Her Druid Desire (The Amber Druid Series)

by Trish F Leger

  She, on the other hand, had to build up her energy for monthly board meetings and group events. She loved her job, but it had taken determination and drive to succeed in something that she hadn’t been prepared for. She liked to think that she had done a decent job of it. With the ratings out every month on magazine sales that showed a steady uphill climb, and retail sales of her boutiques topping what they had made in previous years, she came to the conclusion that whatever she was doing was more than enough. The small town girl that had been born into a working middle class family was now running a top company and keeping it afloat. That was success to her. That was what her life was now.

  She looked at Drake and took in his massive frame. Long ago she had come to terms with her feelings for this man. The phone conversation from the other night slipped into her mind, but Nadia ruthlessly pushed it away. It didn’t matter if he had only been playing with her or truly flirting, the truth was that she would probably never know. Nadia looked away and out the window. She told herself to be happy that she was allowed this close to him, that he considered her a friend or even someone as close as family.

  She told herself this but that small, young and impressionable sixteen year old that had fallen in love with him still lived inside her, and she knew better.

  ***

  After arriving in Dallas, Drake and Nadia made their way to his condo. The morning was hot and stifling, but the air conditioning in his condo was blessedly on and cooling the huge area, as per his instructions.

  The large space was comfy and inviting. It should be. He had spent lots of time and money to get the look just right. The spaciousness and decor resembled that of his log house in Beaumont. He was sure that Nadia was comparing the two similar looks as she walked towards the extra room she would stay in.

  The slow, sweet way that she walked drew his attention, and the punch of emotions that tried to tell him she was off limits was lost amongst the surge of raw, hot lust that permeated his body. She was a pocket Venus, darkly attractive and sweetly shy. The mix of innocence and a smoldering sensuality that he sensed hadn’t been tapped yet burned under his radar. Drake wanted more than anything to give her everything that he sensed she wanted. It didn’t matter if it was only one slow dance or something more; as of right now, at this moment, he had committed to being there for her.

  “Thank you again for letting me stay.”

  Her soft, smooth voice snapped him out of his trance. “No problem. I would rather you be here anyway.” She visibly shuddered as she placed her bags on the large bed. Donavan still managed to crawl into her mind every now and then. Drake knew she was worried about the other man.

  “Now I see the wisdom in being here.” She turned to him, her green eyes warm with a friendly light that sometimes she didn’t let show. “I think we both know he won’t try and mess with you. And even though I have that restraining order, I still feel safer with someone else around.” The words ‘with you’ were there in what she said. Drake heard them loud and clear, even if she hadn’t actually voiced them.

  His mind brought up images of the night he had found Donavan pushing her against the vehicle. Battling down the rage building inside of him, he cooled his thoughts and focused on getting that man’s name out of her vocabulary once and for all.

  “From now on, he doesn’t exist.” Her eyes widened slightly then relaxed as she tried to show him no expression again. “That man was part of your life. You trusted him, you confided in him, and you did all of that because of me.” Now shock stiffened her body. There was confusion in the green depths of her eyes and he knew he had truly surprised her by stating what he knew as fact.

  “I realize now that you were trying to show me that you didn’t need anything from me. You wanted to make it without my help, which I still don’t understand why, but it doesn’t matter anymore because all of that is in the past.”

  He slowly walked closer to her and stopped when he was near enough to grasp her hand in his. The coldness of her fingers shocked him, but he held on anyway. Not a whisper emerged from her lips.

  “I don’t know exactly what went on between you and Donavan, and more than likely it isn’t my business, but as of right now…” Drake’s fingers rubbed over her soft, cool ones and he looked deeply into her wide green eyes. Her emotions were rampant, her blood singing hotly through her veins, telling him that she felt something, he just wasn’t exactly sure of what it was. “You are under my roof, and he isn’t allowed between us.” A slight jolt traveled through her system. “He will never…ever hurt you again. I will not allow it.”

  With a slight rub, he caressed the small, delicate fingers of her hand and leaned down, wrapping her body in a slight hug. She resisted, keeping her hands between their bodies, but her heart was pounding and he could hear the rush of her emotions, like a breeze along his body.

  This woman was his and his alone. No man would cause her harm ever again. A wild, fierce protectiveness bloomed deep in his chest as he brushed his hand down the silk of her hair. It scared him, the way she had crawled under his skin so fast without even knowing it. Drake had never been able to turn her away. With the emotions sliding through his system now, he knew that he would do anything for her.

  His chin settled right over the crown of her head and with the alignment of their bodies, Drake knew he had never felt anything so right before. Strands of her hair tickled his mouth and he knew he should move, right now, before other thoughts turned this moment into something much more than friendly.

  “Go ahead and unpack your things. Whenever you need to head out for the ballroom to make sure things are running smooth, let me know.”

  He unwillingly released her and left the room without looking back. If he did that, he might just turn into something that she couldn’t handle yet.

  ***

  The annual Black Tie Gala was an all star event. Held in Dallas, it catered to the fabulously elite and wealthy, but the rewards were enormous for charity. It was a good thing that the event was held at the Ritz-Carlton because the ballroom there was the largest in Texas, a massive 9,500 square feet.

