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“You drive. I have some work I need to finish,” Damien said as he tossed her the keys.
Sierra thought about protesting since he was arrogant enough to demand she drive for him instead of politely asking her.
She looked at the shiny red convertible and her eyes widened in excitement. The site of the car encouraged her to suck up her pride and climb inside the driver’s door. She’d never driven such a fun car before.
She turned the key and the motor purred to life in the sleek mustang. She knew the car was actually a cheaper rental for him, but to her it was a fine piece of machinery.
She threw the gear shift into drive and quickly pulled out of the spa parking lot. She couldn’t help the laughter that spilled out as the wind whipped through her hair. What a fun time she could have exploring the island if only he’d let her borrow the car while he was at his endless meetings. She wouldn’t be so anxious to leave if she got to play a little.
With a frown, Sierra slowed for a red light, almost pouting as she had to stop her acceleration.
“Can we take a drive around the island before going back to the hotel?” she asked. She hated to beg, but she was willing to do it to feel the exhilaration of fresh air blowing through her hair.
“I have a lot of work to do,” he told her in an annoyed tone.
“Can I drop you off then and go explore for a while?” she asked, trying to sound pleasant, but thinking it wasn’t coming across that way by the glare he sent her.
“It’s not safe for you to be out driving in unfamiliar territory,” he answered in a final tone of voice.
“I’m sick to death of your chauvinistic pig attitude. I get it from my father, his permanent bodyguards, the few men I’ve dated, everyone! Just because I’m a woman doesn’t mean I’m incapable of making a decision or keeping myself safe,” Sierra snapped as she turned to glare at him.
Damien looked at her in astonishment for a moment before his lips slowly spread upward in a grin.
“You think I’m a pig?”
“Yes.”
“Just because I believe a man is stronger than a woman, more capable of taking care of himself in dangerous situations?”
“That’s exactly why,” she answered as she rolled her eyes. He was nothing more than a typical male, thinking he was the protector of the universe. Why did men either have to beat their women into submission, or else think they had to always save them? Why wasn’t there a middle ground?
She thought of her best friend, Bree. Her husband, Chad, had tried the he-man stuff on her, but she’d quickly put him in his place, and he’d actually listened to her. Sierra liked Chad. He was kind, yet she had no doubt that if it came down to it, he’d fight to the death for those he loved. Sierra also knew he’d never even think about hitting his wife, or any woman, for that matter.
As Damien continued gazing at her, she wanted to stay angry, but he was so dang adorable with his amused expression. She should be even more infuriated with him that he thought so little of her, but it was hard to stay angry while looking at his chiseled jaw, and very kissable mouth, which was still grinning at her.
Her thighs quivered as she glanced at her own reflection in his dark sunglasses, suddenly wanting to know what was going through his mind.
Dang it! She didn’t want his confident sexuality to throw her equilibrium off balance. She needed to stay focused around him.
“I think you just hate women, look down on them, believing they’re an inferior race,” Sierra said when the silence stretched on too long.
He pulled his shades down so she was finally looking into those deep green depths, leaving her no doubt of the desire behind their stare. His eyes dropped down her body, causing her nipples to tighten in response, before they came back up and met her widened gaze.
“I love everything about women… every…single…. thing,” he said slowly. His lips spread even more as his stare kept her rooted to the tan leather seat.
A horn blared behind her, alerting Sierra that the light had changed. Thanking her lucky stars for the interruption, she managed to tear her eyes from his. She looked forward as she placed the car back into drive and slowly accelerated. She was too shaken up to drive fast.
She forgot all about her desire to tour the island. She needed to get as far from Damien as she possibly could, before she pulled the car over and jumped into his lap.
After they drove in silence for about five minutes, her irritation was back, replacing some of the all-consuming desire still bubbling its way to the surface.
“You know, I don’t need a babysitter. I’ve managed to survive this long without getting kidnapped, raped, or joining a cult. I don’t need you on top of me.”
