Primal Surrender (7 page)

Within fifteen minutes she was pulling into her own driveway, still in shock over the whole evening. It was sure as hell the strangest first date she had ever been on. As she entered her house and began stripping her clothes for a shower, she pulled out her phone again and sent Mack a quick text.
I’m home, safe and sound.

A couple seconds later her phone chirped with a response.
I thought I told you to call me.

She rolled her eyes as she answered.
Does it make a difference?

Turning on the shower, she read his response.
We’ll work on following instructions.

She giggled as she sent the next message.
What are you going to do? Spank me?

His next response took longer, and she began to question her teasing while she waited. What if he didn’t get the joke? Her heart jumped when she read the next message.
Anytime. Anyplace. I’ll see you in my dreams. Goodnight.

Just like that he flipped the script again leaving her weak-kneed and confused. His offer to spank her shouldn’t make her stomach clench and her pussy weep, right? Choosing the safest road, she sent him a quick,
Goodnight
, and climbed into the shower, already wondering about date number two.

Chapter Five

Twelve hours and two pots of coffee later, Ryker felt like a complete chump. He couldn’t believe he had acted the way he did, especially with Claudia. She didn’t deserve it. In fact, she was completely right about his lashing out because he was hurting. The irony that the spitfire managed to bring him down with one sharp punch to the nose wasn’t lost on him, but he didn’t feel the need to examine it too closely.

He hadn’t seen Mack yet today. When he woke up on the floor of the cabin, he was alone. The smell of alcohol was as strong on his breath as the bitter aftertaste was on his tongue, and his head felt like someone had been using Mack’s leatherworking mallet on it. After a shower, he managed to force down some aspirin with his coffee while he debated what his next move was.

Claudia’s reaction to his rudeness made him wonder if perhaps her attraction to him was stronger than she was letting on. True, they barely knew each other, but already he felt like she was some sort of puzzle piece that had been missing from his world. Now that he found her he wasn’t sure he wanted to let her out of his sight, at least not until he knew how she fit into his life. He wasn’t a complete idiot, even if his actions from the night before proved otherwise. He was fully aware Mack wanted to keep her for himself, but Ryker wasn’t about to step aside just yet.

She seemed intrigued by the idea of a ménage, but no amount of self-reflection made him want to test those waters. As much as he loved his brother, he really had no desire to see him naked and screwing his woman. He just couldn’t figure out how to let her know he shared her feelings without looking like a bigger asshole than he already did. Stealing Mack’s woman might just rip apart the tenuous strings holding the brothers together, but Ryker couldn’t let Claudia go without giving it a shot, and the only chance he had of getting back in her good graces was to man up and apologize.

Leaving a note on the counter for Mack that just read, “Be back later,” he headed into town in search of her. It was a Saturday, so he was hoping she would be at home, but when he pulled into her driveway his heart skipped a beat.

Perched atop an eight foot ladder was the woman of his dreams. Her footing was precarious, and she had one hand braced on a window ledge while she held a paint scraper in the other and she was viciously attacking the peeling paint off the clapboard siding in front of her. To his eyes it looked like if the wind blew wrong she was going to topple, and he didn’t hesitate to leap out of his car running full steam in her direction.

“Ryker?” she asked, frowning down at him as he reached the bottom of her wobbly ladder and secured it firmly in his grip. “What are you doing here?”

“The better question is what are you doing up there, duchess? You’re going to break your neck!”

Yesterday he believed it was impossible for him to ever feel protective of a woman again. It had been a woman who had taken his trust and torn it to shreds just last summer, but at the moment he couldn’t seem to stop thinking about all of the horrific outcomes a fall would bring to this petite beauty.

“I’m scraping paint. What does it look like? Why do you care?” she snapped back, managing to cock her hip and look indignant without wobbling on the narrow ladder step.

