by Susanna Carr
He was a worthy opponent. She didn’t care if his indiscretion helped her escape Raymond. He was still a dangerous enemy and she needed to remember that. “This isn’t over. I will see you in court,” she declared as she headed for the door.
“Good luck with that,” he called out after her. “You can’t afford legal advice and any good lawyer will tell you that you don’t have a case.”
“Don’t underestimate me.” She tossed the warning over her shoulder.
“How badly do you want Inez Key?” he asked lazily as she grabbed the door handle.
She dipped her head as she considered the question. How could she explain? Inez Key was more than her home. It was the only thing left of her family yet it was also a constant and unwelcome reminder. It was her sanctuary but it was also her dungeon. She was both caretaker and captive. She was determined to live there until she exorcised her demons. “Probably as much as you did.”
His chuckle sent a shiver down her spine. “You shouldn’t have told me that.”
She turned around and narrowed her eyes. He looked so calm and in control as he lounged in his chair and watched her with barely concealed amusement. “What do you want, Cruz?”
His smile sent a shiver down her spine. “You.”
CHAPTER TWO
SEBASTIAN SAW ASHLEY flinch from his answer. He knew she wasn’t surprised by his admission. He saw the flare of interest in her eyes and the flush in her cheeks before she tried to shield her reaction. She was trying to hold back her response, but her body was betraying her. She couldn’t hide the hectic pulse beating at the base of her neck. Ashley still wanted him, but she wasn’t going to admit it.
“You’ve made it very obvious,” Ashley said in a withering tone.
“I’m not ashamed of it.” He didn’t consider his desire for Ashley a weakness. It was more of a problem, a distraction and a growing obsession. She, on the other hand, was ashamed by the attraction they shared. She acted as if it went against everything she believed in.
“I’m not for sale,” she declared.
The corner of his mouth slanted up. “You said the same about Inez Key and look at how that worked out.”
Her jaw clenched. “I’m serious, Cruz,” she said in a growl.
If she’d been serious, she would have tossed back his indecent proposal. Used a few choice words and punctuated her indignation with a slap. Instead, she held the door handle in a death grip. She was wavering. Horrified but enthralled. If he played this right he could have Ashley back in his bed for more than a night.
“I’m sure we can work out an arrangement,” he said smoothly as the excitement burned inside him. He had ached for her for weeks and the sensation intensified now that he knew the wait was almost over.
“You are no better than Raymond,” she said in a hiss.
Sebastian smirked. Her comment just proved how innocent and unworldly she really was. Hadn’t she realized by now that he was much, much worse?
“On the contrary, Casillas had set a trap. I’m being extremely honest about what I want.” And he wanted Ashley more than anything. It didn’t make sense. She wasn’t like the other women in his life. She was untamed and inexperienced. Trouble. An inconvenience.
He should cut her loose. After all, he was lying about what he was willing to offer in exchange. He wasn’t letting her back on that island. He wasn’t going to break a promise just so he could please this spoiled little princess. But he was intrigued to see what her price would be.
“Honest?” she asked, the word exploding from her pink lips. “How can you say that when you introduced yourself under a different name with the intent of seducing the island from me?”
He rose from his seat and approached her. This time she was too angry to be cautious. She didn’t catch the scent of danger. Her brown eyes glittered and she thrust out her chin.
Sebastian wondered why she attempted to hide behind the shapeless white dress. Her beauty was too bold, her personality too brash, to be restrained. His palms itched to pull her hair free and watch it tumble past her shoulders. He wanted to smear the pale makeup from her face and reveal the island girl he knew.
“You’re the one who isn’t being honest,” Sebastian said as he stood before her, noticing how her chest rose and fell with agitation. “You knew what Casillas was really after and you didn’t disabuse him of that idea because you needed the money.”
“I tried the banks but—”
“Casillas makes your skin crawl. Don’t you think he knew that? Did you realize that made you even more desirable to him?” Sebastian asked. “You tried to play the game and got in too deep.”
Ashley raised an eyebrow. “Did you consider that I fell into bed with you because I wanted to get rid of my virginity? That I needed to so I could escape Raymond?”
Sebastian jerked his head back. He had not considered that. The possibility ate away at him like acid. He was not going to be used by a pampered princess.
Sebastian gripped her chin with his fingers and held her still. He felt the fight beneath her smooth, silky skin. “Did you?” he asked in a low, angry tone that would send his employees scurrying for safety.
Her eyes gleamed with reckless defiance. “Not so sure anymore, are you?”
He watched her closely as the unfamiliar emotions squeezed his chest. With her natural beauty and independent spirit, Ashley Jones could have had any man. He didn’t know why she’d waited for her first sexual experience, but if she needed to get rid of her virginity, she would have picked an uncomplicated man whom she could control.
He stroked the pad of his thumb against her chin as he held his fiery emotions in check. “I think you slept with me because you couldn’t help it,” he said in a husky voice. She wanted him even though it meant yielding. Surrendering. “Casillas had nothing to do with it. You forgot all about him when you were with me.”
