by Grayson Cole
“Nya wasn’t supposed to be there,” El responded evenly.
She couldn’t listen anymore. She started away with her mind racing with what she’d heard.
Inside the office, Michael took a menacing step toward El.
“What does that mean?”
“I’m not telling you anything. All I will say is that Nya’s like my sister. I would never hurt her. That wasn’t my fault.”
“All of this,” Michael said, standing within an inch of him and trying desperately to hold his temper, “is your fault. It’s only a matter of time before everybody knows it.” He then left the room, afraid of what he might do if he stayed.
He came down the stairs just in time to see Nya slipping out the doors that led to the parking garage. At least he’d had a near confession from Deklerk. He had said that Nya wasn’t supposed to be in Norfolk that night.
h
Nya marched briskly through the parking lot, searching frantically through her purse for the keys. She couldn’t believe her father. She couldn’t believe how he had smiled while he had thoroughly demeaned her. She couldn’t believe Michael, either. She couldn’t believe his infuriating accuracy. However, she would have been able to deal with both if only she hadn’t overheard that conversation. That was what she really couldn’t grasp. Michael had been telling the truth all along, and El really was behind everything. God, she’d been a fool to think he’d changed. She cursed Elphonse under her breath and swiped at the warm trickles on her face, wishing them away. She knew she could endure. She knew she could make it without losing all control. She just had to get out of there.
Too late did she hear the roar of the engine behind her. The screech of tires made her head snap up just in time to see the car hurtling towards her. But she couldn’t move, couldn’t believe it was happening. She felt her body tumbling to the ground, weight crushing her, but she wasn’t hurt. She opened her eyes to see Michael Harrison on top of her, his eyes trained on the car that had sped out of the deck.
“Are you all right?” he demanded.
Nya couldn’t speak. Her eyes were riveted to the spot where the car had disappeared.
“Nya.” Michael stroked her cheek and turned her to face him. “Nya, darling, say something.”
“I-I-I…” she stuttered. Words failed her, attempts at movement failed her. All she could do was lie there frozen.
Michael got up and pulled her to her feet. He held her tightly by the shoulders. “Baby, tell me you’re okay.”
Nya struggled to overcome her shock. She licked her lips but her eyes returned to the spot where she had last seen the car. “Someone tried to run me over.”
Michael lifted her keys from her hands, where they were still trapped after the ordeal. “Yes, but you’re okay. You’re okay. We’re going to call the police and the Bureau and give statements.” Then he walked her to her car, depositing her on the passenger seat. He pulled out his cell phone and punched in a number. As it rang, Michael also told her that he was going to call Lysette.
“No.” Nya’s eyes grew round. “No,” she repeated.
Michael punched a key and took the phone away from his ear.
Nya explained, “My family is in there having this event and putting on a good face. It’s a success. If you tell Lysette, she will tell them and the night will be over.”
“They need to know.”
“They don’t, Michael, at least not tonight. Please. This thing is going well. This event is going well. I’ll tell them tomorrow, I swear, but—”
“They’ll know something’s happening when the cops cordon off this whole thing.”
“Michael, can’t you do something? Isn’t there any way we can make this discreet?”
Michael nodded reluctantly and took up his phone again.
Nya sat dazed as Michael arranged for the authorities to come. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she heard him ask for discretion. She was thankful when only two unmarked cars came. Ten minutes later, she was even more thankful that Michael had given much of the statement himself and ensured that the cops required very little of her. One or two party-goers came out to leave early, but no one said anything to them. She heard her phone ring a couple of times, but she didn’t answer.
Thirty minutes later Michael slid into the driver’s side, squeezing the wheel so hard that the grips bit into his fingers. Nya didn’t say a word even as she let him drive her home and take her into her house. He walked with her into the den where he sat her down and asked if she wanted something from the kitchen.
