Blown Away (7 page)

“Brent,” she
said, skimming his cheek with her palm. “I can’t deny our physical
chemistry is off the charts, but you’re just about the last man in
the world I’d consider having a relationship with.”

She couldn’t
have hurt him more if she’d stabbed him. Multi-million dollar
business mergers required him to perfect a poker face and it served
him well. “You mind telling me why?”

“You don’t want
someone like me,” she said, setting her hand on his thigh. “You
want the pretty little socialite content to let you call all the
shots…” She flicked a glance to the limo driver. “In and out of the
bedroom.”

“Is that what
this is about?” He frowned. “Did I scare you the last time we were
together?” That night flashed through his mind: his possessive
demands, the bindings… He cringed. “Look, I may have come on a bit
too strong...”

“I loved it,”
she whispered. “I loved the way you made me feel.”

His body
reacted as his mind remembered. “You mean you want that again?”

“I want you to
be who you are with me, Brent. I’m not trying to change you. I just
want you to understand you can’t change me either. We can have a
great time in the bedroom together, but I don’t see it extending
beyond that. I’m sorry.”

He didn’t know
how to react. He couldn’t bully her into wanting a relationship,
but he couldn’t back off either. This was too important to him. She
was too important to him. “If you want to set some ground rules, I
can live with that.”

She smiled.
“No, you can’t.”

“Try me.”

“I don’t want
to be mutually exclusive. I’m free to have sex with other people,
and so are you.”

He clenched his
jaw, trying to gauge whether she was baiting him. “Try again.”

She laughed.
“See, I told you it would never work. Maybe you should just have
your driver take me home.”

“No.”

“It’s not going
to work,” she said gently. She pressed the intercom button to reach
the driver.

Brent listened
to her give the driver her address. He couldn’t do anything to
change her mind. He had to come up with a game plan though, because
letting her go wasn’t an option.

***

“Aren’t you
going to invite me up for a nightcap?” Brent asked when they
reached her condo building.

She gestured to
the limo mini-bar. “You have more right here than I could ever
offer you.”

“How about a
coffee? I don’t have that, and I could really use one. I have a ton
of work to do when I get home.”

Inviting him up
would be a mistake, she knew that, but Ava rarely let her head
guide her in matters of the heart. “Fine, one coffee.”

When the driver
opened the car door, Brent told him he would be back within the
hour. “Take your time, sir,” he said, tipping his hat and smiling
at Ava.

Brent guided
her to the front doors and waited while she passed her access card
through the slot. “Nice building,” he said quietly.

His deep voice
skittered over her skin, making her feel as though he’d
complimented her instead of the bricks and mortar around them. “I
like it.”

He pinned her
with his gaze as soon as they stepped into the elevator, and she
knew coffee was the last thing on his mind. Ava had to admit he was
an expert at getting what he wanted. The short ride to her
eighth-floor apartment only served to heighten the sexual tension.
His eyes roamed her body as though he was trying to sear through
her evening gown with his X-ray vision.

She gripped the
brass bar behind her. “You like what you see?” She knew the action
made her breasts jut out, and she couldn’t suppress her smile when
he took the bait. Watching a powerful man like Brent lose control
was fun, and she knew from experience that only happened in one
place: bed, the second before his body demanded he let go.

“I love what I
see,” he snarled. “But then you already know that, don’t you?” He
moved closer and threaded his hands through her hair.

She watched his
eyes travel over her face. Air was trapped in her lungs as she
tried to anticipate his next move. He was unpredictable, and that
unnerved her. He could press her into the wall and take what they
both wanted, or he could bid her goodnight and find it somewhere
else just to prove a point.

“Tell me what
you’re thinking,” he whispered.

His quiet
command surprised her. She’d expected him to take action, not
speak. “I was… uh… just wondering what you’re going to do.”

“What do you
want me to do?”

That was the
million-dollar question. Did she want him to stay and make love to
her or leave her to try to forget him all over again? “I don’t
know.” Admitting her confusion was akin to admitting weakness, but
she wasn’t sharp enough to play games when her body battled her
brain for dominance.

