Tame Me-To Load-

by Bloom, Cassandra

  Devon broke the breathless kiss, and the cloudy haze receded while he turned to face the canyon.

  Madeline followed his gaze to see the sun setting on the rim as striking pink streamers streaked across the bright blue sky. The magnificent sphere flamed orange and yellow while it glowed from the ridge of the canyon—the dazzling painted mural in the sky matching the image she’d just envisioned in her mind.

  Devon placed his arm around her and they watched the horizon. Madeline had never witnessed anything so incredible in all her life and it appeared as if they stood at the edge of the world, hanging in the sky. The shimmering pink and orange streaks stretched across the horizon while the clouds floated past and mixed in with the visual spectacle as it arched like a bright, swiftly-spreading pastel rainbow.

  The spectacular, dappled vision reflected from the glass bottom of the skywalk and became a mirror image. Its brilliant shimmer gleamed across the transparent floor of the bridge and she could see herself, her sparkling skin reflecting the luminous occurrence. Now, I’ve seen the colors and light, Phoebe.

  She experienced buoyancy as though they floated. Struggling to shake the sensation away, a weightlessness came over her, as if her body might levitate. Her feet lifted from the glass until she stood on just her toes. Were they hovering toward the canyon? Grabbing Devon’s arm, she held tight and watched the dazzling, panoramic illusion.

  Wispy, crimson-flamed clouds swirled just above their heads while the canyon walls around them replicated the celestial event.

  Devon squeezed her hand. “You are my wife now.”

  The quietly spoken words were the first words she’d heard all day. The reverent declaration vibrated through her and became the most significant statement she had ever heard in all of her life. Overwhelmed with the rush of splendid exhilaration which rose inside her, she suddenly knew she’d never lived before that moment. Unaccustomed to the birth of all of these new emotions, a sensation of finality tugged at her, as if the Madeline from her life before this was dying as well.

  Suspended above her body, she could see Devon and herself watching the sky, but could still feel the warmth and strength of his hand as it grasped hers. It must be our mirrored images from the glass-bottomed bridge. The canyon receded below them as though they were really hovering out and over the edge. No, it can’t be. Her chest felt tight, her heart pounded rapidly, and she struggled to pull a breath.

  Madeline’s earthbound fear of the astral journey took over. She shut her eyes, and all the striking, sparkling colors swirled to black.

  Las Vegas, Nevada

  A roaring sound from the engine of the chopper greeted Madeline as she awoke while lying back in the seat. Devon lifted her upright. Sighing with a slight drowsy feeling, she looked around to see they were in the air again. Are we going back to the cave? A small thrill tickled along her skin, her body reacting to the memory of the last time they were there. Really, I never knew I liked that kind of thing. Her startled gaze fell to the ground, hundreds of feet below.

  A million lights twinkled below them. Red, yellow and blue sparkles glinted from the ground, with neon lights blinking and flashing in all directions.

  She looked over at Devon, arching a brow in question.

  “Our honeymoon in Las Vegas!” he announced with a grin. “Sin City.”

  “Vegas?” her voice squeaked, hurting her ears.

  Devon nodded and sat forward to look out as the helicopter landed on the top of a tall tower. He laughed uproariously at her stunned expression while he lifted her from the copter and led her to a door. A few steps through a small lobby and he pushed the elevator button.

  Madeline held onto his arm, her astonishment growing. After all that sacred Indian stuff? The ponies, the procession and the surreal silence? He takes me to Vegas?

  “To the honeymoon suite!” He walked her out of the elevator into a hallway with flocked wallpaper. With a rushed exuberance, Devon took a card key from his pocket, opened the door and maneuvered her into the suite.

  Lavish and decadent wouldn’t have begun to describe this room, and she halted in her tracks.

  He took a running leap, landing on the red velvet covered bed, jumping up and down as though on a trampoline. “Come on, Maddy!” he called to her with an exuberant smile on his face.

