Destined (Vampire Awakenings) (21 page)

 
He had never been so sexually frustrated in his life, and yet he couldn’t seem to do anything to ease it. She wouldn’t get out of his dreams, wouldn’t get out of his head, and he had found himself completely unable to ease his fierce need with Jess. The idea of it had disgusted him so much that he
’
d
had
to end it with her.

   Jess hadn’t taken it well at all, and she insisted upon staying in the house in the hope that they could work things out. He hadn’t spoken a word to her since then, and the tension in the house was almost palpable
.
B
ut there was no way the little hellion before him could know that, because she had gone out of her way to avoid him
, and the house
. If she insist
ed
upon being a stubborn, infuriating witch, than he wasn’t
going
to tell her
about Jess
. He didn’t owe her any explanations, he didn’t owe her anything. She was the one that should be offering explanations, not the other way around. The sooner she learned who was in charge, the happier they would both be. He had every intention of teaching her
that
very soon.

   “And soon you will be calling me your lover.”

   He thought that she was going to explode with fury. Her eyes turned violently red as her whole face suffused with color. He didn’t wait to hear what she was going to start yelling at him. He jerked her head forward and took fierce possession of her mouth. She shoved angrily at his chest, her mouth clamped shut as she squirmed to get free. He kept a firm hold on her as he licked and nibbled at her full, bottom lip. She
would
yield to him, and when she did, she would realize that it was useless to keep fighting him and what their bodies desperately wanted.

   Isabelle was so angry, so irate, that she almost wanted to kill the egotistical, overbearing idiot. Almost, but not quite. She was fighting desperately to keep hold of her anger, but his mouth and his tongue were slowly melting her resolve
.
S
lowly melting away all of the fury that was shaking her. She couldn’t yield to
him;
she wouldn’t give him that satisfaction. But even as she thought it, her traitorous body was responding to him. Starting to give him exactly what he wanted.

   Her hands involuntarily dug into his shirt as she stopped shoving at his chest. Her breath escaped in a gasp that allowed him to invade her mouth. His tongue stroked over hers in a slow, passionate dance that left her weak and trembling, and in desperate need for more. What had started as a ferocious kiss on his part, turned into something slow, and sweet, and enticing as she leisurely matched him stroke for stroke.

   Stefan wrapped his arm slowly around her
waist;
all satisfaction at making her bend vanished as he lost himself to her sweetness, and uninhibited response. He had started out to make her concede defeat, but he was beginning to realize that she could just as easily make him lose control of himself. And at the moment
,
he didn’t care.

   “Isabelle!
Issy
! Where are you!?”

   Isabelle groaned as Vicky and Abby’s voices penetrated through her very pleasant haze. Stefan pulled slowly away, his eyes dark and confused as he lightly stroked her cheek. She tried to recall her anger at him, but she couldn’t find the resolve to do it. Instead, she simply stared at him in dazed amazement. It wasn’t just desire, or hunger for him, she realized with a start, but she was truly beginning to like the man.

   The realization caused a flurry of emotions to rip through her, all of them jumbled and confused. For a moment
,
she actually wanted to sit down and cry out her frustration and anguish, but she couldn’t do it. She refused to cry. He was already proving to her that she was weaker than she had ever known herself to be, she would not be even weaker by crying.

 
“
Issy
!” Abby shouted angrily.

   “You had better go,” she whispered, licking her swollen lips nervously. His eyes instantly latched on her mouth and the fierce hunger in his gaze was enough to make her tremble all over again. “Go,” she whispered.

   He nodded slowly, but the look of reluctance was obvious on his face, and in his eyes. “Till later,” he whispered, dropping a quick kiss on her mouth.

   Isabelle stared dazedly after him as he slipped out the door and made a left toward the downstairs entry. She slumped against the door, trembling.
Vicky and Abby popped up, identical looks of consternation on their pretty faces.
“Here you are! Why didn’t you answer us?” Vicky demanded.

   Isabelle stared at them for a moment as she tried to gather her scattered thoughts, and warring emotions. “I was washing my face,” she answered dully.

   “Did Stefan find you?”

   “No, I haven’t seen him,” she lied easily.

   “That’s just as well,” Abby said.

   Isabelle’s eyes narrowed as she focused her full attention on her sisters. “Why is that?” she demanded sharply.

   Their eyes widened at the hostility in her voice, but they chose to ignore it. “
Issy
, we need to talk to you,” Vicky said urgently.

   Isabelle recognized her melodramatic look instantly, and couldn’t help but wonder what new “tragedy” had occurred. “Can’t it wait till later, I’m sure the game is about to start again.”

   “It is, but they can wait two more minutes, we
have
to talk to you!” Abby gushed.

   Isabelle shoved herself away from the wall and headed out of the bathroom. “Talk while we walk,” she said over her shoulder.

   They scurried to catch up with her on the back porch. “Jess thinks you’re trying to steal Stefan!” Abby blurted.

   Isabelle grit her teeth, forcing herself not to let her step falter as she swiftly descended the steps. She wasn’t after Stefan, it was the other way around, but if she was honest with herself, she didn’t really put up much of a fight when he was near. In fact, she turned into a quivering mass of Jell-O that he could bend and mold however he liked. She was more than a little disgusted with herself for not being able to put up a stronger fight against him, but he was so irresistible, and the way that he made her feel... 

