The House of Rule 2 Rule's Property Lynda Chance

Rule's Property

Lynda Chance

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When Courtney Powell is orphaned at seventeen, she loses everything: her parents, her

friends, the basic security she's always known. Drowning under debilitating sorrow, she moves to

St. Louis to live with her widowed godmother. From the beginning, the woman's grown children

accept her into their family . . . but there's something about the middle brother that causes an

inexplicable wariness within her. Time goes by as Courtney struggles to overcome her grief. When

she finally emerges some years later, it becomes apparent that somewhere along the way, without

her input and much to her anxiety, she's become Nick Rule's exclusive property.

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Rule's Property

express written permission of the author or publisher except for the use of brief quotations in critical articles or reviews.

This is a work of fiction. Names, places, businesses, characters and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or

are used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, actual events or locales is purely coincidental.

****

For my mother and the many gifts she gave me, both tangible and intangible . . . and for the

man from St. Louis she fell in love with.

****

Table of Contents

Prologue

Six years before

Closing her eyes, Courtney leaned back in the bathtub and searched for a single hint of

happiness. When she came up with nothing, she opened her eyes with a sigh of defeat. Picking up a
handful of bubbles, she let them slowly sift through her fingers.

An eighteenth birthday was supposed to be fun, exciting, happy.
For her, the day held none of those things. Since she'd moved into the Rule household the year

before, her only goal had been to keep breathing. It wasn't as if she was suicidal, because she wasn't.
All she wanted was for time to pass so that the grief in her heart would begin to fade.

She didn't care if her life was boring. Her heart was so full of anguish that it didn't matter to her

that she had no close friends nearby. Her sole purpose in life was to keep living, moving forward,
day by miserable day. In her heart, she realized that she was doing little more than existing, not truly
living her life. Still, the tiniest glimmer of hope remained that one day, she'd be able to finally want to
live again, that she'd find love and happiness, that finally, she'd no longer be so alone.

She inhaled deeply and held the air in her lungs. Closing her eyes, she sank underneath the water

and began to count. How long could she hold her breath? Did it even matter? When exactly would her
life get better? When would the pain lessen and the shock begin to recede?

Losing one's parents at such an early age couldn't be anything less than devastating, but surely

after almost a full year, things should have begun to look better? Of course, she knew it wasn't that
simple. She hadn't only lost her parents; she'd been separated from her friends as well, because the

Rules lived in St. Louis, far, far away from her home state of Florida. And she'd had no choice but to
leave Florida; she had no one else and nowhere to go. Neither of her parents had had siblings, and
Courtney had been born so late in their lives that her grandparents were gone as well. She'd been left
with no relatives at all . . . no siblings, no aunts, no uncles, no cousins . . . nothing.

She surged to the top of the water and sat up, taking a deep breath, forcing oxygen into her

starved lungs.

Everyone here had been so nice to her. Mrs. Rule had been her mother's best friend, as well as

Courtney's godmother, and after the accident, she'd taken Courtney in without so much as a blink.
"You mustn't ever call me Mrs. Rule, darling. This is your home now and it always will be. My
family is your family now, I want you to know that."

"What should I call you?" Courtney remembered asking through a haze of pain.
A look of extreme sympathy had touched the older woman's features as she'd wrapped her arms

around Courtney. "I'd offer to let you call me mother, but we both know Jenny was your mother and I
can't ever take her place, nor would I want to. Do you want to call me Justine?"

"Okay."
"Even though she was a few years older than me, your mom was my best friend." The older

woman had swallowed, as if trying to contain her own pain, looking as if it took everything she had
not to cry. She'd cleared her throat and continued quietly, "I loved her like a sister. We'll mourn her
and remember her together, shall we?"

Courtney knew it hadn't been as easy on her godmother as the woman had let on; her own

husband had died suddenly of a heart attack, only six months before, and Courtney knew that he'd been
the love of Justine's life. Courtney tried not to think of herself as a therapeutic pet project for her new
guardian, because that wasn't fair to Justine, but sometimes, that's how she felt.

All of Justine's children had already been grown and out of the house when Courtney came to

live with her. All three of her sons, as well as her youngest, Erin, who was only a little over a year
older than Courtney, but who'd already left for college by the time Courtney came to St. Louis. She
visited a lot on the weekends and was nice to Courtney when she saw her. It was as if the other girl
was glad someone was at home with Justine, so she didn't have to feel guilty for leaving and going
away to college when her mother was still mourning the loss of her husband so intensely.

Courtney admitted that Erin was sweet; every time she saw her, the other girl would try to put

her at ease and make her feel as if she'd actually joined their family. Erin teasingly called her 'little
sister', as if they shared a deeper connection than they really did.

Erin's brothers were older and Courtney rarely saw them. They ran the family business together,

not that they'd had much choice in the matter, not from what she could tell. When their father had died
so unexpectedly, they'd accepted responsibility for the corporation, and subsequently, they worked so
hard that they were little more than strangers to Courtney. Especially Damian, the oldest. The brunt of
the responsibility had landed on his shoulders, and Courtney could count on one hand how many times
she'd met him. He either visited his mother when Courtney was at her new school, or he didn't come
at all, she didn't know which. And she didn't know the youngest brother, Garrett, any better. He was
out of state attending graduate school, evidently being groomed by his older brothers for a corporate
position within the company.

And then there was Nick, the middle brother. Her nerves shifted restlessly when she thought of

him. She supposed she knew him best because, like Damian, he lived here in St. Louis. But now, at
only twenty-four, he was still young enough that his mother worried about his welfare. Justine had
taken Courtney several times to his apartment to drop off hot meals or groceries; making sure he was

well fed seemed to ease his mother's mind.

No, Courtney didn't know any of the Rule siblings very well. But they would all be here tonight

for her birthday supper. Justine had invited so many people, but they were all older, all of them
adults, mostly in their late thirties and forties.

Courtney thought it was a sad reflection on her life that she didn't have a solitary friend of her

own to share the day with. It was sad, really sad, and unfortunately, it didn't seem to be getting any
better.

She took a deep breath and slipped under the water again.

****

Courtney let herself cry for an hour that evening before washing away the tears and putting on

her make-up. Missing her parents was always there, like an open wound in her heart that wouldn't
heal. But on her eighteenth birthday, she felt their loss even more intensely.

Knowing she was early but tired of being cooped up in her bedroom, she walked downstairs in

the new dress her godmother had insisted she buy. If there was one thing Courtney knew to be true
about Justine, it was that the older woman had a sense of style. It was reflected everywhere: in the
clothes both she and Courtney wore, and in the home she'd created for her family.

When Courtney saw herself in the mirror wearing the dress for the first time, there'd been little

doubt in her mind that she'd left childhood behind. Whether she was ready for it or not, she'd attained
her eighteenth birthday, and with it, her status as an adult.

Unfortunately, she found little joy in the transition.
She wandered around downstairs for a few minutes, but she was early for her birthday party, as

she'd known she would be, and the only people she found were the caterers and the housekeeper.
Forcing animation to her face and a smile to her lips, she thanked them as she looked at all the work
they were doing. Leaving the kitchen, she strolled over to the French doors and looked out at the
swimming pool, the lights glistening in the dark and sparkling off the water in a shimmery reflection.
As she stood staring out, a new knot of anguish settled in her stomach as a familiar, lonely ache
washed over her.

As a child growing up, her family hadn't had the same kind of lifestyle the Rules enjoyed. They'd

never had a swimming pool in their backyard, but her parents had taken her to a water park every year
in the summer; Florida was full of them. As the memories washed over her, a bittersweet smile
crossed her features and a tear rolled down her cheek.

She brushed it away and took a sustaining breath and forced her grief to stay below the surface.

She couldn't cry again. She only ever let herself cry upstairs in 'her' bedroom, where no one would
know the true depths of her misery.

Why tell this wonderful family that she wasn't getting any better? It wasn't as if they could do

anything about it. They had their own problems; they were dealing with their own sorrows with the
death of Mr. Rule, not to mention the complexities of the business dealings he'd left behind. Courtney
especially knew that she couldn't burden Justine. Some days, the poor woman looked as if she was
barely holding it together. She took a shuddering breath as another tear escaped to trail down her
cheek.

She stiffened her shoulders, refusing to give in to her remorse, and decided to go back up to her

room to wait. She turned away from the doors but came to an immediately halt, what she saw making
her gasp. Nick Rule stood not four feet away, contemplating her in brooding silence.

The oxygen stalled in her throat and she dashed her hands up, trying to wipe away the evidence

of her sorrow.

He studied her silently, his brows coming together in a grimace as he undoubtedly saw the tears

on her face that she hadn't been able to contain. Standing completely still, Courtney bit her lip and
then tried for a smile. It came out rather shaky, and she knew she'd failed miserably. Embarrassed, her
gaze left his, as she looked down at the floor, oblivious to his eyes sweeping down her body and then
up again.

As she continued to stare at the carpet, his voice came out gruffly, "You all right?"
At the unexpected sympathy she heard in his voice, she closed her eyes in despair and was

unable to keep her face from crumpling. As the tears rolled down her cheeks, she answered his
question by shaking her head, but then appalled that she was being a burden, she changed direction,
nodding her head instead.

He let out a rough laugh that held no humor and even with her eyes closed, she knew he came to

stand directly in front of her. He tipped her chin up with a single gentle finger and her eyes flew open
to stare into his. His thumb caressed her cheekbone and she was hit with a strange feeling in her
stomach that she'd never felt before . . . but there was little doubt in her mind that it had something
to do with his overt masculinity. "It's rough, isn't it?" he asked in a gravelly voice.

She nodded her head as the tears continued to run silently down her cheeks.
With one hand cradling her jaw, his other came up and almost absently, he picked up a tress of

her blonde hair. "You have every right to cry, sweetheart. Every right in the world," he said more
softly. His thumb continued to stroke her cheek in a gentle, soothing action as her eyes held his. "I
understand what you're going through . . . at least, somewhat."

She listened in silence, letting his tender touch and soothing, warm words flow through her and

comfort her.

"Losing my dad was bad," he said, letting out a tortured breath of air. "But I was older than you,

and it was only the one parent." His lips flattened sadly and Courtney clung to his warm, brown eyes
as he continued, "I've tried to imagine what it must be like to be in your shoes, but honestly, I can't."
The words were compassionate, warm, and they soothed her as well as sent a raw shiver down her
spine. Mostly, they made her remember what she'd lost and a fresh batch of tears spilled over.

Her eyes closed again but he tipped her chin up in a bid for her to look at him. And she did; she

opened her lids and stared into his dark, impassioned eyes as he began to speak again. "You're strong,
sweetheart. I've never met anyone stronger. When I think about what you endured--" He took a breath.
"Being thrown into this household, knowing we were still in our own kind of shock . . . making sure
you never asked for help . . . never expecting or needing attention. Don't think I haven't noticed the
strength and maturity that took. Losing both of your parents at seventeen, being ripped away from your
home and your friends--"

Sharp misery pierced her at the reminders. "Stop," she choked out and then looked back down in

both anguish and embarrassment.

"Fuck--"
At the harsh expletive, her eyes flew back to his in shock, the word and the tone so out of sync

with the way he'd behaved during the last few moments.

There was a look of bitter recrimination on his features. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm trying to

make it better, but I--"

Abruptly, Courtney reached up and put her fingers to his lips, pressing lightly against them to

stop the flow of words. He owed her no apology.

His eyes sharpened and then narrowed. He hissed in a hot breath that she felt through her

fingertips. The hand on her cheek tightened while his fingers in her hair grasped her more firmly as
she felt the pull on her scalp.

His lips felt warm and firm against her touch and startled at the intimacy, she sucked in a breath.

At her reaction, he stilled completely and Courtney felt a tension overtake his muscles, as they
seemed to stiffen.

Not quite believing she'd had the audacity to touch his lips, she snatched her hand away in horror

and hid it behind her back, unconsciously balling her fingers, not wanting to let his warmth slip away.

Wiping away her tears with her other hand, she looked down again and waited for him to speak.
She was aware that he was breathing deeply, almost as if winded, but after a moment, he seemed

to calm down.

He put his hand in his pocket and pulled out a small box. "I have something for you."
She lifted her head in surprise. "A birthday present?"
He shrugged his shoulders. "I guess you can call it that. But I want you to open it now, before

everyone gets here, will you do that for me?"

She nodded her head as an old, remembered ritual came back to her and by rote, she shut her

eyes, and lifted her hands, palms up, one cradling the other.

She stood silently, waiting for his gift, until finally, he cleared his throat. "What are you doing?"

he asked gently, his tone puzzled.

Her eyes flew open as waves of embarrassment and another rush of sorrow slid through her.

Quickly, she pulled her hands down to her sides. She wasn't getting anything right today. "Nothing,
I'm sorry." To her horror, her eyes washed with tears yet again, and she mumbled in confession, "I'm
having a bad day."

"Sweetheart." He leaned in and very briefly, kissed her forehead. "Tell me why you did that

thing with your hands. I know it must have meant something."

At his abbreviated kiss and the term of endearment, she again felt a hot rush of butterflies in her

stomach. Well, he was older and handsome and of course she might have a crush on him. That was
normal, wasn't it? She decided not to think about it and instead, gave him the answer to his question,
no matter how juvenile it sounded. "Before my parents gave me a present, my mom would say, 'shut
your eyes and hold out your hands.'" She took a harsh, shuddering breath at the bittersweet memory,
admitting, "And I miss that."

At her explanation, Nick's arms wrapped around her and he held her close against the heat of his

body. His hands ran up and down her spine in a soothing, consoling caress as she stood still in his
embrace, breathing in his scent, and taking the comfort he was offering. His body was big and strong
and warm and she laid her head on his chest and let his solid, reassuring masculinity seep into her
soul. He rocked her, to and fro, while murmuring soothing sounds in her ear. He held her for long
moments while her tears dried up and then he leaned down and whispered, "Shut your eyes and hold
out your hands."

At the words, Courtney felt a wash of comfort and nostalgia, as well as a hot rush of tenderness

for what he'd done and she smiled. Lifting up, she whispered, "Thank you."

He inclined his head and lifted a tiny box, holding it in the air between them and waited for her

to comply with his request. She continued to smile as she shut her eyes. Very carefully, she held up
her hands again. Within seconds, the box was placed in her palms and she opened her eyes and stared

down at it. "What is it?"

"Open it," he said gently.
Anticipation rushed through her and she recognized that it was the first time she'd experienced

the feeling in over a year. She pushed the lid up and the box snapped open. Inside, she found a small
silver heart decorated with three different colored gemstones suspended by a delicate chain. She
studied it and then looked up at him in question.

He was watching her intently and she frowned in confusion and looked back down at the charm.
Not waiting any longer, he took the box from her trembling fingers and removed the charm and

chain, dropping the box to a side table. He held the piece of jewelry out so she could see it better.

"It's pretty," she whispered.
"Do you like it?" he asked.
She nodded her head and reached out a finger to touch the gift as if expecting that both it and the

moment might disappear into thin air.

"Do you know what it is?" Nick asked in his deep voice.
Something was tickling her brain, but he was standing so close that she couldn't get her faculties

to function correctly. She shook her head.

"They're birthstones."
Her eyes flew up to his, a flutter going off in her heart.
"Yours, your mom's, and your dad's," he elaborated. "I had it made."
Pleasure and pain rushed together and landed in her stomach. Their birthstones! Something she

could always wear that would keep her family unit intact, at least within her heart. A tiny feeling of
belonging again settled in her midsection. The charm was so perfect that she couldn't wait to wear it.
But she also couldn't wrap her mind around the fact that Nick would do something so special for her.
She needed to thank him. She cleared her throat and slowly, licked her lips. "Nick--" she began, but
stopped abruptly when he took a sudden, harsh intake of air.

She glanced up and found his gaze frozen on her lips. His jaw clenched and his neck corded with

something akin to tension. Slowly, almost as if they were forced to, his eyes left her mouth and lifted
to hers. A strange feeling filled the air during the loud silence that pulsed between them.

Finally, Courtney couldn't stand the friction any longer and she again looked at the tiny piece of

jewelry that he continued to hold tightly between his fingers. "May I have it, please?"

He cleared his throat, seemed to shake himself, and put the heart in her upturned palm. Through

the strange emotions roiling in her belly, she forced a smile and tried to latch the chain behind her
neck. She struggled with it awkwardly, and when she sighed with frustration, he pushed her hands
away and twirled her around.

He lifted her hair from her neck, laying it over one shoulder. Clipping the necklace into place, he

quickly spun her back around again, his hands going to her shoulders. She glanced down and picked
up the charm where it lay nestled on her chest. "I love it," she said through a smile and lifted her eyes
to his with pleasure.

With no warning of the storm to come, Nick's head dropped. His lips landed on hers and the first

thing Courtney noticed was a roaring in her ears. She'd been kissed only once before, at sixteen, and it
had been quick and messy.

This was different.
Nick took full control. His lips were hot and firm, sliding over hers slowly, back and forth, in a

caress that held her spellbound. Unconsciously, she dropped the charm and lifted her hands to his
shoulders to find traction in a world suddenly careening out of control.

At her action, one arm came around her waist and he pulled her in closer, while he settled his

hand at the back of her head, moving her forward and holding her in place. When her torso hit his, she
gasped, her lips parting. He took unhesitating advantage, his tongue sliding inside and entwining with
hers.

Instantaneous bottle rockets went off in her head.
His taste and scent instantly swamped her and her world immediately narrowed to this room and

his embrace. As he continued to kiss her, a warm, sweet ache began to build in her bloodstream.
When his tongue swirled around hers, as if asking for more, she hesitatingly gave him what he seemed
to want. She pushed her tongue toward his and tentatively, joined the kiss.

His arm clenched more tightly, his frame became like steel, his kiss turned fierce. A groan

erupted from his chest and he lifted his mouth from hers just long enough to nip at her bottom lip
before going back for more. At his action, Courtney sucked in a breath and trembling, she pulled back,
sliding her hands from his shoulders to his chest, attempting to hold him at arm's length, so she could
study him.

His eyes snapped opened and they stared at each other, both drawing in oxygen as if they'd just

run a marathon.

Even through her confusion, Courtney immediately saw his expression change when he realized

what he'd done. The residual pleasure on his face dissolved and a tortured expression of horror and
disbelief etched across his features.

"It's okay," she whispered, trying to soothe away his look of anxiety.
"No, it's not," he fired back, but still, he didn't release her.
"It was an accident," she said softly.
He let out a hiss of air and shook his head in refutation. "An accident I've been thinking about for

weeks."

The blood drained from her face as her nerves took a jolt.
"Shit. I ought to be shot." Abruptly, he pulled away from her, releasing her completely, and

stepped back. He turned away, and just as quickly, turned back to face her. "I bet your Christian, all-
girls school education didn't prepare you for that, did it?" he asked with an anger that she somehow
knew was directed at himself and not at her.

She shook her head, not even considering lying to him.
He took another step away and she immediately felt bereft, almost desolate.
He studied her, so many different emotions crossing his face that Courtney didn't try to identify

any of them. After a moment, he let out a deep breath and ran his fingers through his hair, messing it
up completely. His look softened as he watched her. "Sweetheart, I'm sorry. Please don't let what just
happened scare you. It won't happen again. You're safe with me, I promise." He shook his head. "I
can't believe I was so careless."

"It's okay," she said again, reacting more to his tone of voice than his actual words.
"It's not okay. I'm a stupid shit." His jaw clenched. "I want you to forget it happened, okay?"
All Courtney was capable of doing was standing upright without falling over and watching him

while her brain continued to short-circuit.

"Okay?" he asked again, obviously wanting her compliance about something.
"Okay, what?" she asked, confused, her senses overloaded.
He gritted his teeth. "I want you to forget what just happened, can you do that for me?"
Forget his kiss? No way. Uh-uh. Not going to happen. "Okay," she lied in a whisper.
"Good." He cleared his throat and changed the subject. "So, you like your present?"

Remembering the charm, she nodded her head, picking it up again and rubbing it between her

fingers as pleasure from his gift permeated her shock and rushed through her system.

"Happy birthday," he said in a stiff tone.
"Thank you," she replied a bit awkwardly.
He watched her in silence for a moment too long, and then he let out a defeated sound. "I need a

drink." He walked to the sideboard and began mixing a cocktail.

A few seconds later, Courtney heard the front door open. After a moment, Erin flounced into the

room with a grin. She threw her brother a smile and then made a beeline for Courtney.

"Happy eighteenth birthday, little sister," she teased as she enveloped Courtney in a warm

embrace.