He slipped the
pearl-encrusted strap over her shoulder. “I know what I want. I
want to kiss you…” He pressed his lips to her collarbone. “I want
to lick you…” His tongue glided over her shoulder. “I want to hear
you whisper my name the way you did all those years ago. You were
caught up in the wonder of what your body was capable of when you
finally let go and gave yourself to me.”

She shivered.
His words floated through the air, hovering with unspoken promise.
A stranger’s gorgeous face and hard body wouldn’t have tempted her.
The memory of the way he’d made her feel was wearing her down. That
one perfect night floated through her mind as ecstasy wrapped in a
protective bubble. He was offering it to her once more, and she
knew she wasn’t strong enough to resist.

Taking his
hand, she guided him off the elevator to her suite at the end of
the hall. Seconds ticked by and she knew she had time to change her
mind, but she didn’t want to. She wanted him. Again. “I meant what
I said earlier,” she said quietly as she fit her key into the
lock.

“So did I,” he
murmured as his lips grazed her neck.

He wasn’t
backing down, but neither was she. She wanted freedom. He wanted
possession. He wanted dominance. She wanted equality. The only
question remaining was which one of them would be on top when the
lights came on.

***

Brent’s heart
hammered when Ava led him to her master suite. They didn’t waste
time with small talk; they didn’t have to. He would have time later
to learn her favorite food and color. That night was all about
re-acquainting himself with her body and figuring out how to
convince her he deserved to have it every night for the next forty
or fifty years.

He closed the
door and watched her slide the zipper down her back, step out of
her expensive evening gown, and lay it over a carved wood armchair.
She stood wearing black stilettos and black, lacy undergarments
that made his fingers twitch with the urge to touch her.

“We’re going to
play a little game,” she said, pointing to a bench under the
window. “I want you to sit down and watch me undress. You can look,
but you can’t touch until I tell you to.”

“You can’t be
serious.”

“I’m very
serious. Last time, I trusted you. This time, I’m asking you to let
go.”

“I can’t.” Just
the thought of surrendering control made him break out in a
sweat.

“Yes, you can.”
Her hand glided down her silk-clad leg. “For me.”

Brent
understood she was giving him an ultimatum. He either did what she
was asking or he risked losing what may be his only opportunity to
right his only regret: giving up when he should have fought for
her. He clenched his teeth. “Fine.”

When he started
to sit down, she said, “Not so fast.” She closed the distance
between them, her eyes trapping him. She pushed his jacket over his
shoulders.

If Ava thought
he would stand there idly while she undressed him, she was deluding
herself. He would have her naked and on her back before she could
chastise him for breaking her rules.

“You’re even
sexier now than you were then,” she whispered. “How is that even
possible?”

Brent
understood that feeling of disbelief. He was experiencing it too.
How badly he’d wanted her ten years ago was nothing compared to how
much he wanted her now. “Why the hell did you leave?” He hadn’t
intended to ask since that question could halt their plans, but he
had to know.

“I had to.” Her
eyes were wide and innocent. “I knew what you wanted and I knew I
couldn’t give it to you.”

“Why?” He
gripped her shoulders.

“Don’t touch
me.”

“What?” Icy
fear trickled through his veins. No way could she take him so far
only to send him back.

“Not until I
tell you to.”

He’d never been
a fan of delayed gratification, but he would concede, just once, to
make her happy. Letting his hands fall to his sides, he said, “At
least answer my question. Why couldn’t you give me what I wanted?
You must have sensed our connection was different… special.”
Indescribable
was the word that always came to mind when he
thought about his experience with Ava.

“I was young,”
she said, sliding off his shirt. “But I wasn’t so naïve I didn’t
understand what you were asking of me. Besides, I’d heard rumors
about your
boundaries.
”

He had been
clear with all of his girlfriends about what he would and wouldn’t
tolerate. Excessive drinking, flirting with other guys, cheating,
calling him out in public… were all deal breakers.

