Yeah, sure, thought Angela, smirking thinly to match his equally sly tone. She had him well figured out now. He definitely hadn’t forgotten about wanting to get her to share his bed obviously – he was just going to use a different tactic. Well, he could try. But this was going to be an acting job for her, nothing more. That, at least was what she told herself...
****
After that kiss, it was no surprise to Shane that he found it impossible to get any sleep. Even after the night fell silent, and everything else in the house no longer moved, he still lay awake, bare chested and in nothing but his silk boxers as he stared up at the ceiling in the dim room.
The guests were long gone. He thought of Bridget’s parting barb as he’d helped her into her coat. “Your mom would be so glad to know you’re coming out of your shell. I’ll tell her how much fun we all had tonight, in spite of everything,” she’d said, sending Angela one cutting glance before smiling and kissing Shane’s cheek, then leaving with Melissa.
The whole evening had gone better than expected. It hadn’t shown but he’d been dreading having to sit at table with people again, even though most were his own friends. He’d missed that; missed the banter and the warmth from enjoying good food and wine with people most of whom you cared about.
But the high point was Angela, and what her presence did to the atmosphere. How she shone with her smile, her laugh and her voice. It made anything she said sound deep and musical. He’d loved watching her eat, or listening to her hold a conversation. He’d wanted to snap the stem of his glass in his fingers when he’d caught Drew and Harvey ogling her. No doubt she looked on fire in that red dress. He knew she’d caught him looking her way with more than a bit of masculine hunger in his eyes.
When the guests were gone and the house was empty except for the staff clearing up, they’d walked back into the main area and he’d asked her if she’d like to have some more wine, and talk. But she’d gracefully declined.
“It’s been a long day,” she’d said with an apologetic smile. “And tomorrow promises to be just as busy. A girl like me needs her beauty sleep you know.”
Her infectious grin had drawn a smile to his lips. There was a time that smiling felt alien to him and even now there’d been a slight twitch as his unused muscles had stretched in an answering smile. “It’ll be many, many years before a woman with your looks has to worry about that,” he’d murmured. As she’d paused on the first step above him, he’d looked up with barely concealed heat at her. Thinking how well his hands would span her waist; or fit over her hips...or even how easily her breasts would fill his palms.
He didn’t know what she saw in his eyes because she laughed nervously. “Thank you, but I still think I’ll hit the sheets early tonight. Dinner was lovely, by the way.”
“Thanks but it wouldn’t have gone so well without you. I appreciate you agreeing to do this. Having you here makes it much...easier.”
She’d held his gaze for a long, telling moment, and he’d thought she’d say something else.
Instead, she’d nodded briefly and then made to go up the stairs to her room. But his hand shot out to cup her elbow. He liked that she didn’t recoil at his touch like the first time, and her eyes weren’t impatient or wary when she turned to face him again.
“Yes?” she asked softly; he’d have liked to think, expectantly.
He hadn’t known what to say. So he’d let his touch speak for him. His fingers had found their way up her bare arm, skimming her smooth skin. She’d shivered slightly. “I need to go, Shane,” she’d finally said, maybe with a hint of reluctance.
His name on her lips had impacted like a branding iron on his senses. He wanted her to say it again, to scream it when he took her deep, deeper than any man ever had before.
She didn’t pull away from his grip. He looked up into the dark pools of her eyes and something in the depths made his fingers tighten on her flesh.
“Shane, this isn’t...”
His thumb stroked over the smooth curve of her arm, his eyes hooded as he looked down where his hand closed round her flesh. “I can make you want me,” he challenged huskily.
She snatched in a long, shaky breath. “Maybe,” she’d replied with coolness. “I know all about your reputation, Shane. A smooth-talking ladies’ man. I don’t think a few scars are going to change your leopard spots. But sex isn’t on the agenda, I made that clear. I didn’t sign up for that and come to think of it, nothing’s been signed as yet. Please don’t make me change my mind.”