Nya sat on the sofa staring straight ahead with her arms wrapped close around her as if she were cold. She said that she didn’t want anything. Michael slipped down next to her and peeled her arms from her body, pulling them around his waist. He held her close, rocking her, letting her hold on to him. “I know you’re scared.”
Nya brought her eyes up to his, then tried to extricate herself from those arms that were offering too much support.
“I know you’re scared,” he repeated, holding her still. “But I’m not leaving your side until these guys are caught. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”
“Rinaldo Mandolesi wants me dead. I saw what he’s done to people, Michael. You can’t stop him.”
“I can and I will.” Michael refused to let her go. “Let me hold you. It doesn’t mean you’re not strong, darling.”
He held on to her and Nya was not proof against it. Sobs started from deep within her, bubbling up. Her shoulders shook as it finally came out. She didn’t know how long she took refuge within the strength of his arms. She did know—however startling the reality—that these were the only arms she wanted around her. She was still scared, but somehow, Michael made her less so.
When the worst was over, Michael scooped her up and walked with her out of the den and up the graceful stairs. A door was open at the end of the hall and he could see a large bed inside. It had to be her room. He entered cautiously and laid her down on the four-poster. He knelt as he took off her shoes and pulled the blanket up around her. Then he saw her look up at him. Her eyes and face were glowing in the moonlight filtering in through the window. Her mouth was open and her teeth clamped over that deliciously full lower lip. And he could never have mistaken the look in her eyes. For a moment, just a moment, he considered it as he struggled with his own desire. Then, impulsively, he kissed her forehead and told her goodnight. Before he left the room, he said, “I’m going to sleep down on the couch if you need anything. And don’t argue with me on this. Anything could happen.”
Instead of a protest Nya said, “Thank you.”
h
She was dreaming, dreaming something horrible. That car! Over and over again she was frozen like a doe in headlights. Over and over again she could feel her chest constrict, cutting off her breath, making it impossible to scream. She tossed in her bed in the grip of the most terrifying dreamtime torture that she’d ever experienced.
Then there were more visions, this time a face, a face laughing at her, a face that was familiar, yet mocking her. She couldn’t place it. She wanted to scream, but the only sound was her own wild heartbeat in her ears. She felt hot tears sliding down her face as she fought to tear herself from the nightmare. Then, as if water had been thrown on the fire that burned her in her sleep, she felt arms, strong arms, reaching out to save her. The feeling of complete safety that washed over her was indescribably sudden.
“Shhhh, now. Come on, baby, wake up.” She heard the soft words urging her to wake. Slowly her lashes fluttered open and she looked up to find Michael peering down at her with a creased brow. She closed her eyes again and leaned against him, allowing his strong hold to continue soothing her, calming her.
She cleared her throat and whispered to him, “It was a nightmare. I kept seeing the accident over and over again.”
“It’s okay now,” he murmured softly as he stroked her cheek and slid down onto the bed so that she could lean back against him. He rocked her softly, as he
had before when she cried. He pressed soft kisses on top of her head and on her temple, trying to calm her and himself. However, it only took moments for him to realize that he was doing nothing of the kind. Instead of calming himself, he could feel his pulse begin to race even faster. His kisses—with which he had only tried to comfort her—were filling with passion. It was as if he could not get enough of her soft skin and soft scent. She tasted so sweet. And then his hands were moving to shift the covers down from her shoulders. Then they were grasping the soft skin of her arms and exploring everywhere they could.
Taken by surprise by the gentle attack on her senses, Nya did not protest. It seemed so right to be there in his arms with him doing exactly as he was. And not only did it feel right, it felt so damnably good. She raised her own hand to press against the hard chest he had cradled her to. He still wore the starched white shirt he’d worn to the ball, and Nya moved her fingers under it and found the skin covered with curling, silken hair on his chest.
h
Michael pulled her closer to seize the sexy mouth he’d fantasized about since that day in the garden. His strong lips moved over hers as his warm, moist tongue gained entry to claim hers as his own. It was then that her soft hand found its way beneath his shirt and skimmed across his nipple to elicit a deep shudder of pleasure that rippled through his body.