Hugging Erin, Courtney peeked over the girl's shoulder and saw Nick watching them with ill-

concealed irritation. Her nerves took another hit. Surely she wasn't reading his expression correctly;
his features reflected a maddened look of resentment. His legs were braced apart and his teeth were
clenched, as tension seemed to hold him in its grip.

As she continued to watch him over Erin's shoulder, his frown only intensified. He stared back

at her, holding her gaze captive. Watching her intently, locking her eyes with his, he lifted his glass
and threw back the liquor, swallowing it down in one shot.

Chapter One

Six years later

Nick glanced up with a scowl as Damian pushed into his office and tossed a folder on his desk.

Not appreciating the interruption, Nick threw his pen aside and rasped, "What the hell am I supposed
to do with that?"

Ignoring Nick's sour mood, Damian tilted his head toward the folder. "Garrett's fishing for

property on the East Coast again. I need you to look it over and make a decision when you get a
chance. It looks good to me, but you've got the Florida real estate experience, not me."

Silently acknowledging the real reason he'd taken so many trips to Florida, Nick flipped open

the folder. With a questioning grunt, he scanned the title page and glanced down at several photos in
bold color. "Another hotel? What's so different about this one that I have to make a decision? I trust
his judgment. Don't you?"

"Yeah, but this time there's a little more to it than buying, restructuring and selling for a quick

profit."

His attention arrested with that statement, Nick glanced back up and looked at Damian. "What's

up?"

"He wants to keep it," Damian answered flatly.
"Keep it? What the fuck for? The Rule Corporation doesn't keep shit. At least, only very rarely.

Does Garrett not get what we do for a living? Do we need to send his ass back to school?"

"It's a little late for that." Damian chuckled, glancing out the window and then back to the folder.

"Just take a look, will you? I actually think it's a good idea. You know he's wanted to branch out for a
while now. Actually, expanding is probably a damn good idea. And we have to start somewhere,
might as well be real estate. Goddamn, look how much fucking money we've made since we bought
this building."

Nick tilted his head in agreement. There was no question that buying the downtown high-rise had

been a stroke of genius. And it had been their youngest brother's idea. "I'll take a look, but I'm telling
you, I don't have the time to run another subsidiary. Do you have any idea how much travel that would
entail? We'd have to hire new people."

"Garrett can handle it since he has such a hard-on about it. But you have to admit, the kid's on the

right track. We've almost doubled our profits with the corporate rents we're pulling in from this
building alone."

"True," Nick agreed, glancing back down at the pictures in front of him.
Damian stalled for a moment before continuing. "Speaking of the building . . . you're not going to

like this--"

"What?" Nick asked, lifting his head and narrowing his eyes on Damian, already pissed from just

the tone of his brother's voice.

"Your dear mother--"
"Whose mother?" Nick quickly interrupted his brother's sarcastic opening gambit.
"Our mother." Damian admitted, smirking. "She's redecorating the house and asked if she could

use the penthouse--"

"I live in the goddamn penthouse," Nick interrupted with an impatience he couldn't contain.
"I know you do. Obviously why I prefaced that statement with 'you're not going to like this.'"

Damian replied blandly.

"Do not fucking tell me you gave her a key card," Nick spit out.
"I didn't." Damian stated with a sly smirk.
Nick studied the expression on his brother's face with building anger, instinctively bracing for

what was coming. "Don't fuck with me," he hissed out.

"I didn't give her one." Damian's mouth twisted in a shit-faced grin before lowering his boom. "I

gave it to Courtney."

Every muscle in Nick's body froze, the oxygen in his throat seizing up. "When did Courtney get

home?" he managed to force out.

"Yesterday, I think," Damian replied off-handedly.
"When'd you see her?" Nick asked, trying not to sound as if he were interrogating his brother,

barely aware that his words were becoming abrupt as his body tensed.

"Last night at the house. Girl looks good, all grown up. Finally lost that baby fat. Gave her my

key card and Garrett's as well. He won't need it, since he's been living at the lake house when he's not
travelling. The only card left is yours. Don't fucking lose it."

Nick lifted one eyebrow, expressing his irritation at the unnecessary warning. He remained

silent, wondering if his body language was indicating that his emotions had just shifted into dangerous
territory.

Damian went on, only semi-apologetically, "You know I didn't want to agree, but what the hell

was I supposed to do?"

Nick's muscles stiffened as he tried to stay on subject, trying not to give any indication of his true

thoughts. "Tell mother 'no'? Offer to put her up in a hotel? Let her stay at your house?" he suggested.

"Couldn't do that," Damian stated. "My house is too far from the city and Courtney has job

interviews lined up this week."

"Courtney? What's she got to do with this?" Nick asked, confused.
His brother looked at him as if he'd grown an extra head. "Are you dense? What the fuck is

wrong with you today? I told you she's home from grad school. I told you I gave her the key cards to

the penthouse. Where do you think she'll be staying, exactly? If mom can't live in the house while it's
being updated, how do you think Courtney will be able to?"

Nick let out a slow, exaggerated breath while he tried to get his brain to keep working. Keep up

with the fucking conversation, Rule. You can do it. Get your goddamn head back in the game and
out of that girl's pants. "I guess I don't get a vote in the matter?" he forced himself to ask a question
that wouldn't sound suspicious to his brother.

"Look, Nick, I'm sorry. It'll only be for a few weeks, okay? Maybe less. The penthouse has four

suites. You'll never know they're living there."

Nick frowned but said, "Fine."
"Fine? You're giving up that easily?" Damian asked incredulously.
Giving up? More like restraining himself to his seat. It was true that the thought of his mother

living with him for a few weeks was horrifying. But Courtney living under his roof? That was an
entirely different matter. "What the hell do you want me to say, Damian? You've left me with little
choice."

"I appreciate you not busting a fuse about this. They're probably moving in as we speak."
Nick's lips tightened as he dismissed his brother. "You're going to owe me, and you're going to

owe me fucking big."

"Yeah, I already figured that one out," Damian replied as he turned and left the room.

****

Courtney unpacked her suitcases in the second bedroom suite of the Rule Corporation's

penthouse. The apartment contained four suites and now, only one sat empty. Earlier in the day,
Justine Rule had settled into the third suite, but she'd already left for a meeting with the contractors
who were remodeling the house. This morning, when Courtney and her godmother had arrived at the
penthouse together, the older woman had been just as loving and considerate as she'd always been,
insisting that Courtney take the most spacious suite available.

Of course, Nick already occupied the largest set of rooms. Fortunately or unfortunately, Courtney

couldn't decide which, the suite she was now settling into happened to be the one closest to his. She
let out a sigh. Nick. He was her nemesis as well as her savior. Courtney knew the terms were
inconsistent, but even as she had the thought, she shrugged a shoulder. Nick was what he was, and
there was no changing him.

Several years ago, whether it had been from the flip of a coin or a simple matter of logistics, she

didn't know which, Nick had commandeered the entire penthouse for his own personal use, and
Courtney knew from what Justine had told her, that he wasn't going to be happy sharing his space with
houseguests.

She smiled wickedly at the thought. Too damn bad.
Nick had been getting his way for far, far too long. A strong arrow of annoyance took hold of

Courtney that she was unable to shake.

It was unbelievable, un-freaking-believable. She was twenty-four years old.
Twenty. Four. Years. Old.
And still a virgin.
How in the hell had that happened? She liked to think of herself as normal and she was certainly

healthy. But evidently, somewhere along the way, she'd become Nick Rule's property and he never let
her forget that fact.

To the rest of the Rule family, she was just Courtney Powell. Orphan, extended family member,

goddaughter and ex-ward of Justine Rule.

But to Nick, she was . . . something more. What exactly that was, she wasn't sure. Nobody else in

the family seemed to know what was going on in his head. Courtney reanalyzed that thought, and
although she wasn't entirely certain, she figured Damian had to have a clue about how Nick treated
her, and if he didn't, she had no idea how he'd missed it.

It had certainly taken Courtney awhile to figure Nick out--and she still didn't have all the puzzle

pieces in place just yet. But it was coming along; she'd figure him out eventually. And living in such
close proximity would help that along, it had to.

As she shook out another blouse and placed it on a hanger, she figured it was probably only her

imagination, but she could almost smell Nick's scent lingering in the apartment. Just the thought of
being in his home for a few weeks, even with his mother around, was causing her legs to tremble.

Damn him.
He'd always caused her legs to tremble. Even from the very beginning.
With her, it had always been about Nick. Always. But her thought process had been so clouded

by grief that it had taken her years to figure out that she meant something to Nick as well.

At first, she'd thought her feelings were one-sided. Sure, there had been that crazy kiss on her

eighteenth birthday, but at the time, she hadn't had a clue what had prompted it. Maybe it had been
mere sympathy on his part or simply a fluke; maybe he'd been thinking of someone else. The only
thing she'd understood at the time was that he cared for her somewhat, in a way she couldn't possibly
figure out, but she knew it wasn't the same way that she was beginning to care for him.

After her birthday was over, he'd gone back to ignoring her as a member of the female

population, just as he'd done before, only treating her in a semi-friendly way, when he deigned to
notice her at all. So she'd done her best to put him from her mind and go on with rebuilding her life as
she'd been trying to do since she'd arrived in St. Louis.

Her last year of high school had been nothing but a test of perseverance. After her parents had

died in the car wreck, Mrs. Rule had transferred Courtney from her prestigious, all-girls school in
Florida to an even more prestigious one in the suburbs of St. Louis.

Once she'd graduated from high school, Courtney couldn't find the desire or fortitude to go away

to college. It was in the back of her mind to return to Florida and rejoin her friends there, but she'd
felt ambivalent, almost scared about uprooting her life again. So her first two years after high school
were spent in a small community college on the outskirts of St. Louis, both to get her feet wet
academically, and so she wouldn't have to leave Justine, who'd become a surrogate mother to her.

Nick had all but ignored Courtney during the time she'd attended the small college and her pride

had demanded that she ignore him as well. It had been extremely difficult after his insane kiss, though
she tried to manage it as well as she could. But sometimes she couldn't help feeling hurt. He'd smile at
her but it felt forced. He'd look straight past her, as if she were a nuisance he had to put up with.

It had been impossible, even back then, not to realize that Nick treated her differently than the

rest of the family did. But when had she begun to understand that it was because he was attracted to
her and that he was trying to keep himself in check? It was undoubtedly once she'd been at college in
Florida for a while; after a time, there'd been little question of his true feelings. But looking back, she
realized there had been clues even before she'd left St. Louis, although she hadn't recognized them at
the time. She thought back as the memories began to wash over her.

****

Academically, her two years at the community college had been a piece of cake. Luckily, making

high grades had always come easily for her and during those two years, when the warm months finally
arrived, Courtney found herself spending a lot of time in the backyard swimming pool. She enjoyed
the subtle glow of a tan on her skin, and lying for an hour or so on a float here and there was
incredibly peaceful to her.

By this time, Garrett had come home from graduate school. While looking for a place to live,

he'd temporarily moved back into his old bedroom, and Courtney finally had a chance to really get to
know him. The few times he'd been back for holidays hadn't been enough to even scratch the surface
of his personality. Even though he was only a year or so younger than Nick, Courtney found him to be
more approachable than either of his brothers. Maybe that was because he was younger than Damian,
and certainly Garret had never grabbed her and kissed her as Nick had done. But because she did feel
more comfortable with the youngest Rule brother, a deep camaraderie developed between them that
she was only now beginning to experience with Erin.

It was as if she finally had a brother, but in a very adult kind of way, and during the three weeks

he'd been settling in before assuming his full mantle of responsibility at the Rule Corporation, the two
of them had become close. They'd enjoyed any number of deep, philosophical discussions. They
talked about movies and television and debated the impact of digital technology on literature. They
discussed world politics, religion, the scope of the universe, and whether or not any other beings
were 'out there'. Garrett had shared confidences with her that she didn't think he'd even told his
brothers. They laughed and they argued, but never once did Courtney feel anything for Garrett other
than a deep, familial type friendship and respect . . . and never once did she feel anything other than a
sibling-like relationship being returned.

That truth was underlined one day when Erin came by and all three of them spent some time

together. It didn't escape Courtney's notice that Garret seemed to treat her exactly as he treated his
sister. That realization didn't upset Courtney in the least; it had the opposite effect, it made her feel
more grounded within the family fold. She was becoming rooted, and the knowledge enveloped her in
a sense of contentment that she hadn't felt in a long time.

With Garrett seemingly unaware that she was an unrelated female, the two of them were floating

in the pool one evening when the sun was just beginning to sink after she'd spent the morning helping
him move the first of his boxes into his new apartment. Justine had been sitting under an umbrella
chatting with them, but she'd walked into the house only minutes before to check on supper.

When his mother had walked away, Garrett had pulled Courtney's float to his so that their heads

were close together. Lying on their stomachs, he anchored her float with his arms, and glanced at the
house to make sure his mother was inside. Looking back to Courtney, he said, "The DNA test came
back. The bitch lied."

"Oh, thank God," Courtney said as a bolt of relief shot through her.
"Yeah. She's nothing more than a c-- a whore. I fucking hate women," he swore vehemently.

"Every fucking one of 'em. Out for nothing but a free ride with a rich man. Swear to God, Courtney,
I'll never trust a woman again."

The fury in his voice was so deep that it worried her. It seemed as if she should hear pain in his

voice, but she didn't. His tone was laced with fury. Grabbing his float on both sides as she lifted her
head, she rapidly began trying to calm him down. "It's just going to take some time, you know? There
are good women as well as bad ones . . . you'll find a good one."

"Don't want one. Don't fucking need one. No need to get graphic, but let's just say that I'll be

way more fucking careful in the future."

At his determined look, Courtney's heart sank for him. "Garrett--"
"Nah, I'm done," Garrett said. "I just wanted you to know the outcome. Let's talk about something

else--"

His words were interrupted by a deep, booming voice, "What's going on?"
Courtney and Garrett both glanced up to see Nick standing by the side of the swimming pool, his

legs braced apart, the edges of his mouth cut into irritated, brooding lines.

Obviously not feeling any guilt or awkwardness for being within Courtney's personal space,

Garrett continued to hold on tightly to her float as he answered his brother. "Nothing much, man.
Enjoying the day. Get changed and get your ass in here." Letting go of her float, Garrett attempted to
splash Nick. "Come on, the water's awesome."

Nick took a step back and the look on his face became completely shuttered. His stance relaxed

minutely, but his answer came back forcefully, "No time. Supper's almost on the table."

When neither Garrett nor Courtney made a move to leave the pool, Nick changed direction and

lazered his gaze on her. "Out of the water, Courtney. You look chilled already," he ordered in
implacable terms.

"The water's warm. She's fine--"
Garrett's argument was cut off as Nick gave his brother a squelching look. "She's been ill with a

bad case of the 'flu. You want her to relapse?"

Garrett appeared taken aback as he glanced back to Courtney. "When was this?"
She rolled her eyes as if Nick were being ridiculous. "Last month. I'm fine now," she replied

neutrally, refusing to jump to do Nick's bidding.

Nick cracked his knuckles, a sudden antagonism he hadn't been showing before rising to the

surface as he barked directly at her, "Get your ass out, now."

As if on cue, Justine strolled through the open French doors. "Darling, Nick's right, despite his

appalling choice of words. It's getting late and you might catch a chill. Let's not forget you lost five
pounds during your illness and almost developed pneumonia." Her gaze moved to her youngest son.
"Garrett, I realize you didn't know she'd been sick, but let's not be a bad example, okay?"

Garrett moved to get out of the pool. "If you guys don't tell me shit like this, how the hell am I

supposed to know?"

Justine tipped her head to one side. "Language, darling," she rebuked softly, moving to get her

son a towel. "Nick, be a sweetie and hand Courtney a towel."

Courtney swam over to the steps and slowly began to rise from the pool. As Justine turned and

went back inside with Garrett following her, making a comment about being starved, Nick watched
his mother and brother go inside the house. When they were out of sight, his stance relaxed somewhat.
Then he turned back toward her with a towel open and ready, a sudden strain coming over his
features as she came to stand in front of him. His large frame seemed to become infinitely still, and
suddenly embarrassed to be soaking wet in a skimpy bikini when she hadn't been the least bit
embarrassed before, Courtney lowered her face and her eyes fell from his.

He wrapped the large towel around her until it covered her from shoulders to knees and she

grabbed the two ends at her throat to hold it together. Barefoot while he wore shoes, she was very

aware of how he towered over her, even more so than usual.

One masculine hand clenching around her shoulder, he lifted her chin with a determined finger.

As he leaned in with an intractable posture, Courtney lost the battle and looked into his eyes. "You
need to take better care," he bit out with precision.

She licked her lips, light-headed from the situation she suddenly found herself in. Nick hadn't

shown her this much attention in months, even if the attention he was giving her was only anger. "I'm
fine."

Letting out a harsh bark of laughter, he lifted a single eyebrow, looking none too happy. "That's a

fact, sweetheart." Before she had time to digest his meaning, his features turned menacing once again.
"And I'm telling you that you need to take care and make sure you don't have a relapse, understand
me?"

Once again, her brain splintering in total confusion because of Nick Rule, she nodded her head,

too tongue-tied to even begin to think of arguing with him.

"Go get dressed," he snapped.
She watched him for only a couple of seconds, totally confused by his mood swings, and then

she'd turned and fled . . .

Courtney emerged from her reminiscing. After the swimming pool episode, Nick had stayed

away from the house for several long weeks. When he'd finally started visiting again, it was
sporadically at best, and he'd paid her little attention. But then another memory hit her. This
occurrence had happened many months after the first; she'd been twenty years old at the time.

Courtney had made casual friends in St. Louis, but none like the life-long friends she'd left in

Florida. Jill and Trish were roommates at The University of Florida. They'd been begging Courtney
to apply to the college and come home, and when their third roommate had dropped out of school
unexpectedly, leaving an unoccupied bedroom in their apartment, the two girls intensified their
campaign to get Courtney to join them.

It had made Courtney feel a sense of belonging again, of having her friends back, and

unexpectedly, she found herself becoming excited for the first time since losing her parents. It had
taken years, but finally, she began caring about her future. She wanted to go to Florida.

With Justine's blessing and a promise of financial help, Courtney had applied and been accepted

as a transfer student. The very next evening after she'd opened the acceptance letter and excitedly told
her godmother the good news, she'd overheard an argument coming from the downstairs study. The
voices had been so loud that she'd frozen in place.

Justine had been out shopping with friends and evidently, Nick and Damian had arrived before

their mother had made it home. Courtney easily recognized their voices, the heated exchange between
the brothers halting her in her tracks as she walked past the door that stood only a few inches ajar.

Nick's was the first voice that Courtney recognized and it was filled with such fury that her feet

had immediately faltered.

"Bullshit."
"What the hell is wrong with you, Nick?" Damian had challenged.
"Nothing. There's not a goddamn thing wrong with me. What the fuck is wrong with you that you

think it's acceptable for Courtney to go running off across the country?" At the sound of her name,
Courtney had given up any pretense of not listening and leaned against the wall with her palms
plastered to the wainscoting.

"She's twenty-years old," Damian continued to argue. "We let Erin leave when she was only

eighteen."

"Erin stayed in state," Nick all but yelled. "Only a couple of hours away. This is totally

different."

"Nick. Calm the fuck down and think this through. Garrett went to school in Texas and you didn't

have a problem with that."

"I was too young to care . . . I was still in school myself. Besides, Garrett's a guy. Not the same

thing."

As Courtney leaned against the wall, she actually heard Damian's sigh before he spoke. "So this

is because she's a girl? It's a double standard?"

"Fuck, yes, it's a double standard."
"How are you going to explain that to her?" Damian demanded to know. "Because I'm sure as

shit not going to tell her she can't go."

"I'm not explaining crap," Nick spit out. "I'm telling you that we're not paying for her tuition, not

if she wants to go all the way to Florida. Not happening, end of fucking conversation."

There was a long moment of silence before Damian responded, "You're being unreasonable and

I'm going to pretend that statement didn't just come from your mouth. The girl has been nothing but
miserable for the past three years. You know it's true, it's plain for anyone to see." There was more
silence while Courtney held her breath and waited before Damian continued, "This isn't a normal
situation, Nick. Courtney wants to go back to Florida to be with her friends. Why in the hell wouldn't
you want to give her a chance for happiness? She's a sweet girl, she deserves better in life than what
she's been dealt."

