Page 97 of Cash

But that wasn’t an option.

My hand stalled on the nape of her neck, shifted slightly until my thumb found her pulse fluttering rapidly. Too fast. Fear and adrenaline from this afternoon hadn’t calmed down. Or maybe it had, and now she was keyed up again because Penny was missing—a woman she didn’t like, yet she’d feel her disappearance because that woman was my sister. The same sister I was going to trust my team to find, to take care of.

That war was back in full force. Guilt and obligation battled in my chest. Obligation to blood and the obligation to my family. Though the family part didn’t feel like an obligation so much as it felt like an honor. I’d promised Cara I wouldn’t leave. The need to protect both of them overwhelming. Though the woman in front of me didn’t need protecting, she was a warrior.

Stella could handle herself.

All part of her appeal. One of the many facets of a dangerous and complicated woman who needed a reprieve.

I slipped my hand farther up. My fingers glided through her hair, until I had a fist full. With precisely the force I knew she needed, I yanked her head back. Her eyes widened and flashed to life. But more importantly, the hollowness receded.

There she was.

“You gonna let me help you burn off that adrenaline, baby girl?”

“Cash.”

“My name’s not an answer, Stella.”

A muscle ticked in her jaw. A slight flare of her eyes.

I gave her hair another tug. “Answer me, Stella.”

The slight dip of her chin was what she thought would be an acceptable concession.

She needed to learn now, I wouldn’t allow her to hide from me—not her voice, not her reactions, and certainly not her emotions.

“Need the words, baby girl.”

Within the limited space I allowed, Stella lifted her chin in defiance and her eyes locked onto mine. Oh, how I’d love to teach her a few other lessons, but with Cara sleeping in a bedroom down the hall those would have to wait.

“We can stand here all night if that’s what you need.” I leaned closer and lowered my tone. “But fair warning, the longer you make me wait, the longer I’ll feel like playing.”

Desire-filled eyes wrapped in stubbornness held my stare. The woman couldn’t be more perfect if she tried. It was the power dynamic I craved—needed. The one I needed to earn, fight for, seize.

And Stella would make me fight for every inch.

She’d fight for her agency. She’d make me earn the right to own her. She’d put walls between us to keep me out. She’d challenge me in every way. It wouldn’t be until I’d proven myself worthy of her, that she would sink to her knees at my feet and allow me to worship her.

I let go of her hand still trapped between us, shoved mine under her t-shirt, and skimmed my palm up her ribs.

“Give me what I want,” I prompted. My thumb stroked the soft skin under her breast. “One word, then I’ll take the rest.”

A dark craving to bend Stella to my will had taken root. An ache to give her what she needed. It was as essential, necessary, vital as my next breath. Something I’d never felt for another woman.

I dominated. They surrendered. Easy.

Stella tested my control, my boundaries, and blew through both with ruthless ease.

That was how I knew she was the one.

The only woman I would ever surrender to.

Complex. Simple.

Complicated. Straightforward

The juxtaposition was intoxicating.