“I’m making it my business, Peaches,” he told her gutturally. His hands came up to frame her face as his mouth descended on hers.
Peaches? He hadn’t called her that since she was a child, when he told her that the reddish orange highlights in her hair reminded him of ripe peaches. She hadn’t minded so much when she was younger and she’d needed a boost to her ego. He’d told her that ripe peaches were a good thing, and that her hair was unique. Now, the childhood nickname was a mockery coming from his mouth rather than the comforting epithet it had been to her when she was a girl.
“Don’t call me that—” Her words were cut off as his mouth claimed hers in a demanding, furious embrace that almost immediately made her capitulate. She breathed in the now familiar, masculine scent of him. He tasted like mint, rich coffee, and pure carnal lust. His tongue speared through her lips, commanded her compliance.
Don’t give in. He’s being a bully. Don’t give in.
Her treacherous ni**les hardened against his chest, her longing suddenly stronger than her will to resist. She speared her hands into his f**k-me-now hair, fisted it and pulled his mouth harder against hers. Their mouths fused together, he ravaged her with every thrust of tongue. He pushed; she pushed right back.
Hope’s yearning grew, and she moaned into his mouth, wanting so much more than she could possibly get. She’d wanted him, wanted this for so very long. But she wasn’t able to give Jason what he wanted, even if she let him be a domineering bully, which she refused to do. Still, her body wanted, but what it really needed was a frustrating impossibility.
They broke the kiss, both of them breathing heavily. “Let go, Jason,” she told him firmly and pushed against his shoulders. “Let go.”
She wriggled out of his embrace as she swore she heard him whisper the word “never” softly. “I’m taking a shower and then I’m leaving.”
“Take a shower,” he rumbled. “And then we’ll eat and you’ll explain exactly why you felt it necessary to lie to everyone who cares about you. My threat wasn’t idle, Hope,” he warned her ominously.
“I’ll always hate you for this,” she told him angrily, furious with herself for still being so uncontrollably attracted to him when he acted like such a jerk. “What the hell is wrong with you? What happened to the Jason who actually rescued me from bullies instead of being one himself?”
“He grew up to be an ass**le,” he answered morosely, his azure eyes glacial and dark. “Hate me if it makes you feel better, but I’m not letting you leave here until I get what I want.”
Bastard!
Hating Jason was easier with every word he uttered, and she strode over to him and let her hand fly, no thought in her head except to wipe the smug look off his face.
Smack!
The satisfaction of her hand as it connected with his frosty expression was more satisfying than the pain of her stinging palm. How dare he extort her just to get into her panties?
The shocked expression on his face was priceless, and Hope’s anger continued to swell as he grasped her wrist to keep her from slapping him again.
Truthfully, not only was she pissed, but she was disheartened and wondered what had happened to the Jason she actually liked. This man was someone entirely different, and her heart mourned the loss of the man who had always kept her secrets without requiring anything in return.
“I guess this means you’ve decided to despise me?” He held his hand up to his reddened cheek. “But it doesn’t matter.”
For a brief moment, Hope thought she spotted an injured, sad look in his otherwise cold eyes…but in an instant, it was gone.
“I’m not sure how you expect me to feel any other way.” Hope jerked her wrist from his grasp. “I admit…I got plastered, which I normally don’t do. I admit…I haven’t been exactly forthcoming about my chosen career. But that’s my business. I’m a grown adult. What I do and don’t choose to tell people is none of your business. I’m nothing to you, and you’re nothing but an old childhood friend to me.” Liar! Hope’s racing heart was filled with sorrow and ached for the man she had so desperately wanted , one who was so different from the Jason she saw right now.
“You’re far from nothing to me. And you can deny it all you want, but your body wants me even if you loathe me,” he told her evenly. “You’re married to me. Evidently, I didn’t force you into wedded bliss. I have a ring on my finger, too, and nobody coerces me into anything. All I’m asking for is some time.”
“You’re asking me to be your whore to keep you from blabbing the truth to my brothers. You aren’t asking for time, Jason. You’re asking for a blackmailed prostitute,” she answered furiously, breathlessly.
“I’m asking for time. The sex is just a given. Jesus, can’t you feel the sexual tension between us?” He ran a frustrated hand through his hair. “And. You. Are. Not. My. Whore.” His voice was full of wrath as he succinctly said each word with emphasis. “You’re my wife.”
“Not for long,” she vowed, still upset, but also confused. Jason looked affronted by her description of his arrangement, and that didn’t make sense. Wasn’t it exactly what he was asking for? “And the sex is not a given. It’s impossible.”
Unable to hear another word without her heart being ripped from her chest, she left, almost running toward the bedroom. She locked the door and dragged clothes from her suitcase, surprised to find more jeans, shorts and other casual wear in a large bag beside her suitcase, things that had been at her condo. Someone had to have been in her home, which gave her the creeps. Whoever had brought Daisy here had also brought her more clothes. Hope shuddered with indignation. She snatched up a clean pair of jeans and a tank top, went into the bathroom and closed the door quickly, and locked it before the tears fell.
Jason picked up the keys to his rented vehicle, his heart heavy. So, Hope was going to end up hating him. Well, that would make two people in this house who hated him, because he detested himself right now, too.
Granted, he hadn’t exactly lied. He’d just let her think he hadn’t been coherent when they’d married, agreeing with her assumptions. Hell, she’d been pissed off enough because he forced her to stay. He could only imagine her fury when she discovered that he’d not only been totally sober, but that he’d orchestrated the whole thing from the beginning, made the marriage happen.