"That's right, Damian," Nick hissed. "You think about it. She is a sweet girl."
The flow of words stopped and Courtney heard nothing for a moment.
"What are you doing?" Damian asked.
"I'm doing a search. University of Florida, right? That's the one? In Gainesville?"
"Yeah," Damian bit back.
It took several seconds and Courtney realized that Nick was looking the school up on the

Internet. When he next spoke, he sounded even angrier than before. "No fucking way."

"What?" Damian asked resignedly.
"Goddamn fifty-thousand students. Fifty-thousand," Nick reiterated with heat. "You want to tell

me how Courtney is going to fit in with so many people when she's used to nothing but a tiny
community college and before that, private, all-girls schools?

"Nick. Let's fix a drink and sit down and talk about this more rationally."
"There's nothing to talk about and I don't want a fucking drink."
"What do you want, exactly?" Damian asked. "Mother's not going to believe we don't have

enough money for the tuition. It's a trivial amount for us and mom knows it. What are you going to say
to her?"

"I'm going to tell her the same damn thing that I'm saying to you. Courtney isn't ready for a school

of that size. She's not ready to live that far from home--"

"Goddamnit, Nick. Florida is her home. You can act like she's your little sister all you want but

that still doesn't give you the right--"

"She's not my fucking sister." The sudden venom in Nick's voice made Courtney reel back. She

continued to listen in frozen shock as he continued, "She's an innocent girl and you don't seem to have
a problem with throwing her into the deep-end. All I'm trying to do is protect her."

There was a sudden silence and in her imagination, Courtney saw the two men standing off and

staring at each other.

"I need a drink," Damian said, a few seconds before Courtney heard footsteps. Quickly, she

stood to her full height, away from the wall, bracing herself, her heart hammering in her chest. The
study door was pushed open and Damian's steps faltered when he saw her loitering in the hallway. He
walked up to her and looked her over, his face set in lines of tension. "You heard?"

She nodded her head while she tried to get her vocal chords to function. "Some of it," she finally

answered.

Damian gave her a look of commiseration. "Don't worry about Nick. I'll get him to agree

eventually," he reassured. "We've got you covered on your expenses, okay?"

She shifted uncomfortably but tried to smile. "Thanks. I'll pay you back," she answered

earnestly.

Damian gave her a penetrating look and then a half-smile. "No, you won't and don't even think

about it. We look after our own and you're one of us now." Courtney felt a warm glow even as she
realized that those were the most words that Damian had ever spoken to her at one time. He shook his
head as if to clear it and said, "I'm going to leave him to stew a bit while I fix a drink. You want
something?"

"No, thanks. I think I'm going to try to calm him down." She motioned toward the study with a tilt

of her head.

Damian looked taken aback. "Be careful. He's not happy about this. I don't know why he thinks

your future is his prerogative to decide, but by all evidence, he does."

Courtney gave him a shaky smile. "Thanks for the warning."
Damian walked away and taking a deep breath, Courtney went into the study and closed the door

behind her. She leaned against it and waited for Nick to notice her.

He faced the window, staring out, and the muscles in his broad shoulders visibly tensed as if

anticipating another confrontation with his brother. As he slowly began to turn away from the
window, he braced his legs apart as if ready for attack. "You're not changing my mind." His jaw was
clenched and his voice dripped with intimidating determination, "There is no goddamn way she's--"

His words cut off abruptly when he saw her standing against the door. Their glances connected

and she felt the same warmth cascade through her bloodstream that she felt every time she saw him.
As he became aware of her presence, it was as if a metamorphosis occurred within him; his
aggressive stance relaxed as the anger slowly receded from his body and his features softened.

They stood across the room and studied each other in silence. Courtney was the first to speak

and she did so tentatively, "You don't want me to go away to school?"

He let out a long sigh and said very gently, "I didn't say that. I was talking about Florida."
"I don't understand," she said.
"How much did you hear?" he asked with a frown.
"A lot. I probably shouldn't have listened, but I did." His eyes grew stormy at her answer and

she asked, "You don't want me to be happy?"

His lips twisted and his shoulders sagged. "The only thing I want is for you to be happy."
Watching him imploringly, she said, "I want to go to Florida, Nick. Please let me go."
His body jerked as if he'd taken a hit. "Sweetheart, you're so young." He shook his head slowly

as if actually debating it but knowing it wasn't a good idea. "You've been too sheltered."

She shook her head, disagreeing with him about being too young, but unable to speak.
"You don't think you've been sheltered?" he asked.
Oh yes, she knew she'd been sheltered. If she hadn't been, she wouldn't be standing here now,

imagining herself in love with him, while he only saw her as a burden, albeit one that he worried

about. But she couldn't tell him those things. "I'll be okay. I'm smart, you know I am," she argued her
case softly, somehow knowing that she had to make her tone of voice exactly right with him. "I'll
make good choices and stay out of trouble. You won't have to worry about me."

As he listened to her, he remained silent, but his expression looked as if her words were paining

him.

"Please, Nick. I'll study, I'll make good grades, and I'll . . . I'll pay you back."
His eyes narrowed. "This isn't about the money. It has nothing to do with the money."
She felt a shiver of response from the look in his eyes as his gaze held hers and all she could

manage was a whispered, "Please."

He stared at her intently, as if he were being torn in two. He turned, paced a few steps away, and

then abruptly faced her again. "Do you promise, do you swear to God, that you'll be careful?"

Holding her breath in anticipation, she nodded her head.
"Do you promise that you'll call me if you need anything? Do you promise you'll call me even if

you do mess up and get into trouble?"

"Yes," she whispered.
His features turned to stone. "Do you promise that you won't mess up and get into trouble?"
She smiled and nodded her head and his look became more serious than she'd ever seen it. He

took a deep breath and asked, "Do you promise you'll come home after you graduate?"

The oxygen hitched in her lungs as she swallowed. "I promise."
He stared straight at her but Courtney felt as if he were talking to himself. "I ought to be shot¸"

he'd mumbled.

Courtney began to resurface from the memory of four years ago. She remembered the excitement

that had built within her at his words. "I can go?" she'd asked him.

She'd never forget his sigh of defeat and the answer he'd seemed forced to make. "You can go."
The memory dissolved as she hung up another blouse. She shivered as she realized that she

would be seeing him again soon, probably within a few hours. She tried to control the involuntary
tremor in her legs at the knowledge.

But it was impossible.
Nick Rule had always made her tremble and he always would.

Chapter Two

Nick drummed his fingers on his desk with impatience.
Courtney was up there alone. At the top of the building. In his penthouse.
He knew she was because his mother had sailed into his office not long after Damian had left

and hugged him, thanking him for letting them stay with him. She'd told him she was going to be gone
all afternoon picking out flooring samples, and did he want her to pick up something for supper on the
way back?

He'd smiled distractedly and answered, 'why not?'
After she'd left his office, Nick stared blankly at his screen before he closed the windows on his

computer and told his secretary that he'd be out. He waited as long as he could before he rode the
elevator to the top of the building. During the ride up, he seethed with frustration. The hardest thing
he'd ever done in his life had been to allow Courtney to go to school in Florida. It had been ten times

harder than staying away from her while she'd lived in his mother's house . . . fifty times harder . . . a
hundred times harder.

While she'd lived in his mother's home and gone to community college, he'd been able to check

up on her regularly. He'd been able to keep his eye on her, even if it meant dropping by to visit his
mother way more often than he was comfortable with. Courtney had been right there, where he could
study her eyes and try to pinpoint even the slightest change her emotions might have undergone. He
could watch her, even if he couldn't touch her. He'd found that not touching her, while pure agony,
was something that he could live with, if only barely. After that one horrendous misstep he'd taken on
her eighteenth birthday, he'd endured not touching her as he'd waited for her to grow up, waited for
her to become less vulnerable with the passing of time.

He'd struggled with his conscience the entire time. She was an orphan who lived in the family

home for God's sake; he should absolutely leave her alone. His family had embraced her as if she
were one of their own, and why the hell couldn't he feel the same?

But that wasn't the way he felt about her, it never had been. She wasn't one of them.
She wasn't his sister. She wasn't even his stepsister. She didn't carry their last name and there

wasn't an ounce of shared blood between them. No matter how hard he tried to forget those facts, he
couldn't. He'd been intrigued by her since the moment she'd come to St. Louis, even though he didn't
understand exactly why. Certainly she'd been pretty, even as a teenager, even if it had been a quiet
beauty that she herself didn't seem to recognize.

But it was her strong character, her fortitude that held his attention, at least at first. She'd been

just a girl, and really, his emotions hadn't turned into infatuation for months, maybe almost a year. But
the second he'd realized her eighteenth birthday was right around the corner, his curious and
sympathetic thoughts toward her had transformed into sexual thoughts. He'd gone from wanting to hold
her in his arms and stroke her hair, to wanting to hold her underneath him and stroke her body.

She became something he fervently wanted that he couldn't have. It had made him feel like a sick

fuck, but he'd never been able to shake his need for her. And the fact was, letting Courtney go to
Florida had been the hardest thing he'd ever done. It was only supposed to have been for two years,
but with graduate school, it had turned into four.

But now she was back, and she was all grown up. She wouldn't be as vulnerable anymore.
And he was damned if he was ever going to let her leave again.
He leaned against the wall of the elevator as it rose to the top of the building and tried to contain

the turmoil roiling through his bloodstream, but it was impossible.

Courtney was back. She was his.
And in a few moments, she'd know that truth.

****

Courtney began stacking her shoes in the built-in shelving unit at the back of the closet. As much

as she tried to keep her mind focused on something productive, like preparing for her job interviews,
she couldn't keep her mind off Nick. If the argument he'd had with Damian before she'd left for
Florida all those years ago had been bad, it still didn't compare to how he'd acted during her four
years away.

When Courtney had left St. Louis, her initial plan was to only be gone the two years it would

take to finish her bachelor's degree. Justine had made the trip down with her in Courtney's car,
helping her drive part of the way. Her godmother had stayed for a couple of days, helping her settle
into her off-campus apartment with her girlfriends, before flying back to Missouri.

The first few months in Florida had flown by for Courtney. Settling into classes and

familiarizing herself with the huge university was actually secondary; getting caught up with her
girlfriends was the most important thing and it had been wonderful, amazing. It was exactly what
Courtney had needed emotionally, and the last of her deep, soul-crushing grief had finally begun to
recede.

Although she was having fun at school and adjusting well, Courtney was surprised that she

missed St. Louis so much. It confused her. How could she be homesick when she was finally home?
But she didn't feel like she was home; she was homesick. She and Justine had grown close over the
years, the older woman becoming a second mother to her as well as a friend, and so they talked on the
phone often. Justine had always been involved in Courtney's life, and her godmother always asked
about boys. And at the beginning of her time in Florida, at least, Courtney always told the other
woman the truth. Sometimes there was something to tell, and sometimes there wasn't.

Several months in, Courtney had become fairly interested in a frat guy. The boy obviously didn't

compare to Nick, but Courtney had known she had to get over Nick Rule, to get over the way she felt
about him. It had seemed to her at the time that although Nick was protective of her, he didn't feel the
same way about her that she felt about him. And the frat boy was more than interested in her, and he
was smart and good-looking to boot.

Looking back, in retrospect, Courtney knew she'd probably gushed about him a little too much to

Justine, but she couldn't have guessed what Nick's reaction would be when he found out.

He'd shown up on her doorstep within twenty-four hours. He'd flown almost a thousand miles

across country, and shown up out of the blue. He'd had a ready excuse, something about checking out
a piece of property not far away. He'd insisted on meeting not only her roommates, but also 'the kid
you told my mother about.' Courtney had tried to argue about that, but Nick was inflexible.

He'd gotten his way and met her new boyfriend. Courtney could still remember how Nick's

expression had frozen, how his muscles had grown rigid. All it had taken was a single ferocious look
and a stern warning, and the boy had fled and never returned.

Courtney had been beyond livid.
But Nick had brushed off her anger as if it meant nothing and had taken her out to dinner where

he'd grilled her for a couple of hours about her classes, her professors and her friends.

After he'd gone back to Missouri, it had taken several weeks, but she'd slowly gotten over her

anger and gotten on with her life again. It was amazing, looking back now, that she hadn't recognized
Nick's jealousy for what it had been. But she hadn't and her life had gone on. It took Courtney several
more months before she found another guy who intrigued her enough to begin dating him.

And when she had, the same cycle went into play. Courtney had told Justine, Nick had shown up

unexpectedly and her newest boyfriend was dispatched posthaste.

That was when she'd had her first doubts about everything she'd believed to be true about Nick

when she'd left St. Louis. How could she not have doubts when he seemed prepared to fly halfway
across the country just to get rid of her boyfriends?

It had been confusing; it had been suspicious, because those were the only times she heard from

him. But after several more months passed by, she began to think it had all been her imagination and
that the probability of Nick having deeper feelings for her were next to nil. But just to be on the safe
side, when she began dating someone new, she didn't mention it to Justine.

But the problem was, nobody could compare to Nick Rule. Not a single kiss could compare to

the kiss that was so instilled in her memory that she could conjure it up day or night. Nobody could
make her knees tremble and there was absolutely nobody who she cared enough about to make her
part with her virginity.

She wasn't purposely saving it for Nick; she wasn't.
But whatever the reason, the outcome was the same. Her interest in dating became less and less

as the months went by, so she put it on the back burner and threw herself into her studies and having
fun with her friends.

She began to love being a college student. She studied hard, partied harder and went to the beach

whenever she could. She had the freedom to try things she'd never tried before. Tanning beds, thong
underwear, shots of tequila.

Life was suddenly fun again. Her parents became a sentimental memory always in her heart, but

finally, life truly became fun again.

Everything went great for a while, except that the few recent trips she'd made to St. Louis hadn't

been satisfactory to her. For one reason or another, when she went to visit, she and Nick were never
at the house at the same time. And that bothered her. Was it by coincidence or his design?

One evening in the middle of the week, she was studying for a test, but no matter how much she

tried, she couldn't seem to concentrate. By this time, she'd been in the second semester of her second
year in Florida, close to graduating with her bachelor's degree. So why was she suddenly homesick
again? And then it dawned on her. She realized it had been almost a year since she'd seen Nick. And
when she realized that, she began missing him. Missing him badly.

Missing him so badly that she did a semi-evil thing.
Okay, a really evil thing.
She literally couldn't drag her mind off Nick and of course, she thought back to when he'd flown

to Florida to get rid of her boyfriends. Had the times he'd come to see her been just a coincidence or
not? The more she deliberated the small amount of evidence at her disposal, the stronger the idea took
root in her head again. Before long, she'd developed a hypothesis; he'd come to Florida for the
express purpose of getting rid of her boyfriends, not to look at real estate, as he'd maintained. Crazy
idea, maybe not so crazy, but the more she missed him, the more her reasoning seemed sound.

That's when she'd come up with the brilliant plan to test her hypothesis. Evil, for sure. Although

she wasn't dating anyone at the time, and hadn't been for a long while, she did have several male
friends and one of them was exceptionally brilliant and good-looking. Unable to stop herself, she'd
picked up her cell and called Justine. They had a lovely, hour-long chat about everything under the
sun.

Nick had shown up on Friday after her last class.
Her roommates had gone to Daytona Beach for the weekend, but Courtney hadn't been feeling up

to joining them because she'd been suffering from cramps earlier in the day. That evening, her cramps
were mostly under control, thanks to three ibuprofen and a heating pad. She was on the couch
watching television in her shortie pajamas when the doorbell had pealed.

She'd glanced at the door and her heart had constricted and then started beating more rapidly. No

way. It couldn't be him.

It couldn't be true.
Slowly, she'd stood to her feet and walked to her door, thanking the good Lord that even though

she'd been feeling bad, she'd gone to class that day, because that meant that her hair was clean and she
was still wearing make-up.

She looked through the peephole and almost had a coronary.
Damn. It had worked.
And that had been the day her life had changed. That was the exact moment she'd known. She

hadn't known exactly what she'd known, but she'd known for a fact that Nick was attracted to her.
She'd known in that instant, as she'd looked through the peephole, as he'd stood on her doorstep,
irritation plastered across his face, that Nick was jealous and possessive and that he didn't think of
her as a little sister.

She'd opened the door, forgetting all about her flimsy pajamas, only trying to contain the violent

beating of her heart. "Hey," she'd said, trying for a look of pleasant surprise as her eyes drank him in,
so happy to see him that she'd wanted to fling herself at him. Stunned beyond belief at her new
understanding of him.

Nick gave her no response; he made no attempt to embrace her. All she saw was six-feet-two

inches of pissed-off male on her doorstep. He stood stock-still, his hands braced above his head on
the doorframe. He wore extremely casual clothing, and his t-shirt was tight. It molded to his stomach,
showing his washboard abs underneath. His biceps were pronounced as he flexed his hands, gripping
the wood above him. "You going to let me in?" he asked, narrowing his eyes on her.

Fighting butterflies and at a loss for words, stunned that Nick did have feelings for her after all,

she nodded her head and pushed the door all the way opened.

He walked inside and glanced around at the empty apartment with a suspicious glint. "Where are

your friends?"

"They went to the beach for the weekend," she answered neutrally.
He took another step forward and slammed the door shut, sliding the deadbolt into place with a

resounding click. "Which beach?"

Swallowing hard, her blood beating so quickly that her brain was spinning, she managed to

answer, "Daytona."

"Why aren't you with them?" he asked, leaning against the door and crossing one foot over the

other in a falsely lazy fashion.

Not wanting to blurt out that she would have been if she hadn't had the cramps, she was silent for

a moment too long.

"Is it because you don't have enough money?" he drawled in a tone that suggested he didn't

believe that was the real reason.

Trying with all her might to follow the conversation because she was still so floored that he was

actually standing here in her apartment, she mumbled, "No, I've got enough."

"Are you sure? I can boost your allowance if you need more," he said in a neutral tone that

somehow managed to sound as if he were baiting her.

Her mind was racing. It had worked. He was here. He was here. He. Was. Here. Dear God.

"No, I'm good. I just didn't feel like going." That kiss. Oh, my God. That kiss on her eighteenth
birthday. He'd meant it. It had been for her. She took a deep breath and then another. She would not
hyperventilate.

"Didn't feel like going," he repeated flatly, as if he didn't believe her. "With your girlfriends. To

the beach. You expect me to believe that?"

Her eyes flared as her heart continued to beat in triple time. "It's the truth."
His lips curled into a snarl. "Where is he?"
Oh, my God. Oh. My. God. Seriously, he was really jealous. "Where is who?" she asked as

evenly as possible.

"The new boyfriend," he bit out, his anger conveying itself blatantly.
Her muscles tensed as she realized just how pissed he was. And that she had misled him in an

effort to get him here. "I don't have a new boyfriend," she quickly denied.

His arms crossed over his chest. "Courtney," he exhaled her name on a breath. "It's been a long

day. It was a tedious flight. I want the truth."

She lifted her chin as a slow, insidious feeling of equality hit her. They were even. He cared

about her, too. My God, it was literally too much to take in. Where should they go on their
honeymoon? Was she thinking too far ahead? Stop it, Courtney. "I don't know what you're talking
about."

He clenched his mouth in irritation. "You told my mother you have a new boyfriend."
She shook her head in denial. "I did not. When was this?" And she hadn't, not really. She'd only

talked about her friend a little too much.

Nick's gaze intensified. "Earlier this week," as he said the words, his gaze dropped down to her

bare feet, where he seemed to study her pink toenails before moving up and settling on her legs in a
way that caused wet heat to land between her thighs.

"Is that why you're here?" She asked softly and innocently. Maybe too innocently.
At her question, or maybe it was her tone, his eyes lifted to hers and he stilled completely--and it

was clear to her at that point that he'd suddenly realized something more was going on here.

He watched her intently for long moments, his eyes narrowing as a subtle tension invaded his

frame. "What are you trying to do to me, babe?" he asked in a low voice.

Courtney dragged her bottom lip through her teeth and shook her head, her heart pounding. Babe?

Christ, had he just called her 'babe'? "Nothing," she whispered, her eyes holding his, her pulse
escalating by the second.

He watched her in silence for a moment and then he seemed to almost visibly shake himself.

"Are you lying to me? You told my mother you have a boyfriend," he repeated in accusation, looking
confused, looking for once as if he didn't have a complete handle on everything.

"No, I may have mentioned something about one of my friends, but he's in no way a boyfriend."
"Are you telling me that she took it the wrong way?" he asked in disbelief.
"I guess," she prevaricated.
He shook his head sternly, obviously not believing her. "Let me get this straight. You purposely

made her think you have a new boyfriend."