“Sweet cheeks, I know what you’re doing, but I don’t understand why? This ladder isn’t nearly tall enough for this project, and neither are you. Not to mention you could have just asked for a hand. Me and Mack—”

“You and Mack? So you’re speaking now? After last night’s show I wouldn’t have blamed him if he never spoke to you again. And why would I bother to ask you for help, Ryker? You made it pretty clear what you thought of me right before I punched you in your face, remember?” Her hair was pulled back in a messy bun, and her gorgeous face was pinched in a tight frown as she glared down at him.

Risking her wrath, he wrapped his hand around her ankle, and squeezed. “Please, Claudia. I came here to apologize. I’d rather do it face to face. Will you come down?”

For a moment he thought she was going to refuse. Her body remained tense and she twirled the paint scraper in her hand while she thought over his request. When she finally jammed the handle of the tool in the back pocket of her shorts, he sighed with relief.

“I’ll come down, but only because I want to be able to look you in the eye when I tell you to fuck off.”

He didn’t move back as she began to make her way down the ladder, so she ended up in the circle of his arms. She smelled sweet, and now that he was closer he could see the streaks of dirt and sweat on her face, and the tiny curls of hair escaping her bun to dance on the nape of her neck. It was damn tempting to place a kiss there, but the hostility oozing off her told him it wouldn’t be appreciated right now.

“Back up, Thompson. You’re too close.” Her voice was wobbly and breathy, but her tone was determined and he took a step back, letting his arms fall to his sides. She spun around and crossed her arms under her lush breasts, lifting them in the tank top she wore so he got a fantastic view of her cleavage. He had to swallow hard and shake himself when she spoke again, “Well, get on with it. As you can see I have work to do, so I can’t stand around chatting.”

Her hazel eyes were narrowed on his face, but he couldn’t meet her gaze. It was harder than he imagined, but he was determined to apologize. “Claudia, I’m sorry. I screwed up last night.”

When he didn’t say anything else for a couple of moments, she huffed, “You’re damn right you did. You could have killed someone.”

Eyes wide he laughed, “I didn’t mean—well I did, but that’s not exactly what I was apologizing for. I meant about what I said to you and Mack last night. I was angry and I lashed out at you. You didn’t deserve it, and I didn’t mean it. I’m sorry.”

“So you’re sorry for hurting my feelings, but not for driving drunk?” she asked, sounding even angrier, “Why doesn’t that surprise me?”

Shock rocked him on his heels when she spun away from him and marched up her front steps into her front door. Anger warred with confusion in his head, and he followed her flaring temper. The screen door creaked as he went through it and somewhere in his distracted brain he made a note to bring a can of WD40 with him when he visited next time.

Her living room was decorated in bright colors and patterns that made him slightly dizzy, so he followed the sounds of life down the hallway into a small kitchen that had seen better days. The best feature was the top of the line appliances that were obviously just off the showroom floor.

Zeroing in on his target, he froze in his tracks as she lifted a glass of ice water to her lips and took a big swallow. His gaze followed the column of her throat as it bobbed, and suddenly his jeans were way too tight. Widening his stance, he crossed his arms and glared at her with as much intensity as he could muster with a hard-on. “You know when a man apologizes to you, you should at least be courteous enough to accept it civilly.”

“I don’t accept it. Civilly or otherwise,” she said, dabbing her lips and then her sweaty forehead and neck with a hand towel. “That shade of purple looks lovely on you by the way.”

Confused, he looked down at his clothes before realizing she was talking about the bruise on his face. “Are you always this difficult?”

One side of her lips curved up, “Pretty much. Are you?”

Fighting back a grin, he nodded, “Yep. Look, I am sorry about getting behind the wheel. I don’t normally do that kind of thing. It was reckless and irresponsible, and then I followed it up by being immature and hateful.” He paused and waited for a reaction, but her face remained completely emotionless. “I would really like the chance to start over, and forget last night ever happened. Please?”

The only sound in the house was the drip of water as he waited for her response. He added the leaking kitchen faucet to his mental list of fixes but kept his eyes firmly trained on her face.

“I’ll agree to a truce and accept your apology, but I promise you, Ryker Thompson, if you pull a stunt like that again, I’ll call the cops after I beat the snot out of you myself.” Her tone was so serious he nodded solemnly.

