Resisting The Tycoon's Seduction (The Berutelli Escape) (5 page)

She was almost to the glass a
nd steel doors when someone clamped down on her arm.  She was about to protest, but she looked back, then up and saw Zeke holding her arm, leading her towards another door.

“How did you…”
she stopped at his glare as he led her across the wide sidewalk in front of the building.

“I have a private elevator,” he snapped at her and opened the back door to a limousine.  “Get in.”

He didn’t wait for her to follow his order but nudged her into the dark, luxurious recesses of the vehicle.  A split second after they were both seated, the car pulled away from the curb and Marissa angrily folded her slender arms over her stomach defensively.  “Why am I here?” she demanded, her chin jutting out defiantly as she tried to brazen her way through this latest confrontation.  Would there ever be a time when she wasn’t embarrassed while interacting with this man? 

Zeke stared at the soft pink staining her cheeks and wished he could eliminate her embarrassment somehow.  He didn’t mind the blushes when he teased her but he didn’t like seeing it under circumstances like this. 
“You’re here because I’m going to get to the bottom of this issue.”

Marissa didn’t like the determined look on his face and her whole body started to tremble. 
She feared that this Zeke-on-a-mission attitude might put him in danger with her father.  “There’s nothing to tell,” she said, but immediately she felt the pain shoot from the back of her neck to the front of her forehead. 

Zeke saw her cringe involuntarily. 
“What’s wrong?” he demanded, instantly alert.

Marissa shook her head and took a deep breath, praying that the pain would go away.  “I’m fine,” she replied, pasting a calm smile over her features
and forcing her shoulders to relax.  A migraine?  Great!  Just what she needed!

Taking a deep breath, she relaxed her shoulders and as many muscles as possible.  A hard thing to do when Zeke was near.
  She could get through this, she told herself mentally.  This latest incident would not crush her. 

The vehicle drove into the parking garage of a tall building and Marissa looked around, her worry increasing.  “Where are we?” she asked,
staring through the darkness and seeing several other cars, but nothing that would give her a clue as to where he’d taken her. 

“I live here,” he said and took her hand, pulling her out of the limousine behind him.  “Come along.”  He didn’t wait for her response but guided her over to an elevator.  Once inside, he pressed some buttons and, a moment later, they were zipping to the top.  Marissa’s stomach dropped and she gripped the
wooden railing of the elevator. 

“Why are we here?” she asked, staring at the number indicating the floors they were passing.  “And why can’t you live on one of the lower floors?” she
demanded with a great deal of irritation.  It wasn’t that she was afraid of heights.  She just didn’t like them. 

Zeke chuckled and moved in closer so he was blocking her view of the numbers.  “Because there wasn’t enough room in the units on the lower floors.”

She glared at him.  “You’re just one man.  How much room do you need?”

He shrugged one of his massive shoulders and leaned closer. “I like my privacy.
  I also entertain a great deal for business and this place has great views.”

She didn’t like how close he was.  “So is it space or privacy that you need more of?”
  If she kept him talking, he couldn’t do anything else, right?  Like kiss her?  Her eyes dropped to his lips, her mind wandering back to that moment several days ago when she’d felt his lips on her neck and her ear. 

“Both.”
 

She blinked when he spoke, losing the thread of the conversation.  Both what
?  Oh, space and privacy.  She needed to keep up, she admonished herself silently. 

She started to put a hand to his body intending to push him away, but she didn’t want to touch him.  “Then why don’t you respect my space?”

He laughed and took her hand that was still fluttering at her side, placing it right in the middle of his chest.  When she tried to pull it away, he covered her hand, pressing her fingers against his shirt.  “You don’t really want space from me.”

She opened her mouth to say something but the elevator stopped and the doors opened.  “That’s where you’re wrong,” she snapped at him and
quickly slipped around his amazingly large and deliciously muscular body to get out of the small confines of the suddenly tiny elevator.  Or more specifically, get away from his large, warm body that was heating her skin and making her feel…strange things.  Things she didn’t understand and definitely didn’t like. 