Ironically, it was that wave of pleasure that shook him from his sensual haze. His eyes flared wide and his breath caught in his chest as he realized what he was doing. What they were doing. He looked down at Nya who, with his hesitation, had also been jarred back to the present.
“Michael,” she started in a small voice that did not sound like her own.
“Nya,” he cut in, feeling as if he knew what she was going to say. “I’m sorry this happened…I mean, I’m not sorry this happened but…I realize that this is not the time and that you were feeling…” He couldn’t find the words to express his regret at having taken advantage of her situation.
He found that he didn’t need to.
“No, Michael,” Nya said holding up a silencing hand. “You don’t have anything to be sorry about. And,” she hesitated a moment. Then she reached up to trail her fingers across the planes of his face with its almond eyes, that aristocratic nose, and those strong lips that had so easily made her lose control. She never finished her sentence. She just continued to touch his face lovingly.
Looking down at her sleepy-eyed face, which was flushed with passion, Michael thought himself crazy to try to stop what had already begun. He had no power to stop it. Slowly, he ran a hand up over the satin slip she’d been wearing beneath her clothes that night. Nya’s breath caught in her throat again for a very different reason than earlier when she’d been in the grips of her nightmare. Feeling his hand move gently, and almost platonically—but not quite—between her breasts was making her eyes light with anticipation. He slipped his hand all the way up over her collarbone to close gently on her neck. He marveled at the absolute slimness of it. He felt the muscles beneath his fingers.
She looked into his eyes and he was nearly undone by the look of raw desire in those beautiful, cat-like eyes. But this wasn’t just some woman he had a passing attraction to. This was Nya. He didn’t want her to regret anything when she woke in the morning. And so he steadied the hands that itched to explore her further. He managed a strained smile and spoke to her softly, “I don’t know what to do.” On her mouth, he saw a hint of a smile flash. He smiled himself, thinking of what he’d said and then he shook his head as if clearing it. “What I mean is that I don’t know if you want… what I want.”
Nya rose to press her full, luscious lips to his. It was his undoing.
He grasped her to him tightly as if to stop her from changing her mind, then kissed her with all the passion that she had stirred in him over the past few months. His strong lips plundered hers as their hot tongues sparred with each other. When they had kissed in the garden so many days ago, it had been tentative, exploratory, and gentle. This kiss was strong, demanding, and urgent. It ignited a burning desire that raged through them both.
A desire that seemed impossible to quench. His kiss was deep as they struggled to move closer to each other. It was not enough. The hot mimicking of their tongues couldn’t satisfy the heat growing between them. Frantically, Michael’s hands moved to locate the hem of the offensive garment that was impeding his ability to touch this seductive angel before him. Unable to budge the slippery thing, he pulled down the lacy top of it to capture in his mouth the soft, brown globe that he had only fantasized about. Nya’s eyes, which had been closed, flew open with the intense shock of pleasure that moved through her. With her eyes open, she saw him at her breast and could feel the tension reaching incomprehensible levels as the sight was more erotic than anything she’d ever seen. Roughly, his lips moved away from the soft mound and went searching for the other. It was difficult to free them both with the slip holding true. Michael uttered a soft curse. “Please, take this damn thing off,” he said as he trailed soft, heat-filled kisses from her temple to her neck where he nibbled teasingly. The silky command sent shivers up her spine and Nya couldn’t think of anything but complying. She reached down and started to pull the thing over her head when suddenly, inexplicably, she had a jolt of shyness. She turned her face from his as he continued his torturing ministrations at her neck. After a moment, he stopped nuzzling her jugular and looked up.
“What’s wrong?” he asked and Nya looked at his eyes seeing that they seemed even darker than black as they drenched in passion.
