Really, Aria hadn’t stood a chance. It wasn’t her fault she wasn’t prepared to defend herself against a man like that.
“Jesus, Aria. A man like that? Something is going on between you and a man like that?”
Aria laughed under her breath. At least she knew it had nothing to do with weakness. Chase was the type of man made for procreation. Genetically gifted from head-to-toe, specifically crafted to make all women want to spread their legs and give him babies.
“Tell me.”
“He blackmailed Douglas and me.”
“Say what?”
When Aria finished explaining it to Hilary, God knew how long later, they still hadn’t ordered anything to eat.
But they sure as hell kept the drinks coming. Aria had no idea why Hilary was drinking so much. What she did know was why her own drinks kept disappearing. The way Aria figured it, the more she drank, the more she could numb herself and forget all about what her body wanted.
It wasn’t happening. Somewhere between her fourth and fifth vodka, she realized that her experiment had been a failure. Her heart was pounding in her head, in her neck, down, down, making her want to squirm in her seat. The more she was forced to talk about Chase, retelling Hilary the full details of everything that had happened, the more Aria was forced to remember.
“Well…” Hilary sighed, making Aria scowl with confusion. “Want to know what I think?”
“I’m not sure.”
“I think it’s kind of romantic.”
Sometimes, being right wasn’t all that it was cracked up to be. “Of course you do.”
“No!” Hilary exclaimed, causing a few patrons to turn their way. “I’m serious. Come on, Aria. Chase wanted you so badly that he had to do that? And, by the way, don’t mention Douglas to me ever again. I don’t care if he just died in the most horrific way possible. You are an idiot for saving his ass.”
“Don’t you think I know that?” Aria snapped.
“And for not fucking Chase Blaine as payback,” Hilary continued, ignoring Aria’s outburst, “at least to make your sacrifice worth it. The babies, Aria. Think of the babies. You could very well be the key to humanity’s future perfection. It all starts with you. You’d be the great grandmamma of the new Aryan race.”
“You are so sick,” Aria groaned, rubbing her forehead and feeling how hot her skin was. Why the hell did Hilary have to mention anything about Aria fucking Chase? Now, it was all her brain was fixated on.
“I am not sick. I’m a realist, bitch. I also think I had way too much to drink.”
They burst out laughing at that, calling more attention to themselves.
Aria tucked her hair behind her ear, still smiling—
It was like she felt him before she saw him. Or maybe she caught a glimpse of him out of the corner of her eye and it took her brain a second to process it. Whatever it was, it had her head spinning back to one spot.
Her eyes landed on Chase.
Chase.
Shit.
The way he was focused on her made her skin go hotter.
He made her skin burn. God, he looked amazing in a dark blue suit and white shirt, no tie, and open at the collar. He must have recently cut his hair because it was shorter, faded close to his skin once more.
“You okay…” Hilary trailed off. Aria couldn’t see her, but she could guess what had happened. Hilary had caught sight of the sex god sitting all the way across the restaurant.
A sex god that, Aria realized, wasn’t alone.
The woman with him had dark red hair and looked some sort of model. Or a woman that had paid a lot of money to look like one.
“Hell no.”
It’d been Hilary who said that, but it only served to switch Aria’s emotional-dial from shocked to dangerous.
Two. Seconds. Flat.
The emotion that blasted through her on a hellish, hot, fiery wave almost knocked her off her damned chair.
He was there with another woman. A very sexy woman. Aria’s assumption had been correct. He’d moved on to another woman. One that not only would love to fuck him, but one that would be ready and very willing to do so.
Had she been sober, she wouldn’t have cared. Aria told herself that on a constant loop as she turned her head away from Chase’s table and stared forward. Her hands clenched into fists for a moment.
No. She had to get out of there. Her reaction was moronic, and the last thing she wanted was for anyone to see it. Yet, she couldn’t hold it back. It was too powerful. Too raw.