She stepped out into a lovely wood paneled entryway with a gorgeous crystal chandelier twinkling over a huge bouquet of fresh flowers.  Her father was an extremely wealthy man and she’d lived in luxury her whole life.  But her
entire bedroom could fit inside this entryway.  “You’re…” she started to say something, but whatever it was, she stopped when she felt his strong, unrelenting hands encircle her waist. 

“I think we’ve been missing something in this relationship,” he said a moment before his mouth covered hers. 

He was kissing her?  Marissa couldn’t believe the shock of his lips against hers.  She’d wondered what it would be like to be kissed by him, even moments before in the elevator, her mind had gone down that road.  But nothing could have prepared her for the scalding, moist taste of him on her lips or the instant surge of lust the moment his mouth touched hers. 

His mouth was hot!  And it was gentle but firm, not giving an inch and demanding that she give up everything.  She resisted, or at least tried to resist, which worked for perhaps a fraction of a second.  And then it was all over.  She wasn’t even aware of her body melting against his, her hands grabbing his shoulders and hanging on tightly.  Bending one leg, she pressed herself against him, instinctively and unknowingly, wanting to eliminate all space between them. 

She heard something that sounded like a cat, but she couldn’t focus on the sound.  The only reality she could concentrate on was his mouth and the way his tongue teased hers, tantalizing her into participating in the kiss.  The instant she did so, there was so much more.  She felt his hands on her back, sliding up and down, touching her in places no man had ever dared to touch.  She wanted more, her body starting to demand more.  She wanted his hands…yes!  When his hand moved higher, his fingers touching her breast she thought she might just melt into a puddle of sizzling steam.  And then one hand moved lower, cupping her bottom and an ache started, grew from her stomach outwards as she felt the hardness against her abdomen.  His hand on her bottom pressed her, moved slightly and she gasped at the contact, not sure what was happening or why her body was doing what it was doing. 

“Zeke!” she gasped, her toes curling with a strange restlessness that caused her body to curl into his, to shift against him.

He lifted his head and looked down at her, thinking that his timing was pretty horrible.  He’d just wanted to kiss her, to show her that she couldn’t make statements like wanting to maintain space because they were a lie.  He hadn’t realized how strong the passion between them would ignite, how it would flame up out of control.  Right now, he was holding onto his lust for this woman with a fine, very tenuous thread and he wasn’t sure if he could maintain that control.  If it had been any other woman, he would have moved into his bedroom and spent a very pleasurable afternoon exploring this surprising need.  But this was Marissa.  And there was something about her that kicked in when she was near him.  He didn’t just want sex with her.  He suddenly realized that he wanted so much more. 

“
You’re beautiful,” he rasped softly.

Marissa opened her eyes, her teeth biting her lower lip as her body shifted against his, wanting to feel that electric current that had bolted through her body a moment ago.  But as her eyes focused, she realized where she was and what she was doing.  With a start, she pulled out of his arms and took several steps backwards.  “What are you doing?” she demanded
, her eyes wide with both confusion that she could let something like that happen and embarrassment that he had been the one to stop their love making. 

He leaned
forward and grabbed her around the waist once again, pulling her against him and ignoring her resistance.  “I was kissing you,” he said softly and bent down to take her lips again.  She resisted for a moment, but he quickly felt her lips respond. 

Zeke didn’t take that kiss
deeper.  He wasn’t sure if his body could handle her passionate reaction again and not carry her into his bedroom so he stepped back but kept his hands on her waist.  “And now, I’m going to make you something to eat.  I know you’re ravenously hungry.”

Marissa wasn’t sure if he was still talking about food, but she followed him into his penthouse, amazed at the stunning views of Chicago from this level.  “You certainly enjoy your heights, don’t you?”

