Winter Harvest (11 page)

"Oh, and it was awful for you, wasn't it?"

"No." Traye ran his fingers through his hair. "I didn't say that."

"What would you say, then? How would you describe the night I forced on you?"

He growled. "I don't know."

"Exactly. If I don't do it for you, then I don't." Victoria started for the door. "Wouldn't want to trap ourselves in a marriage just to save face, now would we?"

"Stop." He stepped in front of her. "We're far from being done here."

"Why? What ground can we possibly cover we didn't last night? You know what I have to offer, and you're still not interested. So be it."

"Will you stop making me look like a jerk?"

"You
are
a jerk." Victoria clenched her jaw. "I'm just sorry it took me so long to see it."

He grabbed her forearms and shook her until she pushed him away with a glare. Then he stepped in front of the door, crossed his arms over his chest, and sighed.

"Let me start over. I'm not letting you go until we discuss this."

"Fine." She removed her jacket and tossed it aside, then walked over and sat at the table where they'd shared a meal the night before. "Talk."

"Last night was wonderful." He didn't leave the door, but instead leaned against it. "I'm not going to deny it, but I didn't plan on this. I had no intentions of trapping you in marriage. Now that your father has such a bad view of me, however, I have no choice."

Victoria stood. "Unless you stop insulting me, I'll leave -- and blocking my way won't stop me."

"I'm sorry. This is really hard."

"Why didn't you want to marry me last night? Oh, wait -- you didn't. Now, though, since my father demands it, you suddenly do." She fired him a hot glare. "Why would I sentence myself to that? Do I look stupid? Never mind. We aren't getting married. You'll have to find a different way to impress my father. Now… I'm out of here."

She tried to dodge past him, but he grabbed her again and hauled her in for a kiss. Her body defied her and reacted before she could shut it down. He devoured her until she finally opened for him, and he slipped his tongue inside and ran it against her teeth and rolled it with hers. She wrapped her arms around his neck and melted into him.

He reached behind her to squeeze her butt, then trailed feather light kisses down her cheek before nuzzling her neck. "I have to make this right. Please let me."

"I see." His words woke her from her haze of passion. "So Andrew drops a bomb on my father hoping to break us up, even though we were never technically together. Then my father tells you what to do, and you cave. Do I get a say in any of this?"

"You've wanted to marry me since you were a kid. What's changed?"

"Ah, maybe the fact that it's now an order. I'm not a piece of meat, nor am I a bargaining chip for you to use to get your reputation back. God, Traye you'll stoop to any level, won't you?"

"You love me. I know you do. And I already love you, so what's standing in our way?"

"You didn't love me enough last night to want to marry me." Victoria shrugged. "Doesn't matter anyway. It's too late. I have no intention of ever marrying you just because Dad says so, no matter what happens. If you'd asked me before you fought with my brother and bent to my father's demands, I'd have been ecstatic. Not like this, though. Never like this."

"You're right. It shouldn't have come to this, but it has. I do love you, and I think we can be very happy together."

"Happy? This is a business deal. You never wanted to marry me before. I highly doubt you do now. It'd be a disaster."

"You doubt I love you?"

Victoria shook her head. "I know you love me. It's the level of love I question. I don't want to marry a man who thinks of me as a sister or because he's looking for a way to help him stay on the farm he loves."

"It's not like that, and you know it. I didn't want to subject you to my screwed up life. You live in a fancy house, and this is what you would get. Is this honestly what you want?" He swept his arm toward the rest of the cabin. "That's why I promised myself I would never do this to you. Then your father told me I
had
to marry you, and I looked into my heart and realized how strong my feelings are for you."

"Traye, you have to let go of your demons. You've been dealt a rotten hand. We both know that. And maybe you'll
never
be ready for marriage. Just because Dad tells you that's what you need to do, doesn't make it the best path -- and it won't work. Not for me. I'm so over it already. Maybe we could've had a good life together, but I guess we'll never know. Now let me go. I'm done here."

Ready to make a grand exit, Victoria grabbed her jacket, threw it on, and headed for the door. Only Traye stepped in front of her again and prevented her from leaving.