“I didn’t want
that kind of relationship. I wasn’t ready for anything
serious.”

He wouldn’t
have accepted anything less than all of her. “Ten years is a long
time. You’re telling me you’re still not ready for a serious
relationship?” When she reached for his belt buckle, he knew he
should just shut up, but he couldn’t. He’d never been the kind of
man to settle for less than everything, especially when it was
finally within his grasp.

“Not the kind
you’re talking about.”

His heart
clenched. He’d spent the past ten years building an empire men
envied. There was little his money couldn’t buy, yet he still
couldn’t have the one thing he wanted:
Ava.
“Then what kind
of relationship are you offering?” He hated even considering
accepting her terms. He was an all-or-nothing guy, but the thought
of nothing of her was too terrifying to contemplate.

“I told you in
the car.” She inched his pants and boxer briefs down before pushing
him onto the bench to remove his shoes and socks.

He watched Ava
on her knees and a fierce wave of possessiveness overcame him.
“You’re not having sex with anyone else, Ava. Put that thought out
your head. Now.”

She looked up
at him, her expression as determined as his. “Let’s get one thing
straight, Armstrong. I’m not one of your companies or your
employees. You don’t own me and you can’t dictate to me.” She stood
and put her hands on her hips. “Either you agree to my terms or you
can get the hell out before this goes any further.”

Brent felt sick
when he thought about sleepless nights wondering where she was, who
she was with, and why she’d declined when he asked her to spend the
evening with him. Calling her only to have another man answer.
Seeing flowers from someone else on her bedside table or a picture
of her on another man’s arm in the newspaper or on the Internet.
He’d never fallen in love because he’d been desperately afraid he
would end up like his father: alone while another man walked away
with his wife.

“Are you okay?”
she asked, brushing back his hair. “You’re sweating. Brent, what is
it? Aren’t you feeling well?”

He looked into
her eyes, forcing himself to swallow the fear. “Can I touch you
now?”

She looked
confused. “Yes.”

He wrapped his
arms around her waist and held her tight as he cushioned his head
on her breasts. “I want to be with you.” Her conditions still
terrified him. If she wouldn’t follow his rules, how could he be
sure she wouldn’t leave him?

***

Ava didn’t know
what had happened to the ruthless businessman who ruled his empire
with an iron fist, but he wasn’t in her bed right now. In his place
was a man laced with panic. He was scared, but she couldn’t figure
out what provoked his anxiety. He couldn’t be so invested in
her…

She reached
into her nightstand for protection and she saw his eyes darken when
he spotted the half-empty box of condoms. “Is there a problem?”

The muscle in
his jaw twitched, and he closed his eyes. “No problem.”

She rolled the
latex over his hard shaft, her lips tipping up when he drew a deep
breath. He was under her control, and it must be killing him. “Kiss
me.”

Brent seized
the back of the head, pulling her face toward his. “Let’s do this
my way. Please.”

His quiet plea
almost broke her, but she knew if she gave in, he would bulldoze
her orderly life and everyone in it. “No.” Instead of trying to
coerce her with words, he used his mouth to stoke the sparks of her
desire until it was a full blown firestorm. “You don’t play fair,
Armstrong,” she panted, guiding his shaft inside her.

“Neither do
you.”

Ava eased him
in slowly, enjoying his reaction while trying to regulate her own.
If he knew she was as affected as he was, he would use it as
leverage to gain the upper hand. “Open your eyes.”

He did as she
instructed, but his eyes were cold and dark, as though he was
trying to prevent himself from succumbing to the pleasure. “I hate
this.”

“Then I’m not
doing it right,” she said, rolling her hips.

His hands
fisted in the sheets. He was honoring her rule about not touching
her until she gave him permission. “Sweet Jesus.”

“How does that
feel?” she asked, losing herself. The rules of the game shifted as
soon as she’d surrounded him. Having his hands on her was the only
thing that mattered anymore.