"No--"
"Yes, you did," he said quietly yet firmly. "Why would you do that?"
She shook her head again, not ready to admit the truth and not knowing how to say what she felt.
"Why?" he questioned again, more succinctly this time, wanting an answer to his question.
With the blood rushing too quickly through her veins, Courtney held his beautiful brown eyes.

Looking at him through her lashes, she confessed in a whisper, "Because I missed you."

At her admission, he froze, standing eerily still for a second. Then his eyes closed and he

dropped back against the sheetrock, the wall supporting him as he leaned against it.

When he opened his eyes, she didn't know what to say. Or what to do, or how to act, or how to

stop the wild bloom of color on her face that was giving her feelings away even more. His brows
furrowed and he studied her for a few drawn out seconds before his gaze swept down her body again
and for the first time, she remembered the pajamas she was wearing. "Courtney. We have a problem,
babe."

Her pulse took on an even more rapid beat. "There's no problem," she denied.

"You don't think, sweetheart?"
She shook her head.
He stared at her and bared his teeth in a painful grimace. Courtney could tell he was thinking

hard, contemplating the situation at hand. She stood back and let him take the lead. After a moment, he
seemed to give up and asked, "You missed me?"

Slowly, she began nodding her head.
After an abbreviated pause while he contemplated her silently, he lifted his fist and began

banging his chin as if the idea of her missing him was causing friction in his soul. His eyes held hers.

At his continued silence, she cleared her throat. "I didn't really think you'd come," she admitted

the truth softly.

At her words, and at the meaning behind them, his body went still. "But I did, didn't I?" he

admitted before a low groan came from deep in his chest. "I need to get out of here before I fuck-up
completely."

"Don't go," she implored from her soul.
His arms came over his chest and he crossed them again, as if in defense against her. When he

spoke next, his words were harsh as if he'd come to a decision that she would have no input into.
"How many more months? Three?"

She knew what he was asking. She'd be finished with school in three months. "Yeah."
"What are your plans? You're coming home, right?"
The word 'home' had been confusing to Courtney for a while now. Was Florida not her home

anymore? Was her home now in Missouri? Really, the only place she wanted to be was where Nick
was. But she couldn't be too obvious to him. It was bad enough that he knew she'd missed him so
much that she'd all but lied to get him to come see her. "Yeah, probably."

"Probably? What does that mean?"
"I need to find a job. If possible, I want to be in a place that's familiar to me. That's either

Florida or Missouri."

"St. Louis," he narrowed it down emphatically.
She nodded her head, but negated that with, "Maybe."
With her answer, he pushed off the wall and began to head toward her. Her stomach clenched

with hot anticipation. His footsteps stalled when he was less than two feet away and he seemed to
shake himself. His features became strained as he held himself in suspended motion. "You promised
me you'd come back to St. Louis."

"I know."
"You need to make good on that. Your promise was the only reason I let you leave in the first

place."

At the look in his eyes, she felt like she had to settle something with him. "Nick," she began

slowly, "You didn't let me leave. I wasn't yours to control." She studied him, noting the anger that
slowly spread across his face at her words. She continued, trying to show a bit of independence, that
truthfully, she couldn't care less about. "I want to go back to St. Louis. If I don't get a job here, then
after graduation, I'll--"

He cut her off when he stepped into her personal space with a glare. "Not mine?" She backed up

a step and he followed her until she bumped into the back of the sofa. He didn't touch her but the
threat was there. When she came to a halt, he repeated incredulously, "Not mine?" and reached down
and fingered the necklace that she always wore. Her heart beat loudly in her ears as he gripped the
charm that dangled from it. His eyes narrowed and he asked for the third time with a ferocity that

couldn't be ignored, "Not mine?"

The oxygen stuck in her throat and she shook her head, as she remained trapped by his gaze.
He tilted his head as if in sarcastic thought. "If you don't belong to me, who the hell do you think

you belong to?" he asked in a far-too soft voice that didn't reflect any gentleness at all.

When she remained mute, he continued, "I don't see anybody else taking care of you. I don't see

anybody else flying halfway across the country to make sure you're all right and that there's no
mother-fucker trying to take advantage of you." He sucked in oxygen and continued, "And who,
exactly, do you think pays your bills?"

She swallowed and leaned away from him, feeling the pull from the chain around her throat, but

he didn't let go. She glanced down at the tendons corded in his neck and then back up to the fire in his
eyes as he continued, "Who do you think paid for these useless little pajamas you're wearing? Who do
you think pays for all your clothes, the food you eat, the allowance you get?" His eyes held hers with
ruthless intent. "Who do you think paid for that pretty little car you drive?"

Guilt running through her from all the things his family had supplied over the years, she licked

her lips and whispered, "The corporation."

He began shaking his head as if she had it all wrong and a new agitation took hold of her senses.

"Not the corporation?" she asked quietly.

"Nope. Not the corporation." His eyes blistered into hers. "Me. Just me."
"Wh--why?" she stuttered. "I don't understand."
"Nothing to understand, sweetheart." He lifted his free hand and took a lock of her hair and

began twisting it between his fingers. "Damian assumed responsibility for Erin. You came next and I
got you."

"Got me?" she squeaked as his fingers continued to twist in her hair.
"Figure of speech," he replied slowly as his hand spread through her scalp. "I took responsibility

for your upkeep."

Courtney began to hear a fine buzzing in her head. "Justine--"
He cut her off. "Doesn't have any money of her own. Doesn't own the company. Our father was a

good man, but he died mired in debt. What you see, we built from scratch, the three of us. Any money
our mother has comes from us."

Her heartbeat stalled before picking up again, running way too fast, at the new insight.
Still holding the charm with one hand, he released her hair and ran a single finger down her

cheekbone in a gentle, yet possessive caress. "Now you want to argue with me about who you belong
to?"

She remained completely still and concentrated on taking one breath at a time.
"But it's not really about the money, is it?" Annoyance shadowed his face and then turned into

lines of implacability. "Here's what's going to happen. You're going to finish school and come home
to St. Louis, exactly as you promised. When you get there, we'll figure out what to do. But you owe
me that much, Courtney, understand?"

She hesitated a moment before answering, conflicting emotions frustrating her.
"Understand me, Courtney?" he snapped.
"Okay," she answered.
He stared into her face as if gauging the honesty of her agreement. "Okay," he agreed. "In the

meantime, stay clear of men. Stay clear of boys. You don't need the distraction and I don't need the
goddamn headache."

Her breath snagged at his demand.

"Do you understand me?" he questioned hotly at her silence. "You're still too young for that shit

and I swear to God, I can't handle it right now. Got that?"

Too young? Christ, she was twenty-two. Her eyes dropped from his but she nodded her head.

Agreeing to that demand was easy, because really, all other men were basically invisible to her.

At her non-verbal confirmation, he took a deep breath. "Okay, are we good?"
When she nodded her head again, he placed the charm, very carefully, on her pajama top. He

moved slowly, and then wrapped both arms around her, and held her against his chest in the hug she'd
been wanting for months now. Courtney closed her eyes and absorbed his strength. She breathed in
his scent and felt herself relax against him. His arms tightened almost immediately.

His mouth came to her ear and he whispered, "I missed you, too."
Her breath snarled in her lungs and she felt lightheaded as she closed her eyes and rejoiced in

his embrace.

He held her that way for some minutes, and then he pulled back and placed a single, fleeting kiss

to her forehead. "I'll see you in three months, okay?"

"Okay."
"Be safe."
"Yeah, you too."
He'd watched her steadily for a moment, then he released her, turned away and walked out of the

apartment.

Of course, it hadn't worked out the way he'd mapped it out. She had received the scholarship for

graduate school that she'd applied for. She'd stayed in Florida another two years and it had been a test
of fortitude to finish the courses she knew she'd need for her future.

And dear God, Nick had been so pissed at the delay that she knew the two extra years had

almost driven him crazy.

But now those years were over.
And she was finally home, just as he'd demanded.
But now it was time for her to get what she wanted for a change.
And she wanted Nick Rule.

Chapter Three

Courtney came back to the present as she heard a noise behind her. Turning around, she clutched

a pair of low-heeled pumps to her chest as her heartbeat took off at a full gallop. Nick stood well
inside her bedroom suite, at the door to her closet as if he owned the place, which she supposed he
did. He was silent as he stared at her and the blood pumped furiously through her veins.

As she usually only visited St. Louis on major holidays, it had been months since she'd last seen

him. His dark hair was unruly and in need of a trim, and the furrow between his eyebrows looked
more pronounced than usual.

As he remained silent, she cleared her throat. "Your mother left a few minutes ago. You just

missed her."

He stared at her for a moment, his eyes running over her body and then moving to the contents of

the closet. As he studied her things stored there, a look of satisfaction crossed his features before his
eyes came back to hers. "You think I came up here to see my mother?"

She knew he hadn't. He'd cut his workday short for one reason. To see her. She knew he was

still angry. He'd been angry and impatient every time she'd spoken to him during the last two years.
Granted, those times had been sporadic at best but what was she supposed to have done? Thrown
away a perfectly good opportunity for an expense-free master's degree? And for what? He'd never
promised her anything.

Promises had never been Nick's forte. No, his specialty was the threats he liked to make.
She declined to answer his question and he continued about his mother, "I saw her downstairs. In

case she didn't tell you, she won't be back for hours." He stared straight into her eyes as his voice
deepened even more, "And she couldn't get back inside the penthouse even if she tried. I temporarily
changed the code."

Another ill-concealed threat. One with sexual implications that had her heart racing. Even as

she recognized the threat for what it was, Courtney's breath quickened and she had to concentrate to
keep it steady. As he watched her with a territorial glint in his eyes, her blood heated but she
managed to ignore his sexually challenging words as she responded coolly with, "How are you,
Nick?" She was proud of her even tone, but at the same time, she couldn't stop herself from turning
away and fiddling with her shoes; the ones she held in her arms she put away as she straightened
another pair just to keep her hands busy.

When he didn't answer, she slowly turned back to face him. He was standing with his arms

braced on the doorframe, and the walk-in closet seemed to suddenly shrink in size as he barred her
inside the small space. She couldn't decipher the expression on his face; his features were hooded and
unreadable.

Under his close scrutiny, her knees became weak and her insides began to quiver.
After a few moments, his eyes narrowed and he announced curtly, "I've got a couple of

questions."

Butterflies took flight in her stomach. "Okay," she agreed as evenly as she could manage.
"Are you home for good?" he asked with rapid heat.
The oxygen hitched in her lungs at the question. "I think so. As long as I can find a job--"
He seemed to ignore the second part of her statement as he cut her off. "Are you all grown up

now?"

Her pulse accelerated as his torso moved infinitesimally closer. Control, Courtney. You're the

one in control. "I've been grown up for years now."

His lips flattened at the dare and then took on a challenging twist. "You sure?"
Her heart stalled before starting again. Unable to get her vocal chords to work, she nodded her

head.

His eyes dropped and ran slowly down her body before lifting to hers again. Pulling his hands

away from the doorframe, he stood to his full intimidating height and took a single step inside the
closet, a step that screamed intent. He slammed the door closed behind him.

Oh, shit. Okay. He wanted to do this now. Now wasn't in her plan. She hadn't even had a chance

to give him a run for his money. Or to plan her strategy. To play hard to get maybe? To show him that
she was in control now, not him? Yeah. Paybacks were supposed to be hell . . . she needed time to
give him some hell.

As Nick's height and breadth dominated the area, the space immediately grew smaller, the four

walls closing around them Did she actually believe that she was the one in control? The thought
fled as she quickly counted the doors that Nick had secured to lock her inside with him. The
penthouse door, the bedroom door, the closet door. Three freaking doors.

No escape, even had she wanted one. Which she didn't. The butterflies in her stomach and the

rapid beating of her heart were telling her that much.

He took four more steps forward until he stood only inches away. His supple muscles tensed, his

features turning to granite in lines of intimidating strength. Lifting his arms, he placed his hands on the
built-in shelving unit behind her, caging her in. He wasn't touching her, but he was so close that
Courtney could feel every breath he took, could feel the shudder that went through his large frame.

She waited with baited breath for him to touch her as a loud sound much like rushing water filled

her eardrums.

Six years. It had been six years since he'd kissed her. Every day had been an agonizing wait.
One large hand reached down and lifted her chin, his splayed fingers grazing her neck as if her

skin belonged to him. His eyes were hot on hers and his voice roughened, "You know what this is
about. You figured me out a couple of years ago, didn't you?"

Her heart pounding, she knew there was no reason to deny it. "Yes," she said as she swallowed.
As one hand held her to him with his intractable grip, he dug into his front pocket with the other,

while his eyes held hers with blazing focus. Pulling his hand from his pocket, he lifted a small, plastic
square between them. He showed it to her, almost in challenge, with a false negligence that didn't
deceive her in the least. As her eyes snapped away from his and she stared at the small object, she
felt her face bloom with heat as the condom came into bold focus.

A hot, pulsing ache built in the pit of her stomach as her gaze clashed sharply with his once

again. His eyes were intent, compelling, heated, and her tummy flipped wildly as his attention
remained one hundred percent absorbed on her face.

Her breath caught in her throat at the look of determined intensity cast like stone on his features.

A raw, sexual sizzle filled the air between them as his eyes narrowed and his mouth bracketed in
lines of determination. "Just for the record, I've been a saint with you. I'm still being a saint with
you--"

She cut him off, exhaled a shallow pant, angry that he'd made them wait so long. "Don't be. It's

getting old. I'm tired of you being so careful--"

With no more prompting, his mouth dropped. His lips landed on hers and his hand slid from her

chin to graze through her hair. His fingers clenched, fisting her hair as electricity arced between them.
Her lips were forced apart with the motion and as his tongue shot inside, Courtney felt a great wave
of relief as if she'd finally come home.

His torso pressing against hers, his arm came off the wall from behind her and wrapped around

her waist in a merciless hold. His tongue swirled around hers, and with lights dancing in her head,
Courtney vaguely realized that this kiss wasn't anything like the kiss he'd given her six years before.

This kiss held possession, a dominant force, unquestionable ownership.
Pure, sexual intent.
Heady delight pulsing through her veins, she lifted her chin a notch and kissed him back with

everything she had. At the sound of his low growl, she wrapped her arms around his neck and stood
on her tiptoes, dying to feel every inch of him against her. Hunger, immediate and sharp, slid down
her spine and coalesced into a fever pitch of burning need between her thighs. Her breasts ached
where they pressed against him, her nipples becoming sharp little points of arousal.

His chest vibrated with a sound of impatience as he released her and with quick, impatient

movements, he put the condom package between his teeth and held it there while his hands slid to the
fastening of her pants and he began to work on her button and zipper. She swallowed hard and with a
feeling not unlike shock, her hands fell to his biceps as she looked down between them where he was

pushing her pants down her hips, carrying her panties with them.

Her mind whirling, her emotions in upheaval, somewhere thinking in the back of her mind that

there was supposed to have been a quiet dinner with candlelight, she glanced up and found his eyes
glued to the white skin he'd bared. His face became tinged with red as a tic began pulsing in his cheek
and any thought of romance fled her brain as her body began screaming in need.

He lifted a large, masculine foot and with the sole of his shoe, forced the crotch of her pants and

panties down to the floor. "Kick 'em off," he hissed through his clenched teeth, the condom still
between them, and through a roar in her ears, Courtney tried to comply. She got tangled in her shoes
and clothes, and with a noise much like a pained animal might make, Nick reached down and with
scant subtlety but a lot of speed, he pulled her shoes and pants away and tossed them aside.

He held her at arms' length, the condom still between his teeth, and it was with a feeling of

stunned anticipation and surprise at the speed of things, that Courtney stared back at him while trying
to regulate her breathing.

He took the condom from his mouth and braced the hand he held it with to support her back

while with the other, he claimed her naked hip between his fingers and squeezed. She swallowed
hard as her body jerked beneath his touch.

He stared down where her naked thighs came together and the sound he made was animalistic in

nature. "I have another question, but understand me when I say that if I get the wrong answer, I'm
going to leave here and go commit first-degree murder, you got me?"

Her breath caught in her throat as she knew intuitively what his question would be.
A wave of anger rose up and blended with the hot tide of desire she was feeling. How freaking

dare he expect her to still be untouched? Mad at herself in that moment for retaining her virginity,
mad at him for expecting it, her spine stiffened.

As he lifted his face and stared into her eyes, she wondered if she should let him off the hook.

Did he deserve the truth? Did he deserve to know that she was still a virgin? Why had she waited for
him, anyway? He certainly hadn't been abstinent for the last six years, although she had no firm proof
of that as she'd never seen him bring a woman to his mother's house during the time she'd lived there
or when she'd been home visiting. Not even once.

Furthermore, she'd never heard his mother or any of his siblings refer to a woman in conjunction

with Nick. Not ever.

She'd even searched his name on the Internet, trying to find information on him. Thank God,

she'd come up dry every time. She'd found tons of business accolades, tons of information on the
corporation, but much to her relief, not a single picture of Nick with a woman or even a reference to a
woman at all.

If Nick had slept with anyone else, he'd been very scrupulous to keep any information of that

nature from getting to her. He would never want to hurt her that way; Courtney was as sure of that as
she was that they were at a new point in their relationship.

As he continued to watch her without speaking, it seemed as if he were afraid of what her

answer to his question might be. She licked her lips and prompted, "Okay, what?"

His eyes turned into gleaming slits of warning. "You know what I want to know."
She took a stabilizing breath and tried to stall. "Do I?"
His nostrils flared and she knew it was taking effort to control his temper. "You're mine. Only

mine. I know it, and you know it, and now I want to hear you say it."

Arrogant ass. How could she love him so much? Was she wrong to be taking this out on him?

Maybe it was her fault. She could have easily ridded herself of her virginity if she'd wanted to. She

was just irked that he'd waited so damn long to finally be with her. The wait had been beyond
ridiculous. They could have been together every time he'd come to Florida. Every time she'd come to
St. Louis for holidays. She wouldn't have turned him down and furthermore, he had to have known
that. She paused only a moment more and then replied in a purposely off-handed way, "I'm yours."

Her flippant answer set off a look of danger about him. His brows creased into a pissed-off

frown as his hand slid from her naked hip to the vee between her thighs where he cupped her with a
forceful grip. "Now's not the time to fuck with me, baby."

Courtney gasped as heat coiled through her bloodstream. No man had ever touched her there.

Another stroke of anger lit her blood at the thought. The son-of-a-bitch had kept her so innocent
she'd never been touched there. Maybe it wasn't his entire fault, but in that moment, Courtney didn't
care; she was blaming him. With that thought, her feelings splintered disparately. She was furious; she
was also so turned-on she could hardly stand up without her knees caving underneath her.

With a surfeit of emotion, she lifted her hands and wrapped them around his jaw line. Surging to

her tiptoes, she pushed her torso forward and put her lips on his. She kissed him with every ounce of
emotion she was feeling, and within seconds, he was groaning and stabbing his tongue between her
lips. His hand was a hot, molten grip of demanding need as he grasped her intimately; her legs
trembled as she fell into their kiss and began experiencing a kind of desire that she'd only gotten a hint
at when she'd touched herself while fantasizing about him.

He kissed her long, hard, deep, as if she belonged to him and to him alone. Her legs began to

shake as he gripped her bare behind with strong fingers. She felt the sharp edge of the plastic he still
held in his hand rasp against her buttocks; it created a tactile sensation that sent her spinning even
further into the depths of desire.

His breathing became ragged as he pulled his mouth away from hers. Still gripping her with one

hand at her front and the other behind, he opened his eyes and stared down at her. He inhaled sharply
and said, "I need the truth."

Swallowing hard, she shook her head, remaining stubborn, denying him an answer.
His eyes blazed and his words held a sharp edge. "Courtney. There's a more immediate problem

than my goddamn ego here. If you don't tell me the truth, I might make the wrong assumption and not
take the kind of care I should." His eyes held hers as his control seemed to slip a notch and he rasped,
"You understand me, baby? I'm half-fucking crazed already; if there's a chance I might hurt you, you
better fucking tell me right now."

His meaning hit her all at once.
It was probably ridiculous, but as she realized that Nick was fueled with enough testosterone to

stop a moving train and that he was impatient on top of it, her face paled and she stared back without
speaking, a sudden feminine fear holding her in its grip.

His hands clenched as he prompted her for an answer. "I need something here. Give me

something to go on."

