Page 32 of Triple the Secrets
“I don’t know you,” she snapped. “ I don’t know why the hell you’ve gotten this obsession with following me, but you need to stop. It’s freaking me the fuck out, and obviously it’s messing with the girls if they’re doing dangerous stuff like that. What if it wasn’t you outside? Someone could have taken them, or hurt them. They know better.” Just the thought was enough to send her into a panic. What if one of the traffickers were around? If they got ahold of the girls again, she would never forgive herself.
“Stop,” Rogue said abruptly, stepping forward and gripping her by her upper arms. She looked up at him, startled. “Whatever scenario is going through your head right now, stop it,” he ordered, staring into her eyes. “The girls are fine, and no one would get close to them. I might be an asshole, but I will never allow a woman or children to be hurt.”
She knew that. Deep down, she did. Some people you just knew, and even if she didn’t know him well, or trust him for much else, her gut told her he was telling the truth on that front. She stared into his arctic eyes and felt herself slowly calm down. It was like he was grounding her, giving her silent help she didn’t know she needed. Slowly, she nodded. “Okay, I know you wouldn’t,” she finally said softly.
He held her gaze another few seconds before he nodded, dropped his hold, and stepped away. She could still feel the imprint of his hands and the heat they left behind. He looked towards the kitchen for a moment, and she could see him struggling with what else to say before he finally turned his head back towards her. She nearly gasped at the intensity in his eyes. It was like a physical punch to her system, and everything in her reacted.
Her stomach tightened reflexively, and her tongue touched her lower lip nervously. His eyes followed the movement and the heat in them spread through her. “Fuck,” he hissed through clenched teeth, tearing his gaze away from her. “I need to say what I need to say, and leave before I forget why I’m here. You’re tempting me, and I can only take so much.”
She blinked at him. “What?” she whispered.
“Don’t act like some scared little virgin, Scarlett,” he growled at her, irritation replacing some of the heat in his eyes. “You and I both know what I’m talking about here. You think I don’t remember how you felt pressed against me in the shop? Or the way you watched me with so much hunger that it’s all I can see when I close my eyes at night? Knowing that if I did it again right now, you’d give me everything I wanted until I completely owned you? I’d own that mouth, that pussy, and that ass in every way possible, until neither of us could ever tell where we started or began.”
Her mouth dropped open in shock at his words. No man had ever spoken so crudely to her before. She should be disgusted, but instead, the desire she was trying so hard to deny reared its head inside her, the darkness melding with it at the thought of what he was saying. He wanted to control her, to make her submit to him. She needed to pump the brakes, set him straight, but all she could whisper was, “Rogue.”
He groaned, shut his eyes, and then stepped back away from her a few feet before he opened his eyes again. “No, we’re going to talk, and then you’re going to kick my ass out, got it?”
Some small semblance of control worked its way through the haze, and she slowly nodded at him. “Fine. Do you want a drink?”
“No,” he said curtly. He watched her as she made her way to the kitchen and picked up her glass of wine, downing a healthy gulp before she set it down and looked at him. They had a small island between them, but it was enough for her to get some space and much needed clarity. The man was far too potent for her own good, and it was imperative she remember her resolve. She could deal with her re-energized sex drive later.
“Alright,” she said briskly, “what do you need to talk to me about? Or is this your way of confessing that you’re seeking help for your stalking tendencies?”
He huffed out a sigh. “Now I see where the girls get their smartass from,” he grumbled.
She smirked. “Trust me, they learned that all on their own, but I certainly have no problem helping them expand it.” Then she frowned as a thought occurred to her. “Wait, just how long were they out there talking to you?”
“A while,” he sighed. “They’re damn stubborn when they dig their heels in. Gave them my number in case they ever got in trouble and couldn’t reach you, but they spend more time sending me stupid shit than anything else.”
She wasn’t sure how she felt about them having his number. “Rogue,” she said slowly.
He glared at her. “Don’t start. Them having my number is for emergencies only. They all but told me they would not stop bugging me, and I might as well make sure I’m available if they need help. I might not know what’s got you all running, but I know that whatever it is, it’s not something I want to leave to chance.”
“See, I don’t get that,” she sighed in frustration. “You don’t know us, Rogue. You and I have talked a handful of times, and we know shit all about each other. I know you’re a mechanic, ride your bike, and belong to a motorcycle club. Oh, and that you have stalker-ish tendencies when you set your mind to it. Where in there did you get the bright idea that it meant you could try to work your way into my life? You’re not dating me—”
“Bikers don’t date,” he interrupted.
She narrowed her eyes at him. “Maybe not you, but I’m sure some do,” she sniffed. “Anyway, we’re not dating, sleeping together, or even friends. So, please explain to me why you think it’s okay for you to interfere in my life? To follow me around and watch over me? No one just does that. So you either want something, or you’re getting your rocks off by acting crazy. Which is it?”
He stepped towards her, braced his hands on the counter and leaned forward enough that there was no missing the intense heat, or anger, in his eyes. She forced herself to hold his stare and not back away. “You would know all this if you fucking told me the truth,” he snapped, tone bordering on harsh. “You think I want to sit out there night after night and play scenarios through my damn head?”
“Then stop!” she screamed at him, so fed up. “I don’t need your protection. I don’t want it. I am not your concern. I don’t even know why you are here.”
“I don’t fucking know!” he yelled back, shoving away from the counter and pacing. His entire body was wound so tight that she was surprised he didn’t just explode with each step. “You think I want to be this wound up in a broad?” he snarled. “Women are nothing but a headache. A distraction. I don’t give a shit about them. They’re useful for only a few things to me and yet here I am. It’s like you’ve burrowed under my damn skin and I can’t get you out, no matter how hard I try. I hate it,” he hissed.
His words were like physical blows, and she could see he meant every word. She wasn’t sure why, but that almost hurt worse than if he had actually slapped her. God, she really needed to get him out of here and out of her life. He was doing things to her that she couldn’t stand. “Then stop,” she hissed with every ounce of venom she could summon. “I never asked get under your skin. I haven’t done shit to you, and I’m not about to play more of your fucking mind games. So get the hell out and leave me alone. Just pretend I don’t exist.”
“You think I haven’t tried?” he snapped. “That I wouldn’t rather go back to the damn clubhouse, grab one of the club whores, and fuck you out of my system?” He stalked towards her, like a predator getting ready to chase down his prey. She didn’t move, because she had a feeling that if she did, he’d be on her in seconds.
“No one is stopping you,” she said coldly.
“Oh but you are,” he told her as he stopped directly in front of her, caging her in with his hands on either side of her on the counter. She could feel his anger, his heat, and his desire, pouring off of him in waves. She stared up at him, eyes widening slightly at the sight of the wild glint in his. “And you don’t even realize what beast you’ve woken,” he rumbled down at her.
No, she didn’t, but she had a feeling she was about to find out.
CHAPTERFIFTEEN
ROGUE