  Since yesterday, Nadia had worked in conjunction with her assistants and Derek, making sure the hotel and her staff were all working in sync with one another. There were only a few moments when things went wrong, but Nadia managed to get it under control. She was determined to make everything run smoothly before she had to return to Drake’s condo and get ready for the gala tonight.

  The incident yesterday morning had stunned her completely. To know that he knew part of the reason of why she turned to Donavan still sent tremors sliding over her skin. For a moment there in the guestroom she had thought she would lose all sanity. She had expected him to say that she had used Donavan as a wedge between them because of the way she felt for him. When he had told her that he didn’t know the true reason for why she had done it, a small bit of relief had slipped inside her body. What really scared her though was that Drake was now determined to keep her within his sights. She would be in close proximity to him from now on, if he had any say so.

  Now, standing in Drake’s condo, staring into the guest bathroom mirror, Nadia trembled. She ran her fingers down the soft, supple material of the gorgeous dress she had gotten Derek to bring in from her Houston boutique.

  A gray silk slip made up the underneath of the dress. There was a deep V shape neckline and split that came up to right above her left thigh. The top of the dress was an ivory lace overlay. It clung to the under dress with delicate stitching and gossamer threads. Nothing about the dress screamed sexy, but Nadia knew as she finished her hair, with a low knot on the back of her neck then placed a large cream Camilla among the dark strands, that her Spanish heritage was there for everyone to see.

  Her father’s father had come from Madrid. He’d settled in Florida and married Nadia’s very American grandmother. They only had one child, her father, Matthew Morales, and like his parent’s before him, so had he. Nadia had fringes of memory about her grandfat
her, since he had died when she was nine. A tall, dark, silver haired man with an accent used to hold her when she was a tiny scrap of a girl, and he repeatedly called her, carino, “darling” in Spanish. Nadia’s family had lived in Florida until her grandmother, Elizabeth, had died from breast cancer. Just six months later Antonio Morales joined his wife in the hereafter. Nadia always liked to believe that he couldn’t live without her.

  With the soft, cream colored lace overlay against the darker grey of the dress, her skin glowed with a light tan. Her green eyes were large and with her hair pulled back, she appeared younger than what she was. Nadia turned from the mirror and sat at the small vanity. Her silver strap shoes were easy to slide on and then she stood, grabbed her clutch from the bed, and tried to calm her racing heart.

  Walking out of this room was going to be tough, simply because she knew that Drake was ready and waiting for her on the other side of the door.

  This isn’t a date. This isn’t a date. It became a mantra inside her head.

  But why did it feel like one? Because you are allowing your mind to make up this little fantasy, that’s why.

  Nadia stiffened her shoulders and her resolve. She was determined to get through this night without anything drastic happening.

  She grasped the handle of the door and turned the knob. The hallway was lit up by an antique lamp hanging from the opposite wall. She turned and made her way into the large living area, her heels making clicking noises on the hardwood floor.

  The lights were on in the massive room and when Nadia walked all the way in she noticed Drake standing against the large, floor to ceiling windows. He was on the cell phone again, his deep voice talking about a merger that should take place next week. Nadia heard every word he was saying, but none of it registered in her scrambled brain.

  The sharp, slight smell of cologne hung in the air, along with a heated dampness that told her he had also taken a shower. The right edge of his jaw clenched and rippled with muscle as he spoke and even as far away as she was, the smooth closeness of the shave he had just gotten was visible. The ruffled edges of his hair were still damp. Nadia’s fingers curled against her palms.

  This was that closeness, the oneness that she would never have with him-to walk into a room and smell his recent shower hanging in the very air around her; to see the damp ends of his hair and want to run her fingers through it because they ached so much from wanting to touch him in some way; to know that he wasn’t fully ready yet when she saw the onyx and silver studs of his cufflinks sitting on the counter between them, and be the one to go up to him and wordlessly help him with that small task.

  In the back of your mind you knew this. Don’t act like you hadn’t thought of this already.

  Just as she had cleared that thought from her mind, Drake turned. His eyes flashed a beautiful bright golden color, but then he blinked. Nadia chocked it up to the sun dipping down behind him and the lighting in the room.

  Nadia stood there, patiently waiting, as he held up one finger to her and then tried to maneuver off of the phone. She took in the sights while he did that.

  A beautifully cut, exquisitely made, black tux covered his large body from shoulders to ankles. Black dress boots, shined to deep ebony, were on his feet. A blinding white shirt was under the black jacket, and a black vest and tie completed the clothing. His burnished skin was starkly tan against his white collar, where it sat open, showing Nadia a glimpse of the hollow of his neck and strong edges of his collarbone, studded with dark, swirling hair. Her traitorous fingers throbbed with the need to touch.

  The click as he slid the cell phone closed reverberated in the room around her. Nadia jumped slightly as her eyes came back to his face.

  “How do you ever get any relaxation? Every time I’m around you, you are working.” She knew if she talked about mundane things that would keep the subject on mundane things.