He looked out and nodded his head.  “It relaxes me.”

She smiled slightly, trying to imagine him relaxed.  “What else do you do to relax?” she asked softly, surprised by how much she wanted to get to know this tall, commanding man. 
From a distance though!  She was sure to keep several feet between them now, knowing what happened whenever he touched her.  Apparently, she didn’t have much resistance when it came to this tall, strange man.  And that bothered her.  She felt cheap and naughty. 

The wicked gleam in his eyes told her what he was going to say before he said it.  “Don’t!” she laughed
despite her negative thoughts, shaking her head and trying to pull back from him.  “I don’t want to know.”

He threw back his head and laughed, not letting her retreat too far.  “I was only going to say that I enjoy cooking,” he
replied and pulled her through his home. 

Marissa looked around as he led her through an enormous living room filled with comfortable but well placed pieces of furniture.  “This looks….surprisingly nice.”

He glanced back at her, amused by her comment.  “Why is it surprising?”

She shrugged even though he couldn’t see her.  “I would have pictured you in a place filled with uncomfortable, modern furniture.  All black or brown and look
ing like you barely use any of it.”  His penthouse was the complete opposite with comfortable looking chairs placed near a large, gas fireplace with a stone surround.  She could picture herself curled up right next to him on a lazy Sunday afternoon with a fire crackling and the newspaper spread out around each of them as they tossed one section and reached for another. 

He shook his head as he pulled her into an enormous kitchen filled with stainless steel appliances and long, granite counters.  There were cabinets everywhere and a sleek island surrounding the work area with tall stools pushed up to the edge.  “I don’t spend a lot of time here with my schedule and travel, but when I come home, I want a place I can relax and enjoy.  I don’t want to be poked by my furniture.”

She had to agree with him.  Even his terrace was filled with green bushes planted around comfortable looking outdoor furniture.  The railing was actually made of glass so it didn’t impede one’s view of the skyline.  “I’m sure this is magnificent in the evenings.  I can imagine sitting out there and enjoying a glass of wine after a tough day.”

He pulled down two glasses and grabbed a bottle from
a smaller refrigerator underneath one of the cabinets.  “Why don’t you experience it instead of just imagining it?” He poured her a glass of chilled, white wine and handed it to her. 

Marissa stared at the wine, then glanced out to the terrace.  “I don’t…”

Zeke shook his head, silently interrupting her.  “Go relax.  Once I’ve finished making our lunch you’re going to talk and I need you liquored up before you’ll let yourself do that.”

Marissa couldn’t help but laugh at his blatant warning that he was going to get her drunk.  “Well, at least you give me warning.”

He winked at her and led her over to the terrace, opening the door for her.  “I’ll be out with some food in a moment.  I’ll just stick something in the oven for us and then we can get down to business.”

Marissa took a seat
on one of the overstuffed, deep chairs and slipped her shoes off, curling her legs up underneath her.  She took a sip of the delicious wine, savoring the fruity, crisp taste and breathing deeply.  Another spasm of pain shot through her head and she gripped the edge of the chair until it abated once again. 

With a deep sigh, she let her head fall backwards, trying to release the tension of the past several days.  She needed to find her sister, she thought and ignored the next stab of pain.  This one was
shorter so she didn’t reach into her purse for the medicine.  She could handle this, she told herself.  It wasn’t too bad and if she could relax deeply enough, she could get through this without the medicine.  She hated taking her migraine medicine unless she was sure the migraine was coming on full force.  Sometimes she could relax out of an episode.  The medicine made her loopy and she didn’t want to deal with that today.  She had too many problems to deal with and being loopy wouldn’t help. 

She hated the migraines but if it came right down to it, she’d have to take the medicine despite the fact that it made her groggy and sleepy.  Relaxing helped keep them at bay, but only if she could release the tension.  After the last few days, the demands of her father, her missing sister and the kiss she’d just experienced, she’d have to work hard not to lose control.