"Traye, stop."

"Victoria, I have to do this." He shook his head. "No. I
want
to do this."

"No, you don't -- and I won't." Her days of chasing Traye were over. She blew out a heavy sigh. "We had our chance, and you screwed it up."

His eyes softened, and she could have sworn she had wounded him. He closed the space between them and yanked her against his rock hard chest. His lips met hers, and he kissed her hard. Her legs turned to jelly, and she clamped her arms around his shoulders and kissed him back. The voice in her head told her to pull away, but she tightened her arms around him. At her surrender, he softened the kiss and licked her lips before giving them a soft nip. Egging him on, she moaned. Their breathing became labored, and he removed her jacket. Then he snaked his hand inside her shirt to rub one of her hard nubs. Even with her bra on, electric shock waves shot to her lower belly.

Enjoying the passion between us one more time wouldn't hurt, would it?
She could enjoy his body one last time before walking away. Her hands found their way under his shirt, and she massaged his warm skin. He trailed short kisses down her neck. Her eyes rolled back in her head, and she bit her lip. She needed his hands on her bare skin, so she stepped away and pulled off her shirt. He smiled and nibbled on her shoulder.

Through her haze, she remembered why she'd come here. She didn't want Traye to get the better of her and somehow change her mind. This would be the end.

Traye lifted his head, his scowl deep, his eyes glazed. "What's wrong? You seem miles away. I'm hoping to change your mind, you know." He reached into her lacy red bra and rubbed, pinched, and rolled her nipple. "When we're married, we can do this all the time."

"You think that if you get me into bed, I'll forget my father's order?" Even to her own ears, her voice came out raw with passion. A moan escaped her lips, and she grabbed his forearms before she collapsed. She didn't want to give in so easily, yet at the same time she couldn't force her legs to move and walk away.

Traye smiled, and she wanted to devour the dirty grin from his lips. She could find no reason to resist his passionate touch. One last time, then she'd walk away, leaving him wanting and yearning for what he'd screwed up. After this, she wouldn't talk to him, look at him, or yearn for him.

"I think I can make you surrender to me and forget why we're here, and that will help change your mind. I'm in this for the long haul. You won't believe me. So let me show you. Kiss me, love me, and in the end I believe you'll be satisfied I'm the one you are meant to be with."

No
I want you
or
I love you.
His words sealed what she believed. That nothing had changed, that her father's demands had produced this seduction. Maybe this time, she'd teach good old, honorable Traye a lesson. One more passionate union wouldn't hurt. No, not at all. It'd give him one more thing to want and not have, like he'd done to her for so long.

Victoria grabbed Traye's waist, yanked him closer, and met his mouth with a vengeance. Their tongues dueled while he removed her bra and she rubbed against his swollen erection confined inside his jeans.

He peeled off her pants and silk bikini bottoms. When he knelt to push them pass her knees, she whimpered. She wanted his hot skin against her, so she pulled him to his feet. His wide hands surrounded her butt cheeks, and he squeezed them. Her tongue flicked over his chest. He buried his fingers in the slick valley between her legs. Her knees buckled.

He lifted her up and carried her to the bed. She wrapped her arms and legs around him while their tongues and lips feasted hungrily on one another. If this was going to be their last union, Victoria planned to make it one hot journey.

He stepped out of his jeans and boxers and knelt on the bed. With a gentle push, he urged her to crawl toward the headboard. Their hands and lips kneading and biting, they stretched out beside each other. Victoria's skin burned with desire at every touch.

Traye pushed himself on top of her. She separated her legs and allowed him to drive himself hard into her, then raised her hips and took him to the hilt. He nuzzled her neck, and she bit his shoulder, leaving a mark. She wanted this time to last forever, but her body defied her and he brought her to peak too fast. Seconds later, he followed suit. His breathing heavy, he rested his head against her shoulder.

Victoria sighed. She was sorry it had ended so soon, but this time she would walk away and never return. "That was intense."