  She stood rooted to the spot.

  He stepped off the bed and tugged her close. “What’s wrong? You don’t like it?”

  Madeline gulped and shook her head. “It’s not that.

  He led her to a wide window. “Just look at all of this, and we’re on the top floor, no less!”

  Madeline struggled to act normal, but still felt anything but normality. “Dev?”

  He swung away from the window. “Yes, Madeline?”

  “What just happened?”

  He took her hands. “We got married?”

  “Yes, but, the floating, and all that color.”

  “Yeah, beautiful. Our feelings were pure and strong.”

  “Feelings?” she repeated.

  With continued exhilaration, he rushed over to the bar. “Drink?” he offered, waving a glass.

  She dropped into a chair at the small dining table and anxiously watched his movements.

  “I have champagne coming any minute, but there’s an honor bar, with lots of things?”

  “Dev!”

  Dropping the glass to the floor, he looked concerned. “What’s wrong?”

  She leaned forward and let out a humorless laugh. “First, you kidnap me.”

  He sighed like a teen being lectured, and sat down across from her.

  “Next, you…” she paused as her eyes locked with his, “…ravish me.”

  “Ravish?” He smiled with wonder in his eyes. “It sounds kind of great!”

  “Yeah, it kind of was.”

  “Mmm, wish I’d been there.”

  Madeline jerked her head back. “And, that’s the other thing!” She pointed her finger to his smiling face. “And don’t you dare use that smile on me, mister!”

  He instantly dropped the smile.

  “You threw me into that aphrodisiac pool.”

  “I’m with you so far.” Devon nodded.

  “And then, against all logical laws of human evolution, you physically and mentally morphed into the supreme alpha male.”

  “Alpha male?”

  Madeline leaned closer. “You said you needed to tame me.”

  “I did?” He swallowed heavily.

  “You chained me to a wall.”

  His eyes widened. “I found you chained.”

  “You said to me, ‘He chose well.’ ”

  Devon released an uneasy breath. “It’s hard to explain.”

  “Yes, I know, it’s complicated.” She sat back and crossed her arms over her chest. “Have you ever taken anyone else to that porno cave?”

  Aghast, he stood from the chair. “Porno cave?”

  “Yes, it had all these pornographic drawings.” She attempted to hide her lust-filled yearning for the sexy brave from the cave.

  Devon studied her flushing face.

  “Tools for the taming, you said.”

  A flicker of unease passed across his face and he looked away. “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

  Her lower belly vibrated with little pings as she pictured the brave’s face while he thrust into her throbbing, heaving body. “My woman now.” She squirmed slightly in her chair with the intense heat throbbing at her from between her thighs.

  “You liked it?” he interrupted her erotic wandering.

  “Well, it was you, after all.” Flustered by the pointed question, she defended her obvious weakness for the brave.

  Devon appeared quietly troubled as he sat listening.

  “Then, you said, ‘Well, you don’t know about it all any more’, and proceeded straight to dumping me.” She deliberately swerved the conversation away from his questions about the cave as she drew a breath and went on with her disturbing outline of events, “And,
before you could actually and literally dump me, you agreed to a shotgun proposal of a wedding.”

  “So, what all are you trying to say?”

  Agitated, she stomped her foot. “Who are you, really? Why is it that every time I meet you, you’re someone different? And where in hell’s name did that Cro-Magnon Indian come from?”

  “You pushed me into the lightning pool.”

  “No, dammit, that’s not the point!”

  He walked around the table and grabbed her arms. “Why did you marry me, if you have all these doubts?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Are you saying, you don’t know why?”

  “No. I know I want to be with you.”

  Devon studied her face. “And, that’s why?”

  She nodded.

  His serious expression changed to jubilation again. “Okay, so we’re married.” He spread his arms out. “And this is our wedding night, and I’ve waited.”

  “He wanted to wait, for the marriage.” The brave’s words echoed from her memory of the cave.

