Alannah looked at the outside of the tall building in front of her and felt her stomach drop. He was really there? A spa? Seriously?
“What the hell am I doing here?” she whispered and shook her head.
She should just turn around and go back to their hotel suite. She had no business being there. But she was tired of sitting in the interminable room, waiting for Darius to say something, to make her do something… to even acknowledge her presence. Every time she called Darius, it went immediately to voicemail, so Alannah was out of options. It was either this or… Well, she didn’t really have an ‘or’ in mind.
She loved the suite, especially the deep tub in the bathroom, and twenty-four-hour room service. The room was stunning, beyond luxurious, and she’d
With growing confidence and increasing rage, a shiver of alarm still traveled down her spine. What if she was sent straight back to her father? What if her father locked her again from the world? Hit her again and again? No… Alannah couldn’t let that happen. She wouldn’t.She’d rather die. She remembered the day he told her why he wouldn’t let her leave, why she had to pay him back for her mother’s sins. Whatever those sins were… It had been a dark and terrible day. Apparently, her mother had been extremely unhappy during their marriage, telling Edwin she was going to leave him. She found out a few weeks later she was pregnant. Instead of being overjoyed, he’d been jealous, claiming she must&
Darius had been avoiding Alannah most of the week, and then she had the courage to hunt him down. He was tired, irritable, and frustrated. All week he’d been behaving as if he were a teenager out with a date for the first time. He would walk into their large suite, and instantly smell her perfume. She was always in bed by the time he got in, and he made sure he was gone before she woke, but Darius could still feel her there... know she was only a door away from him. It was playing hell with his senses, and he hadn’t slept more than a couple of hours each night since they’d arrived. He couldn’t touch her… He had to stay away… His plan was supposed to be simple, easy. It was anything but. He had a feeling nothing was going to be easy as far as the beautiful Alannah Miles was concerned. &nbs
“You need to drive. I have some work I need to finish,” Darius said as he tossed her the keys to the car. Alannah thought about protesting since he was arrogant enough to demand she drive for him instead of politely asking her. She looked at the shiny red convertible and her eyes widened in excitement. The site of the car encouraged her to suck up to her pride and climb inside the driver’s door. She’d never driven such a fun car before… She drove only when allowed by her father and only in normal cars. She turned the key and the motor purred to life in the sleek mustang. She knew the car was actually a cheaper rental for him, but to her, it was a fine piece of machinery. Alannah threw the gear shift into drive and quickly pulled out of the spa parking lot.
Darius and Alannah entered their suite and he immediately moved toward the small kitchen area, flicking on the coffee pot. It was already set up, so all he had to do was push a button to get the dark liquid brewing. His cell phone rang as he was turning over one of the cups. Darius looked down, sighing before hitting a button and speaking into the small device. He paced away from her. Alannah assumed he did it to have some privacy. While watching him pacing, Alannah figured she had time. It looked like he was in for the evening, so she could surely convince him the best course of action was for him to stay and finish his business, and for her to head to the States, to Cam.“I have to go out,” Darius said after finishing the phone conversation, startling Alannah with the irritation in his
He saw the flush start in her neck as her mouth gaped open in shock at his boldness. He turned away and spit in the sink. It was better if she was mad. Let her stomp off and throw a tantrum, because honor, or not, he was a full-blooded man, and her standing there with her breasts heaving, and her eyes on fire was working him up all over again. What he really wanted to do was forget about his night and simply throw Alannah on his bed, which happened to be only a short distance behind her. He felt himself rising underneath his towel and cursed as he bent down and took some water in his mouth to rinse.“Oh, God! This is so… Don’t you dare ignore my logical request, Darius King! I’m sure you heard every single word I just said to you! I want to go home!” Darius slowly turned, surprised at her
Darius rode the elevator back to the top floor. On one hand, he hoped Alannah had gone to bed, giving both of them a chance to cool off, think first before they did something impulsive. On the other hand, he wanted her awake, standing by the front door while holding out a glass of wine and a seductive expression on her face. Dionne hadn’t been happy about being dumped, not even a little. The first ten minutes of their encounter had consisted of him telling her why it wasn’t ever going to work. The next hour had been torture listening to her rant about what a jerk he was. If he hadn’t been feeling so guilty about his ever-growing desire for Alannah, he would’ve never allowed Dionne to vent that long. He would’ve coolly gotten to his feet and walked out the door. 
