by J. D. Chase
“So, that’s a bit of a coincidence isn’t it? And you’ve told me that you don’t socialize. Unless you owned the bar in Queens, I just can’t figure out how you would have seen them. So do you?”
“Do I what?”
“Do you own the bar in Queens?”
“No,” he said quietly.
Somehow I just knew what had happened. I didn’t want to believe it and let’s face it, it was ridiculous. But, I asked the question anyway.
“Did you follow me that night?”
Lucas shot up off the sofa and walked to the window. He stood still, apparently looking out of the window but didn’t answer my question.
“Lucas, did you follow me from here to the bar in Queens?”
Did he just say yes, or did I imagine it?
“Lucas?”
I saw his shoulders rise and then slump as he let out a long sigh. He turned to face me and nodded. Just a subtle movement of his head but definitely a nod.
“Oh my god! Have you followed me anywhere else? Have you been stalking me?”
“Of course not!” He had the nerve to look offended.
“Well, please enlighten me as to the reason you felt it was okay to follow me. And, did you spy on me all night? Did you follow me home at - Oh god! That’s how you knew my address isn’t it?”
“No, Issy. I didn’t follow you home and I knew your address from when I looked up your name on your lease - the following day. Look, I’m not proud of what I did. But you took my breath away. When I walked into your office when we met, I wanted to throw you over your desk and take you there and then. I forced myself to walk away before I did something stupid. I got into my elevator fully intending to return to my apartment but, I’m ashamed to say, that curiosity and jealousy got the better of me. I had to see where you were going, dressed like that. Instead, I sent the elevator into the underground garage, got my car and followed your taxi to the bar.”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I jumped to my feet and rounded on him. “Lucas, do you know now crazy that sounds? Rational people don’t behave in that way.”
He closed his eyes and sighed. When he opened them again, they found mine and implored me to listen. “Issy, after the intensity of our brief meeting, I was out of my mind. And that’s the whole point. I’ve never reacted like that to a woman and I’ve never pursued a woman. But, for some inexplicable reason, I needed to know where you were going, dressed like that! And … and, I needed to reassure myself that you weren’t meeting a man. Don’t ask me why - I just had to. Right from that moment, Issy, I knew that you were different … special. If you are freaking out right now, I can assure you that it’s nothing compared to how I felt when I returned to my apartment that night. I simply could not get you out of my head. I have never felt a connection with a woman, never wanted or needed anyone but I know that I both want, and need, you. Before we spent that night together, I wanted you so badly and yes, like you, I assumed that the connection we had was purely physical. At least I hoped it was; I was so out of my depth. However, that night, and every second I spend with you, only serves to confirm a niggling suspicion that I’ve tried to ignore. That I can’t be without you - that our connection is more than a physical one. Issy, whatever it takes, I just want to be with you.”
The raw emotion in his voice was undeniable and, by the end, his voice had cracked and become little more than a hoarse whisper. His eyes were still locked on to mine and I could feel them probing, urging me to believe him. A part of me wanted to believe him but the other part just couldn’t comprehend the whole situation. There was no denying that he was the most handsome man that I had ever seen and that he oozed sex appeal. He could surely have any woman that he wanted … yet, he had chosen to avoid the company of women, allegedly because he hated the way that they drooled over him. Was he simply determined to have me because I didn’t fall at his feet? Was I just a challenge? Before I’d had chance to think I realized that I’d spoken aloud.
“Why me?”
“I’m sorry?” His eyebrows arched and his eyes swept my face.
“Why do you want to be with me? You were adamant that you didn’t want a relationship with anyone, so what’s changed?”
He shrugged. “I’ve changed. Meeting you, making love to you … I just want to spend every possible moment with you. I can’t get enough of you.”
“So you are open to relationships now? Lucas, I assure you that you only need to make that fact known, visit a club or something, and you will have beautiful women throwing themselves at your feet.” I could hear the edge to my voice.
His eyes widened and I could see the muscles tensing along his jaw. “I am open to a relationship with you, and only you. I have no time for those women who are either just looking for a casual one night stand or looking to secure their financial future.”
I laughed. “Lucas, I told you that I only had one night stands. You talked me into having one with you and now look where that got you! Who knows where a one night stand with a gorgeous girl, that you could meet if you bothered to socialize, would take you. Put yourself out there. Have some fun … I assure you that I would soon be a distant memory. You could have any woman you want.”
Before I knew what was happening, he was up, off the sofa and upon me; one hand was at the nape of my neck and the other was holding my jaw. His eyes blazed from midnight blue to jet black as they bored into mine, his face mere inches from mine. “I don’t want any other woman. I just want you and, if I can’t have you, then I will have no one. But I warn you, Issy, when I want something, I will do anything to get what I want.”
