Part 19 (2/2)
”Thomas?” Alexandria touched his shoulder lightly. ”Have you been doing drugs this evening?” She already knew the answer; she could smell it in his bloodstream. ”Perhaps we should take you to a hospital. Or a private doctor.”
Slowly, in fear, Thomas lowered his hands. The rear window was intact. There were no shards of gla.s.s. Alexandria was sitting calmly in the seat, her blue eyes anxious.
”This has never happened before. I'm hallucinating. It was just a little c.o.ke in the men's room.
Maybe it was some bad stuff, I don't know.” He sounded scared.
”What did you see?” Again she scanned the area, trying to find evidence of Aidan or any other danger, but they seemed to be alone. Maybe it really was the drugs. ”Should I tell the driver to take you to a hospital?”
”No, no. I'll be all right.” He was sweating profusely.
She could smell his fear.
”There's nothing out there, Thomas, really. I sometimes sense things before they happen, and I don't have any strange feelings,” she offered, trying to be rea.s.suring.
”I'm sorry,” he apologized hoa.r.s.ely. ”Have I ruined the evening?” His eyes kept s.h.i.+fting from side to side, and he seemed to have developed a nervous tic on the left side of his jaw. He looked far older than he had at the beginning of the evening.”No, of course not. I had a wonderful time. Thank you for thinking of the theater. I really needed to get out,” she a.s.sured him. ”But Thomas, I don't believe in taking drugs. I have my little brother, Joshua, to think about. I realize it isn't my business what you choose to do on your own time, but I'm not comfortable with cocaine or any other drug.”
”It's not like I'm some junkie. I just use it occasionally for recreational purposes.”
”Not around me.” That alone was a good enough reason not to be with him. She thought much less of him now, knowing that he would use narcotics to enhance the evening, as if he was incapable of enjoying it on his own.
”Fine,” he said sulkily, ”I won't.”
The car was already pulling into Aidan's circular drive. The wrought-iron gates had been left open in antic.i.p.ation of her return. For a moment she sat still, staring at the heavy gates. They represented a loss of freedom. She wasn't ready to go back to the house and admit defeat. So Thomas Ivan and she didn't have the least bit of chemistry between them. That didn't mean she wouldn't find another man.
She slid quickly out of the car, eluding Thomas's clinging hand. ”Thank you again, Thomas. I'll see you soon. Be sure to get back to me on your ideas for the designs.” And before he could get out to accompany her to the door, she was running lightly up the marble steps to the wide front porch.
She waved once and slipped inside.
Thomas swore and sat back in the seat. Before he could close the door, he saw the heavily muscled wolf stalking him across the lawn. ”Go! Go!” he shouted to the driver, slamming the door hard.
The driver fishtailed out of the driveway and away from the house, and Thomas breathed a sigh of relief. All he wanted to do was get home and get very drunk.
Alexandria moved through the house without turning on a light, found the phone, and made a call.
She could see perfectly in the darkness and ran easily up the stairs. Aidan thought he had won- he had monitored her all evening-but it wasn't over yet. She was not ready to concede defeat.
In her bedroom, she removed the black velvet dress and reached for her faded, comfortable, worn blue jeans and a simple pale blue s.h.i.+rt. The change took only minutes, and she tugged on tennis shoes and headed back downstairs. The cab she called had not yet arrived, so she sat outside on the marble steps and waited.
”And where are you off to now?” Aidan asked silkily, appearing out of nowhere to loom over her, making her feel small and fragile.
”I'm going dancing.” Her eyes dared him to deny her.
His body tightened. ”Dream date didn't go well?”
There was the briefest glimpse of amus.e.m.e.nt in her eyes, but her mouth frowned severely. ”As if you didn't know. Try not to look so innocent. It doesn't suit you.”
He was unrepentant, grinning at her, turning her heart over. Just the sight of him brought her body surging to life. ”Go away, Aidan. I don't want to look at you.”
”Am I tempting you?”
”Didn't anyone ever teach you how to be a gentleman? Go away. You're annoying me.” She stuck her nose in the air.
Her profile in the moonlight took his breath away. With the blanket of darkness enfolding them, they seemed to be the only two people in the world. He drank her in, her scent, that special fragrance that was hers alone. A small, confident smile curved his sensual mouth, casting a s.e.xy shadow across his masculine features. ”At least I have your attention.”
”I'm going out dancing,” she a.s.serted.
”You are declaring your independence,” he countered. ”It will not do you any good. You belong here, with me. You belong to me. None of those men out there will make you feel as I do.”
She stuck her chin out. ”I don't want them to. You're so intense, Aidan. Wild and intense. You make me crazy. I just want to feel...” She broke off, unsure how she wanted to feel.
”Normal. Human.” He supplied the words for her.
”There's nothing wrong with that. You scare the h.e.l.l out of me.” There. She had admitted it to him.
Said it out loud. She glanced away into the night, unable to look at him and not burn for him.
”Your feelings for me scare the h.e.l.l out of you,” he corrected gently.
”I don't trust you.” Why was the cab so late? She clenched her fists, not wanting to be alone with him like this. She remembered the feel of his mouth on hers, the taste of him.
”You would trust me if you gave yourself fully to me. Allowed your mind to merge with mine completely. I could hide nothing from you if you wanted to examine it. My memories, my desires.”
His voice whispered over her skin, tempted, beckoned.
She glared at him. ”As if I haven't had your desires dancing in my head all night. Thank you very much, Mr. Savage. I don't intend to become anybody's slave.”
He groaned, covering his face with his hands. Then his perfect mouth curved into an enticing smile. ”Are you going to hold that against me forever? After all, if anyone is a slave here, it is me. I would do anything for you, and I think you know it.”
She bit her lip hard to keep from flinging herself into his arms. ”The taxi is here. I'll be back later.”
He was so s.e.xy, and she desperately wanted him.
He touched her as she slipped past him, the lightest of caresses, running a finger down her arm, but she felt it in her deepest core, felt it in her soul. She carried the sensation of his touch with her into the cab.
Chapter Fourteen
The newest hot singles bar was a wild blend of sophistication and sleaze. It made a stab at cla.s.s by posting bouncers at the entrance to determine who would enter and who would be denied, but it was clear that they took bribes and that any pretty girl was ushered right in. The line was long, but Alexandria ignored it, walking with complete confidence to the door. She had noticed her new effect on people, noticed that her voice enthralled them almost as much as Aidan's did her.
She smiled at the man standing squarely in her path. His head jerked up, and he sucked in his breath audibly. He didn't even hesitate, personally escorting her inside. The music a.s.saulted her ears and vibrated through her body. She felt the crush immediately, the press of bodies against her. Mostly she heard their hearts beating, the rush of blood through their veins nearly overwhelming her.
A tall man in dark leather quickly claimed her, catching her wrist, grinning at his find. He had a scruffy beard and smelled of cologne, whiskey, and sweat. His left arm boasted a tattoo of a black widow spider in the center of her web, complete with red hourgla.s.s on her belly and a hint of fangs protruding from her mouth. The man leered at her and dragged her close to him. ”I been looking for you all night.”
She wanted to feel something besides her rebelling stomach, but he obviously wasn't her type. She smiled up into his eyes. ”It's not going to happen,” she said softly, persuasively.
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