What if Chase saw it?
“I’m going.” Aria had her clutch in her hand and was walking toward the back exit of the restaurant before Hilary could react.
The harder her heart beat, the more the world around her threatened to spin. Aria kept on walking, making sure to keep her back straight. She wouldn’t fucking stumble.
No one would see what was happening to her.
It hurt. Whatever was raging inside her was painful. She couldn’t even describe it.
Alright. Okay. She wanted to be the one that fucked Chase. There, she’d admitted it to herself. So the feeling of disappointment eating at her was to be expected. Injured pride, unfulfilled hormones, and all that.
But why did it have to hurt? If she allowed herself to focus on it for too long, she’d cry.
“Aria.”
She gave a little yelp. His appearance behind her was so sudden, that she forgot all about getting away from him. She simply froze as Chase wrapped a hand around the side of her waist, and began pulling her down one of the restaurant’s halls.
“Stop.” She tried to move away, while her senses zoned in on the feel of his hand on her waist. The heat of his skin leaked in through her dress. Tempting.
Every line on his body was a temptation.
Aria’s world was starting to spin, but it wasn’t just the alcohol. She could feel her inhibitions dying off, one by one, overpowered by her arousal.
All she had been thinking about, against her will, was sleeping with him. She’d been tormented by the fantasies in her head. The ones where he stopped giving her a choice and just took her. All she could think about was fucking him, no matter how hard she tried not to.
He’s on a date.
He’d gone there with that woman and there was no doubt in Aria’s mind that sex would be involved. Probably already had been.
It shouldn’t have bothered her.
But it fucking did.
ARIA MANAGED TO stumble out of his grasp. Being hit with the full-frontal visual of that man, all cleaned-up and dressed up for another woman, destroyed that last sane part of her mind.
She shouldn’t have been bothered. She was, though. The thought of another woman having him now that she’d gotten a taste filled her mind with scary urges. Her inner bitch howled, ready to annihilate the competition.
Aria took a step back, shaking her head at him, at herself. At her base, disturbing urges.
“You’re not going anywhere,” Chase snapped in a soft tone. His expression was harsher than she’d ever seen it. The hallway they were in was dark, with black walls and a dark blue carpet. Candles sat in alcoves, and in the dim light, the angles of his face took her fucking breath away.
There it was, the image of Chase, in the grips of something that tormented him.
Made him hungry.
For her.
The one thing she couldn't resist and there it freaking was.
No. Have to get away. Aria took another step back, ready to turn around and run before the energy coming off him finished consuming her common sense. Her nipples ached from having him so close.
“I said, no.”
His tone shocked her. Her minor hesitation was all he needed, and then he was storming toward her, every line of his body tight with intent.
Adrenaline exploded inside her brain, rushing through her veins and mixing with the alcohol in her blood. Aria parted her lips, trying to get a descent breath in. Chase was too close. Aria took a step
back, not realizing that he was urging her toward the wall. The glare he directed at her—
Now wait a second. What the hell did he have to be so mad about?
Aria’s foggy brain had enough coherence to spew out indignation at that. She hadn’t done anything. She’d only been there with her friend, living her damned life, and trying to have a good time.
Trying to forget how much she wanted him.
He, on the other hand, was an amazing liar that had had her convinced that he cared. In his own sick, and odd way, but she’d believed that he did.
"I worry about you."
Bullshit. There he’d been, just like every other man, moving onto the next thing as soon as they were done with a woman.
He was no different than her soon-to-be ex-husband.
Calm yourself down, you’re being irrational. “Do yourself a favor, and stay the hell away from me.” So much for being calm.
“No.” He ignored her warning. “You don’t get to ask that of me anymore.”
Aria inhaled sharply when he pressed his hands on either side of her head. He didn’t lean forward. He didn’t have to. She was trapped by the sheer closeness of his body. Her heart beat everywhere, a pounding she was sure he heard also.
