“Who is it?” Cain’s voice boomed loudly from the speaker. He sounded extremely annoyed.
Katie swallowed hard and then cleared her throat. “It’s me.” When he was silent, she glared at the speaker. “Katie.”
“I know who it is,” he growled. “Wait there, I’ll be down in a minute.”
Katie tapped her foot nervously and rubbed her hands up and down her arm. She was shivering and it was as much nerves as it was cold. Tugging the strap of her purse higher on her shoulder, she willed the door to open. Finally, after what seemed like ages, the door was pulled partially open.
“Come inside.” Katie obeyed the stark command and slid through the small opening. The door slammed shut behind her and she found herself in total darkness.
She could feel Cain standing beside her, a solid presence in the pitch-black parking garage. “I’m beginning to think you really are a vampire,” she muttered. She bit her lip to keep herself from speaking again. Why did she always make stupid jokes when she was nervous? Cain said nothing, but took her by the hand and led her towards the elevator. Katie followed blindly in his wake.
“Why are you here? I was going to call you later.” The elevator door slid open and he tugged her inside.
She wasn’t really surprised when the light was extremely dim. Cain was nothing more than a large hulking shape. His body was a solid presence behind her, and it took all her resolve to keep herself erect. All she wanted to do was lean back against him and absorb his strength, his scent, and indeed his very essence.
“I missed you.” Her voice was low and intimate in the small confines of the ascending elevator.
His huge sigh actually ruffled her hair and then his arms enveloped her from behind, his chin coming to rest on the top of her head. She felt surrounded by him and closed her eyes to enjoy the sensation.
Tears came to her eyes, as she knew that this might be the last time this would happen. If Cain refused to talk to her, to be honest with her, then she would not be seeing him again. Not if she wanted to retain her self-respect. Katie wanted to freeze this moment in time, but the elevator came to a halt.
Cain said nothing as the elevator opened. The door to his apartment was open and a lady was leaving. Katie’s heart stopped for a moment before she recognized Martha Jones, the lady who had bought the painting from Lucas.
“I’ll be going if there’s nothing else, Mr. Benjamin.” Martha had a leather folder clutched tight in her arms. She waited until Cain nodded at her and then turned to Katie and gave her a quick glance that was filled with something that looked like pity. “Have a good evening then, sir. Good evening, Miss Wallace.” Martha hurried to the elevator and disappeared behind the closing door.
Before Katie could even begin to wonder what that exchange was all about, Cain ushered her through the front door of his apartment. The door closed with a solid thud. There was no going back now.
The foyer was dark but she could sense Cain leaning towards her. He cupped her chin in his hand and kissed her gently. She leaned into the kiss, loving the warm solid feel of his lips sliding across hers. For a moment, all the anger and doubts of the day before just melted away. There was only Katie and Cain. Nothing else existed. Katie believed that Cain had to feel the magic just as much as she did. Her bag fell to the floor unnoticed as she wrapped her arms around him and kissed him back with all the love she felt.
“I love you.” The words tumbled from her mouth even as her brain screamed at her to stop. She wanted to recall the words the moment they left her mouth, but once said, they could not be taken back. He froze immediately, his entire body turning to stone in her embrace.
She kissed him again, desperately pouring all of her feelings into the embrace. At first, he didn’t move, but remained an unmoving statue. She rubbed her tongue against his and then sucked on it gently.
Cain pulled away from her and she could feel his stare through the layer of darkness. It was if he was trying to see into her very soul. She opened her mouth to speak when the sound of toenails skittering across a floor caught her attention. A soft woof filled the air before a cold, wet nose thrust itself in her hand.
Katie jumped and then laughed, glad the sensual spell was broken. Talk, she reminded herself. They needed to talk. Needing a moment to compose herself, she greeted Gabriel and rubbed his ears and back. In dog heaven, he stretched out on his back and she accommodated him by scrubbing his belly. All the while, she could feel Cain watching her. Waiting.