She took a deep breath and held his eyes and made a decision because in essence, not only did

she despise pain of any kind, she could only lose her virginity once, and even if she and Nick were
standing up inside a closet, she wanted it to be special between them. "Be careful," she whispered.

He stared at her for the count of two seconds before his eyes closed and he leaned in toward her.

He placed his lips gently on her forehead, and there was no other way that Courtney could describe it.
He kissed her in benediction.

It was as if a switch had been flipped inside of him. Gone was the sexually aggressive man of

moments ago; in his place was Nick, as he'd been on her eighteenth birthday.

With a gentle movement, taking her by the hand, he led her from the closet and into her bedroom.

He started for the bed, but then with a quick turn, he swept her up into his arms and carried her out of
the room, down the hall and into his suite of rooms.

He was just about to drop her to the bed when they heard pounding on the door in the vestibule

adjacent to the elevator. The noise was loud and cacophonous as it resonated through the air and
Nick's hold on Courtney tightened immediately. They both looked in the direction of the door and then
they heard Garrett's voice. "Nick! What the fuck? Are you in there or not?"

Courtney felt Nick's body tense as his head came down to her ear and he said under his breath,

"Not a word. Don't move a muscle. I'm not letting him in."

Realizing that she was half-naked and that Garrett had to know they were inside the apartment,

she started squirming, wanting out of Nick's arms.

His hands clenched as if he wasn't going to let her go until Garrett changed gears by shouting,

"Courtney! I know you're in there. I need to talk to you. Come open the door, damn it."

Nick growled, low in his throat.
"Let me down," she hissed at Nick and with a low rumble of anger, he loosened his arms. She

didn't wait another second. She raced back to her room and then to her closet and pulled on the jeans
and panties that Nick had taken from her not five minutes before.

Sixty seconds later, she opened the front door, sans shoes, and let a clearly pissed-off Garrett

inside.

Nick stood at the sideboard in the dining room pouring a drink, and Courtney couldn't believe he

was letting his agitation show by mixing a cocktail in the middle of the afternoon. As far as she knew,
he never drank during the day, unless absolutely forced to because of business reasons, and certainly
not on a normal Thursday afternoon. But she'd been gone a while. Who knew?

"Hey," she greeted as Garrett strolled inside and looked first to her and then to his brother with a

suspicious glint in his eye.

"What the fuck's going on?" he asked as he continued to look between the two of them.
Courtney was guiltily aware that her hair was wild and her color was heightened. She glanced at

Nick who was grimacing as he swallowed a hefty drink of his bourbon. He made no attempt to
answer his brother; he didn't even glance in his direction.

"Nothing," Courtney answered Garrett as neutrally as possible. "I was unpacking in the closet

and didn't hear you. Where's my hug?"

With another quizzical glance in Nick's direction, Garrett took her in his arms and embraced her.

"Congratulations."

"Thanks," she said, looking up at him.
"We're all proud of you, you know," his deep voice resonated through the room.
Pleasure infiltrated her at his compliment. "I know. Thanks."
As he ruffled her hair and let her go, she surreptitiously glanced at Nick who was wearing a full-

blown scowl as he watched them.

Courtney stepped back as Garrett turned his attention to Nick again. "Why are you drinking? It's

two o'clock."

"Who are you? My mother?" Nick sneered.
Garrett narrowed his eyes and put his hands on his hips. Ignoring Nick's sarcastic quip, he

questioned his brother in pulsing anger, "What the hell's going on with you, Nick? You trying to get to
Courtney first? I told you. I get her. I've been telling you that for the last six months."

Courtney sucked in a breath, confusion coloring her expression. Get her? What the hell?

Nick slammed his glass down on the glass-topped sideboard and finally turned to fully face his

brother, his eyes lighting with rage. "And I told you there's no fucking way she's going globetrotting
with you. It. Isn't. Fucking. Happening."

Globetrotting? Courtney was sure she was missing something. Trying to understand the sudden

dynamics in the room, she looked between the two men.

"You're not her goddamn keeper, Nick. She's a full-grown woman now and she can make her

own decisions," Garrett shot back.

Courtney had had about enough. "What's going on here? One of you better start explaining. And

quit talking as if I'm not standing in the same room."

The brothers continued to glare at each other and then began talking to her at once.
"I want you for Acquisitions," Garret announced.
"You're going to work in Restructuring," Nick shot out, looking directly at her and pinpointing

her with his gaze.

Garrett turned and blasted Nick with a look of disbelief. "You have more than enough people in

Restructuring. I'm going to build the fucking holding company with or without The Rule Corporation
backing me and Courtney's coming with me."

"What the fuck do you mean by that?" Nick fumed.
Garrett's voice deepened and the control Courtney heard in it was almost chilling. Where had

she ever gotten the idea that this man was more approachable than his brothers? "I'm goddamn sick
and tired of my brothers telling me what I can and can't do. It's time to start making some real money
and I know exactly how to do it. If you and Damian want in on it, fine, but if not, I'll do it myself, and
I'm taking Courtney with me."

"Jesus Christ, Garrett, you don't think we're making real money?" Nick bellowed in disbelief.
"It's time to expand, Nick. Structural leverage, that's what it's all about. We can make a shit-

fuck ton of cash."

The two men stared each other down while Courtney tried to get a grip. Dissension in the family

was not a good thing.

At Nick's continued silence, Garrett began to state his case. "It'll be straightforward. We form an

investment LLC. We fund it, open subsidiaries--"

Nick cut him off in a tone that dripped impatience. "I know how a holding company works,

Garrett. But there's a problem you're not considering. Damian and I don't like debt of any kind and you
know it."

When Garrett narrowed his eyes and gritted his teeth, Courtney glanced at Nick. As the silence

continued to pulse between the two men, she took a deep breath and said what she was thinking,
"Yeah, but the risk would be minimal. It's an amazing idea."

Nick turned to her with an expression she couldn't read, but she never floundered, continuing,

"You ought to at least consider it, Nick. Like Garrett said, you could buy the investments through an
array of LLCs. You'd actually only have to contribute a small, fixed percentage to each, and you'd
draw up an operating agreement that would allow other investors to buy in." As the two brothers
listened, their attention fixed on her, Courtney continued, "If the remainder of the debt for each
investment was financed through secured, non-recourse loans, then your actual risk would be
negligible."

As Courtney's words came to a halt, Nick appeared pole-axed while Garrett broke out into a

huge grin and said to her, "Told you that MBA would be a good thing." Then he turned to Nick. "And I
told you; she's mine."

When the last two words left Garrett's lips, Nick turned to his brother with fury in his eyes.

"She's not yours and you best not ever say that again."

A long moment of heated silence filled the room as the two brothers stared at each other.
"What the fuck, Nick?" Garrett hissed.
"Was it your idea for her to stay the extra two years in Florida?" Nick asked hotly.
"No, I only supported her decision to get her master's degree," Garrett replied.
As Garrett watched his brother with a look of confusion on his face, Nick took a deep breath and

stuck to the original conversation. "We have two issues here. One is the question of forming a holding
company and if we're going to do it--"

Garret cut him off. "I'm doing it. The question is whether or not my brothers want in on it."
Nick glared and continued, "And the other issue is Courtney. She's not working for you, and

that's final."

Courtney felt a hot jolt of anger at that decision being made for her. "I'm sorry, what?" she asked

sarcastically.

"You're not working for him," Nick restated as he turned his glare on her.
Suddenly so mad that she could barely breathe, she snapped, "I don't think you get to make that

decision."

Nick blasted her with a look and then glanced over at Garrett who'd suddenly gone still and was

watching them once again with suspicion.

Nick turned back to her and Courtney could tell he was at least trying to control his impatience.

"He travels all over the world, sweetheart. Personally, I think we make enough money within the
U.S., but if he wants to chase after more, I can't stop him. Overseas travel is dangerous, and you're not
doing it."

Courtney stared at Nick. Why she was surprised? This was exactly Nick's method of operation

and why it should shock her now she didn't know. She had a couple of different thoughts clamoring
for room in her brain. The first and foremost was the fact that Nick couldn't be allowed to get away
with treating her as if she were his puppet to control, and the second was that, in this instance, it was
going to be difficult to prove her independence because she didn't want to travel overseas on
business. Within the U.S. would be okay, but she didn't want to live out of a suitcase for the
foreseeable future and she wasn't a traveler by nature.

So what was she supposed to say? She decided to ignore his over-the-top behavior and turned to

Garrett instead. "Thanks for having such faith in my abilities. Even though your brother is wrong when
he thinks he can make decisions for me," she turned and gave Nick a glare for good measure before
turning back to Garrett, "regardless of that, I don't want to travel all over the world."

Garrett answered back swiftly, "You both have it wrong. I don't need you overseas at all. I need

somebody focused, somebody trustworthy and ambitious to run things here while I'm gone. You're the
perfect person. You're smart, that can't be denied. You're family so there's no question of your loyalty.
But I'm sorry if we made an assumption that you'd want to work with us. Erin has fit in perfectly and
we just assumed after you came home that you'd want to come on board, too. If I was wrong, I
apologize."

"No, that's fine. I'm honored that you think so highly of me."
"Well, shit, Courtney. It's not just that," Garrett said. "Of course it helps that you're brilliant. But,

you're family. Of course you're going to get the first shot. Even if Nick and I can't agree on which
division will get you, you'll always have a place at the corporation if you want one." He glanced at
his brother for corroboration. "Tell her, Nick."

Courtney glanced over at Nick and wasn't the least bit surprised at what she saw. A mask had

descended over his features, but his body language spoke volumes. His arms were held rigidly at his
sides and his muscles were corded like steel. Although she couldn't read his eyes, his features told
her all she needed to know. His facial skin was pulled tautly across his cheekbones; his jaw was
clenched in lines of tension. When he finally answered, his voice was flat and terse, "Of course.
Family first." His gaze left hers and fixed on Garrett. "We done here? I've got work to do."

Chapter Four

Courtney stiffened, dismayed that Nick had just left the penthouse so abruptly.
Garrett released a pent-up breath at his brother's curt retreat. "Ignore him. He's too damn

controlling, just like Damian. So, are you in?"

Was she in? She'd like to be, but she didn't want to work directly for Nick. Garrett, though,

working for him would be perfect, especially if she didn't have to travel all the time. "It sounds great,
but I've got a couple of interviews lined up. I should really go to them."

"Sure, do that." He gave her a measured look. "Actually, that'll be good experience for you when

you start having to hire people for us.

She grinned. "Thinking about it that way makes going to an interview easy."
Garrett's lips twisted into a smile. "Absolutely. And when you're done, I think you're going to

like your first assignment with us."

"Oh, yeah?" She asked, tilting her head in question.
"Yeah."
"Just as long as you don't have me travelling to crazy-ass places no normal person would want to

go."

"No?" Garrett asked with a teasing note. "What if I told you I need you in Florida for a couple of

weeks?"

At his words, a fierce shot of pleasure shot down her spine. Florida would be perfect. Getting

away from Nick for a while and planning her strategy would be even better.

"Done," she agreed happily.
"Welcome aboard."

****

Nick sat at his desk and pressed his fingers into his temples. He'd popped three ibuprofen, but

the painkillers weren't helping yet.

Why the fuck did his feelings toward Courtney sometimes feel vaguely . . . incestuous? A river

of guilt ran through his blood. For the hundredth time he reiterated to himself: She wasn't his sister.
No blood connection. Different last names. Never lived in the same house at the same time. Nothing
wrong with his feelings for her.

Thank fuck. Because he would have her. He wasn't waiting any longer. His balls were as blue as

they could possibly be. Courtney was his, she always had been, and she and his family would just

have to come to grips with that fact.

****

Three weeks later
Courtney walked away from the remodeling contractors, about to tear her hair out. Why the hell

couldn't they follow simple instructions? It was as if someone were sabotaging everything she did and
said. How could things keep going so badly? This Florida trip was supposed to have been simple.
Nothing more than a hotel remodel. Was Nick lurking somewhere, trying to aggravate her life so much
that she'd come running home to St. Louis?

She walked back into the office and tossed her notebook on the desk she'd been using. She

looked across the room at the young woman who'd worked for the hotel since she was a teenager.
Maria was about her age, possibly a bit younger, but that's where their similarities ended. Where
Courtney was blonde and of medium height, this girl was a dark brunette, petite in height, but
voluptuous in every other way.

As the girl glanced up and couldn't contain a slight glare, the truth hit Courtney all at once; she

was looking at the culprit. This girl was the thorn in her side. She was the person who was
undermining all of Courtney's orders. She saw it in a flash, how easy it would have been for the other
girl to accomplish her manipulations.

Without a word, Courtney turned away and slipped upstairs to the suite she'd been using since

she'd been back in Florida. She pulled out her cell and hit the button to connect her with Garrett, not
giving a damn about the international time difference.

When he answered, she wasted no time. "I'm about to fire Maria." Courtney announced with fury

in her voice.

There was dead silence on the other end of the line.
"Did you hear me, Garrett?"
"Yeah." He cleared his throat, grogginess in his voice. "So, what's up? What's the problem?"
"She's like a fox in a hen-house, that's what. She's changing purchase orders, rerouting

deliveries, manipulating every order I give, dragging this remodel out. She's not on our side."

"Yeah, okay, I hear you. Can you do me a favor and let me get back to the States first?"
"How long?" Courtney demanded succinctly.
"I've got it wrapped up here. I'm actually already booked on a flight in the morning."
Not having ever fired anyone before and not exactly anxious to do it, Courtney took a deep

breath. "You want to handle it?"

"Yeah. How close are the contractors to finishing up?" Garrett asked.
"About a week or two out, if nothing else disastrous happens," Courtney answered, having

calmed down somewhat.

"Okay. You want a break from sandpaper and sawdust for a while? Just hang tight and when I get

there, you can go back to St. Louis and start getting things organized in your new office, okay?"

"Sounds good. But Garrett?" Courtney was mollified somewhat, but still angry.
"Yeah?" he asked.
"I'm dead serious. That little witch has made my life hell from day one and she's got something

coming in return."

There was silence for the space of three seconds before Garrett rasped out with a promised

retribution that almost made Courtney feel sorry for the girl, "Trust me, she'll get what she deserves."

****

Garrett arrived late the next day and for once, Courtney had never been quite so happy to leave

Florida as she was this time.

She'd planned on getting a cab to the penthouse, but Justine had insisted on picking her up at the

airport.

Now, as Courtney leaned her head back and rested her eyes in relief, she asked the older

woman, "Is the house finished?"

"Yes, darling, and it's beautiful! After you get moved back in, I think we should have a little

party, don't you?" Not giving Courtney time to form an answer, Justine continued, "I hope so, because
I've already planned it."

Courtney groaned inwardly. Justine's parties were always a thinly veiled excuse for the older

woman to practice her matchmaking skills. Who would be the victims of her machinations this time?

Her godmother continued, "It'll be small, maybe twelve to sixteen. Garrett's not here, of course,

and won't be able to make it, but I don't see why the rest of my kids shouldn't get to attend."

"Nick's still out of town," Courtney warned, knowing he was still on the west coast. His

emergency trip to California was the only reason she still retained her virginity.

"Oh, is he? He's never gone long. Maybe he'll be back in time," Justine replied.
Courtney kept her eyes closed as the long hours began to catch up with her while the other

woman rattled on about the party. Justine went through a running commentary on what foods to serve,
which couples she would invite. After a bit, Courtney actually felt herself falling asleep and was only
hearing bits and pieces of the one-sided dialogue.

"Damian will come . . . handsome boy . . . I think the two of you would make a darling couple. I

know you must agree, don't you, sweetheart? Especially since there's no one special in either of your
lives right now."

Courtney's eyes flew open and her head snapped toward Justine as disbelief consumed her. "I'm

sorry, what?"

Justine didn't reply as she concentrated on making a lane-change in the heavy traffic and

Courtney asked with impatience, "Did you say something about Damian . . . and me?" She couldn't
contain the half-horrified shriek that came from her throat.

"Well, yes, sweetheart. Don't you think he's perfect . . . and handsome? Obviously, I know I'm

biased as he's my son, but you can't deny how handsome he is."

Courtney couldn't stop her jaw from dropping open. Damian . . . and her? The idea was absurd.

Ludicrous. Damian was like a . . . a brother to her . . . an aloof, I'm-too-busy-to-deal-with-you, older
brother. Was he handsome? Undoubtedly. If you liked a cynical, stone-faced, totally-wrapped-up-in-
making-money businessman.

She immediately felt guilty at her harsh assessment of his character. She truly loved Damian. She

really did. But not in a romantic way. God, no. The idea was horrifying.

At her continued silence, Justine glanced over. "Oh, darling, were you asleep? I'm sorry. Close

your eyes again. We'll get you home in a bit."

Courtney took the excuse given and did as suggested, swiftly closing her eyes.

****

The next couple of days flew by. Courtney ignored Justine's reference to a relationship with

Damian as if the woman had never mentioned it. Instead, she threw herself into her new job. Garrett
emailed her a list of instructions every morning, and his directions were so meticulous she rarely
needed any guidance.

She spent the evenings getting about half of her belongings moved from Nick's penthouse back to

Justine's house. But even that living arrangement had to be temporary; she needed her own place.

Since Nick was out of town for a few days, it made it easier on Courtney because he couldn't

stand over her and try to stop her while she packed. Not that she'd had much of an opportunity to
unpack everything; she'd only spent a few nights here before returning to Florida for Garrett.

But even though Nick wasn't around, that didn't mean he didn't breathe fire over her via text

messages.

The first text came the evening after she'd arrived back in St. Louis. You're back home?
No doubt Garrett had clued him in. Her answer was short and sweet. Yes.
What are you doing?
Hmmm. He wasn't going to like it. Why not get it over with and tell him the truth? Moving back

to your mother's.

Why?
Because that's where I live.
His text reply came back immediately. Not anymore, you don't.
Wow, okay. That was straightforward. How to respond? Are you planning on telling your

mother that I live with you?

She'll figure it out sooner or later.
Probably sooner. She's having a party tomorrow night and guess what she's gotten into her

mind this time?

No telling.
Courtney took a deep breath and went ahead and keyed the words in. She's trying to set me up

with your brother.

Nick had been answering back within seconds but now there was nothing from his end.
Courtney waited. And then she waited some more. And then she texted a prompt. Nick?
Yeah?
Ugh. Sometimes it was like pulling teeth with him! What do you think about that?
Garrett's out of town, so I'm assuming she means Damian?
Yes.
His reply came swiftly. She's either out of her mind or she knows something's going on

between us.

Courtney stared at the words and swallowed hard. Well, it was true. She and Nick both knew it;

there was something going on between them. But had Justine figured it out? Was she trying to throw
Damian into the mix to force a confession from Courtney? Or a confrontation with Nick? She took a
deep breath and thought about it. There was no question; Justine could be wily when she wanted to

be.

Christ. Poor Damian. He was caught in the middle of all this. Courtney almost cringed with

embarrassment. Did he even know what his mother was up to?

She waited too long to respond and her phone vibrated again with Nick's response. Whatever.

Don't move out of the penthouse.

Looking at the last box she intended to move that evening she sighed. I'm already doing it.
Best not.
I am.
No answer. Courtney loaded the remaining box in her car and pushed the ignition button. Just as

she was about to pull out of the parking spot, her phone vibrated again.

She slid the bar across and stared at Nick's text. Stay the fuck away from Damian.
She studied the words and a combustible heat spread through her limbs at the jealousy Nick

couldn't contain, even via text. She struggled to control the pleasure that was invading her
bloodstream because, really, there wasn't anything good about jealousy. She quickly lost the battle,
and a tiny smile she couldn't control broke out on her lips.

But still, she didn't dignify his text with a response.

****

Nick landed at the Lambert-St. Louis International Airport and forty-five minutes later parked a

couple of houses down from his mother's newly refurbished home. The party that he'd declined to
attend looked to be in full swing, with lights blazing and the circular driveway full of top-of-the-line
vehicles.

He wasn't in the mood for a party. He wasn't in the mood for idle chitchat. He wasn't in the mood

to deal with his mother or her friends.

So why the hell was he here? He trusted Damian. But Nick had never really come straight out

and claimed Courtney for himself, had he? Damian couldn't know his intentions. So it was probably
best to head off that particular collision if he could.

Walking around to the back of the house, he slid in through the back door and made his way

around the secondary staircase and came to the point where the living area merged with the rear
hallway. He could see the guests from here, but they shouldn't be able to see him unless they were
looking at the exact spot where he stood.

It wasn't his intention to join the party. It was only his intention to observe. And from his vantage

point, he could plainly see the living room and the front entrance.