She pressed back into the wall, trying to stop herself from reaching out to him. “I told you to stay away.”
He tilted his head, studying her so intently that she wanted to shy away. “No, Aria. Not after that display back there.”
How dare he? Was he stupid? She was more than just tipsy, she was angry…hurt. On top of that, she was seriously fantasizing about killing the bastard.
She had no idea how she could be so angry at someone, but there it was. Violent. Uncontrollable. Aria ground her teeth together, and glared at him.
Chase had fucked up an already messed up situation. He’d made her want him beyond the point of reason. Oh, she wanted to hurt him. Then, she’d kiss the ever-living breath out of him, and get rid of the incessant hunger. The curiosity.
That right there was the problem, she wanted to fuck him. The way she felt right then, she was close to snapping. He needed to move. “Chase, I’m not joking.” The black wall behind her was ridged, smooth, and made out of some type of wood. She dug her fingers into it, trying to dredge up some semblance of sanity. “I told you to stay the fuck away from me.”
Her tone surprised him. She saw it in the widening of his eyes—right before his hands wrapped around her shoulders. Chase pulled her off the wall, bringing her face close to his with one hand. “Look at you. Look at how angry you are.”
If he started commenting about her mental breakdown, she was going to kill him. God help her, she’d never been as angry at anyone as she was at him right then. Not even Douglas.
It didn’t make a bit of sense.
“Let go.” Aria wrapped her hands around his wrists. They were massive in her grip. She’d meant to claw into his skin, if necessary, to get him to let go.
The way he looked at her stopped her. Attacked that ancient part of her circuitry that was demanding she mate with the man in front of her. She could hear the weak, feeble distress call inside her, the one that was calling out for the babies.
Aria blinked, most of her anger disappearing in a single burst. She had no idea how many times she’d prayed, but God help her, that man was going to make her cave. It couldn’t happen. Shouldn’t.
Damn him for staring at her like that!
“Let me tell you something, Aria.” He jerked her even closer, until their lips were brushing against each other’s as he spoke. “You can’t get possessive on me like that and expect me to walk away.” He nipped her bottom lip.
Hard.
Aria gasped, almost going slack in his hold as her pussy clenched. Her nipples weren’t far behind. The mini-torment merely wetted her appetite.
She could still feel his teeth digging into her lower lip.
His hands slid upward. He grabbed two fistfuls of her hair, and he used the hold to pull her head until she arched and he had her chest pressed into his.
Aria let out another gasp. Every cell in her body had been flung into a violent flux. When he tightened his hold on her hair, a shiver slammed into her entire body, making her whimper.
Her ex had never handled her like this. Ever.
Chase groaned, nuzzling her jaw.
She was quivering as she let go of his wrists and slid her hands up his arms, feeling his muscles tense through his blazer. He had her head tilted so far back that she could only see the ceiling. Starving for the sight of him, for his touch, for him, she wrapped her hands around his neck.
He lifted her head, forcing her to meet his eyes. “You are so fucking beautiful,” he said with the most serious tone she’d ever heard him use. He gave her a few seconds to absorb his comment, staring into her eyes the whole time.
Aria shuddered, lips parting, fighting for air as her insides screamed with the recognition of what was happening.
It happened, she’d lost.
She felt the exact moment her last resistance was toppled, crushed into a million tiny pieces. The small yet painful shift echoed inside her.
They were going to happen. She was going to let him take her. It had become inevitable. She had to be with him. Had to have him.
It must have showed on her face. Chase’s stare drilled into her, questioning her. “Fuck.” Recognition flashed inside his eyes. There was a slight tightening as his hands shifted in her hair.
Then his lips were on hers—all over hers—capturing them in a closed mouthed kiss that carved itself into her consciousness.
A second. That was all he gave her before he ripped his lips away. Panting harshly, he pressed his forehead to hers.