She tried to slap his hand away. “Dream on.”
He couldn’t help but dream about Ashley and the night they had shared. He remembered every touch and kiss. Every gasp and moan. Ashley hadn’t been faking it. “You want me so much that it scares you. And that’s why you tried to push me away.”
“I pushed you away because I didn’t want to continue the fling,” she argued. “You served your purpose and I was done. I have no interest in playboys.”
He dropped his hand. Served his purpose? He knew she said that to hide the fact that he would always be a significant part in her love life, but she was going to pay for those words. “I’m not a playboy.”
“Ha!” she said bitterly. “You tried to hide it when you were at Inez Key, but I grew up around womanizers. I know what kind of man you are. You would dangle a woman’s home as bait, but we both know you will not give it back.”
Sebastian bit back a smile. Ashley Jones thought very highly of herself. Did she really believe he would give up his treasure for another taste of what they’d shared? “I never said I’d give back your home.”
She went still and frowned. “I don’t understand. You asked me—”
“How much you wanted Inez Key,” he clarified as he stepped closer, inhaling her citrusy scent. “The ownership of the island is not up for grabs. I keep what is mine and I will not let it slip through my fingers.”
Ashley paled and she leaned against the door. “I’ve taken care of the island for years,” she said in a whisper. “I have given it my love, sweat and tears. I’ve sacrificed everything for it.”
“Why?” There was nothing remarkable about the island. It had no natural resources or historical significance. It was in an undesirable location and he had been the only prospective buyer interested in the island.
“Why?” she repeated dully. “It’s my home.”
Sebastian saw the guarded look in her eyes and knew she wasn’t giving the whole ans
wer. He also knew she wouldn’t share it with him. She’d learned her lesson and didn’t trust him anymore.
There had been moments during that weekend when Ashley had been unguarded and spontaneous. Now she was wary. He ignored the surprising pang of regret. It was time she learned how the real world worked and he had given her a very valuable lesson. “Your attachment to Inez Key doesn’t make any sense.”
“What about you?” she countered. “Not that many people would go to such lengths to steal someone’s home.”
“I didn’t steal it,” he said with a hint of impatience. “You couldn’t pay back the loan so the island is now mine.”
“What are your plans for it?” she asked as if it hurt to think of the changes he was going to make. “I can’t imagine you want to live there. I’m sure you have many homes. Inez Key is practically roughing it in comparison.”
“Don’t worry about it,” he said as he reached for the door. It was time to force her into making a decision. “Inez Key is now my concern.”
Ashley bit her bottom lip as she stared at the open door. The beat of silence stretched until her shoulders slumped. “Cruz.”
“The name is Sebastian,” he reminded her. She had said his name repeatedly during that one night. She’d said it with wonder and excitement. With longing and satisfaction. And tonight it would be the last thing she said before she fell asleep.
* * *
Sebastian. No, she wouldn’t call him that. Sebastian had been a mysterious stranger on the island. His intensity and raw masculinity had unleashed a fierce sexual hunger that she hadn’t known was in her. She would never be the same again.
This arrogant man was calculating and intimidating. He was breathtaking and she couldn’t take her eyes off him. But he was not the fantasy lover she remembered.
Maybe that was the problem. Had she built up that one magical night in her head? Everything had been so new. Almost foreign. She wouldn’t feel overwhelmed from the wild sensations if she had sex with him again. Yet the memory of sharing a bed with Sebastian still made her weak in the knees.
“If you have no intention of giving me back my home,” she asked carefully as her heart pounded against her ribs, “what are you offering?”
“You’ll be the caretaker and stay in the cottage behind the main house.”
She held back the flash of anger. She had been the mistress of the house. She had free rein of the island. Now he was offering the role as caretaker as if it was a gift? “Not good enough.”
He placed his finger against her lips. “Careful, mi vida,” he said softly as his eyes glittered with warning. “I don’t have to let you on the island at all. I don’t have to let anyone who is living there stay.”
She gasped at his thinly veiled threat. “No. This has nothing to do with the other families on the island. They’ve been there for generations.”
“You are going to champion the others?” he mocked. “How adorable.”
She thought of the five families that lived on the small island. They had been there for her during her darkest moments. Since then, she had provided for them and protected them. She wasn’t going to let them down. “Don’t interfere with their lives,” she said. “This is between you and me.”
“Yes, it is,” he drawled as he closed the door. Sebastian rested his hand above her head. He was too close. She felt trapped. Cornered.
It was a struggle to remain still and meet his gaze. “What do you want from me?”
“Two weeks in my bed.”
Her skin went hot and her mouth dropped open. “I wouldn’t stay in your bed for two more minutes, let alone—”
“Make it three,” he said coldly.
Her eyes widened. “You bastard.” She bit out the words.
“And now it’s four,” he said with no emotion. “Do you want to make it five weeks?”
A month with Sebastian? The wall she had painstakingly built around herself had shattered after one night with him. What would happen to her after four weeks in his bed?