Finally, he ran out of patience. “Gabriel, kitchen.” Gabriel whined, but with one last lick to Katie’s hand, he trotted back to the kitchen.
Katie took off her coat and hung it by the door, aware of Cain’s presence as never before. Taking a moment to compose herself, she picked her purse off the floor and hung it next to her coat.
“You seem nervous, Katie. Why?” He walked towards the living room, not glancing behind to see if she was following him. She trailed behind him, determined to get him to talk to her.
It was now or never. “Why didn’t you tell me you were E. S. Investors?” Katie waited for him to explain that he was afraid it would have hurt their relationship or that he hadn’t wanted to hurt her. She waited. And waited. She anticipated every response except the one she got.
“It was none of your business.” Cain’s voice was calm and cool as he stood by the fireplace and waited for her reply.
Katie was shocked to her very core. Then she got angry.
“Not my business.” She stalked up to him and poked him in the chest with her finger. “Not my business,” she repeated. “It was my workplace you were affecting and you knew it because I told you all about it. And worse, you let me and didn’t say a thing.”
Cain turned and walked to the corner of the room. Bottles clinked and then the sound of liquid being poured into a glass followed. He returned to her side with two glasses filled with an amber liquid. The smell of scotch wafted up to her nose as he pressed one of the glasses into her hands.
“Drink up.” He took a sip from his own glass before continuing. “There’s no need for this dramatic scene. It simply isn’t any of your business.”
“How can you say that? I thought we were building something special.” She could feel the tears welling in her eyes and her throat tightened as she did her best to fight them back. She had promised herself she wouldn’t cry.
“Just because we’re sleeping together doesn’t mean I’ll let you dictate my business practices. It made good sense to buy the building, so I did. End of story.” He sounded bored by the whole subject.
“I don’t understand.” Katie desperately tried to make out his features in the dark, but he kept to the shadows.
“No, I can see that you don’t.” He paced towards her like some huge jungle cat on the prowl, his eye glittering in the darkness. “Did you think you could manipulate me with sex? Did you think that professing your love would get me to change my mind?” His voice was cold and mocking. “Better women than you have tried, Katie.”
Katie couldn’t believe the hurtful things he was saying. “How can you even think anything like that, let alone say it?” She was shocked by the conclusions he had drawn. It had never occurred to her that he might view her actions in such a way.
He reached out and caught her chin between his thumb and forefinger and leaned down close. “Because that is what people do.” He spoke slowly and clearly as if instructing a child.
“Not when people love each other, they don’t,” she quietly responded.
Cain laughed bitterly. “Love. I’ll tell you about love.” He turned away and began to pace the room. “Do you know where I was?”
“You know that I don’t.” She remained still, not wanting to distract him.
“My mother, my last living relative finally died and I went home to take care of the legal work.” He stopped and turned to glare at her. “Home. What a joke.”
“I’m sorry about your mother.” She reached her hand out to him and dropped it
immediately as she sensed his growing anger.
Cain erupted, flinging his glass against the fireplace. It shattered into hundreds of pieces as it crashed into the stone. Shards flew into the air and Katie jumped back in reflex.
“Sorry…” Cain’s voice lowered to a harsh whisper. “Don’t be sorry, I’m sure as hell not. My parents beat the hell out of me when I was a kid for no other reason that they were unhappy, miserable people. They never really wanted a kid and they made that fact known until I got too big for them to hit. Then they got afraid of me as I grew bigger and bigger. And do you know what I did?”
He didn’t wait for her to answer, but kept right on talking. “I used that fear to make them let me go live with my mother’s father. My grandfather, Elijah Stone, was the only person who ever cared for me. I was eighteen when he died.” Anger rolled off him in waves. “I’ve been on my own since.”
Katie backed up as Cain stalked towards her. A bead of sweat ran down her back even as she shivered. Deep down, she knew he wouldn’t hurt her, but right now he was a frightening sight. His face was a shadowy mask of rage, contorting his features. She’d forgotten how large a man he truly was until he began bearing down on her. His massive chest heaved with every harsh breath he took, and his hands were clenched into giant fists.
