Sinful Rapture (The Rapture Series) (8 page)

“Trust.”

Slowly he pulled back, his expression somber. “Yes, princess. I’m asking for your trust.”

“I’m not sure I can. I…” She struggled to form the word. “I can’t bear to be hurt. Not again.”

“I get it, I truly do,” he told her. “Just give me a chance, princess.”

His mind fogged as she wrapped her legs around his waist, her hands flat on the desk as she studied him from beneath half-lowered lashes.

“Enough talking, Mr. Conner.” Her smile was pure female temptation. “I’m ready for some action.”

Oh…hell yeah.

“Sweet Holly,” he breathed, feeling oddly unnerved as he buried his face in the curve of her neck and began a thorough exploration of her naked body. “You’re going to be the death of me.”

Nuzzling at her throat, he allowed one hand to linger on her breast while the other blazed a path down the flat planes of her stomach.

She hissed in pleasure, her head dropping back as his searching fingers at last found her clit.

“I think it’s more likely you’re going to be the death of me,” she complained as he teased her tender bud of flesh, his touch too light to bring her to climax.

He shifted his head to suck her nipple, even as he slid one finger into the damp entrance of her body. She moaned in encouragement, her legs tightening around his waist.

Death suddenly seemed a reasonable price to pay to feel this woman shuddering against him, Liam decided.

Concentrating on the sensation of his finger penetrating her with a slow thrust, he used his teeth on the tip of her nipple.

Holly made a small sound of pleading, her body bowing as if she was nearing her orgasm.

Needing to feel her convulsing around his cock, he reached down to position himself, entering her with one powerful thrust.

“I love you, princess,” he breathed, lifting his hips until he was buried so deep inside that it felt as if they were truly one.

“Liam,” she groaned, her voice unsteady as she met his fierce gaze.

A tender rush of emotion flooded through him at the tentative hope that he could see shimmering in the depths of her cognac eyes.

It was the sort of feeling that made males sacrifice everything to hold on to.

“Believe in me, Holly,” he groaned, pumping into her with a slow, measured pace. “Believe in us.”

“I…”

“Shh.” He halted her protest, searing away the words with a kiss that came from his very soul. “Just let me love you.”

Holly struggled to catch her breath as Liam rolled to the side, gathering her into his arms.

“Damn,” he growled, pressing his lips to her damp forehead. “That was…mind-blowing.”

It had been.

Over the past four hours they’d made love in Liam’s office, the kitchen, and now in the massive bed that consumed a large part of the master bedroom.

And each time had only increased her pleasure.

It was insane.

With any other man she would have assumed that it was because he was discovering what turned her on.

God knew that his touch was magic.

But if she was being honest she would admit it wasn’t skill that made her heart pound and her body melt with need. It was his raw emotion that added an indefinable beauty to each kiss, each caress.

An emotion that she could no longer deny was echoed deep inside her.

She loved this man.

And she had from the beginning.

Easily sensing her sudden tension, Liam lifted his head to study her with a searching gaze.

“Holly?”

“I…” The words stuck in her throat.

It was all too soon.

Being jilted. Tumbling into bed with Liam.

Having her heart stripped bare.

She needed time to adjust.

Time and a very large prescription for Prozac.

With a rueful smile, Liam dropped a light kiss on her lips and scooted out of the bed.

“I need a shower,” he said. “Why don’t you call down and order lunch from room service?”

Forcing her tense muscles to relax, she sucked in a deep breath.

There was no reason to freak out.

So, she had…feelings.

Intense, potentially life-altering feelings.

But in this minute she didn’t have to worry about anything but enjoying her day.

And the view.

Especially the view, she silently acknowledged, her gaze taking a slow, appreciative inspection of his naked body.

Heat combusted in the pit of her stomach, her hands tingling at the memory of exploring those hard, chiseled muscles.

Damn but he was fine.

She cleared her throat.
No mauling the delectable male
.

Not until she had food in her rumbling belly.

“Do I actually get to eat this time?” she lightly teased.

Something that might have been relief flared through his eyes before he was sending her a teasing smile.