Her tone was low and calm; but he could see the fear in her eyes. Did she think that he’d turn into some sex-mad monster and force his needs on her? With great reluctance and a tired sigh, he let her go. “That won’t be necessary, Angela. We’ll speak tomorrow.”
“Goodnight,” she said deeply, the relief palpable in her tone. He watched her ascend the stairs and the arch of her ass in that dress and from that angle called to the beast in him. His throat constricted as he strangled off a groan.
This woman had him wishing for things he’d never thought to wish for after so long. A soft, warm body with enough curves to tempt a monk. Glowing dark eyes filled with passion and awe, lips full with want, begging for his kiss. She made him crave all that and more.
Later, as he’d stripped right before the longest cold shower he’d ever taken in his life, Shane stared at his reflection in the mirrors lining the walls of his bathroom. He used to avoid looking at them which was strange since it had been his idea to fill his personal bathroom with mirrors. But tonight, he looked at himself and cursed the day of the car crash. His last conscious memory from that day was frantically fighting like hell to free himself from the burning, tangled mess of his car.
His next memory was waking up in the hospital weeks later in terrible pain, his life altered forever. He could have easily died from the severity of the burns, only the expertise of the Burn Center saved him.
Now he grew his thick black hair longer to conceal most of the damage to his forehead and face, and the burn scars on his chest and torso could easily be covered in clothes, except for his right hand which had scars etched right up to his forearm. Could he blame Angela for being like many other women and preferring to stay well away from a man who looked like a monster?
Turning angrily away from the mirrors he’d shut himself under the chilly spray for as long as he could stand it. He wouldn’t think of her...or dwell on the fact that she was right under his roof, and that all he had to do was walk across the hall, unlock her door and...
No, he wouldn’t even consider it. He wasn’t the old Shane who was cocky and so damned sure of his welcome in a woman’s bed. Angela would most likely scream the house down if he dared venture into bed next to her, or worse club him over the head with the nearest blunt object she could lay a hand to.
Again...no. He’d have to content himself with the memory of the taste of her lips, the texture and lushness of it. His cock was in its now ever-present state of granite hardness whenever Angela came to mind. Now he had that damned kiss to keep him rolling around in bed with the worst case of insomnia and blue balls he’d ever had.
For the first time in a long time, he didn’t dream about the accident. Instead, his dreams were filled with Angela, and how her simple kiss had brought his frozen heart back to life.
****
Kissing Shane had been a totally bad idea, thought Angela as she punched her pillows for the umpteenth time and settled back on them, sighing heavily as she tried to sleep.
She’d wanted to show that snotty bitch Bridget a thing or two and her extreme move had worked if Bridget’s face had been anything to go by. A warm glow stirred her belly when Angela thought how easily Shane had gone along with her bold move. It had started out as an act but she couldn’t lie, kissing him had felt good, better than a kiss had felt in years. Like the taste of the lips of your first teenage crush. Oh damn what am I thinking about? Angela thought with exasperation as she rolled over on her belly and scooped he
r pillow beneath her cheek.
Shane’s words that first day rang through her mind now. He wanted someone who would go “on their merry way” when the whole thing was over or something like that. He was confident that because she was an actress, she’d focus on her job of pretend girlfriend. No strings attached. But then he’d come up with that deal about sleeping with him and though he’d withdrawn the offer and apologized, it still hung over them.
Was he thinking about her now? She couldn’t help wondering. Tomorrow she’d be signing the papers that would make the whole thing official. A job contract which also included accompanying him for a visit to his parent’s place in the mountains for his mother’s birthday party. In return, he’d give her the promised fee as well as paying for her father to be transferred into a state-of-the-art facility. The icing on the cake would be the well-paying job her sister Sasha would get in one of his corporate sponsor’s companies. It was a juicy arrangement and she’d be a fool to turn it down. Who was she kidding? She couldn’t turn it down, knowing how much it would mean to her family as well.
She wished she understood why he got to her so much. She thought of how the dinner had gone and was glad she seemed to have passed the first ‘hurdle’, to Shane’s satisfaction. She wondered what Shane’s mother was like and why he was going to all this trouble to make her think he had a real girlfriend. Oh well, I’ll find out in due time, Angela figured.