“Love. My parents claimed they loved me even as they did everything to destroy me. Love doesn’t exist.” Cain loomed over her as he finished his tirade. He raked both hands through his hair in agitation. “So you can see, Katie. I can’t be controlled or manipulated by anyone or anything. I do as I choose.”
Katie tried to stop herself, but she could not restrain the tears that fell from her eyes. The images Cain’s words conjured broke her heart. She could picture a young, dark-haired boy being abused and knew that far worse damage had been done to his heart. She reached out to him, wanting to do no more than comfort him. “I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t you dare feel sorry for me.” Cain gripped her by the arms and pulled her close to him.
Katie knew Cain would never have told her any of this if his mother’s death hadn’t ripped open a wound that had never healed. All his old memories and hurts had boiled over and he’d been unable to contain them. If she hadn’t demanded to see him tonight, his defenses would have been firmly back in place and she might never have known anything about his mother or his childhood.
“Don’t you dare,” he muttered between clenched teeth before leaning down and kissing her hard.
Katie could feel the anger and pain in his bruising kiss, so rather than fight him she gave in to him. His lips ground hard against hers and she forced them to soften. Opening her mouth, she invited him in. His tongue thrust into hers and she responded by wrapping her arms around him. Immediately, his kiss softened. He gently sucked her tongue before licking her swollen lips in silent apology.
When his lips licked up a salty tear, he used his thumbs to carefully wipe her tears away. He took a deep breath before slowly releasing it. “I didn’t mean to frighten you.”
Katie sniffed back her tears and, although she knew she shouldn’t ask, her heart needed to know. “Is that what happened to you?” She brushed the side of his scarred face before he could withdraw.
He quickly captured her hand and drew it back to his lips for a kiss. “No. That was an apartment fire when I was in college.” Cain wrapped his arms around her and they held on tight to one another, two people spent by the outpouring of emotions. The dark was like a protective cocoon, protecting them from the rest of the world. Katie took these few moments to try and digest everything she’d just learned about Cain. She sensed his growing restlessness and knew their moment of respite was coming to an end.
Cain pulled back from her embrace, drawing his protective armor back on as he went. Spreading his legs apart, he braced himself as if for a blow. “So where does that leave us?”
“I don’t know,” she honestly replied.
Cain laughed and it was a hollow sound. “So much for loving me.” His voice was laced with sarcasm as he poured himself another drink, gave her a mock salute, and took a large swallow.
“That’s not fair.” Katie’s thoughts were totally disjointed, but she suspected that Cain didn’t know what love really was. If his childhood was as bleak as he’d painted it, and she suspected it was even worse, then it was up to her to teach him about true love. Having made her decision, her next action was easier than she expected.
Padding silently across the floor to Cain, she found his hand and gripped it in both of hers. Without saying a word, she tugged at his fingers, urging him to follow her. She knew she couldn’t move him without his cooperation, but she needn’t have worried, for he put down his glass and followed her unquestioningly.
Katie gingerly picked her way up the darkened hallway and into Cain’s bedroom. He stopped right inside the door and wouldn’t budge. Instead, he tugged her around to face him.
“There’s no going back, you know.”
“There never was.” Reaching up to him, she tugged his head down to hers and kissed him, holding nothing back. She poured all her pent-up feelings and emotions into this one kiss. Love, tenderness, and passion all mixed together in this heady embrace. Katie gentled him with her hands, massaging his scalp with her fingers before moving downward to rub the tense muscles in his back and his shoulders.
“Damn it, Katie.” Cain groaned and pulled her into his embrace as he crushed her mouth against his. Katie was only dimly aware that her feet were dangling in the air above the carpet. She didn’t care. She was where she wanted to be. In Cain’s embrace.