He glanced around and spotted Courtney immediately. She wore a bright yellow sundress that

made her skin and hair look luminous. The material clung to her torso, and accentuated the curves of
her breasts. Even from this distance, he could see that she was wearing the charm he'd given her all
those years ago. That was no surprise, to the best of his knowledge, she always wore it.

As she chatted with a female friend of his mother's, he watched as she picked up the charm and

fingered it lightly.

His chain. Wrapped around her neck. A sharp jolt of possession slid down his spine and

produced a throbbing heat in his jeans. He was staring at the curve of her lips when he heard
Damian's arrival through the front door. Nick clearly saw the color bleed from Courtney's face when

she noticed his brother's arrival, but then it came flooding back and her features were suddenly
transformed by a radiant smile.

What the fuck?
Twisting his head toward where she watched the front entrance, he immediately realized what

had caused her enjoyment. Damian had brought a woman.

Nick couldn't help it; pleasure and wicked satisfaction shot through him at his brother's rebellion

against their interfering mother.

He watched as Courtney followed in his mother's wake to where Damian stood with the woman

he'd brought, waiting her turn to greet the couple. After Damian made the introductions and his mother
welcomed them, Courtney received them with a smile and a kiss on the cheek for Damian.

As Nick continued to loiter in the background, with some surprise he checked out the girl who

Damian held plastered to his side in a death grip. The woman didn't fit his brother's usual
conservative mode at all, her style of dress definitely leaning toward gothic. She was pretty, no
question, and there was also no question that Damian had her trapped against him with a territorial
hand clenched around her waist.

Nick had never seen that exact look on his brother's face before, and he doubted Damian could

fake it that well just for their mother's sake.

Interesting. Very fucking interesting.
Nick was just about to relax a degree when his mother went to work and began doing her thing.

Son-of-a-bitch. Before any time had elapsed at all, the manipulating woman had somehow separated
Damian from his date and now had the poor girl cornered, interrogating her, or so it seemed to Nick
from his vantage point.

Several businessmen waylaid Damian, and somehow, Courtney ended up standing in the same

circle of guests, right beside his brother.

From where he stood, Nick could see the slender lines of her body as she stood infinitely still

within the circle of men. He could see the required smile that was plastered on her face, saw the
feminine curve of her waist and his penis twitched and engorged in his pants. He tried fighting his
arousal, but it was no use. His cock throbbed with primitive need.

When he happened to glance across the ring of guests and saw a pair of masculine eyes glued to

the front of Courtney's dress, all bets were off. Scalding fury lit his insides but at the exact moment
when Nick was about to come out of hiding and make a scene, Damian asked the fucker a pointed
question and the asshole's gaze was forced to leave Courtney as he was pulled into the conversation
by Damian.

Nick relaxed just a bit, but feeling the need to be within touching distance of his target, he used

the opportunity to slip back to the hallway and then come in through a side door that opened directly
behind Courtney. He prowled up behind her on silent feet. Not wanting to be seen by anyone, he slid
behind a large potted palm and a Chinese screen, using them for cover as he came within inches of
her delicate spine. Surreptitiously, he leaned in and scented her hair and neck and as the essence of
her being sank into his bloodstream, he felt the subtle tension that invaded her body and he knew that
she realized someone stood behind her.

Not about to join the party and wanting Courtney all to himself, he wasted no time, and wrapping

his fingers around her wrist, he leaned down to her ear and said under his breath for her ears and hers
alone, "Not one sound."

She stiffened, but remained frozen in place. He glanced up and saw that all eyes were on his

brother as Damian commanded the conversation. Nick saw his opportunity and took it. Grasping

Courtney's wrist in a firm hold, he manipulated her backwards a couple of steps and then turned and
pulled her from the room entirely.

****

As Courtney stood in the circle of men, she tried to stay focused on the conversation, but

derivatives absolutely bored her to tears. She'd detested that particular business class, and to this day,
it was hard to even pretend she was interested.

She listened with half an ear as Damian controlled the conversation, while she stood next to him

and wondered how in the hell she'd ended up beside him.

Justine again. The woman was tenacious when she wanted something for one of her children

and suspicion formed a knot in Courtney's belly. What exactly did the other woman want and who
was she plotting against now? Unable to contain her suspicion, her gaze travelled across the room and
saw Justine smiling at Damian's date, a woman who'd been introduced as Angie Ross. If Justine had
truly wanted Courtney and Damian to get together tonight, then the older woman certainly didn't show
any remorse that it wasn't happening. Mrs. Rule was speaking animatedly to Damian's date, as if
sincerely pleased that her oldest son had brought the woman.

Angie Ross looked to be only a couple of years older than Courtney, if that, and she was truly

exquisite, if one looked beyond the radical cosmetics she wore. She was different from Damian's
usual choice of woman, having pale skin accentuated by black hair and dramatic make-up. The way
the woman was dressed and made-up seemed to be camouflage, as if she was hiding from the world,
or maybe she was just hiding her true personality from Damian. Who knew? But as Courtney
continued to surreptitiously watch her, the other woman seemed to be out of her element, lost within a
group of people she wasn't comfortable with. Courtney couldn't fail to notice the slight trembling of
the other girl's body as if she wanted nothing more than to bolt from the scene and she felt a bit sorry
for her because of the situation the poor girl had been thrown into. With a mind to escape from where
she now stood and go speak to the girl and make her feel more comfortable, Courtney was about to
make the move to excuse herself when inexplicably, a tantalizing sensation ran down her spine.

Abruptly, with no explanation at all, a provocative shiver prickled along Courtney's skin as she

felt someone come up directly behind her. She sucked in oxygen as she felt heat on her neck and steel
muscles at her back. A heady scent washed over her and invaded her senses. Only one man carried
that amazing scent.

But he was supposed to be out of town.
As soon as she'd had the thought, rough, masculine fingers enclosed her wrist in a grip that she

absolutely knew couldn't be broken. Not that she had any intention of trying to break it. Heat,
immediate and all encompassing, ran down her spine and she had to cut off a whimper as sensation
rippled through her.

Nick.
God. Nick.
His fingers around her wrist were meant to communicate his possession, holding her tightly, just

short of pain. She was hit with inconsistent emotions; she felt both defenseless and powerful as she
exhaled a shallow pant and stayed perfectly still and waited for his next move. Moisture bloomed and
dampened her panties as she was flooded with sexual heat. Her stomach clenched in need as he held

her imprisoned by a single large hand encircling the smaller bones of her wrist. His thumb rasped
across her pulse point as she felt his sinewy muscles surrounding her from behind.

His mouth left her neck and roamed to her ear and she felt the dangerous sizzle of his dominant

force as he hissed, "Not one sound."

Her stomach clenched with need as he pulled her backwards, and within seconds he'd plucked

her away from the crowd and escorted her from the room entirely. He stalled their footsteps in the
darkened hallway that led to the kitchen and maneuvered her against the wall. The fingers of one hand
sank into her hair and the other landed on her chin and lifted until she was forced to look into his
eyes. Red tinged his cheekbones and his jaw clenched tightly as he thoroughly checked her out. His
eyes ran over her face, studying her lips, her eyes, and her hair for a few seconds before saying
abruptly, "Let's go."

She swallowed hard and tried to gain some control over her emotions. "Go . . . where?"
His mouth flattened at her question. "I haven't seen you in almost a month. Where do you think?

Out of here. Back to the penthouse. Where's your purse?"

"I can't leave right now," she whispered frantically.
His eyes narrowed and his lips grew taut with implacability. "Oh, I think you can," he stated

with a precision that had her tummy clenching.

As his measured gaze stayed hot on hers with unbending demand, her heartbeat raced and she felt

a fine trembling invade her legs. "Dinner . . . dinner hasn't been served yet. Everyone will notice I'm
missing."

A harsh, brooding look came over his features, but instead of a verbal rebuke, he began shaking

his head back and forth with slow, inflexible authority, not about to be denied.

She opened her mouth to dispute. "Nick--"
With a lightning-quick move, his hand whipped up from around her chin and landed on her

mouth, cutting off any words she'd meant to utter. She sucked in a breath through her nose as her pulse
began beating wildly behind her breastbone. She felt her eyes flare as he came closer, intent on
invading the little space that was left between them. "You have two choices, sweetheart," he
announced definitively. "We can leave and go to the penthouse, or I'm going to pick you up right now
and carry you upstairs to your bed." His eyes stared down with a feral gleam and he added, "The
same bed that was mine before it became yours. You know how many times I fantasized about you
sleeping in my old bedroom?"

Behind the uncompromising grip held over her mouth, she swallowed and managed a tiny shake

of her head.

His eyes left hers and fell to her breasts before lifting again with a new, sensuous light. "More

times than I can remember. I knew every inch of that room. I could picture you there, sad and all
alone. I wanted to comfort you then, but I guess it's no secret why I couldn't take the risk." Courtney
felt his stance become even more rigid as he admitted, "You do shit to my insides that nobody else
has ever come close to doing, you know?"

She stared unblinkingly into his compelling brown eyes as she listened to his words.
"It's been a long time, Courtney. It seems as if I've waited for you for a lifetime." His chin

dipped as his eyes pierced her. "But now the waiting is over, understand?" His tone became clipped
as he went on, "I let you go to school all those goddamn miles away when it nearly killed me. I
waited for you to finish grad school and God knows, that almost buried me. I even held my damn
tongue while you went back to Florida for Garrett's bullshit when you could have been in California
with me. But understand me when I tell you that I'm done waiting. Got me?"

What could she say? He still held his hand over her mouth. She couldn't have answered him even

if she'd known what to say. She tried to convey her feelings with her eyes but she had no way to know
if it was working.

His fingers in her scalp became unyielding. He leaned in and removed his hand from her mouth

but before she could say anything, his lips landed there with forceful intent. He thrust his tongue in her
mouth and began kissing her as if doing so were the most important thing in the world to him. Stars
began exploding in her head. God, she'd waited for him, too. Her entire life. She'd never cared for
anyone the way she cared for Nick. She loved him so much she couldn't see straight.

She began kissing him back. His lips slanted over hers and it was as if he was slaking a thirst

long denied. She was just as thirsty. She moaned softly from her throat and at the noise, he lifted his
head and studied her. "I know you want to be with me, too," he stated adamantly.

"Yes," she said quickly, butterflies flurrying in her stomach.
"So what's it going to be? I have to admit, I kind of like the idea of cementing our relationship

upstairs in that particular bedroom."

Unease filled her. "Not with the party going on. Please, Nick--"
His features softened. "That's fine, baby. You want to go back to the penthouse?"
"I want to stay until the party's over so your mother doesn't ask a million questions."
He shook his head. "We're leaving. But go make your excuses. Tell her you have a headache--"
"You are a headache," she said with a glimmer of a smile.
He narrowed his eyes, acknowledging her teasing tone. "Tell her you're going to the penthouse

for some quiet. She doesn't know I'm back in town; she'll never question you for wanting to get away
from the noise. Besides, since Damian brought a date, if you leave it'll make her numbers right again."

"She won't care about that. She'll worry-"
His thumb stroked her chin. "Baby, she always worries about one of us."
Even as those words left his mouth, Courtney watched as his face darkened with a scowl. She

realized he'd just grouped her in with Justine's children, with him and his siblings, and it was obvious
that he didn't like the fact that he'd done it. He'd always had a problem with that, but what could she
do about it? His mother had raised her during the last of her teenage years; Justine was Courtney's
godmother and had been her guardian as well. There wasn't a damn thing Courtney could do about
those facts and she couldn't help it if it made Nick feel guilty.

But there was one thing that she did know. Nick was right. The time had come. She was as tired

of waiting as he was.

"I'm going to get my bag and I'll tell her I'm leaving. I'll follow you to the penthouse, okay?"

Chapter Five

Nick didn't really want Courtney to follow him. He wanted her strapped inside his vehicle,

sitting next to him. He wanted her without transportation to leave his penthouse if he inadvertently did
something that would upset her or piss her off.

He just wanted her. What the hell was wrong with that? "I'd rather you ride with me, but your

car needs to be gone from here so no questions are asked." He studied her intently, trying to gauge
what was going on in that brain of hers. He was sick of the subterfuge. He wanted everything out in
the open but he didn't want Courtney upset. "You don't want any questions asked, right?"

She shook her head. "Not yet."
He'd let her get away with keeping their relationship secret for a few days while she came to

grips with it, but that situation wasn't going to last indefinitely. She was his and he wanted his entire
family to know. "Okay, fine. But grab some more clothes if you need them, because you're staying the
night at the very least, and maybe a couple of days."

Even as he said the words, he knew they were pure bullshit. She wasn't going back to his

mother's house ever again. Wasn't going to happen.

And with the unmitigated possessiveness that was bleeding through his bloodstream, there was

no question that she'd realize that truth sooner rather than later.

****

When they arrived at the underground parking beneath the Rule Corporation building, Nick

guided Courtney up to the penthouse in the private elevator. He leaned against the back wall and tried
to get control of the testosterone raging through his veins. It didn't help that her face was flushed and
the strap of her sundress had fallen off one smooth, white shoulder.

She tugged it back up without glancing at him. Her gaze was firmly glued to the doors in front of

her as if she had no escape route.

Well shit. She didn't. He was about to make sure of that.
He looked away from her with mounting impatience and studied the digital display as the

elevator climbed. Courtney Powell was about to be in his bed. About fucking time. He inhaled a deep
breath and slowly let it out, trying to regain control. Six years. Six years. That's all he'd had to wait.
No big deal. Right.

The six years had been hell, but he could've waited any number of years if he'd had to.
He'd wait a lifetime for Courtney if that was the only choice he had.
He loved her that much.
He clenched his jaw, forcing himself not to reach out and grab her. He ran his eyes over the slim

line of her back as impatience clawed down his spine. Did she know he loved her? She damn sure
knew he wanted her. But did she know that he loved her with everything he had to give and that he
always had?

Fuck. His brothers could have an issue with this. He should care, he really should.
He didn't. Not anymore.
The elevator doors swished open and with a firm hand on her lower back, he escorted her inside

his penthouse and to the future he had mapped out for her.

****

The lights were dim as Courtney followed behind Nick to his suite of rooms, his hand clamped

around hers in an unyielding vise. Her heartbeat was uncommonly subdued considering what they
were about to do. Was she in a state of shock or just in a trance? Whichever it was, she was glad that
her pulse was steady and that she seemed to be in control of her emotions.

It could so be going in the opposite direction right now.
She was finally getting what she wanted. What she'd wanted since she'd been eighteen years old.

Seventeen, really, but who was counting?

She was getting Nick.
Or rather, she was about to sleep with him.
Her pulse began to race as the reality of that truth began to sink in.
As he locked the bedroom door and turned to her, she took a deep breath and blurted out, "I'm on

the pill."

He froze for a moment, as he seemed to digest her words. "Since when?"
She swallowed. How to answer that? "Since . . . since the closet incident."
He didn't reply and she couldn't decipher his expression, but she had to get something out there;

her nerves were stretched too thin to put it from her mind. "You know I've never done this before."
She let out a deep breath of relief after she'd uttered the words. Even though she'd already hinted at
her virginity, she wanted to fully admit the truth.

His expression changed to one that, this time, she had no problem deciphering; a hard look of

satisfaction blazed across his features. "I wasn't completely sure, but I'm guilty of hoping that was the
case."

Courtney cleared her throat, wanting to know the answer to a question that had been bothering

her. "We've waited so long . . . but you shouldn't have made us wait such a long time. It wasn't fair.
What would you do, what would you say if I wasn't still . . . " Her voice trailed off.

He shook his head, although a pained look encompassed his features. "It wouldn't matter. I can't

deny that I want it; I want your innocence. But I want you more than that. Maybe you don't understand,
but I had no choice. I had to let you go . . . I had to give you the time to grow up . . . and now I'll take
you however I find you and thank God every day that I have you."

"So it's just you and me, then?" She asked, wanting no question unanswered in her heart.
"Hell, yes. I can't take being separated anymore. Not going to happen," he gritted out.
She took another breath and carried on, his answer satisfying her, pleasing her down to her

bones. "So, I don't want to have to use a condom, at least, not this first time. Will that be possible?"
Thankfully, her voice was steady.

His eyes sharpened as he began to walk the few feet it took to reach her. Taking her bag from her

arm, he tossed it aside. While staring at her, his palms wrapped around her bare shoulders. "Why
wouldn't it be?"

Her heart rate picked up and it took everything she had to continue to breathe evenly. "Are you

going to make me ask about your personal health, Nick?"

Very subtly, his fingers clenched on her skin and his voice dropped an octave. "I can't believe

you think you need to ask, but go ahead."

Maybe he didn't care that she doubted him, but she had her own health to consider; she wasn't

stupid. "Is it safe? Do you know for sure that you won't . . . won't give me anything?"

His gaze became pointed and his mouth flattened, but he gave her the answer she sought. "Yeah,

it's safe, and yeah, I know for sure."

Courtney breathed a sigh of relief. Not only for his answer, but for the fact that she'd been brave

enough to confront him about the issue. She didn't want to lose her virginity with a condom between
them; it seemed less than romantic somehow.

She dampened her lips as he wrapped an arm around her waist and she raised her eyes to his.
"Does that make you feel better, sweetheart?" he asked in a more gentle tone.

She felt color hit her cheeks. "Yes."
"I'd never do anything to hurt you or to put your health at risk. I'd cut off my right arm first."
At her silence, he asked, "Okay?"
She breathed in slowly. "Okay," she managed, but it was little more than a whisper. It was as if

she'd used all of her strength even asking the question, and now her mind turned to the act itself, what
was about to happen. She wasn't taking this lightly; she'd waited too long for it to be less than a
monumental decision and moment in her life.

As his beautiful brown eyes stared into hers, he slid one strap of her sundress off her shoulder,

and then the other. Her blood heated and she felt her eyes flare. At her reaction, he glanced down to
the heart-shaped bodice of her dress held it in place by her breasts, and then slowly, he reached
around and slid her zipper all the way down.

When her bodice loosened she let out a small gasp; the dress was lined so the only thing she had

left underneath was a pair of abbreviated satin panties.

She glanced down and watched as Nick fisted the material of her dress in both hands. All it took

was a small tug and then the garment lay pooled around her feet. She continued to stare down between
them, a small memory, a frisson of déjà vu tickling along her nerve-endings and blending with the
sexual awareness beating through her blood. She'd stood in this same place before him, looking at
the floor, trying to contain the raw emotion she felt for him.

As she stood almost completely nude in front of him, sexual tension seemed to fill his large

frame and she knew, without actually looking, that he was staring at her bare breasts. She tried to
stand straight and tall while she fisted her hands at her sides to keep them from reaching up and
covering her naked chest. Dreaming about this had been one thing, being almost naked before him was
an entirely different matter.

His hands found hers and clenched around them, holding them to her sides, but his touch was

gentle, his thumbs running back and forth over her skin in a soothing manner. He cleared his throat and
spoke. "I want to make sure you know something--just for the record." As she continued to look down
at the floor, he released one of her hands and a masculine finger put pressure on her chin until she was
forced to lift her face to his.

Her eyes locked with his as his thumb ran back and forth along her bottom lip in a caress so soft

and gentle that her knees almost gave away. As she waited for him to continue, her pulse jumped
erratically. He watched her in silence, their breaths coming in tandem, his face set in lines of gentle
homage. His eyes reflected something she'd only caught bare glimpses of in the past; now it was there,
unhidden, out in the open between them.

At his expression, her heart began hammering in her chest, and she was startled to feel a tear roll

down her cheek, in anticipation of what he might say. He let out a crooked half-smile and wiped the
tear away with a gentle finger. He took a deep breath and seemed to brace himself, and then he
declared unequivocally, "I'm in love with you, Courtney."

Sheer, unmitigated happiness exploded within her. She bit her lip and closed her eyes for a

heartbeat. When she opened her lids and their gazes locked again, her eyes filled with tears as she
smiled tremulously. At her reaction, he gave a choked, joyful laugh and his fingers left her chin to
spear through her hair. His other arm wrapped around her waist, bringing her against his torso. "I
love you, sweetheart," he reiterated. "I always have and I always will."

Her throat closed up. She tried to say something, tried to tell him that she loved him too, but she

couldn't find enough strength to accomplish the words. Just the act of breathing was using every bit of
oxygen she could find. She wiped at the wet trail on her cheeks with the back of her hand and cleared

her throat. She began nodding her head up and down vigorously and his mouth formed a full-blown
smile. Releasing her scalp, he trailed his fingers down to the piece of jewelry that hung by a chain
and rested on her chest. He lifted it, held it tightly in his fingers and asked almost hesitantly, "Do you
love me?"