I attempted to lift my chin in defiance but found that I couldn’t move in his grip. I spat back, “Then do what you have to do but I warn you, I will not play your games, Lucas. You don’t want me … you want the challenge, the chase, and you envisage winning the prize. You wouldn’t want me once you had me … if you had me.”
His eyebrow rose either at my words, or the ferocity with which I spoke them. As he spoke, his thumb caressed my cheek and he smiled before saying quietly, “Oh Issy, you couldn’t be farther from the truth, if you tried.”
I clenched my jaw and felt my nostrils flare. “But you would say that, wouldn’t you?”
I heard a deep rumble in his chest as he laughed softly, his eyes mocking me now. “Yes, I guess I would. So, just how confident are you in your belief that I wouldn’t want you if you reciprocated? I think you’re using it as an excuse to prevent yourself from considering the alternative.”
“One hundred percent sure. Oh, I think perhaps that you don’t know it yourself. But, as they say, the thrill is in the chase. No chase … no thrill!”
“Wow, you are sure of yourself. Okay, I can see that we’re going to have to agree to disagree but … if you really were so sure of yourself …”
“What?”
He smiled a slow, lazy smile and began to trace the outline of my lower lip with his forefinger. “You would be prepared to back up your words.”
“I don’t understand.”
“There is only one way for you to prove that you are right and I am wrong. And, of course, for me to prove that I am right and that it is you that has this so wrong. Allow me the thrill of the chase. Allow me to attempt to change your mind about having a relationship with me.”
My eyes flew wide and my breath hitched in my throat as he brought his lips down so close to mine. I felt my heart rate begin to accelerate as I focused on those luscious lips.
“What’s the matter?” he goaded, pressing the length of him against me. “You are certain that you won’t change your mind and, in the unlikely event that you are wrong, you believe that I won’t want you after all. Either way, if you’re right, there is no way that you’ll end up in a relationship with me. Give me one month, Issy. What have you got to lose?”
Bastard! Look at the smirk on his face. He has me cornered and he knows it. How can I get out of this one? Simple … without backing down, I can‘t!
“And if
I say no?” I don’t know why I bothered asking.
I heard, as well as felt, a rumble in his chest that may well have been a low growl. “Then I will pursue you relentlessly and indefinitely until you give me a chance - give us a chance. There would be no hiding place – I would hunt you down wherever you went. You would not evade me and nothing would deter me.”
The words were spoken with utmost sincerity and the dangerous edge to his voice was almost chilling. I forced a shaky laugh. “Hunter by name, hunter by nature?”
He didn’t look amused. “Push me, Issy and see what happens. This isn’t a game; don’t be tempted to think that it would be fun to be hunted down. I always get what I want, Issy and I’m not used to giving up or accepting defeat. But if you give me a chance now, I will give you my word that, after one month, I will back off if you request me to.”
He rested his forehead against mine. “We’d be off to a great start - we know the sexual aspect of any relationship would be amazing! Can you remember our night together? It was the best night of my life. God, Issy, I would give anything to be inside you again.”
Oh my! That deep sexy voice had my body responding to his instantly. Then memories of the raw sex that we had shared flooded my mind and I felt my body pressing itself against his. My nipples hardened instantly and I felt heat flooding between my legs. I heard a low moan and belatedly realized that it was mine. I looked into his dark eyes that blazed with passion and instinctively raised my chin, for my mouth to seek his. My hand went to the back of his neck and my fingers curled into his hair.
Abruptly, he stepped away, holding me at arms’ length. The expression on his face conveyed restraint. I just stared at him, open mouthed in confusion at his sudden withdrawal.
“Oh no, Issy. I can see where that was leading and there is no way that I am allowing anything to distract us from the matter in hand. However good the sex was, it would simply be delaying the matter in hand. I want this sorted now.”
How dare my body betray me! And how dare he deny my body its desires!
One thing was for certain - spending that one night with this man hadn’t sated my desire for him either. I wasn’t averse to a sexual relationship with him; I longed to feel him inside me again, blowing my mind with his skill and stamina. I longed to feel his mouth on me - all of me. Concentrate Issy!
A month of great sex and a guarantee that Lucas would back off at the end compared with no sex and being pursued relentlessly by him for goodness knows how long … the answer was surely obvious. I could have all of the benefits and none of the hassle.
The clever bastard – he has me, and he knows it! No wonder he is such a success in the business world. For every problem, there is a solution and all that!
Chapter 6
I twisted out of his grasp and walked towards the window as I composed myself. It wouldn’t hurt to string this out a little and make him think that I might turn him down. I looked out at the hustle and bustle of Manhattan, my mind whirling with similar speed and intensity. I just needed to give him the month to get me out of his system. In that time, I could get most of the designs done for mini Dakota. I could already picture the largest apartment in my mind, decorated with the color scheme that I’d chosen. I didn’t want to lose the contract. This wasn’t just about getting him off my back for good, this was a professional judgment call too.
