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She stepped up again. “You’re crazy.”
He followed. “Yeah, maybe I am. You accuse me of being too laid-back, of not reacting. You want to see a reaction, you just think about letting some other man give you what you’ve beenbeggingfor since the minute you hit town.”
Her jaw dropped. She stepped down, pushing him back as she stuck her index finger in his face. “Begging for? You’re psychotic!” Then she dropped her hand. “Besides, what would you care, anyway? I’ll bet you moved on two hours after I left back in college.”
More like twoyears. It had taken him two years to touch another woman. But he wouldn’t tell her that.
“Don’t push me. You don’t want to see the kind of emotion I’m capable of. It’d make you run away and hide. As usual.”
She groaned in fury, her mouth working but no sounds coming out. Electric heat, sharp and dangerous, snapped between them, as real and tangible as a frayed wire. “Leave me alone, Mick. You made your point. You don’t want me, so just leave me alone.”
And while she stared at him, enraged, aware, furious, Mick clenched his teeth, wondering how she could know him so well and not know him at all.
“I can’t do that. This ends here. Now.” He grasped her arm and held her eyes with his, wondering if she could see the storm of emotion raging behind them. “Rightnow.”
CARO SENSED THAT something had changed between the kitchen and here. Her confrontation with Mick in the other room had held some wistful sweetness and also some of that playful teasing, and yes, a bit of annoyance. Now there was none of that.
This wasn’t sweet. It wasn’t play. It wasn’t teasing. It wasn’t simple annoyance. It was frustration and angry demand. Desires long hidden that were suddenly roaring out.
Something was happening. Something she felt powerless to control. Mick was almost someone she didn’t recognize.
“Let me go,” she murmured, not sure whether she wanted him to comply or not. She stepped up and back again, feeling her way to the next step with her heel, pulling herself away from him with every ounce of strength she possessed.
He shook his head. “It’s too late.”
Part of her knew immediately what he meant. It was far too late to let him go. On the other hand, he was far too late to take what she’d offered Thursday night. The pride in her wouldn’t allow that. “I don’t want you,” she said, lying through her teeth and knowing it.
He knew it, too. “Liar.”
“I hate you.”
“No you don’t.”
She stepped again, but this time her heel caught the edge of the step. She stumbled a bit, fell to her butt and landed on the step above him.
He didn’t hesitate. Before she could think, could breathe, could decide anything, he was kneeling one step down, his body between her thighs, his chest in line with hers. His hands fell onto the step where she sat, each beside one of her hips. Enclosing her. Enfolding her. Even though he wasn’t even touching her.
A growl. “You’re not going to fuck anyone else here in Derryville, Caroline.”
She hid a shiver, remembering how Mick had always thrilled her when he got a little down and dirty.
“You can’t tell me what to do.”
“I can and I am. Now lie back,” he bit out.
“No.”
“Lie back.” He pushed closer, until the hard, thick ridge of him pressed against the seam of her pants and his chest touched hers from collarbone to tummy.
God, he felt delicious. Hard and solid. Warm and complete. Like only Mick had ever felt.
She laid back, telling herself it didn’t mean anything, that she was still going to get up and go to her room. Just as soon as the muscles in her legs started working again.
“You make me crazy,” he growled as he bent low and nipped at her neck. “So crazy, I can’t be noble even when I want to.” His hands instantly moved to tug her cotton shirt out from the waist of her pants. “If you need it so bad, I’ll be the man to give it to you.”
She didn’t even think to demur, to admit that she’d lied. About wanting anyone else. About having anyone else. There’d been no one, not in a long time. But she wasn’t going to tell him that, didn’t want to hand him that ammunition.
“I’ll take you places no other man could ever dream of taking you.”