She opened her mouth and her lips quivered. "Yes," she whispered; it was all she was capable

of.

He closed his eyes for two seconds and she read profound relief on his face. When he opened

them, he released the charm and wrapped his fingers around her chin again. "Can you tell me?"

An arrow of fierce longing shot straight through her when she heard the trace of vulnerability in

his tone. "I love you, Nick."

"Do you?" he asked, his voice dropping a notch, as he searched for confirmation.
Her voice came back fully. "I do. I love you with all my heart and I always have, since I was a

teenager. I've always loved you, Nick. It's always been just you."

Her words seemed to be the balm he needed, as an expression of ease filled his features. And

then in a lightning quick shift, his features turned to unadulterated possession. As his grip enclosed
her more firmly, her stomach flipped at his sudden transformation. When he spoke, his tone conveyed
a captivating threat of unequivocal ownership. "That's it then. You're mine." The arm around her
waist tightened inexorably. "You've always been mine, but now it's out there."

Courtney sucked in a breath and laid it all out there. "If I'm yours, then you're mine." She made

her voice firm; she wasn't asking a question, she was stating a fact. And that was difficult to do when
she was standing in nothing but high heels and briefs and his large body was planted around her,
radiating full-blown masculinity, his immediate intentions apparent.

But he didn't take exception to her demand; his lips formed a tantalizing smile that caused a

molten heat to fill her veins. "Yeah. That's how this thing between us is going to work," he stated with
inflexibility. "You're mine--I'm yours, and if anybody tries to get between us, they'll find out quick-
fast that that shit won't fly. My family seems to think you belong to them. But that's not the way it is,
and that's not the way this is going to work, not any longer."

His hand left her face and trailed down to her breast and encompassed it in the palm of his hand.

She let out a tiny gasp as he ran his thumb across her nipple. "Right, baby? Nothing and nobody will
get between us. We're moving forward with this. You agree?"

"Yes," she answered simply.
As he continued to drag his finger back and forth across her turgid nipple, Courtney's eyes began

to slip closed as arousal shot through her veins.

She felt his lips on her forehead as he held her close. "I'm going to give you whatever you want."
"I only want you," she mumbled against his chest.
"That's easy, then." With that, he lifted her up, with an arm under her back and the other under

her knees and carried her across the room, prowling with the fluid movement of a jungle cat to the
bed.

He dropped her on the king-sized mattress, in the center of the bed, and then without missing a

beat, he stepped back and began undressing.

His eyes stayed riveted on her face as he pushed off his shoes and socks. His nostrils flared and

with her heart banging in her chest, she watched as he pulled the designer belt from its loops. When
she glanced back up, he began tearing at the fastening of his shirt and with a shrug of his shoulders,
dropped the garment to the floor where he stood.

His chest was massive and toned with hard muscle. She pulled in a ragged breath as she

watched him undress. She'd seen his chest before, of course, at the swimming pool in his mother's
backyard. But never before had she seen his naked chest as it was now, his pectorals lifting and
falling as he fought for oxygen.

As he reached for the zipper of his pants, his eyes dropped to her breasts. A tic began beating in

his cheek, and as he began sliding his pants down his legs, Courtney felt a moment of nerves and
glanced away. With a hurried motion, she slid her sandals off her feet, pulled the covers back and slid
underneath. There was no question that she wanted to do this, but she'd feel calmer about it if they
were in the bed and not on top of it.

As she settled underneath the covers, she saw a blur of motion. Hard muscle, tanned skin and

pure, unadulterated naked man slid under the sheets with her.

She was lying on her back and he slid in beside her, the sheet dropping to their hips. He

wrapped his arm around her waist as he lay on his side, the long length of him pressing against her as
he leaned over her. His hand tightened on the indentation of her waist and Courtney felt a sharp,
sexual tug as she glanced down and saw his dark, masculine arm against the paler skin of her belly.

He dropped his head down and fastened his mouth around her nipple, and that fast, a wave of

heat encompassed her. The fingers at her waist clenched and caressed; his touch on her nipple was a
gentle lick and then another.

And then the soft touch disappearing, with a growl he sucked her nipple into his mouth and

pulled on it, drawing it toward the roof of his mouth with a suction so strong she felt it course down
and land between her thighs.

Desire exploded inside Courtney's head. At her moan, the hand at her waist slid up and enclosed

her other breast and he began playing with it, holding its weight in the palm of his hand and then
stroking her nipple with his fingers and thumb. The twin caresses on both breasts caused Courtney to
lift her hips off the bed in immediate reaction. She felt herself flood with wet heat as Nick's lips
tugged at her nipple, firmer, harder.

She moaned again and he let out a tight groan in response and then trailed his hand away from

her breast, down her torso to land between her legs. He cupped her there, over the silk of her
underwear, and then with a sudden motion, he reared up from her and stripped her panties down her
legs and tossed them aside.

He balanced on his knees as he stared down at her nude body and Courtney felt inflamed with a

rush of fire. As he ran his eyes over her, he slid a single finger from between her breasts, down past
her stomach to land just at the spot where her legs met. Her stomach muscles quivered as slowly, he
moved his hand down and cupped her again, only this time she was naked and the feeling was even
more exquisite. She whimpered and his eyes lifted to hers and locked on her with the same intensity
as his fingers locked at the juncture of her thighs.

They stared at each other while Courtney tried to control the breaths coming in and out of her

lungs. He was breathing just as heavily. As he stayed focused on her, his fingers separated her folds
and found the heart of her. She gave a responsive jerk and was lacerated by his territorial look. The
skin on his face tautened as he said, "Whatever you want, baby." As he spoke, his finger circled her
damp opening. "It's okay, sweetheart. I want what you want, okay?"

She nodded her head. "I want the covers."
His eyes swept down her nude body one last time and quickly, he lifted the covers over them and

lay back down to his original position at her side. His hand slid back down to her wet heat and he
cupped her there. "You'll have to get used to me looking at you."

She worried her bottom lip. "Not tonight."

Placing a closed-mouth, lingering kiss on her lips, he said, "Okay, not tonight." He lifted and

they studied each other for a mere second before his lips fell to hers again. The kiss they shared was
carnal, emphasized by his hand gripping her intimately. Courtney wrapped her arms around his neck
and gave in to the feelings rushing through her body.

Chapter Six

Nick felt as if his life had finally settled into a perfect world. Courtney was here, with him, in

his bed, and God help him, they were going to be together forever. Swear to God, he wasn't going to
live without her any longer.

The feel of her was perfect. Her scent . . . perfect. Her skin was like silk. He slipped his finger

into the wet heat that he'd been fantasizing about for years. Jesus, yes. Perfect.

As he swirled his finger inside her tight channel and pushed against her clit with the palm of his

hand, he felt her suck in a breath and then tighten her arms around his neck. He felt her reaction like an
arrow of need straight to his groin and their kiss exploded.

She began licking and biting at him, and the sudden awareness that he wasn't going to be able to

hold out for much longer almost panicked him. He gritted his teeth and trying to protect her modesty
as much as he could so she wouldn't worry about anything, he ended the kiss and maneuvered himself
down, underneath the covers, until his head came between her legs.

Gripping her knees in his hands, he separated her legs and kissed along her inner thighs until he

came to her moist femininity. A growl escaped him as he hooked her legs over his shoulders. She
stiffened, but only for a second and then as he slid his fingers into her delicate folds and separated
her, he felt her relax just a bit.

'That's it, baby. Just relax," he murmured. He swiped her with his tongue, from bottom to top and

then repeated the action. Her taste hit him in an addictive rush. Gripping her hips in his hands, he
looked up and found her eyes hot on him. "You like that?"

"Yeah," she panted.
He did it again. He swiped his tongue up and down, and barely aware that he was probably

bruising her hips, he ran his hands down and then up to hold the essence of her open to him. Her taste,
her scent were a lure he couldn't deny, and if he'd had it bad for her before, he knew now, his craving
for her would never go away.

Wanting more, he trailed his fingers up to the silk of a nipple and tugged at it, running it between

his fingers and thumb until it turned into such a turgid little peak that it almost drove him crazy.

She made a mewling noise in the back of her throat and lifted her hips, begging him for more.
He complied immediately.
He trailed his hand back down, and with his teeth tugging at her clit, he slid his middle finger up

and inside of her until it couldn't go any deeper. She gasped for breath and sweat broke out on his
brow. She was tight. So tight.

He tried to grab some control. He could do this. He could make her come like this, he had to.

Because if he didn't, the very second he put his cock inside, he was going to explode. He'd waited too
long.

He redoubled his efforts, and concentrating on the soft noises she was making, he licked her clit,

tugged at it with his teeth, licked it again. Over and over, while he manipulated his finger inside,

against her G-spot.

She was close, he could tell, and as a new wave of lust hit him full force, she let out a soft wail

and began to come. Her fingers clenched in his hair and tightened, her body stiffening under his hands.

She cried out and he knew she was falling over the edge. Sharp, fierce satisfaction blended with

the ravenous need running down his spine as his muscles corded while he let her ride out her orgasm.

After a moment, she quieted, and with little to no control left, he released her, rose up on his

knees and came over her, spreading her legs farther apart as he pushed between them. Fire grabbed
his guts, smoldering down his spine, and a primal need utterly beyond his control demanded that he
claim her this very instant.

Anticipation gripped him by the throat and his abs laced into steel bands as his erection jutted

between them. Needing something he'd never felt before, he lifted her arms over her head, encircling
them with one hand, and held them pinned to the mattress.

With primitive hunger clawing through his veins, he guided the head of his cock to the soft, wet

opening that he'd craved for years.

****

Courtney was only beginning to resurface from the mind-blowing effects of her orgasm when she

found herself caught and captured under Nick's strong body. He held her hands imprisoned with firm
fingers, his body dominating hers completely as he held himself between her open thighs.

Her breath snagged, her heart skipped a beat as she opened her eyes and found him staring into

her face, only inches away. His nostrils flared and a tic beat wildly in a face slashed with red. His
mouth flattened, his teeth gritted as he pushed his erection directly to her opening and held it there,
while he hovered over her.

He was silent as he held her eyes captive as firmly as he held her hands above her head. Tight,

relentless. She twisted her arms a bit, testing the strength of his hold.

There was zero give.
He shook his head as if denying her release, and at the same time, he swirled the head of his

cock around her and then pushed part way inside.

Her eyes opened more widely as she felt herself stretched. His eyebrows came together, the lust

on his face easy to read as his lips twisted. "You like that?"

She licked her lips and her pulse raced. "I think . . . I think so," she stammered.
He frowned at her answer, leaned down and kissed her, his tongue delving deep into her mouth

and setting off fireworks in her head. At the same time, he enclosed one breast in the palm of his hand
and began manipulating the nipple to his satisfaction.

Oh, she liked that.
The double-edged assault almost made her lose her mind. Her hips lifted frantically, her

breathing became shallow.

He lifted his mouth from hers and her eyes opened again. He stared at her, his fingers stroking

her nipple as he sank deeper inside, her wet heat allowing his entry.

"You like that?" he asked again, as if her first answer hadn't satisfied him.
"Nick--"
He sank deeper and plucked at her nipple. Her eyes closed in ecstasy as she felt, for the first

time, the length and width of his masculinity inside of her.

"You like that, baby?" He demanded again.
"Yes."
With her answer, he pushed in the final bit and held himself there.
"Nick--"
"Yeah," he hissed out, his mouth falling to her ear.
"I want to touch you, please."
He released her hands immediately and she wrapped one around his neck and spread her fingers

through his hair with the other. He lifted again to stare into her eyes as he took his first stroke. She
sucked in a breath.

"You're tight," he hissed in reverence, his eyes emblazoned with lust.
She felt so full; it was the most intense, amazing thing she'd ever felt in her life. Yes, there had

been some pain, but it was buried so deep underneath her need for him that she'd barely felt it.

"Good?" he bit out.
"Yeah," she said, her eyes falling closed as pleasure arced between them.
"Open your eyes," he demanded on the next stroke.
She obeyed and found him staring straight into her soul. He plunged in and then out and then in

again where he held still. His hands sank into her hair as he held her scalp. "I love you."

Her eyes shut reflexively for a moment before opening again, another wave of ecstasy shooting

through her. "I love you, too."

He groaned and then began pumping again. "You make me crazy." He stroked again, his

movements become harder, less in control. "God, I hope you like this."

Her world was spinning out of control again as he hit a spot inside that was doing crazy things to

her. "I like it . . . I love it."

"That's good." His eyes narrowed as a primal look crossed his features. "I want you to like it.

You need to like it because this is it. Nobody else will ever lay a finger on you, not while I'm alive
and breathing." His words made her heart go haywire as his fingers locked in her hair more firmly
while his eyes blazed into hers. He began to pound into her relentlessly and as he stiffened and began
to slide over the edge, Courtney followed him and only barely heard him say, "Never letting you go
again."

****

Sunday morning was almost leisurely. Courtney had never slept in a man's arms before, and

surprisingly, even with her emotions in a flux, she'd been able to fall asleep easily enough.
Throughout the night, she'd awoken a couple of times and found herself held in a tight grip that almost
made her believe that Nick wasn't asleep.

But he had been.
And now, this morning, he'd called out for breakfast to be delivered, and after having eaten,

Courtney escaped to 'her' suite and locked the door for a much-needed, private shower. She emerged
about an hour later only to find Nick watching her from his seat on the sofa with a hooded look on his
face.

Her footsteps stalled as he patted the seat beside him. His hair was damp as if he'd only come

from his own shower; he was wearing disreputable blue jeans and nothing else. Butterflies took off in
her stomach with a flurry as she slowly started toward him.

When she came to stand directly in front of him, he took her hand in an unyielding grasp. He

tugged until she fell onto his lap. His hand went to the naked skin of her thighs that were revealed by
the shorts she was wearing. His fingers slid up and down her leg in a strong, intimate caress as he
stared into her eyes. "Are you okay?" he asked in a deep voice.

At his first touch, a wave of pure pleasure ran down Courtney's spine. The concern she heard in

his voice and saw on his features almost did her in. But then she glanced away from his searching
expression and looked down at the death grip his fingers seemed to have on her thigh. She was
certainly fine, she was okay physically as he was asking, but the realization that the night before had
brought a new direction to their relationship was a little mind-boggling.

It was true that she loved Nick and wanted to be with him, but why did she suddenly feel as if

she'd never have a choice in the matter again? Did she even want one? As she nodded her head in
answer to his question, she held an internal debate. Did it really matter that he was the type of man
who'd take full control? She'd always known that would be the case, so why the flurry of emotions
now? It hadn't ever seemed to matter to her before. In fact, she knew without a doubt that his
character, his personality, were part of the reason she was so attracted to him in the first place. But
now, faced with the aftermath of their lovemaking and the knowledge that this was happening to her
now, knowing a decision needed to be made now, here in the present, was more than a little
disconcerting.

But if she went to the heart of the matter, the truth was that she trusted him. She loved him

beyond what she could have ever imagined, and she knew with a deep-seated belief that he not only
loved her, but that he adored her and that he'd never hurt her. She'd always known it, deep inside, that
Nick had been waiting for her to grow up, even when it had been a huge test of his control. She took a
deep breath and let it out slowly.

She'd always be safe with him. Why worry about anything else? She felt her stomach muscles

relax as an inner peace slid through her veins. Content, she looked back into his searching gaze and
whispered, "I'm perfect."

His expression turned to one of satisfaction, and with an abrupt movement that startled her, he

lifted her and pulled her over him until she straddled his hips. Her hands fell to his shoulders
searching for stability as her heart began to race.

"Are you ready for your education to start?" he asked demonically as he lifted her t-shirt and

tossed it to the floor.

As her bare breasts came into contact with his naked chest, her heart skipped a beat.
When she failed to answer him, his fingers went to the fastening of her shorts and with rapid

movements, he began to strip the remainder of her clothes from her body. "I asked you a question,
Miss Powell," he said in a sinister tone that conveyed only a hint of teasing beneath the steel.

As her bare skin emerged and his breathing became labored, an intoxicating feeling of feminine

power rushed down Courtney's spine. Refusing to allow any hint of the shyness she was feeling to
show, she tamped it down and allowed herself to only feel the desire that was quickly suffusing her
blood. She pulled herself off his lap and slid to her knees between his thighs. How many times had
she dreamed about doing this? She wasn't going to wait a second longer to experience it.

Her fingers went to the button and zipper of his jeans and as she began to tug, she looked up into

dark brown eyes suddenly gone black with lust. "Yes, sir," she whispered. "Whatever you say, sir,"
she quipped as she slid his zipper down.

She felt the hiss of his inhalation, as with his jaw flexing, he helped her push his jeans and boxer

briefs down and off.

Faced with Nick's erection for the first time in broad daylight, Courtney closed her eyes for a

second as sexual heat made her pulse beat faster. Christ. No freakin' wonder she'd felt so stretched
last night.

Looking down at his lap as his hands clenched into fists at his sides while he dragged oxygen in

and out of his lungs as he waited, Courtney took one hand from his knee where she held herself steady
and wrapped it around the base of his cock.

At her action, his torso immediately jerked back into the sofa. Lifting her gaze from his angry-

looking, engorged member, she found his eyes. He stared down at her hand that held him and his teeth
clenched, as if he barely remained in control. Curious and unable to stop herself, dying to explore
him, she tiptoed her fingers over silky smooth skin covering flesh as hard as steel. At her action, he
bared his teeth even more as an expression of an enraged animal crossed his features.

Assuming she'd done something wrong, she jerked her hand away and put it back on his knee.
He growled low in his throat and reaching out, he picked up her hand and brought it back to him,

where he wrapped her fingers around his cock once again, holding her there with a powerful grasp.
Her eyes flew up to his and they stared at each other, while they each dragged in much needed
oxygen.

Her heart pounding so hard that it almost hurt, she could feel the pulse beating in his erection as

well, while his hand continued to hold hers in place with a death-defying grip, letting her know
unequivocally that he didn't want her to let go.

After an abbreviated moment, he asked through clenched teeth, "You love me, Courtney?"
Her stomach flipped in response. "Yes."
His eyes flared. "You want to make me the happiest son-of-a-bitch alive?"
Molten heat ran down her spine and she nodded her head, a glitter of excitement shooting through

her brain at the leading question.

"You sure?"
"Yes," she answered quickly, mesmerized by his dark brown eyes.
"You know what I want, don't you?"
She nodded her head again, glancing down to where he still held her hand captured around his

erection. "I don't really know what to do, though," she said softly.

"Trust me, sweetheart, as long as you don't let go, nothing about this can go wrong."
At his tone of reassurance, a new coil of sexual need shivered down her spine and landed

between her legs.

"I'm going to let go, but that doesn't mean I want you to, okay?" he rattled brusquely.
"Okay," she answered, watching as he slowly removed his hand from hers and then clenched it at

his side.

At the same time that she felt his erection pulse in her hand, she felt a sensuous hand slide down

her throat and move to her nipple. Warmth lit her insides and she felt dampness pool between her
thighs. She swayed toward him as she slid her fingers up and down his hard length in an experimental
move.

He groaned again and while the one hand stayed on her nipple, his other landed on the top of her

head. Her gaze flew up to his as she slid her fingers up and down again. His eyes rolled to the back of
his head and a look of harsh pleasure filled his face.

She watched him refocus, and on her third stroke, the hand he held on her head became

controlling. With a subtle but firm movement, he began pushing her head toward him. She took a quick
breath as he began pinching her nipple harder until she felt both her torso and head sway toward him.

As he massaged her breast fully now, she couldn't stand it any longer and leaned in for her first

taste of him.

****

Nick was in heaven. There was only one thing that could possibly make him a happier man and

that was if this was happening with his wedding band on Courtney's finger. But he'd cross that bridge
later.

Right now, it was taking all the restraint he could muster not to lose control and shoot his wad

right here, right now.

The first tentative lick she took of his cock filled her face with color. He braced himself, more

than half-afraid she'd grimace and quit doing what she was doing, but thank fuck, that didn't happen.

No, the little witch opened her mouth fully and took him inside. While she did it, he firmly

manipulated her breast to make sure she maintained a heightened state of desire.

It worked. She let out a little moan, and began to almost devour him. She was new to the game,

and both her hand and her mouth were clumsy, but instead of turning him off, her actions had exactly
the opposite effect. It didn't matter that her movements were uncoordinated, because she was so into
what she was doing that it wasn't awkward in the least; no, it was sheer heaven.