Claudia spun around and refilled her empty glass of water, taking another big drink before she spoke again, “Where’s Mack?”

“I don’t know. He was gone when I got up.”

Her eyes widened and she stared back at him in shock. “You came to me before you talked to him? Why?”

This was his chance to lay it all out there. Moving closer to her, he took her glass from her hand and set it on the counter before cupping her jaw. “When I woke up all I could think about was getting to you and convincing you to forgive me, duchess. It never crossed my mind to look for him first.”

Her dainty pink tongue flicked out to lick her lips and he saw her anxiety rise as he boxed her in against the counter. “I don’t understand, Ryk. Mack’s your brother, you should—”

“Mack’s a big boy. We’ve had much worse fights, trust me. I’ll talk to him later and we’ll clear the air. You were my first priority.” He let his thumb stroke the line of her jaw before caressing her bottom lip. It was plump and so soft to the touch he almost groaned out loud. Lifting his other hand, he took her hair in his hand forcing her to tip her head back. If he had any doubts about her desire for him, they were gone in an instant because her pupils dilated and her mouth dropped open on a gasp.

“Ryker, we can’t.”

“Why not, Claudia? Who’s stopping us?” he murmured, tightening his grip on her hair and her jaw.

“Mack.” The one word came out in a breathless whisper.

Smiling, Ryker lowered his mouth until they were close enough to share a breath. “He isn’t here, duchess. I am. And you want me as much as I want you.”

He gave her another moment to say no, and then he lowered his mouth capturing her lips in a scorching hot kiss. It burned through his body, searing his soul and branding his heart with her essence. Everything ceased to matter in that moment as he plundered her with a kiss and she took possession of him.

After a pause, her tongue sought his, and she stroked his lips inviting him into her warmth. Somewhere in the back of his brain he registered when her hands slid up his chest and around his neck to hold him in place. It gave him the opening to drop both hands to her hips and lift her so she was seated on the kitchen counter, making their kiss more comfortable, and bringing his hips into alignment with the V of her thighs. His groin rocked in an instinctive motion, as her ankles crossed behind him, pulling him closer.

The sounds she made in her throat were making his balls tighten, and he fought for control of himself as he made love to her mouth. When she finally tore her lips away from his, and stared up into his eyes still gasping, he could see guilt and desire at war in their golden depths. Neither one of them spoke, but her ankles released him, so he took an awkward step back to give her more room. His cock was throbbing behind his zipper, and his bruised face ached where they had been pressed so tightly together, but he felt like a God when she looked at him with lust in her eyes.

“I can’t do this with you. I’m seeing Mack, and it wouldn’t be fair to him. I’m not the type of person to cheat on a man.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t realize you two were exclusive already.”

She shook her head groaning in frustration, “We’re not, but considering I was kissing him last night, it doesn’t seem like he would be thrilled I’m making out with you this morning.”

“I want you, Claudia. I know you met my brother first, but I had to make it known I’m in this to win you for myself.” He pressed a kiss her palm before helping her off the counter, steadying her when she swayed.

“I’m not a prize at a carnival, Ryk,” she responded, staring at the center of his chest.

“No, you’re worth so much more, duchess.”

In an instant the desire and anxiety on her face was replaced with fury, and she gave him a hard shove knocking him backwards into the opposite counter. “So that’s what this is about? You’re broke now, and Mack found a rich girl, so you want to steal me and my fortune away? Miss the good life, huh, Ryker?”

His own temper reacted and he grabbed her wrists, keeping her from storming away or throwing another punch, “No, Claudia. I don’t give a damn about your money. I want you. I want the Texas girl that drinks beer, talks back, and dances till her feet ache. The girl who plays darts better than any man I know, and takes stupid chances like standing on a ladder as old as my grandma to scrape a house that’s seen more generations than a cat has lives. Fuck. Do all of the men you know have ulterior motives?”

Pain filled her wide eyes, and a flush of pink stole up her cheeks. She looked torn between anger and shock, so he took a chance and pulled her into his arms, hugging her tightly against his chest.