   Isabelle shut the thought off before her knees gave out on her. “That’s ridiculous,” she told them as she reached the ground.

   They exchanged a quick look that infuriated her. “Is it?” Vicky asked softly.

   “Yes!”
Isabelle nearly shouted in exasperation.

   “Isabelle, come on!” Ethan
yell
ed across the yard.

   She glanced over to find everyone gathered together, including Stefan. Her gaze darted involuntarily to Jess, who was glowering at her with a look of absolute hatred. Her eyes widened slightly, and to her amazement, she looked back at Stefan, instinctively searching him out for some sort of protection, or help. The realization of what she had just done rocked her so hard that she stopped moving. He was looking at Jess, his face cold and hard, his eyes narrowed in hostility. Isabelle’s breath froze as his gaze swung toward her, his features softening as he cast a small smile
at her
.

   “Is it really?” Abby asked triumphantly.

   Isabelle scowled angrily at her. “Yes it is!” she snapped.

   The identical, knowing grins on their faces were enough to m
ake her want to scream. She clenched
her jaw, fisted her hands, and stormed over to join the group in the middle of the field. “It’s about time
!
” Ethan snapped.

   She shot him a withering look as she stepped into the huddle, barely listening to Mike’s plan. “You get it again Isabelle.”

   “Fine,” she mumbled angrily.

   She had scored two of the five touchdowns they had, but she really wasn’t in the mood to play anymore. However, the game was tied, and her team needed this win. They kept track of all the games they played, and at the moment they were one down from David’s team. She would be letting everyone down if she didn’t keep playing, and they would probably kill her.

   “Let
’
s go.”

   Isabelle moved back to the line. She froze as her eyes landed on Stefan. He stood casually across from her, smiling softly, his black eyes twinkl
ed
mischievously. For a moment she was unable to move, unable to breathe. Then she drew in a deep breath and forced herself to calm down. She would appear as completely unaffected by their brief encounter, as he seemed to
be
. She would be damned if she let him know how much he had affected her.

   “Lose the coin toss?” she asked haughtily.

   He grinned at her. “Volunteered
,
s
omeone has to catch you.”

   “And you think that you can?” she retorted.

   His eyes darkened as they leisurely traveled over her. Her body quickened in response, but she refused to let it show. “I know I can, and I will.”

   Excitement coursed through her at the promise in his words. She smiled back at him as she
lifted
a
n
eye
brow. The hell he would!
s
he decided fiercely. She had been taking it easy on Aiden because she had seen no need to stress herself. Now, she would. Mike yelled hike, and she took off, darting easily through the crowd of bodies. She knew where the ball was going and she headed straight for it. She snagged it easily out of the air and ran as if the hounds of hell were on her heels, which he was.

   She could hear him behind her. He was close, so very close. Determination and adrenaline burst through her as she tucked her head down and pushed herself to run faster. A gasp of relief rushed out of her as she triumphantly crossed the goal
line. She turned, grinning brightly as she tossed him the ball. “I would rethink what you can, and cannot, do,” she said brightly.

   He smiled in amusement as he took her in. She was sweating, and panting, some of her glorious hair had escaped from her ponytail
to
cling wetly to her
exquisite
face. He had to admit that she was the most determined, stubborn, beautiful woman that he had ever seen. They were traits that he would have respected greatly, if they weren’t serving to undermine his control, and his goal of having her.

   “I see that you were taking it easy on Aiden,” he said, his voice full of admiration.

   “Of course,” she replied with a flashing grin, her eyes twinkling mischievously.

   “Good, because I was taking it easy on you.”
   Her eyes narrowed as she planted her hands on her hips. He flashed a smug smile before turning and walking away. Isabelle’s temper was quickly reaching its boiling point, and he was going to be on the receiving end of it when she blew. Damn him! she thought angrily.

   Four plays later Mike wanted to give her the ball again. She almost refused, not wanting to take the chance that Stefan
just
might be able to catch her, but she quickly changed her mind. There was no way that he would be able to get
her
and this was
t
he perfect opportunity to show him that he was completely wrong. No one was going to break her, least of all him!

   She walked back up to the line, flashing him a cocky grin as she waited for Mike’s command. She bolted off the line, caught the ball, and put every ounce of energy she had into running. Her legs were burning, and her lungs were aching painfully as she neared the goal line. She was only ten feet from it when she felt his arms wrap around her waist. Despair washed over her. She hugged the ball tighter against her chest as the ground rushed up to meet her.

   Grunting from the force of the impact, she lay still for a moment, unable to believe that he had actually caught her! Then, his hands were upon her shoulders, and he was turning her hurriedly over. The anger that had rushed to the forefront of her mind disappeared as his troubled eyes scanned her face worriedly. “Are you okay?” he demanded harshly.

   Isabelle was surprised to discover that he was truly concerned about her, truly afraid that he might have hurt her. “Of course, you tackle like a girl,” she couldn’t help but tease

   Stefan searched her face again to see if she was lying to him. He knew that her pride would keep her from admitting any kind of pain to him. Her violet eyes were twinkling happily though as she grinned at him. That grin caused something to shift, and change inside of him. Something melted in him as he realized that he had been truly afraid that he had hurt her in his overzealous attempt t
o prove that he could catch her.
T
hat she couldn’t avoid him. He had never been worried about anyone
in his life
before.

   “Well, you would know,” he retorted, before he could begin to think about what that worry might mean.