Aria refused to open her eyes. She couldn’t, tears welled behind her closed lids. Her entire body was a quivering, unstable, aching-to-be-owned mess that was wailing at her. Warning her.
She wouldn’t be able to exist without feeling him. In the deepest part of her.
What the hell was she going to do?
It had just been his lips, no more than a second long kiss, and she was still feeling it. It was an echo that blazed through her skin. How was it possible?
Chase pressed a kiss to the corner of her mouth. Dear God, he was shaking. Aria parted her lips and turned her head, blindly seeking him out, needing another hit of the violent energy coming off him.
Their lips connected on a wet slide. Every processor, every nerve, every synapse and dendrite misfired inside her mind, all at once.
He gave her that sexy groan again, the one that made everything beneath her waist pulsate, and tilted his head. She felt his lips part. Softly, he pulled her bottom lip into his mouth.
She was so turned on. Damn near wild, and when he gave her lip a sharp suck, she let out a small, hungry sound.
He nipped her lip, dragging his teeth across it. With a tilt of her head, he forced her into position, preparing her. His tongue slid between her lips on a single, dominating thrust. He cupped the back of her head with one hand, and splayed the other along her back.
A thick, hard ridge came in contact with her belly. Aria heard another whimper leave her. She pressed her hands to the back of his head, bringing him closer. Chase grunted, swirling his tongue around hers.
Oh God, oh God, oh God. She was going to die. He angled her head and took her mouth harder, thoroughly, tasting her with rough laps of his tongue. She was vaguely aware that she'd begun grinding against him.
Her panties were soaked. Every move against him had the material sliding along her wet flesh. Another tease. Her clit was pulsating, her insides were too, and she wasn't going to survive if he didn't fill her soon. Ease her ache.
She grabbed the lapels of his blazer and pulled him closer. Chase stopped their kiss, moving his head away.
Her airways felt tight, tighter than they’d ever been. Everything was spinning around her. It was all too much. “How…how, do you do this to me? I don’t understand,” she
confessed, out of breath.
“Meneither, damn you. Me neither.” Chase locked his neck when she tried to pull him back down to her. “No, Aria. We have to stop.”
Uh…what? He was fucking with her. Had to be.
“You’ve been drinking,” he said softly, palming the back of her head. The candlelight flickered in his dark blue eyes, distracting her for a moment. “We can’t do this here, and not if you’ve been drinking.”
Aria shook her head, trying to gain some clarity.
His words sunk in, making her realize what they'd been doing. What she'd been dying, and oh so fucking ready, to do.
Her body had become a blatant offer in those minutes where she'd been lost to the feel of him. An offer he was turning down. Because she'd been drinking.
God, what the hell was she doing?
Aria reared back, horrified at herself. The momentum sent her into the wall. Pain momentarily exploded in the back of her head from the impact.
Alright. That's it. She was so done.
"Chase?"
Chase and Aria froze. Chase's eyes widened just a tiny bit, enough for her to see that he'd forgotten about who he'd gone there with, and hearing that woman's voice shocked him.
In all fairness, she'd forgotten, too.
The reminder burned in places she didn't even know existed till then.
Chase's head turned in his date's direction.
Aria pressed her left hand into his shoulder and shoved him away from her, gaining the opening she needed. She shot toward the right, ready to run down the hall and leave them both to it.
When a hand snapped around her arm, halting her, she wasn’t surprised. He had that nasty habit.
"Seriously?" she hissed, her tone beyond nasty. As it should be. He'd forced her to turn around when he'd grabbed her, and now there was no escaping the sight of his date, standing there, glaring at both of them.
That woman had every right to be angry. Aria might have hated her in an immature, jealousy-filled way, but she couldn't take that away from her.
"Let go. Now. Before I hurt you."
Chase cut her a glance that was almost amused.
Asshole. Aria glared at his profile as he turned back to the other woman, fighting the urge to kick him.
A Debt Repaid (1) Page 10