“I make no promises, princess.”

He headed into the attached bathroom, and scrambling off the mattress, Holly grabbed her clothes and rushed into the guest room to take a quick shower.

She didn’t doubt for a minute that Liam would happily have welcomed her into his own shower, but there was no way they’d ever get to lunch if she got her hands on him.

With a grimace she pulled on her wrinkled shorts and top.

Very soon she was going to return to her apartment and get her own clothes. Then these were going in the trash.

Calling down to the kitchen, she ordered two club sandwiches and a plate of fries for Liam and a side salad for herself, then, moving to gaze out the glass wall that overlooked the Strip, she deliberately kept her thoughts from straying beyond the penthouse.

At some point she was going to have to deal with the wedding gifts that were piled in her living room, and cancelling the tickets for the Bahamas cruise she’d booked as a surprise for their honeymoon. But those were worries for the future.

For now she intended to enjoy each moment as it happened.

The chime of a bell had her arching her brows in surprise. That was fast. Like, sonic fast.

Of course, being the owner of the hotel no doubt leapfrogged your lunch order to the top of the stack.

Moving across the floor, she pushed the button to open the elevator doors, her stomach growling at the thought of snatching a few fries off Liam’s plate before he got out of the shower.

A fine plan, except for the fact it wasn’t room service who came storming out of the elevator. Instead it was a dark-haired man with bronzed skin and black eyes that were smoldering with an unmistakable fury.

Luc Angeli.

Her half-brother.

Belatedly noticing her gawking at him from the edge of the elevator, Luc came to a halt midstride, his eyes widening in shock.

“Holly?”

“Luc?” She gave a slow shake of her head. When her brother had walked away from Angeli, he’d sold all his shares of stock as well. Just another thing that had pissed off Vigo. So why would he be in Liam’s penthouse? “What are you doing here?”

“Me?” he growled, his dark brows pulled together in a scowl. Even casually dressed in jeans and a cotton shirt, he oozed arrogance. “What the hell are you doing here?”

She planted her hands on her hips, meeting him glare for glare.

She’d be damned if she let him make her feel ashamed.

“Not that it’s any of your business, but I’m about to have lunch with Liam,” she said.

He sucked in a sharp breath. “Here?”

“Yes, here.”

The dark eyes narrowed, focusing on her damp hair and flushed cheeks. “Did you spend the night with him?”

She pressed her lips together. She’d wasted her entire life regretting the fact that she didn’t have a relationship with Luc and her elusive half-sister, Shelby. There were times, however, when her brother could be a bossy pain in the ass.

“Again, none of your business,” she said.

“That bastard.” Luc clenched his hands, taking a step toward the living room. “I’m going to break his fucking neck.”

Holly rushed forward, planting her hands flat on her brother’s chest.

“You certainly are not.”

His gaze scanned the living room. “Where is he?”

“Luc, what’s wrong with you?”

“What do you think is wrong?” His gaze moved back to take in her short shorts and T-shirt, lingering on the unmistakable Playhouse logo just over her left breast. “You’re standing here, half-dressed, in his penthouse.”

A blush touched her cheeks. Okay. He had the right to criticize her clothes.

They really were dreadful.

But not her choice to be with Liam.

“And?”

“He took advantage of you.”

“Are you kidding me?” She blinked. Even for Luc, who’d turned out to be an overly protective brother, this was a crazy talk. “We aren’t living in the dark ages and I’m not some shrinking virgin who can’t defend herself,” she snapped. “No one took advantage of me.”

He studied her for a long minute, his expression guarded. “Then he told you what he did?”

Holly dropped her hands, taking a step back. There was something in Luc’s tone that sent a chill down her spine.

“What do you mean?”

He hesitated before folding his arms over his chest. “I just had a most interesting chat with your ex-fiancé.”

Holly stiffened. Dammit. The last thing she wanted was Luc getting into a fight with Ted.

Her ex-fiancé might be a jackass, but he was still a partner in one of the most reputable investment banks in Nevada. Which meant that Luc often used them during the course of his business.