  Devon scooped her up and whirled her around. “We are alive and young and just got married!”

  His glee was so infectious that Madeline laughed.

  He set her down while gazing into her eyes and ran his finger gently across her cheek. “So, can you guess what we’re gonna do now?”

  She shivered at his suggestive tone while he drew closer to her face.

  “Play!” He kissed her lips and let go of her arms.

  “What?” she asked with a gasp, and stumbled backward.

  “I had them stock these!” he declared, as he threw the closet door open and stepped aside, so she could view the contents. Glittery gowns and shiny shoes filled one side and on the other were all sorts of suits, ties and men’s jackets. “We can play in style!” He grinned. “The house has no limit tonight. We can play the slots, black jack and—”

  “Dev!” She stomped her foot with frustration. “You’re serious with this?”

  “I like this flashy red one.” He took a sequined, low-cut dress from the rack. “You’ll be a knockout!”

  Madeline felt staggered by this new playboy Devon. “So, now you have three personalities?”

  “What is that supposed to mean?” He held the shiny, ruby-colored dress to his chest.

  She snatched the dress from his grasp and went into the bathroom. “Oh, I don’t know.” She stepped over to the mirror. “I’m just trying to keep up.”

  Her reflection showed her the glow of before had faded, leaving a light radiance on her skin. Is the bronzing otherworldly? Is he otherworldly? She got undressed. It could’ve been the reed he used. She grew warm again, remembering the tingling and the need. Ridiculous, Maddy! Shaking the erotic sensations away, she put the glittery dress on.

  CHAPTER TEN

  The noise echoed over the enormous gaming room, blending in a mixture of jackpot bells and laughter, complimented by glasses tinkling. The whole place pulsed with energy and overflowed with animated people. Cocktail servers carried trays of drinks around and smiled as they handed out various alcohol beverages to the excited players.

  Cheers would roar from certain card tables and groans would hum through from others. Triumphant yells of joyous victory accompanied the ringing of winning alarms at various slot machines.

  Madeline stood with Devon at the top of the stairs and took in all the voracious fun happening below them. Her newly bronzed legs showed with every stride in her strappy, red stilettos as Devon kept peeking over to watch her long, shapely legs flashing as they descended the stairs. Catching on to his game, she would peek back as they stepped, to try to catch him at it. Devon would avert her sideways glance with an entirely innocent expression on his tan, handsome face.

  A smirk edged at her lips. He’s so hard to figure out; teasing me like he is now, holding me, kissing me and then? He acts as if he wasn’t even hot for me, and the alternate Dev? A whole other compelling puzzle. Devon Ananza, the first man who mystified her and kept her guessing. Most of the men in her world were easy puzzles to assemble, all of them put together with ambitious, rich and extremely spoiled pieces. And they wanted to hop into bed ASAP!

  “Madeline? Is that you?”

  Her head jerked straight up. Was it…?

  Taylor Scott, the most succinct depiction of the kind of man she’d become accustomed to, and the epitome of a well-educated, thriving capitalist. To top off this suave sophistication, the young corporate executive came neatly wrapped in a package of delicious eye candy. He rushed up the steps and grabbed Madeline’s hands. Elegantly dressed in Armani, which accented Taylor’s fine-looking face, his dazzling smile flashed, completing the entire GQ image. “I never thought I’d see you here!”

  Devon’s eyes narrowed, while Madeline kept her expression neutral.

  “They said you were on bereavement leave.” Taylor stared at her face. “I’m glad to see you’re all right.”

  “Yes, I’m just fine.” She turned toward Devon. “Um, Taylor Scott?”

  Devon dropped her arm and introduced himself. “Devon Ananza.” He scowled at the other man.

  Taylor gazed at him with flinty eyes. “Of the Ananza Foundation.”

  “Yes,” Devon answered.

  Madeline looked over at Taylor. “You know Dev’s family?”