“Alright. One month. We will proceed with our sexual relationship and then we agree to discontinue the relationship in one month’s time and we go our separate ways. I need your word that you will not continue to pursue me – at all.”
His voice, at my ear, made me jump. How did he sneak up on me? “Hmmm. Not so fast,” he murmured, so close that I could feel his warm breath on my cheek.
What? Has he changed his mind? Doesn’t he want to have sex with me now? An emotion surged through me - disappointment? No, it was stronger than that - rejection? Whatever it was, I didn’t like it. Not one bit!
“What do you mean?” I asked, as nonchalantly as I could manage.
“You have overlooked the possibility that one of us mightn’t want to discontinue the relationship,” he said softly.
“But you stated that you would back off after one month, if I agreed to your proposal.”
“I did and I stand by that. However, you are failing to acknowledge that there is a chance that you might want to continue the relationship at the end of a month.”
Oh is that all? Thank god for that! “I am confident that there is no chance of that happening,” I replied, trying to hide my relief.
“That’s as may be. But just so that we’re clear in the terms of this arrangement, although you are confident that it won’t happen, if you are wrong and it does, you agree that we are not bound by your earlier statement.”
“Of course. If the impossible happens, I agree to renegotiate terms at the end of the month. But I am telling you that it won’t happen, Lucas. I’ve never had a long term lover and I have no desire nor need for a relationship with any man. What makes you so special that you think you can change that?”
“It‘s not necessarily what makes me special but what makes us special - together. And you forget, Issy. You have already broken your rules for me. You allowed me to stay overnight - a first. You have agreed to enter into a sexual relationship with me for a month - another first. If I were you, I wouldn’t be so quick to dismiss the possibility of another first. Don’t know it until you’ve tried it.”
I opened my mouth to respond and then realized that all that he’d said was true. Damn this man! Why does he have to be right about everything … well, almost everything? There is no way on this Earth that he is right about THAT!
His velvety voice broke into my thoughts. “So, we have an agreement? One month, starting from now? On the terms that we have just agreed? You’re not worried that I might win?”
“Yes, yes, yes and … are you kidding me? Not a chance, Mr Hunter!”
“Okay then,” he growled before scooping me up into his arms, making me squeal. “Let’s get started.”
“Now? Right now?”
He laughed and I felt the deep vibrations against my ribcage. “You just agreed - one month, starting from now - no backing out now!”
He strode down the corridor and into his bedroom, ignoring my indignant protests. He stopped at the foot of his bed and looked down at me with a serious expression. Something told me that I should listen. “Thank you for giving me this chance, Issy. I know that it wasn’t easy for you and I want you to know that I wouldn’t ask if I wasn’t serious about you, about us. I really think we have a chance - if you’ll just open up your mind to possibilities. I’m looking forward to the next few weeks. I’m looking forward to the next few hours!” And with that, he kissed me chastely and then graciously slid me onto the bed and stood there, at the foot of the bed, looking every inch the predator. A delicious shiver ran through my body - right to the tips of my toes as his hungry gaze swept along it. No chance of miscommunication – this is just no-strings attached sex with a get out clause at the end of the month. Oooh goody!
I awaited his next move, eagerly anticipating the contact between our bodies but he just stood there. The electricity between us continued to charge. Suddenly, he smiled, turned and walked though one of the doors that I’d noticed earlier. I lay waiting for him to return, idly reminiscing about our night of wild passion. I just knew that sexually, we were compatible and that he was good company when he was relaxed. I had also seen his vulnerable and tender side. I began to wonder what the month ahead would have in store. I wished now that I had asked more questions about how it would pan out exactly. Were we just to meet up for sex on a regular basis? Would we be friends with benefits? Although, I couldn’t see how that would work when he, by his own admission, didn’t socialize. I wondered whether I should insist on agreeing the ground rules in full and decided that it would be a good idea, before we actually began the arrangement.
More minutes went by and there was stil
l no sign of Lucas. I wondered idly what was behind the door. Was it an en-suite? A dressing room? I began to feel quite lonely and well, disappointed if I was honest. I distracted myself by going over the sequence of events that had led to my being in his bedroom. I began to piece together the events of this morning and I realized that it was my own petulant behavior that had led me to his office, which in turn had led to my fall and to my being here. If I hadn’t been so tenacious about him sending me the check, it wouldn’t have happened and I wouldn’t have been talked into this arrangement. Oh well, too late to change it now. He is a skilled and thoughtful lover. I may as well just reap the rewards until the month is over. Every cloud and all that! Now where is he? Why is he keeping me waiting?
Finally, I could stand it no longer. I crept off the bed and to the door, pressing my ear against it. I couldn’t hear a thing - not surprising when the door is solid oak. I gingerly turned the handle and eased open the door. Immediately, I heard the sound of running water and I realized that he must be in the shower.