“Oh, Sierra, I think that’s exactly what you need,” he quickly responded with a wicked grin.
Sierra felt her face flame, berating herself for not using a different choice of wording. The man was throwing her hormones off the charts. She slammed her foot down on the accelerator, trying to outrun the raging desire he ignited within her.
“I’m right next to you, Sierra. Speeding up won’t get you away from me. I have a feeling you don’t actually want to get away. I think you’re just as worked up as I am, and can’t get back to that hotel fast enough. Don’t worry; I’ll quench the burn…” Damien uttered, his mouth only inches from her ear.
She swerved unintentionally, causing him to sit up and send another glare her way.
“Slow down,” he commanded.
“Are you worried? Think messing with me while I’m controlling a vehicle at sixty miles an hour is a bit unwise? You’d probably be correct,” she taunted.
“Do you want to play games, Sierra,” he asked, his hot tone sliding across her skin.
“No,” she quickly answered, knowing she could never keep up with him in any kind of game he chose to play. Still, her heart was thundering, a huge part of her wanted to take that answer back. She wanted to be that girl who could look seductively at him while she flirted with her eyes, and asked, what game do you have in mind?
Sadly, that just wasn’t going to happen. They’d get back to the hotel, and she’d go directly to her room and he’d go to his, then tomorrow, he’d be gone, and their routine would be the exact same.
Suddenly, she didn’t want that, not even a little bit. She’d interrupted his day earlier to voice her desire to go home, and he was going to dang well give it to her. She couldn’t play games with him, she knew that, but she could at least get some peace.
She’d obtain freedom from her father, and distance from Damien. It was a win-win.
He said nothing further as she drove the last couple of miles to the hotel. He also didn’t do any work on the computer as his gaze was boring into her the entire drive, her head stiffly facing forward, her eyes on the road.
As tense as she was, she was pretty sure her body would be sore the next day. It was better strength training than three hours in the gym.
When she approached the valet and waited for them to take her keys, she finally looked over at the tense expression on Damien’s face. His profile was to her, thankfully, allowing her to see the perfection of his sculpted chin, the slightly arrogant straight line of his nose, and the fullness of his lips lips that looked entirely too inviting.
She found herself wondering what they would feel like to kiss. His lips were perfection as were all his features, but his beautifully sculpted lips were full and she could imagine how soft they’d be against her own how his mouth would open to her and explore her tongue. What else could he do with that tongue…? She quickly snapped out of her short lived revelry, reminding herself how egotistical he was.
She could see why he commanded large crowds of people, how he always got his way. He was easily the most arrogant man she’d ever met, and that was saying a lot, considering she’d grown up with a dictator father.This belongs to NôvelDrama.Org: ©.
Where her father inspired fear, though, Damien inspired… almost unnamable emotions. Fear was there, sure, but not fear of him hurting her, more like a fear of him transforming her. She tried telling herself she didn’t want to enter into an affair with him, and she had no illusions about it being nothing more than an affair, but each time she spoke the words in her own head, her body rejected them.
She’d yet to feel what most women her age experience. She’d yet to have a man sink deep inside her, making her body come undone.
For years she’d listened to her sister speak of the different men who panted at her doorstep. Sandy had told her, in explicit detail, what it felt like to have a man worship her body. Sierra had been repulsed at first by her sister’s casual attitude about sex, but for the last few years, that repulsion had turned into slight jealousy.
Sierra just wanted to feel anything other than insecurity, fear or anxiety. She wanted to experience deep, all-consuming passion.
She glanced at the hotel employee as he opened her door, her thoughts interrupted. She may want to feel desire, but she’d never act on it. She was too well trained to ever let herself go like that.
Almost desolately, she thanked the man taking the keys, and silently followed Damien inside the luxurious lobby of their hotel.
When they entered the elevator, some of her earlier irritation returned, and she resolved to finish their show-down. She was bound and determined to get back to the States and spend quality time with her best friend.
She wasn’t taking no for an answer.