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to the main event. He pushed me onto the bed, dragging my jeans and panties down, then
cursing when everything got tangled around my sneakers. He cursed some more as he
pried the sneakers off and successfully freed my legs from the bundle of clothing.
Brian was usually a slow and gentle lover, loving the foreplay and the buildup as much
or even more than the climax itself. Tonight, he was too desperate, too needy. But then,
so was I. He fell on top of me, using his knee to shove my legs apart. We hadn t even
managed to get all the way onto the bed, my legs dangling over the edge as he thrust
home in one powerful, almost angry stroke. I wrapped my legs around him and tried to
pull his head down for a kiss, but he pinned my wrists to the bed beside my head.
It was on the tip of my tongue to protest this sudden show of dominance. I wanted to
touch him, wanted to feel the quivering of his muscles and the frantic beat of his pulse as
he took me. And yet, once he started to move, the protest turned into a protracted groan
of pleasure.
He thrust into me with such force I felt the bed moving beneath us. Sweat beaded his
face, and his breath came in loud gasps. His hands squeezed my wrists brutally, holding
me still so he could pound into me as hard as he wanted. My fingers curled into fists,
nails biting into my palms, as I tried to control the flood of sensation that threatened to
overwhelm me.
I didn t want to like this. Brian was being so rough with me I d be bruised and sore
when this was over. Probably what he was doing should be hurting me even now, but
endorphins or adrenaline or just plain desperation had me feeling no pain. The pressure
on my wrists, the sensation of being pinned down, should have angered me. There was no
give-and-take to this lovemaking. And yet my body sang with the pleasure of it, my back
arching, my heels digging into his ass, my mouth open on a silent scream.
Then the climax hit me, and the scream was no longer silent. The sound that escaped
me was raw, and urgent, and so loud they might have heard me in the next building. My
cry triggered Brian s release, and he pounded into me even harder, if that was possible.
When it was over, he went limp on top of me, his hands releasing their death grip on
my wrists as his forehead dropped to touch mine. We were both gasping for breath, both
drenched in sweat. I barely had the strength for it, but I wrapped my arms around him and
held him to me, my hands stroking the sweat-slicked skin of his back.
As the sweat cooled, I became aware of a burning sensation between my legs and a
fierce ache in both my wrists. Apparently, the adrenaline had worn off, but despite the
discomfort, I couldn t regret what we d done. Brian might not have been the sweet,
sensitive lover I d come to expect, but he was still the man I loved.
Still panting, he slipped out of me, then slid his arms under me and scooted me all the
way onto the bed, climbing on after me and wrapping me in his arms. Our legs twined,
and he tucked my head under his chin, my ear pressed against his chest so I could hear
the pounding of his heart.
We didn t speak, instead lying quietly in each other s arms as we caught our breath. I
closed my eyes and inhaled the musky, familiar scent of him, the scent I d missed so
desperately in the days since I d turned him away. And I knew I was lost.
It didn t matter what danger being with me put Brian in, and it didn t matter that I was
handing him the power to crush my heart. I couldn t keep pushing him away. I needed
him too badly, needed to be with the man who loved me just the way I was, even if I
wasn t sure that love could stand the test of time.
I raised my head to say something appropriately mushy, but before I opened my
mouth, the phone rang. Brian and I grimaced at the same time.
They can leave a message, he said, stroking my still-sweaty cheek with one hand.
I was severely tempted to ignore the goddamn phone. There was so much I still had to
say to Brian, and I had to say it now or I might chicken out. But as Lugh had pointed out
on more than one occasion, there was much more at stake here than my own life and
happiness. I sat up with an unhappy moan, wincing slightly at the soreness between my
legs. With all the drama surrounding my life, I have to at least see who it is.
I felt his eyes on me as I reached for the phone and checked the caller ID. It was the
front desk, which usually meant a visitor or a package. It was too late for a package.
I picked up the phone, then practically dropped it when Mr. Watkins, the front desk
clerk, told me my father wanted to come up. My brain did a few jumping jacks as I tried
to figure out (1) what the likelihood was that this was really my father, and (2) what the
hell he could want to see me about if it was.
Mr. Watkins waited patiently while I thought about it for what felt like five minutes.
Ms. Kingsley? he finally prompted when my hesitation lasted too long.
If my father really had come out of hiding to talk to me, then I supposed I had no
choice but to see him. Maybe the Spirit Society had sent him on Dougal s behalf to try to
pry information out of me. Then again, maybe Cooper had called and told him what I
now knew about my past, and my father had come to try to make amends. Hey, it made a
nice fantasy! Send him up.
Brian looked at me reprovingly as I slipped out of bed.
I gave him an apologetic smile as I pulled my jeans back on. It s my father. I have to
talk to him. There was so much I needed to say, but the thought of beating the crap out
of him for what he d allowed the Society to do to me was more tempting than I wanted to
admit. I ll try to make it quick. I dragged my shirt on over my head, not bothering with
the bra. Wait for me, I said, then bent to give Brian a quick kiss.
But he got up and reached for his clothes. I ll wait, he assured me before I could
protest. I m just not going to wait naked in bed with your father in the next room.
I laughed briefly, until I caught another glimpse of the stun gun clipped to his belt.
When did you get that? I asked with a jerk of my chin.
This morning. I was feeling a little skittish after everything that s happened.
I frowned. I didn t like the idea of Brian carrying a weapon. Yeah, I wanted him to
have some defense in the event of a demon attack, but it seemed like another step down a
path I wished I could keep him from walking. I glanced at the bruises that were forming
around my wrists and realized he might already be farther down that path than I liked to
admit.
My doorbell rang, and though I wanted to stay here with Brian, to talk to him and to
work things out, I knew now was not the time. Leaving him to finish getting dressed, I
slipped out into the living room as the bell rang a second time. I hesitated before I
answered the door. My father had conspired with the Society and with Lugh s brothers to
have me possessed by a demon against my will. He d drugged me so he could take me to
the hospital, then apparently left me to Cooper and Neely s mercy without a second
thought. Had he known what those bastards had been planning to do to me? Had he
condoned them torturing me?
My mind rebelled at the thought. No matter that he wasn t my biological father, no
matter that we d never gotten along, he had still raised me since I was a baby. My mind
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