Chapter Eleven
Cain couldn’t believe that Katie was here in his arms. After the explosive scene in the living room, he expected her to run out of his apartment as fast as she could. Again, she had surprised him and run to him, instead of away from him. She felt so damned good in his arms. Too good. He didn’t believe in love, but he was no fool. He’d take whatever she would give him and then some.
With Katie still wrapped tight in his arms, he walked towards the bed. She smelled delicious, like vanilla and sunshine. He wanted to devour her from head to toe and everywhere in between. Katie was certainly not the most beautiful woman he’d ever slept with, but there was something about her that rocked him to his very soul. In some intangible way, she completed him.
Right now, she was wiggling in his arms, silently demanding he put her down. Reluctantly, he slid her down the front of his body until her feet touched the floor.
“Let me love you.” She pulled his head down and punctuated her words with little kisses. Not waiting for a reply, she pulled back and tugged her sweater over her head and let it drop to the floor. Her bra was next. The slight beam of moonlight bathed her in its glow, making her appear more ethereal than ever. She was a fantasy come to life. But this fantasy was not waiting for him to take control.
While he watched, she toed off her shoes and shimmied out of her jeans and underwear. He stood there riveted by her luminescent skin and her siren’s smile. She stood naked and proud before him, allowing his intimate inspection.
Her feet were spread slightly apart, but her toes curled into the rug, as if looking for support. Legs, long and lithe, led to her flat stomach and small waist. Skimming his eye higher, he admired her breasts. Though small, they were perfectly shaped, and the tips were puckered into tight little nubs. The curve of her shoulder flowed up her neck to her face. He knew her face would haunt his dreams for the rest of his life. Her hair stood in spikes, as it usually did, making her look strangely vulnerable. Her eyes glowed with desire and her luscious lips looked slightly swollen from their passionate kisses.
Finally out of patience, she huffed out a deep breath before stepping over to stand in front of him. Reaching out, she began unbuttoning his shirt.
He lifted his hands to stop her, but her low plea of “let me” made him drop them back to his sides. His fists clenched as she worked the buttons open from top to bottom. She pushed open
his shirt and rubbed her nose against his chest, breathing deeply.
“You smell good.” She kissed her way up his chest. “Warm and sexy.” Her tongue flicked out and licked at one of his flat brown nipples. His whole body tightened in response and his hand lifted to cup the back of her head, encouraging her to continue. A sultry laugh escaped her as she kissed her way over to the other side and teased the other nipple.
“You like that as much as I do.” Pleased with herself, she continued teasing him. It was a novel experience for a man his stature. Usually both men and women were wary of him because of his immense size, even though he was very careful to control his strength. But Katie, after their initial meeting, had shown no fear at all. In fact, she reached out to him instead of pulling away.
Cain swept one hand over the smooth line of her spine, loving the way she arched under his hand. Tracing the curve of her hip, he finally reached the soft, white globes of her ass. He squeezed them with his palm and urged her closer to him. His cock was hard and he rubbed himself against her stomach.
Her sexy mouth left his chest and she turned her attention to his jeans. Her nimble fingers quickly undid the snap and pulled down the zipper. He clenched his teeth, and his breath came out in a hard hiss as she carefully eased the zipper over his rock-hard erection. Tugging both his jeans and his underwear down over his legs, she then dropped to her knees in front of him and pulled them off one foot and then another, taking his socks and sneakers as she did.
When he was finally naked, except for his shirt, she sat back on her haunches and looked up at him. Taking her time, her gaze slid up his muscular calves, his rock-hard thighs, his huge erection, and his rippling chest, all the way to his face. He knew what he looked like. Huge and rough. His fists clenched at his sides as he waited to see what she would do next.
“You’re beautiful,” she whispered in awe.
Cain had never been so stunned in his life. Never had anyone said those words to him. All at once, his common sense reasserted itself. She had never seen all of him, he thought sardonically. He was sure she’d have something different to say if she ever saw the extent of his ruined face and scarred body. But still it was nice to hear.
Awakening Desires: Katie's Art of Seduction Page 13