to send me over the edge.  What did she do?” he demanded again.

Creek pulled his fiancée closer, out of Saeger’s range.  “Go look at the sign on the back of your car.”

Saeger was silent for about five seconds.  And then he stood up and walked out, his hands fisting by his sides as he envisioned murdering the woman.  Slowly.  With his hands around the soft skin of her neck. 

But as he read the words, he knew that murder wasn’t going to fix this.   The poster board taped to the back of his SUV…he couldn’t believe what she’s written! 

“Small tools aren’t so bad!  Honk or wave if you agree!”

“I’m going to kill her,” he growled, and tore the poster board off of his SUV.  Tossing it into the passenger seat, he walked across the street. 

Tyla was coming back from her friend’s house when she spotted him.  Or more to the point, he spotted her! 

“Tyla!” he yelled.

Tyla’s head jerked around and she froze when she saw murder in his eyes. 

Giving up the leisurely pace with that look, she almost dropped her backpack when she laughed, then started sprinting towards her tiny apartment.  If she hadn’t been laughing so hard, she might have made a better showing.  But with Saeger’s longer legs, she didn’t stand a chance.  She wasn’t even halfway to safety when he caught her and literally tossed her over his shoulder. 

She was still laughing when he smacked her bottom as he toted her down the sidewalk.  Unfortunately, that only made her laugh harder.  With her stomach compressed by his shockingly broad shoulders, that didn’t make for a very easy “walk” home. 

Unfortunately, she knew she was in serious trouble when Saeger didn’t take her back to her place.  He veered off into the woods and only had to go a few feet before they were surrounded by thick vegetation. 

He swung her off his shoulder and she started to make a run for it, but his big body pressed hers against a thick tree. 

“So you think I have a small tool?” he asked, his voice husky as he looked down into those shockingly blue eyes of hers.

Tyla wasn’t laughing any longer.  With Saeger’s body pressed tightly against hers, she was very aware of him.  As a man.  And as a man who definitely did not have a small tool. 

Her breathing was ragged as she stared back up at him.  “I don’t… I haven’t thought about it.”

He grabbed her hands, shaking his head.  “Liar,” he replied gruffly. 

And then he was kissing her.  It took Tyla several moments to realize what he was actually doing.  But when that realization hit her, she was stunned.  Nothing, not a single dream or fantasy compared to the reality of Saeger’s kiss.  The heat that snuck up on her, the spiraling desire that swirled, dipped, and sang through her body was like nothing she could have imagined!

It was amazing and her hands lifted higher, her fingers diving into his hair, holding his head close.  She was afraid he would stop kissing her, afraid that this glorious feeling would go away. 

But he didn’t stop!  In fact, he pulled her closer, his strong arms wrapping around her waist, lifting her higher.  The rough bark against her back was nothing compared to his glorious heat as he continued to ravage her mouth.  It wasn’t enough!  It was too little and she needed more of him.  Standing up on her tiptoes, she begged him to kiss her harder. 

When his hands tangled in her hair, pulling her head back further so that he could deepen the kiss, she was his willing victim.  She gasped for breath, but then his mouth moved to her neck and she accepted that she didn’t need oxygen any longer.  She didn’t need anything except this man, the way he was touching her. 

Saeger lifted his head and looked down at Tyla, surprised by the desire in her eyes.  It was almost as intense as what he was feeling and his body throbbed, ached to pull her down and make love to her right here.

But then he came to his senses.  This was Tyla!  He was supposed to be protecting her, not making love to her! 

“Damn,” he grumbled and forced his hands to relax.  “I’m sorry, Tyla.  I got carried away.”

Tyla watched, horrified when his hands smoothed against her waist, then left her cold and lonely.  “You’re sorry?” she asked, her voice cracking with the word.  “Why are you sorry?” She couldn’t believe he was regretting that kiss when all she wanted was for him to do it again. 

She watched as he shook his head.  “I shouldn’t have done that.  I should have…” he sighed, and rubbed his hand over his harshly handsome features.  “This was wrong.”

Tyla watched with rising humiliation as he pulled away from her, both physically and mentally.  “You’re sorry,” she repeated, the words hurting more than she’d thought possible.  “And you thought kissing me was wrong.”

He turned around and paced in front of her.  “I knew to keep my hands to myself, Tyla,” he groaned.  “I’m sorry.  It won’t happen again.”

A moment later, he walked back down the hill and she was alone.  Looking around, she didn’t see the dense forest or the vibrant green of the trees.  She didn’t see the beauty of the sun dappling through the leaves or the shimmering dew as the sun dried off the leaves from last night’s rain. 

All she saw was the furious expression in his eyes as he’d looked down at her, berating himself for kissing her like that. 

Wow, that kind of pain wasn’t something she knew how to handle. 

Instead of walking back down after him, she plopped onto a fallen tree, the wetness seeping through the denim of her jeans but she felt nothing.  Well, nothing other than the pain of realizing that she’d finally found out what it was like to be held in his arms, discovered that it was the most amazing feeling in the world and… he regretted it. 

The sharp blade of humiliation stabbed at her, but it was nothing compared to the pain of knowing that he hadn’t enjoyed the experience as much as she had. 

Lifting her head upwards, as if that could stop the tears from forming, she closed her eyes and tried to figure out how to ease the ache pounding inside her chest. 

Damn him!  Why had he kissed her like that if he didn’t want her?  Why had he touched her as if there was nothing else he’d rather be doing? 

She had to get over the man.  She had to push him out of her heart and go on without him.  The man was everything she wanted for her future; strong, intelligent, compassionate, and sexy.  And boy, the man knew how to kiss! 

It didn’t matter, she told herself silently as she wiped the tears from her cheeks.  He didn’t want her.  That was obvious.  She needed to move on, to find another man to think about, to dream about. 

She would date someone else.  There were lots of men in Winthrop!  She’d find… Tyla went through the other locals, her mind frantically searching for another guy that might be as interesting as Saeger. 

There was Knox.  He was tall and good looking. 

Unfortunately, he was too quiet.  Smoldering, she thought. 

No, she didn’t want to date a guy who looked like he was contemplating murder at any moment. 

Tucker was handsome! 

But no.  She couldn’t really see herself with Tucker.  He was incredibly good looking as well but he just wasn’t….

Tyla sighed.  He wasn’t Saeger. 

Standing up, she dusted off her bottom and forced her feet to walk down the mountainside.  She was startled to realize that they’d only gone about ten feet into the woods.  Probably safer, she thought.  Bears and other wild animals were starting to come out of hibernation. They were generally starving around this time of the year and much more dangerous.  Even more so if they had babies.  The moose were actually more vicious than bears and would storm at a person without a second thought. 

Crazy animals.

But then, what did that make her?  She had acted on instinct earlier when Saeger had kissed her.  She hadn’t thought about anything other than touching him, feeling him against her body, and kissing him like there was no tomorrow. 

Sighing, she bowed her head, grabbed her backpack, which she’d dropped right outside the forest, and headed to her apartment.  Once she was safely inside, she walked over to her battered up sofa and sank down onto the cushions.  She didn’t really feel the sofa underneath her, nor did she acknowledge the scruffy feel of the fabric under her cheek when she laid her head down on one of the throw pillows. 

Closing her eyes, she blocked out the world, not wanting to deal with anything right now. 

Saeger had said it all.  He was ashamed.  He resented kissing her.