“Nothing,” she replied bashfully.
Michael looked down at her and her full lips made even fuller by his kisses. “Am I going too fast for you?” Concern and bridled desire strained his voice.
Still having trouble speaking, Nya nodded her head and offered, “I-I don’t do this very often.”
Michael smiled and shifted so that Nya could lay her head on his chest. “You may not believe this, considering my dashing good looks, but I don’t do this as often as you’re probably thinking.” Nya laughed lightly, half from his joke and half from being startled at his ability to read her thoughts. He pressed a soft kiss to her forehead and squeezed her. “I don’t want to pressure you into anything, Nya. We can stay this way, holding each other, as long as you want.” Slowly, tentatively, Nya slipped her arms around his back and let him hold her there silently for a moment. She didn’t know how to explain the feeling of belonging that washed over her. She truly felt she was home in those arms. Her chest constricted with that thought and she held Michael even tighter, pressing her hot face into his solid warmth. And though he had said that they could stay that way, holding each other, Nya could feel the testimony of his desire beneath her. And shy as she felt, she knew by the hot, welling moisture within her that she wanted him just as much. She raised her head and looked up into his eyes and captured his lips for another heart-stopping kiss. Beneath her she felt him leap at this slightest action and she pressed herself even closer to him, drugged by her own ability to cause that strong a reaction within him.
Tearing his lips from her, Michael groaned roughly, “Nya, I’m going to tell you this. I’ve tried to be chivalrous, but when you kiss a man like that, there is no way that he can—” With that he cut his words short and stole her breath with his fiery passion. He had waited for this woman for so long. As he kissed her, every conscious thought fled away. Michael slid his hand up the satiny softness of the inside of her thigh. Then his deft fingers moved even higher to seek out the moist center of her desire. The tingling, burning sensation that shot to the very core of her made her writhe. The pleasure he gave her with every stroke was unbelievable.
Michael sucked in his own breath and admitted, “I don’t know how long I can hold back. You are beautiful and so soft and so hot and so wet.” Michael rolled her onto her back so that he was above her, his thighs parting hers. Again, he pulled the slip down to reveal a luscious mound and seized it with his lips and gent
le teeth. His fingers and mouth still giving her more pleasure than she had ever known, Nya writhed beneath him, reaching for that elusive relief.
Chapter 15
“Good morning,” Michael greeted her without turning around. He was standing at the stove in her kitchen. “How are you feeling?”
“Better.”
“Good. A detective called earlier this morning. They haven’t found the guy yet but they say they think they’ve ID’d the car. He and another officer will be here around one to talk to you. How do you like your eggs?”
“Scrambled,” she said as she considered what he had said.
“Hard or soft?”
She looked up at him for a moment without answering, her breath held. Images of the night before and actions fitting both descriptions invaded her calm. He turned with spatula in hand. “Soft,” she replied and he turned to the stove again with only a hint of a smirk.
“Well,” he began. “Before they get here, I’d like to ask you a couple of questions.” She didn’t respond. “If that’s okay?”
“Sure,” she said slowly. “That’s fine.”
“But my questions can wait. You go shower and change. Breakfast, or should I say brunch, won’t be ready for a little while anyway.” He looked over his shoulder at her and smiled. It was the smile she felt to the pit of her stomach every time she saw it. Those straight white teeth in his dark handsome face. She found herself returning it shyly.
In a daze Nya agreed and headed up the stairs. In the shower, she couldn’t think of anything but the sight of Michael Harrison, in her kitchen, cooking for her which sent a tingle through her entire body. And she remembered that one instant, that one moment when their eyes locked as she lay weak and seeking comfort. He hadn’t taken advantage of her, had in fact given her a chance to say no. Nya sighed. The man was in her blood now. She couldn’t deny it anymore. Last night had been the most beautiful and sensual experience of her life, but even that was eclipsed by the way Michael Harrison took care of her, was there for her, supported her.