Now if only she could silence the dark excitement building inside her, threatening to break free. She didn’t like this side of her. She was not going to let this sexual hunger govern her thoughts and decisions. She was nothing like her parents.
“Ashley, one month won’t be enough for you,” he promised.
She pressed her lips together as she struggled to remain silent. She shouldn’t have allowed him to rattle her. Her angry words always had consequences.
“It may not even last that long,” he said. “I have a short attention span when it comes to women, but you’ll beg me to stay.”
That was what she was afraid of. She prided herself on not being a sexual woman, until she met Sebastian Cruz. One look at him and the dormant sensations had sprung violently to life. Her response to his touch had frightened her. She hadn’t recognized herself. This man had wielded a power over her like no other.
She was going to break this spell he’d woven. She’d figure out how he lowered her defenses so easily, and kill the craving she had for Sebastian Cruz. And when this month was over, she would never let a man have this kind of hold on her again.
“I want to make sure I understand this,” she said shakily. “I will have a home on the island if I share a bed with you for a month?”
“Correct,” he said as his eyes held a devilish gleam.
There had to be a catch. Why would he kick her out of the main house only to give her a smaller one on the island? It was convenient for him to have a caretaker who already knew Inez Key, but did he think this arrangement would continue for as long as he wished? “How do I know that you won’t fire me?”
“You’ll have a contract just like my other employees,” he murmured as his attention focused on her mouth.
Her lips stung with awareness. They felt fuller. Softer. She tried not to nervously lick them. “How long do I have before I give you my decision?”
He moved closer, his mouth above hers. She felt his warm breath waft over her skin. “You have to give it to me now.”
Alarm jolted through her veins. “Now? That’s not fair!” What was she saying? Sebastian didn’t play fair. He played to win.
“Take it or leave it,” he said.
She wanted to look away. Find another option. As much as she wanted to stay on Inez Key, she didn’t think she was strong enough to fight the desire she had for Sebastian. But she couldn’t walk away from this. “I’ll take it,” she whispered.
Sebastian captured her mouth with his. His kiss was bold, rough and possessive. She wanted to resist. Was determined to give no response. Yet she parted her lips and leaned into him as he deepened the kiss. Their tongues parried as he pulled her closer. She tasted his lust and it thrilled her. She yielded as he conquered her mouth.
Ashley jerked away. What was wrong with her? Her heart was racing and she fought the urge to place her fingers on her tingling lips. She couldn’t look at Sebastian. She was confused. Aroused. Her emotions had been ambushed.
How could she have responded so eagerly? For him? Sebastian Cruz represented everything she despised in a man. “I need to leave,” she said as she clumsily reached for the door handle. “I have a few things I need to deal with back home.”
“You’re not going home.” Sebastian wrapped his hand around her wrist and pulled her hand away from the door. “You will return to Inez Key on my terms.”
She stared at him as his calmly delivered words filtered into her jumbled mind. He wasn’t allowing her to go home? How dare he? But then, it wasn’t her home anymore. Technically, it was his. “I said I would share a bed with you. There was nothing—”
“You are now my mistress,” he said as he raised her hand and pressed his lips against the skittering pulse on her wrist. “You live where I live. Sleep where I sleep.”
Mistress? Her knees threatened to give out. She hated that word. Her dad had kept many mistresses. Vulgar women who didn’t care who they hurt as long as they got the attention they felt they deserved. “I didn’t agree to that.”
“I didn’t say that I would share my nights with you,” he reminded her. “I am sharing a bed. That could happen at any time of day. Or all day.”
All day. The wicked excitement pulled low in her belly. No, this was bad. This was really bad. What had she gotten herself into?
“Backing out already?” he said in a purr.
This was her chance. She could extract herself from this agreement and run back to her safe little world. But that world no longer existed. He owned it. Now she had to fight for a little piece of it. Ashley swallowed roughly. “No.”
“Good.” Sebastian’s satisfaction vibrated in his deep voice as he pulled the door open and led her out of his office.
“Where are we going?” she asked, stumbling in her heels as she tried to keep up with him.
“To get you out of that dress.”
She went rigid. He wanted to seal the deal now? She wasn’t ready. Her mind froze yet her nipples tightened in anticipation as her legs went limp.
“I’m calling a stylist,” Sebastian announced. “The dress you’re wearing hides your body and ages you about two decades.”
She didn’t care. She didn’t like dressing up or bringing attention to her body. Her clothes were meant to fade into the background. “Why do I need another dress?”
“I have an event I must attend and you are coming with me,” he said as they reached his private elevator.
An event? No doubt it was glamorous and luxurious. There would be the Miami elite attending. Many of them would be the friends and former lovers of her parents. It was going to be a nightmare. “I don’t want to go.”
“You don’t know much about being a mistress, do you?” he asked as he wrapped his arm around her waist and dragged her against him. “You really don’t have a say in the matter.”
Ashley was very aware of his hand spanning the small of her back. She felt delicate, almost fragile, next to him. She didn’t like it. “Are you aware that there’s a difference between mistress and sex slave?”