  Don’t think about how he is walking closer to you, his mouth cocked in that sensual, crooked smile. Don’t think about those two buttons, still undone, still flashing you teasing bits of his hard, muscular chest. Don’t think about how massive he is compared to your small body, and of how safe that makes you feel. Just don’t think and you can make it through this.

  “Some things don’t have a time frame, and I have no way of ending it unless I get it done right away.” He stopped when he got within two feet of her. The slightly spicy, all male smell of his cologne and him wrapped around her nose, teasing her.

  “But you need to relax sometimes; everyone does.”

  “Darlin,’ that is the pot calling the kettle black.” His eyes twinkled. “You should take your own advice. Besides, this is relaxation for me.” His large hand came up beside her and out of instinctual reaction, not from fear, she knew she shouldn’t allow him to touch her; she moved slightly. The hurt look in his eyes was there and then flashed away so quickly that Nadia thought she had imagined it. His lips tightened, “I would never hurt you.”

  Nadia stood immobile as his hand hovered over her shoulder. “I know and I’m sorry…I don’t mean to move away, it’s just…” Her mouth worked but no reason came out. Instead of touching her shoulder, his finger softly landed on the corner of her mouth. All the blood in her body rushed to her head. She locked her legs to keep standing, while her mouth and skin tingled like the undercurrents rushing through a charge.

  “Shh, I understand, I understand everything.” He wasn’t smiling anymore. The tip of his finger traced the skin around her mouth, not enough to disturb her lipstick, but just enough to scale the rise of her upper lip and then the indention that ran from her nose to her top lip.

  Nadia’s lips trembled, as his eyes were transfixed on what his finger was doing. There was no way he understood how she felt. The burning, all encompassing ache to let her know how it was to be touched by this man, burned through her.

  He was closer now. When had he moved? So close that if she stood on her tiptoes she could lick the edge of his chin. That maddening finger of his moved from the indention that gave her lips a peaked look, down to the edge of her jaw. She couldn’t control another tremble as it moved across her skin and teased the tip of his finger. She sighed, embarrassed at her reaction to him, and jumped to move away. Her eyes started to burn with heat, a forerunner of tears threatening, when she glanced back up and saw something that should frighten her out of her mind. Instead, she stilled, even the blood in her body felt frozen. She dropped her clutch on the floor.

  His eyes, the gorgeous eyes that had always been a light delicious caramel, were now glowing hotly. Bright golden striations replaced the light brown honey color. How was this possible? Just as she thought that, he closed his eyes and slid his hand behind her neck, pulling her into his hold.

  Nadia didn’t struggle, simply because this was Drake; she had known him since she was twelve. She trusted him implicitly with her own life, so of course she didn’t fear him.

  His voice, so deep, slid into her ear, “Do you trust me?”

  Without any hesitation, she conceded. “Yes, of course.” Then as if the moment wasn’t unreal enough, she let out a hysterical laugh. “Otherwise, I would be across the room by now.” His hold on her upper body increased. One of his large hands was still under her hairdo, warm on her nape and the other was on her lower back, keeping her pressed close to him. Her face was against his strong chest. She could hear the pounding of his heart thud against her ears. What was going on?

  “There are things I should tell you Nadia, things that would shock you and probably send you running.” He exhaled, and to her he sounded disgusted with himself. “I can’t do it now. There is so much to talk about, but when we get back, I promise you, we will talk.”

  “It can’t be that bad.” She mumbled against the material of his jacket. Her fingers dug into his sides.

  He nuzzled his nose into the delicate strands of hair that fell around her temples. The heat of his breath touched her, and she wanted to slide down his body into a puddle of want right
then and there. He inhaled, as if he was breathing her in like an animal scenting its prey, and there was a surge of moisture between her legs. All ten of her fingers dug deeply into the material covering his sides. Dear God, he was killing her, slowly, ever so gently. And this was from a man that claimed he didn’t want her like that, didn’t desire her in anyway. What she felt was not one-sided. It wasn’t possible. Her brain screamed that fact loudly.

  “Not bad, but different.” He moved his hand from her lower back, and used it to tilt her chin up to meet his eyes.

  Nadia paused, but allowed him to move her face up to his. She was scared, scared stiff. Not knowing if he was going to try and kiss her, touch her, or do whatever. She didn’t know if she could handle not knowing, but she also didn’t know if she could handle whatever he would do to her. She opened her eyes when he stopped, but her body started to tremble uncontrollably.

  Instead of seeing him looking at her, he kept his face pressed against the side of hers, his mouth resting so very close to her own. Nadia burned inside. She wanted to move, just a bit, to where she could lick the seam of his lips right across the middle and suck his tempting lower lip into her mouth. The thought crystallized in her mind. She had never thought herself to be a wanton woman. Apparently only Drake made her want to do wicked things. Her tongue throbbed in response.

  His voice surprised her. “Promise me that whenever we get back tonight that you will sit and listen to what I say, no matter how shocking or unreal it sounds.”

  She nodded immediately. Still focused on the placement of his lips and of how when he spoke they had rubbed against her cheek. The singe of fire in her core slid down her legs, making her clench her fingers even tighter against the long muscles that stiffened under his tux.