Her eyes moved down his now completely naked torso and widened at the sight of his huge erection. Her look made him throb, need burning through him. Darius watched as her small fingers clenched at her sides, as if she was fighting the desire to reach out and touch him. Darius wanted those fingers clenched around his most sensitive manhood, wanted it more than he’d ever wanted anything. He needed the pleasure her grip would bring him.“Do you like what you see, darling? A few words and the hunger burning through you will be sated… over and over again… all night long,” Darius promised as he moved up to her again. His body was twisting so his arousal was touching her hip, close to where her hand was clenched. She moaned again as his naked body came in contact with her, th
“You have one week, baby...”“What?” Alannah mumbled as she woke up and stretched her sore muscles. She felt aches in places she didn’t know possible to feel pain. She’d lost track of the number of times Darius had woken her during the night with his hands sliding over her body. They made love once more in the night, though after that he’d continued to use his hands and mouth to do things to her she hadn’t known were possible. A shudder racked her as Alannah remembered her last orgasm. She’d literally blacked out afterward. The man knew his way around a woman's body.“I called the board and told them everything’s on hold for one week so I can take you exploring,” Darius replied. Alannah looked at him in awe. Was thi
Alannah looked up into Darius’s intense face, his features so familiar, so stunningly handsome. He was wearing his tux, looking even better than she remembered. Her breath hitched as her body reacted. She felt herself wanting to fall into his arms and stay there for eternity. Without giving her a chance to refuse him, Darius pulled her into his arms and started moving in a slow circle, his hands positioned on her hips, his fingers caressing the sensitive dent of her back. Goosebumps appeared on her skin as his breath whispered across her face and he looked into her eyes, his own filled with intensity. The room faded away until it became just the two of them, the sound of the music guiding them along. When he started singing the words of the song while still loo
“I’m sorry, Mom, but you let me down. You lied to me my entire life, preventing me from having a family who loves me, and you almost cost me everything. You did cost me years… many years of happiness. You used your hands as punishment, you cut me down, and still, I loved you. I tried my best to honor you. What I’ve come to realize in the last three months, is that you didn’t deserve my honor or respect. I won’t come back here again. What you did to me was unforgivable. I hope you’ve found happiness wherever you are… I truly do, but I’m done with your burdens.” Darius stood over Charlotte King’s grave, a solitary flower in his hand. He’d come to say goodbye. For the last three months, he’d slowly gotten to know the men he’d vowed to harm, the cousins he’d thought were so evil.&
Cam choked on her final words as tears welled in her eyes. Darius was horrified. She told him the truth… Alannah was really in love with him… But she couldn’t be, because she never would’ve betrayed him if she was.“Where is she, Camryn?”“You don’t need to go there and upset her all over again. I swear if you hurt her again, Darius, you’ll have to deal with me!” Cam threatened. Darius looked at the petite girl before him, not standing more than a couple of inches over five feet, weighing less than half of him, and he realized she actually thought she could harm him. The thought was so absurd it made him smile, which was apparently the wrong move on his part. He jumped when the heel of her shoe slammed down on his foot.&ldqu
“I poured my soul to him and he just… left. He abandoned me after I told him I loved him…” Alannah said, her voice quiet, her body almost numb. “After everything that happened to me, I thought loving Darius was a gift, the most beautiful experience of my life. Why does it hurt so bad? Why I can’t shake this sadness away? Why do people choose to do this over and over again? I don’t understand how they can bare it…” She hadn’t seen Darius in two weeks. The first week she’d cried so much she thought she might die of a broken heart. Her face was all puffy and her eyes were red. Finally, the tears had stopped and a deep sense of numbness had set in, thankfully. She didn’t smile, didn’t cry, she just sort of existed.“Oh, sweetie… I promise it will get better, Lanah… I know this answer sucks, but just give it some time. H
Darius’s eyes scanned the crowd for the twentieth time in twenty minutes. He hadn’t seen Alannah since she’d been looking over the auction items, and he was getting ready to seek her out. He knew he didn’t have to be with her twenty-four-seven, but he was concerned her father may have snuck back in. He didn’t trust Edwin Miles… not one single iota. There was strong security present, but still, Darius felt better having her in his sights. Darius excused himself from the conversation, then turned around only to find Paul and Martin Jackson approaching him. Years of pure, unadulterated hatred brewed instantly to life as he eyed the men walking so casually toward him. His heart started to pound pretty hard. He too
He was beyond stunning… Darius was absolutely mouthwatering in his tux which fit him to perfection. She couldn’t take her eyes off the man as he stopped and chatted with various people at the fundraiser. As she gazed at him, Alannah knew she was in love… hopelessly, infectiously in love with him. She could tell Darius was starting to feel the same way about her. Alannah didn’t know how it had happened, but she’d been living with him for about a month, ever since that first night in his home. He’d changed. He hadn’t brought up his vendetta against the Jacksons. Alannah found the man she’d met who’d been seeking revenge, and the man making love to her every night were two completely different people. For the past month, Darius had put Alannah to wo
“What do you want to know?” Darius finally asked as he sat next to her and grabbed a cracker and a slice of cheese.“Everything.”“That’s a little vague, Alannah.”“You’re avoiding the subject, Darius. You expect me to turn on my best friend, the only person who’s always been good to me, and you’re not willing to give me any details. I hate to tell you this, but you must not have any friends if you think I’d do that,” Alannah countered, refusing to break their eye contact. Instead of anger, he gave a sheepish smile. The almost unguarded expression on his face sent her heart into overdrive. Wow, he was stunning when he didn’t look so angry.“Actually, I do have one friend… My best friend since… well, since I was a kid. Brit is my best friend and she’d have my hide if she knew anything ab
‘You are such a slut… I was always right about you, Alannah. You’re just like mother.’ She was on the ground… And the pain was excruciating… She was feeling the life leaving her body… she was feeling so drained.‘You allow this man to screw you… and to dispose of you like the trash you are,’ her father continued and kicked her in the gut a couple of times.‘Stop… Father… stop…’ she whispered and tried to push him away so that she could pull herself up from the dirty, bloody ground. ‘I love him… I love Darius… And he’s going to come for me… You’ll see…’‘He took what you gave him and he moved on! He’s never wanted to keep you in his life. You are a filthy whore and he has no use from you anymore. Neither
Darius pulled back as he tried to regain control over his body. He was frustrated. He’d just told her everything of his past, something he’d never shared. He was angry at his mother, his relatives…He told her about the pain he’d gone through. He didn’t know any other way to reign in the pain other than by taking control. He had to get control, needed it more than he needed the air in his lungs. He had to push away the vulnerability. As Darius pushed Alannah, he noticed the flush to her skin, that her eyes were dilated. She wanted him and he had to take her, had to push away the past. As he focused on desire, he was able to push the ill feelings away, forget about the Jacksons and his revenge. Everything in him pushed him to move forward, claim her as his own and ease the pain inside.