“Why were you meeting with Ted?”

He held her gaze. “Don’t ask foolish questions.”

“Did you hurt him?”

He shrugged. “Not as much as I wanted to.”

She rolled her eyes, pretending that she didn’t feel a tiny stab of satisfaction.

Hey, she was human enough to take pleasure in thinking of her ex-fiancé going to work with two black eyes and a broken nose.

“God save me from arrogant men,” she forced herself to mutter.

Luc was unrepentant. “The bastard jilted you.”

“I know what he did.” She grimaced. “I was there, remember?”

“I wanted a firsthand explanation why.”

She wrapped her arms around her waist. She didn’t want to discuss Ted. Or their aborted wedding.

Hell, she wanted to forget she’d ever been engaged.

“He did it because he’s a self-centered jackass,” she hissed.

“He is that,” Luc readily agreed. “But he claims that he was threatened not to attend the wedding.”

Threatened not to attend?

Had the idiot started making up conspiracy theories to keep Luc from beating the crap out of him?

“I…” She licked her dry lips. “I don’t understand.”

“He was warned that if he married you his business would be destroyed.”

“That’s ridiculous. Who would…” Her words trailed away as a horrid suspicion began to form in the back of her mind.

No.

It couldn’t be.

“Liam Conner,” Luc snarled, confirming her sudden fear.

“He’s lying,” a harsh male voice said from behind her.

She was on the point of turning when Luc surged forward.

“You bastard.”

“Luc, no,” she cried, pushed to the side as Luc launched himself at Liam.

Her brother managed to get in a punch to Liam’s jaw, knocking his head backward before Liam had his arms wrapped around the smaller man, slamming him against the wall.

“If you want to fight, we’ll fight,” Liam growled, his dark hair still damp from the shower and his tense body covered by a pair of khaki shorts and pale blue cotton shirt. “But we’ll do it later. Right now I need to speak with Holly.”

Luc released a curse, but catching sight of Holly’s pale face, he gave a slow nod.

“Later.”

Liam slowly stepped back, unconsciously rubbing his bruised jaw.

“Can we have some privacy?”

Luc shook his head. “No.”

“Christ.” Turning, Liam stepped toward Holly, his expression impossible to read. “Let me explain.”

Holly held up her hand, warning him not to come any closer.

She was desperately trying to think clearly. Having him close would make that impossible.

She waited for him to come to a grudging halt before speaking.

“You said that Ted was lying.”

Liam shoved his hands in the front pockets of his shorts, his expression composed, although there was no missing his clenched jaw and the rigidity of his body.

“I never threatened his business,” he said with a hint of disgust. “He has a hundred employees that depend on him for a paycheck.”

Perhaps naïvely, Holly believed him.

Liam had a genuine concern for people who struggled to make it from paycheck to paycheck.

She couldn’t imagine any scenario where he would deliberately put them out of work. Not in this economy.

“But…” She had to stop and clear her throat. “You did threaten him?”

He gave a small dip of his head. “Yes.”

“I’m going to kill you,” Luc growled from behind them.

Holly never allowed her gaze to stray from Liam’s lean face, inanely noting it looked ashen in the afternoon sunlight.

“Why?” she breathed.

With jerky motions he moved toward a low, polished coffee table in front of the couch. Bending down he yanked open a narrow drawer and pulled out a manila folder. Then, pausing to draw in a deep breath, he straightened to return to Holly.

“Because of this,” he said, flipping open the folder and grabbing a glossy eight-by-ten picture.

He held it out, not insisting she take it and not trying to keep it from her.

The decision of whether she learned the truth was entirely up to her.

Her gut twisted with a sickening sense of premonition.

There was a painful silence as Holly wavered between gruesome curiosity and the absolute certainty that she didn’t want to see what was in the file.

Finally she reached to snatch the photo out of his hand, her brows drawing together as she studied the close-up of a pretty young woman with brown hair and pale blue eyes.

“Who is this?” she demanded in confusion.

“Your beloved fiancé’s mistress,” Liam said, his voice tight.