"We're good together." Traye raised his head and kissed and licked her swollen lips, making her want him all over again. He nudged her. "Don't you agree?"

"We are." No matter how much he'd hurt her, she couldn't seem to turn away from him. Only, she had to. She couldn't do this anymore. "Too bad it took my father, and not me, to make you see it."

"Victoria…" Traye still lay on top of her and had his arms wrapped around her. He eyed her with suspension before moving off her with a scowl. Yet his arms held firm. "Are you still angry?"

"No, not so much angry, but I have accepted the truth."

"What do you mean?" He loosened his hold on her.

Victoria pulled away, got up, and searched for her clothes. "I wish I could let go of why you've suddenly decided I'm marriage material, but I can't. I didn't get it until I saw you and my brother going at it without any thought about me or what
I
wanted. The kicker is how you want to be in a relationship after visiting my father. I may love you, but I have enough self-respect to walk away instead of entering into something my father has more control over then me."

She dressed in haste because she wanted to run before he caught on to her intentions.

"What the hell are you doing?"

"I'm leaving. This was nice, by the way. I'll catch you later. Have a nice life."

"Jeez, Victoria, what do you want from me? I just put everything out there for you."

"I appreciate that. Just a little too late." She shrugged. "Sorry."

"Sorry?" Traye's face grew red. "Your brother was right. I should have stayed far away from you."

"My brother wasn't right, and that's the point. If you don't have the guts to do this on your own, I don't want anything you have to offer. This Traye is not the Traye I fell for."

"My God, I love you. What more can I offer you? You know I have nothing else."

"You have integrity and pride. Or at least, you did. I want to mean more to you than my father does. Until I know that, I'm not committing to anything."

"How in the blazes do I do that?"

"Figure it out." Victoria shrugged. "On your own, this time."

She darted out the door and the wind hit her exposed skin. Tears escaping her eyes, she jumped into her vehicle, brought it to life, and spun the wheels to get away from the cabin as fast possible. Traye had been more upset than she thought he'd be. Her father must have one strong hold on him. Part of her felt good for giving it back to him, but the other part wanted to dive into his arms and never leave. She had to be strong.

*****

Traye punched the mattress in frustration. How could she do this? Damn her. He'd finally given her what she wanted, and she'd used him and walked away. Robert wouldn't like this. Not at all. Traye had given it his best shot, so certainly Robert wouldn't hold his daughter's decision against him, would he?

To be honest, he didn't know where the disappointment filling his chest had come from. Was it because she'd walked out on him like his mother had, or because he loved her more than he could ever admit? He'd always thought of Victoria as his little sister or a good friend, never as a wife. He'd never let himself think of
any
female in that capacity. Why would he want to take the chance of them walking away? Why would he think of dragging a woman, especially Victoria, into his screwed up life? Robert's demand had changed his mind, and for a little while he'd thought he could have Victoria with him for the rest of his life.

Then she'd proven his fear right. She
had
walked away. He'd poured out his heart to her, and this was how she'd repaid him. He'd opened up because he'd never dreamed she'd say no or give him a brutal kick to the curb. He wanted Robert's approval. That had always meant more to him than anything, except now he wanted -- no,
needed
-- Victoria's love as well.

As if someone had just slapped some sense into him, Traye widened his eyes. His love for her ran much deeper than he'd thought possible. If not for Robert, Traye would never have let her into his heart. Why
would
she want to marry him? Now he couldn't let her walk away. Maybe his mother hadn't wanted him, but Victoria always had… and she made him whole. Not his parents. They may have molded him, but they didn't define him.

He had to fix this. Not only to get back into Robert's good graces, but also to get her back. In a short time, she had embedded herself into his heart. He'd always had feelings, maybe he'd even loved her as more than family, but now it was different. Now he knew he loved her. How could he live without her?

He punched the bed one more time, then headed to the shower. No time like the present to try again to change her mind. As he showered, he remembered her soaking in the tub, her body battered and bruised, and yet she'd still been so strong willed. She was also a wildcat in bed. In the end, the sex itself hadn't turned him on.
No.