Chapter Five
Something black and heavy had fallen on her. Angela wanted to scream but the shrill sound was strangled in her throat. I’m going to die, she thought as the beast hovered over her, wet black eyes gleaming...
“Asgard, down!”
The solid, imposing weight seemed to be pulled off her roughly and Angela straightened off the pillows, her eyes wide with fear until she saw Shane standing at the foot of her bed with the biggest, blackest dog she’d ever seen.
Keeping his hand on the silent dog’s collar, Shane frowned. “You didn’t lock your bedroom door last night?”
Angela flushed. “I guess I forgot,” she said reluctantly. Now that she’d found her voice she hated that it sounded defensive instead of furious at Shane. How could he let that thing walk free around the house? Surely it was dangerous!
“Well you must not have shut it all they way either, because it had to be ajar for Asgard to have got in. I’m sorry about that by the way,” Shane said. “He’s very suspicious around strangers but he’d never hurt you. He was just smelling of you to check you out.”
“Jesus, Shane!” Angela finally burst out as her senses returned, her hands still grabbing her breasts in fright. “Your freaking...bear scared the shit out of me!” She suddenly realized what she was doing when she felt Shane’s gaze on her chest. She released the satin-cased mounds and pulled the covers up to her chin.
“He’s not a bear; he’s a Black Russian Terrier,” Shane said wryly, stroking the dog’s head. “Not such a popular choice for a pet, apparently - and he’s more a watch dog than a guard dog. Still...he’s very protective, loyal and active, yet controllable. You don’t need to be frightened of him. I promise.”
Angela swallowed, hating his shrewd observation that she was frightened. It was true that dogs scared her witless on a good day, especially ones the size of the imposing Asgard. She’d never grown up with pets and used to like dogs until she’d petted one who’d been dozing and almost had her wrist chewed off as a young child.
But she was twenty-six now, not ten. There was no need to freak out over what was obviously a house-trained pet by the way it licked on Shane’s palm, panting heavily all the while.
“Well, I guess he doesn’t look that aggressive,” she said after clearing her tight throat.
“He can be a little pushy and obnoxious if he likes you,” Shane replied drily. “But he’s perceptive so you shouldn’t show any sign of weakness around him.”
“Oh. Sure,” Angela said with equal irony. Trust Shane to keep a fearsome creature as his domesticated sidekick.
Suddenly, Shane grinned as if reading her mind. “Look, relax, okay? He’s fine and normally not up here in this part of the house. I was taking him for a morning walk when I realized I forgot my phone. He snuck out while I was looking for it and found his way in here. I’ll try to be more careful but please, make sure to keep the door closed completely. Otherwise I can’t guarantee this won’t happen again.”
“I won’t forget next time,” Angela said with a certainty. Though her heart couldn’t help but melt when the dog started to circle around Shane’s legs, sniffing affectionately. That was when Angela noticed the bare patches crisscrossing the beautiful black fur, and the way the big black dog limped on only three legs, one of the hind ones somewhat stunted.
“Oh...what happened to him?” she asked.
Shane went on one knee and grabbed the dog’s big head, and shook it playfully. “Some idiot pushed him under a moving train when he was a puppy. He survived but no one wanted him. Anyway, I found him at the dog rescue I fund and decided to adopt him. You could say there was an instant connection. Somehow he reminded me a little of myself,” he added in a faraway tone, before shaking his head as if to ward off any sentimentality as he straightened again. “We’re just a couple of screwed up guys, aren’t we buddy?”
Asgard licked his hand in agreement, happy for the attention.
“Well, now that you’re up, there’s breakfast if you want it,” Shane said briskly. “And then we’ll meet to discuss the order of the day as well as the coming week.”
“I didn’t really bring anything except a change of clothes...”
“Don’t worry about that; we’ll go over everything when you sign the contract. See you in an hour, Angela,” he said, as usual taking it for granted that she’d obey. She endured one more sweeping look from his penetrating grey gaze before he exited her room, shutting the door firmly after him, Asgard following closely.