  Taylor looped his hands behind his back and gave her a debonair smile.

  A flicker of indefinable alarm vibrated through her, and she looked over at Devon.

  His expression appeared friendly, though his eyes held a cold glint.

  Madeline gazed back and forth between the two superbly handsome men, realizing they were like different sides of the same mystifying coin. One was so easygoing and spontaneous while the other never did anything without an agonizingly detailed plan. Yet, both men exuded a strong charming magnetism with striking good looks while possessing a powerful determination.

  “Am I missing something?” she asked.

  Both men stared at her. “Like what?” they both asked.

  Madeline stepped back. “You know each other, and you both know me!”

  Devon laughed. “Now, Madeline don’t be like that.

  “Don’t be like what?” she shouted. “I know when things aren’t right.” She grew alarmed that these two men from vastly different worlds apparently knew each other, and the knowledge stunned her to the core. Taylor was always after her. Probably because of what he thought they could achieve in the business world together.

  Devon had also pursued her, and she still couldn’t figure his motives out. Madeline thought of how quickly Devon proposed to her, the marriage, the relationship rushed and hurried. She had married one of these dynamic men, and their mysterious connection to each other troubled her in incomprehensible ways. If it were a preconceived plan, she had placed herself in true jeopardy by allowing herself to be duped. Fooled, used, and then what? Dumped, with no pride left to me? This sexy stranger from the desert could hurt her in so many ways.

  “Are you okay, Miss Sayers?” Taylor asked with concern.

  She didn’t know what to think, and she panicked, swiftly stepping around him and raced through the crowded casino.

  “Maddy!” Devon called from behind her.

  She ran into someone and hands grasped her upper arms. “Madeline!” Rick smiled at her. “I’ve been looking all over for you. They told me at the Skywalk lodge where you two were headed.”

  She released a breath and looked behind her.

  “Is everything okay?” He peered at her face. “I mean the wedding and all? I wasn’t allowed to attend and I wanted to let you know that I had wanted be there for you.”

  “Maddy!”

  At Devon’s call, she flinched.

  Instantly, Rick placed a protective arm around her shoulder and glanced over at Devon.

  “It’s not like what you think.” He respectfully nodded to her father. “Sir.”

  Rick’s eyes narrowed. “Have you done something to Madeli
ne?”

  Devon blinked. “No!” He stepped closer. “We ran into Taylor.”

  “I knew it!” she accused, leaning into Rick’s shoulder.

  “You mean Scott?”

  Madeline backed away from her father’s embrace. “You know him, too?”

  At Rick’s nod, she looked over at Devon in shock.

  Devon released a frustrated breath. “Maddy, just listen for a damned second!”

  She backed away from the two men. “You three knew each other before I even came here? It was all a set up!” Her newly fragile heart and these vulnerable feelings put her in true jeopardy. She’d forgotten her own rules for survival; never show them any feelings and never trust anyone. No one is going to use me! She rushed out through the front entrance, heading for the taxi line and hopped into the nearest one.

  “Where to?” the driver asked.

  Madeline struggled to calm herself and remembered she had no money and no credit cards, as the cab door opened.

  “The MGM, please.” Taylor handed the cabbie a hundred-dollar bill while the cabdriver’s eyes widened. “Leave fast and lose anyone who follows and you’ll get another hundred.”

  The cabbie threw the car into gear.

  “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Madeline shouted.

  He leaned back in the seat. “Brokering.”

  “What?”

  “Do you wanna know about it all, or not?”

  “Do I wanna know what?”

  “I’ve been trying to track you down.”

  “And, why is that?”

  “You know how I feel about you.” Taylor squeezed her hand.

  She yanked her hand away. “I don’t even really know you!”

  “So, you never noticed all the flowers I’ve sent, the phone messages?”

  Madeline knew why he’d chased her. It was never about attraction, except the kind a person has for more money and power. She was nothing more than another deal to him. “You’re despicable!”