Angela let out a shuddery breath and pushed her fingers through her tousled curls. What a way to start the day! Her heart still echoed a faint bass drumbeat. She could almost swear Shane had done it deliberately to scare the shit out of her but an instant later she felt bad for thinking that of him. Still, she hoped he’d keep the creature well away from her. She didn’t hate pets but she sure as hell wasn’t ready to keep worrying if some huge black hairy dog was going to jump on her and rip her to shreds.
Then she had to laugh at her ideas, knowing she was just being silly. Tossing the covers aside Angela headed for the shower, mind already focused on what the new day would bring. She would be signing the contract today, all things considered. Then they could talk about what lay ahead and she could wrap her head around it; prepare herself like she would for any other given role. Angela firmly told herself that the sooner she started the assignment off, the sooner it would get done and she could finally go home.
****
Angela made her way downstairs some time later dressed in casual clothes; jeans and a form-fitting black t-shirt and sandals. Her hair was done up in a loose ponytail. She followed the delicious scents filling the air and found her way to the kitchen.
“Good morning.” A matronly woman greeted her and waved a hand toward a large wooden island tucked into the corner of the cozy kitchen. Angela’s stomach growled with hunger now that she was in the den of delightful cooking judging from the increased intensity of the smells. The woman efficiently began to set Angela’s place.
“Please take a seat. I’m making breakfast this morning and it’s just about ready,” the older woman said. “I’m Bess, by the way. The day cook and house manager.”
“It’s very nice to meet you, Bess. I’m Angela.” Angela planted herself on a stool behind her plate, and without thinking asked if Shane would be joining her.
She wanted to bite off her tongue. Why would she assume Shane would spend breakfast with her? He’d probably already eaten before he’d taken his dog Asgard for a walk.
But then there came a tingle up and do
wn her spine. Even before she heard the sound of his voice, Angela knew he’d come in.
“I’m right here,” he said, before taking the stool to her left. He barely glanced her way and she sucked in a breath, taking in the scarred side of his face which was turned to her. Angela noted that he’d showered and changed, dressed in an open-necked white shirt and jeans. He looked...great. Minus the fact that at this angle his face was a road map of scarred skin, there was no denying he had a hot body well fitted in clothes.
Shane lowered his head to within an inch of her ear as he said, “We’ll have that talk after breakfast.” Angela gave him a slight nod even as she trilled from the way his warm breath had played a minty two-step across her lobe, teasing the tiny hairs there. Angela watched as Bess placed their meal on the island. Breakfast consisted of juice and coffee, plenty of eggs, toast, bacon, as well as a large bowl of fruit placed in the middle.
It all looked and smelled so appetizing that Angela had no problem tucking right in. She’d reined in her appetite during dinner last night what with all the attention from Shane’s friends and especially from those catty-eyed girls Bridget and Melissa. She focused on her meal and tried to ignore the disquieting silence of the kitchen with the only sound being Bess cleaning up. Shane’s breakfast was a good sized pile of bacon and an omelet and a whole stack of buttered toast. She felt his intense gaze once or twice but chose not to take it on as she made serious headway into her food.
Much later their plates were cleared and Bess was thanked for such a delicious meal. Afterwards Shane led her to a room which she recognized from the first day. The windows were drawn tightly closed but it was better lit than the last time. Angela could see each lush and yet masculine detail in the room; with a lot of deep reds and light tans which went well with the whole setting.
They didn’t go to the desk but to the living room area where he invited her to take the leather couch while he took the plush armchair across from her. Between them was a low table with official looking papers placed on top, and a pen. Butterflies tickled the insides of her belly as she realized this was it. Once she signed there’d be no going back. From what she’d experienced so far, she felt she had nothing to worry about and yet...certain doubts remained about the man seated right opposite.
Tangled: A New Adult Romance Boxed Set (12 Book Bundle of Billionaires, Bad Boys, and Royalty) Page 42