Nick relished her inexperience with a need that was almost overpowering. An image briefly

entered his head of the time he'd kissed her on her eighteenth birthday. She'd been wonderfully
innocent then as well, and what he was experiencing now was like that only magnified by a thousand.
The ultimate compensation for the patience he'd had to maintain during the last six years was
undoubtedly when he made her come, but this was a close second and by damn if he didn't deserve
every touch.

With her head in his lap and his fingers tangled in her hair, he closed his eyes for only a moment

before opening them again. This was pure heaven and no way was he going to miss even a second of
it. Seeing Courtney wrapped around his cock was almost better than feeling it.

Almost.
As he watched her, a sense of urgency overcame him that he couldn't control. Grasping her under

the arms, he pulled her up until she had no choice but to let go. When her eyes opened and focused on
him, they were glazed with a desire so strong that it sent his pulse soaring.

"Later," he bit out. With a jerky movement he couldn't control, he pulled her over him until she

landed against him, straddling him once more.

Out of control now, he put his fingers between her legs and felt the damp heat that told him she

was as into this as he was.

"Was I doing it wrong?" she asked as she leaned fully against him.
"No," he choked out, barely believing that she could have doubts as to how close he'd been to

coming. He manipulated his finger until it was inside, where he needed it to be. "Your mouth is
perfect, but I want this."

She let out a moan in answer as her torso swayed toward his. He caught a nipple between his

lips and began abrading it against the roof of his mouth. Jesus Christ, nothing had ever felt so good

in his entire, godforsaken life.

Not able to wait any longer, he removed his finger and lifted her until she was sinking down

over his cock. She gasped, and he wrapped both hands around her face and held her tightly. They
stared at each other as she took him all the way in, and when he was seated inside to the fullest, they
both closed their eyes in ecstasy.

She began moving over him in a motion as old as time, and as she lifted and fell and repeated the

motions, Nick gritted his teeth and couldn't stop his hands from touching every inch of her that he
could reach. He caressed her spine, his fingers moving up and down over the planes of her back
before moving back to the tight, hard nipples that fascinated him.

He felt the moment begin to build within him, felt the blood fuel him as he was about to go over,

and more than anything else, he wanted her to come with him. His fingers landed on her clit, and
strumming her without breaking the movement, he quickly pushed her to the point where they were
going to fly over the edge together.

His cock hardened one last time with the flow of blood and semen as Courtney began to let out

an endless moan and he knew she was there. He let her ride her orgasm as his own began to short-
circuit his brainwaves. Her body stiffened over his, and they groaned together until he couldn't stand
it anymore and had to fuse himself to her every way he could think of.

He grasped her by the back of the neck and fastened his mouth to hers. Pushing his tongue inside

and holding it there, he lost all sense of the outside world, of time, of anything else but Courtney as
she unfolded in ecstasy around him.

Slowly, he began to come down and he released her mouth. His hands slid around her as her

torso slumped against his and her head fell to his shoulder.

She took a deep breath and then another.
His hands tightened instinctively as his lips found her ear and he couldn't stop the words that

came from his mouth. "I'm never letting you go. Ever."

****

Courtney was missing from the apartment the next morning. As Nick strode through the corridor

from his office towards hers, a blistering heat suffused his entire being. Last night had been perfect. It
had been as if the previous six years had disappeared and now he could finally have the one thing in
life that he wanted above all else.

But when he arrived at her office, her secretary informed him that Courtney was catching a plane

to Texas.

"Where, exactly?" Nick was so pissed that he couldn't control his tone.
The woman had only been working at the corporation for a short time, coming on board for the

express purpose of assisting Courtney. As she looked up into his face and turned white, Nick tried to
control his mounting impatience. She swallowed and answered, "Houston, sir."

"Do you have any idea why?" he asked, trying to smile but finding it impossible.
"I believe it has something to do with a tract of land."
Nick thanked the woman, went straight to the computer in his office and began going through the

pending acquisition files, but he came up empty. He could find no reason for Courtney's presence in
Houston. What the hell was his brother up to now? Nick took a deep breath and picked up his phone,

preparing to contact Garrett for answers, but before he could make the connection his cell pinged with
an incoming message. He slid the bar across and felt a sharp moment of relief, the text reassuring him
that Courtney had gone to Houston on business and hadn't purposely run from him. Your brother's a
slave driver.

Nick keyed in a response, not even pretending he didn't know where she was. Are you still at

the airport? Turn around and I'll tell Garrett you're working for me now.

Lol, no. I can't work for you. :)
No?
No.
Why?
Her answer came quickly. After this weekend? I think you know.
The weekend was good.
Yeah, it was. I'm boarding my flight now.
Nick took a quick breath and keyed in his response. Be careful and let me know when you land

safely.

K. I love you.
Nick's heart constricted when he read those words. I love you, too. Come home as soon as you

can.

I wish you could come with me.
Nick couldn't resist the opportunity to tease her. That'll happen, baby. We just need practice.
Omg!
At her response, he laughed out loud, the sound echoing through his office. Get home as quick as

you can or I'm going to beat my brother to a pulp.

I'll be home in about a week.
Be safe.
You, too.

****

Nick was so impatient he felt like he was going to snap in two. Courtney's one-week trip had

turned into a month, and about the same time that she'd wrapped up her business in Texas, he'd been
called away to California again. So now, finally, after a long, tedious, fucked-up two months, they
were finally back in St. Louis together.

Of course, he hadn't been able to stay away from her for the solid two months; he'd caved

several times and caught a flight just to sleep in her bed and be with her for a few hours. Although
those trips had managed to let off some steam, the short intervals together hadn't even scratched the
surface of what he needed with her in his future.

So now, with the irritation, the agony of their forced separation blazing fire through his system,

even if it had been for business reasons, Nick decided to put the wheels into motion to keep Courtney
tied to him forever.

****

On Monday morning, Courtney suddenly felt goosebumps rise on her flesh. She glanced up from

her computer screen to the door of her office, looking for the reason. Nick stood at the threshold,
watching her intently. She took the pen from her mouth and set it aside, leaning back in her chair. A lot
of damn good a secretary did for protecting her privacy when the woman was faced with one of the
Rule brothers.

"Are you busy?" he asked.
"You pay me to be busy," she retorted.
"I don't pay you. Garrett, maybe. Technically, the corporation pays you."
She rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Whatever."
"Seriously, can you get away for lunch? But fair warning, you're going to be gone for several

hours."

She frowned as she studied him. It was unlike Nick to think of anything but work during business

hours. "What's up?" she asked him now.

"Nothing, really. I've carved out some extra time and want to spend it with you."
"We can't start sneaking off while we're supposed to be working, Nick."
He stiffened minutely. "We won't. Today will be an exception. Things have finally settled down

and I need some time with you; I need to know you're okay."

She felt his words hit her heart and her expression softened. "I'm fine, you know that."
"Courtney," he said as his tone became short. "Get to a stopping point and meet me downstairs

in half an hour." The words weren't a question.

"So, we're not just going upstairs?"
"For a quickie? No, I'm going to feed you at least," he said with a half-smile.
She smiled back. "All right. Downstairs, half an hour."

****

Courtney sat back in the plush leather seat of Nick's BMW. He was driving toward the

riverfront, and she figured he was headed to a restaurant nearby. But as the car ate up the miles and
Courtney saw the Gateway Arch as they passed the area, she realized that he was actually heading
across the Mississippi River, into Illinois.

A couple of minutes later, she glanced over and studied Nick's profile as he drove. "Where are

we going?"

"I don't know. I'm just driving."
"Why?"
He glanced at her for a second before looking back to the road. "I needed to get you to myself,

babe. Is that so damn hard to understand?"

Pleasure rippled through her midsection. "I guess not," she smiled.
"Want to watch the eruption?" he asked.
Courtney knew he referred to the Gateway Geyser on the Illinois riverfront, the second tallest

fountain in the world and a backdrop to the St. Louis Arch, which was on the Missouri side of the
river. The fountain didn't run continuously, it only went off three times a day, during certain times of

the year. "Sure, that sounds fun." She'd only ever seen the fountain go off a couple of times, and it was
always amazingly impressive.

As Nick parked the car and they walked to the Overlook Platform, he took her hand as they

strolled across the grounds. Arriving at the top, he stood behind her and wrapped his arms around
her, lightly resting his chin on the top of her head.

The view from up here was amazing. The St. Louis skyline and the Gateway Arch with the

mighty Mississippi River in front were incredible. When the eruption began at straight-up noon,
Courtney gasped with pleasure and Nick's arms tightened around her. They watched in
companionable silence, and when it was over, oblivious to the tourists around them, Nick turned her
in his arms and kissed her as if there were no tomorrow.

Her legs trembled the entire way back to his car.
She swallowed hard, knowing that she'd have this memory forever. Nick reached over and

buckled her in and then caressed her cheekbone with his fingers. "Want to drive into Belleville for
lunch?"

Totally undone by the unexpected romance of the day, Courtney nodded her head. "Okay."
Nick smiled as if she'd pleased him and then tapped her on the nose before turning away and

pulling away from the parking lot.

The drive to Belleville, Illinois took less than half an hour, and soon, they were sitting in a quiet

restaurant with two glasses of wine between them. "Alcohol during the day, Nick?" she asked with a
quirk, still a bit embarrassed because the waiter had carded her.

"It's a special occasion."
"Is it?" she asked, swirling the liquid in her glass.
Their food arrived and after the waiter left them, Nick touched his glass to hers. "It's always

special when I'm with you."

Courtney's heart went into overdrive. Never in a million years had she thought Nick could be so

charming and romantic.

After they'd eaten a leisurely meal and were in the car again, after a glass of wine and a nice

meal, Courtney wasn't paying attention to where they were headed.

She glanced around when Nick pulled into another parking lot only minutes later. A large,

imposing building stood in front of them. She sucked in a breath, a rush going through her brain,
suddenly realizing that the entire outing had finally come to the place that Nick had been pushing
toward. "Where are we?" she asked softly, trying to get her vocal chords to work as she looked at the
huge government-looking building with suspicion.

"Courthouse," he announced just before he got out of the vehicle and walked around to her side.
He opened her door, and as if a fog had taken over, she unclipped her seat belt as he took her

hand. She stood to her feet as if in a trance and lifted the strap of her bag around her torso as she
stared at the huge building. He pushed on the car door and it slid shut with a gentle snap. He began
ushering her forward but her feet stalled as she held her ground. "What are we doing here?" she asked
more firmly, finally finding her voice.

He stopped and turned toward her, backing her up until her butt hit the car's gleaming fender. He

crowded her back and stared down into her uplifted face. "What do you think we're doing here?"

She shook her head back and forth, refusing to answer, refusing to guess. If what was happening

was what she thought was happening, she was going to be upset.

He reached out and took her chin in his fingers in a grasp that made her want to submit but at the

same time, made her want to jerk away from him in equal measure. As a compromise, she stood

completely still and did neither. His thumb ran across her bottom lip producing a lick of fire. Those
damn butterflies went off in her stomach even when she didn't want them to as she became light-
headed. He opened his mouth and the words she'd been afraid he'd utter came spilling out. "We're
getting a marriage license."

Chapter Seven

Courtney felt herself blink up at Nick as her emotions went into a tailspin. Where in the hell was

her marriage proposal? Was he announcing they were getting married without any input from
her? Yeah, it had been a nice, romantic afternoon . . . but it wasn't enough. Where was her ring?
Where were the words? She continued to look at him blankly while she tried not to be hurt.

She glanced at the building and then back to Nick while a knot formed in her stomach. Very

softly, she shook her head and at her action, a frown built on his features. "No?" he asked
incredulously.

She shook her head again.
He took her hand in his, and for a moment Courtney thought she was going to get at least some of

what she wanted, maybe a belated proposal. But abruptly, he turned her hand until it was captured to
his side. He caged her in with his other arm until she was well and truly under his physical control.
"What's the problem here, babe?"

Courtney really, really didn't want to tell him that her feelings were hurt, so she went down

another path. "I'm sure we don't have the correct documents. Surely we need something more than a
driver's license." It took everything she had to keep her words neutral.

"I've got your passport and birth certificate."
Bells started clanging in her ears. "What?" she asked, as anger began to blend with the hurt she

was feeling.

His mouth flattened as he undoubtedly realized that his plan wasn't going the way he'd mapped it

out. "Again, what's the problem?"

"I'm sorry, I'm trying to understand," she said as she gave him a withering stare. "You just helped

yourself to my personal documents? Did you ask your mother for them?"

"No, I took them from the safe. No big deal."
"No big deal?" Her spine stiffened and she pulled on her arm, watching him with reproachful

eyes. "Let go of me."

"Bullshit."
"Nick," she hissed in anger.
He didn't let go. His face came closer to hers, impatience emblazoned across his features. "I'm

not getting this, Courtney. You didn't think this was about marriage? That's it's always been about
marriage for as long as I can fucking remember?"

Seething with anger and pain, a single tear that she couldn't contain rolled down her cheek. She

wiped it away quickly, not wanting to show weakness, but that ship had sailed. Obviously past the
point where she could contain her hurt feelings, she knew there was no room left for her pride. "I've
always guessed it was about marriage," she admitted. "I've always hoped it was about marriage."
Her face fell from his and her eyes filled with tears as the knot of pain in her stomach exploded. "But
I wanted a proposal, Nick. I wanted a ring," she mumbled. She swallowed and lifted her eyes back to

his, her anger roaring back.

"But instead of a proposal, you steal my documents? That was a shit move on your part."
Nick froze but remained silent. A thousand different emotions crossed his face and she easily

recognized a few: Torture, anger, remorse, passion, shock, impatience. She focused on the remorse
and tried to get him to see what he'd done. "Don't you understand? You're the only one I truly have.
You're the only person in my life who loves me for me." She stared up at him while he looked down
at her in silence, listening intently as she spoke.

Her voice crumpled as the tears started flowing freely as she recognized the blatant concern now

showing on his face. "Your family doesn't really count, because I was forced on them, you know?"
She grimaced and looked away before reluctantly sliding her eyes back to his. "I don't have parents to
rely on if push comes to shove. You're everything to me. I love you with everything I have and I guess
. . . I suppose I thought that you'd recognize that this moment needed to be special for me . . . how
important belonging to you is to me . . . you belonging to me . . . that you'd be considerate of my
feelings and understand that I needed the words, the motions, the ritual . . . " Her voice trailed off as
she reached out with her free hand and balanced it on his chest, trying to convey her pent-up emotions
and looking for stability at the same time.

Courtney emerged from her diatribe to complete silence. Nick was staring at her with a look of

mixed regret and horror on his face. He brought her hands between them as he held them in his. He
swallowed hard and his jaw flexed. "Babe, I'm sorry. I just . . . I don't know what to say."

His turmoil softened her heart. She shook her head, just once. "You don't have to say much. I'm

not going to let one tiny bump ruin everything. Just tell me you want to marry me. Tell me you'll keep
me safe and be my family." She sucked in a breath. "If you promise me that, I'll forgive you for taking
my things without asking, and I'll walk inside that courthouse with you and we'll get a marriage
license, because I want to marry you so badly that I can barely think of anything else."

****

Nick was appalled that he'd fucked up so badly. Courtney was being open and honest with him,

but there was still a part of him that was trying to hide from the truth, and that couldn't go on.

There was no question; he had to fix this, and fix it now. There was only one way he knew how

to do that, and that was to tell her the complete truth. He needed to stop being a scared, fucked-up
pussy and start acting like a man. He knew she loved him. She'd just said so, again. And he knew she
meant it.

Letting go of her hands, very gently, he wrapped one arm behind her back to lend support and

with the other, lifted her chin and stared down into the beautiful blue eyes that had held him enthralled
for more years than he could count. "I love you. I've loved you since you were a teenager and I've
waited for what seems like my whole godforsaken life for you. All I've ever wanted was for you to
love me back and to marry me, to let me be your family." He looked into the beautiful face that was
like an addiction to him. "Baby, you're the one who doesn't understand. You're my obsession; you're
what I've worked for and lived for my entire life. I not only want to be the one to keep you safe, I've
fantasized about it since you were young." He reached down and kissed her on the forehead, forcing
himself to hold her gently and not in a grasp so tight that she wouldn't be able to breathe.

When he looked back down, she was holding his eyes like a lifeline, and he continued, putting it

all out there for her. "So be mad at me if you have to, but yeah, I orchestrated today in an effort to get
you here. I don't know why I feel so vulnerable when it comes to you, I really don't. You're the only
thing in the world that I'm scared of losing, of disappointing; I get cold sweats just thinking about it.
So, yeah, today was planned. But it gets worse, baby, so if I'm making confessions, I might as well
tell you all of it." He looked at her, hesitant to let her know exactly how screwed-up he was.

"Tell me," she whispered.
He gritted his teeth and went for it. "The last couple of months were hell for me, because we

weren't together and I need so fucking badly to know you belong to me." He took a deep breath and let
out the rest of his confession, hoping she wouldn't think he was insane. "I intentionally drove you
across the state line because Illinois only has a twenty-four hour waiting period instead of three days,
like Missouri."

After Nick told her that, her eyes flared as she swayed on her feet. If he hadn't been holding her

up, she would have fallen to the ground. "I'm sorry," he said quickly. "I guess I was trying to hustle
you into marrying me tomorrow because . . . because . . . I don't know why. I guess I'm scared shitless
you're going to slip away from me or something." She still didn't answer. "I can't have that, you know?
I can't take that chance."

He saw the pulse in her neck quiver. Finally, she cleared her throat and asked, "You want to get

married tomorrow?"

"Yeah. More than fucking life itself."
She stared at him as if dumbstruck, finally licking her lips and asking, "And if I agree, will you .

. . will you get me a ring?"

At her question, another arrow went straight through Nick's heart. "Sweetheart. I'm such a

dumbfuck." He dropped his head and shook it before looking back into her sweet face. "You have no
idea." He licked his lips and admitted, "It's in the glove compartment."

"There's a ring in the glove compartment?" she repeated in shock.
"I've had a one-track mind since yesterday, since we both got back into town. I've had the ring so

long that truthfully, I was being selfish today, thinking of my needs, wanting to tie you to me, and not
what you needed."

Without letting her loose, he walked them to the passenger door and opened it. He maneuvered

her until she was sitting, with her legs outside of the car, and he opened the glove box. Reaching into
the compartment, he took out a small velvet box and held it up between them. Reaching out, he stroked
her hair for several long seconds while she stared at the box.

He squatted down in front of her and all but whispered, "Baby, will you do something for me?"

When she nodded her head, continuing to stare at the box, he swallowed, and asked, "Will you shut
your eyes and hold out your hands?"

She lifted her head and her eyes clashed with his. He saw the tears swimming there, saw her

tremulous smile, and they caused an ache in his gut like he'd never felt before. She shut her eyes and
with shaky fingers she held her hands out. He put the box in her hands but didn't let go; he held both
the box and her hands together. "I'll always take care of you, Courtney. I swear to God, I'll be the man
you want me to be. I'll be your family, I'll worship the ground you walk on." Opening the lid, Nick
took the three-carat ring from the box and lifted her left hand. She held her trembling fingers wide.

"Will you marry me?"
Her eyes flooded with new tears and a hot rush of emotion clawed its way down his spine. He

would take care of her. He'd treat her with kid gloves, just the way he used to before his selfish
possessiveness had reared its ugly head. What the hell had he been thinking anyway? Courtney was

special. She needed something from him that he was bound and determined to give to her.

As he stared down into her eyes, she whispered, "Yes."
He closed his eyes briefly in relief, and then he opened them and slipped the ring on her finger.

He bent his head and kissed her finger, reverently. Swallowing hard, he asked, "You'll go inside the
courthouse with me now?"

"Yes."
"And just so there's no more confusion or disagreements, we'll come back again tomorrow and

get married?"

"Yes."
"We're not going to tell anyone until it's a done deal, because I don't want any delay. My mother

would try to stop us . . . she'd want to throw a big wedding--"

"I don't want a big wedding," Courtney interrupted. "I couldn't stand not having my father there to

walk me down the aisle."

Fuck, he was such a dumbshit. Why had he even brought the subject of a wedding up? How

could he not have thought of that? All he'd considered was the delay he hadn't wanted. He'd done it
again. She was right. He was inconsiderate and he needed to learn how to do better. Starting now. He
leaned in again and kissed her forehead once more. "Okay, then. It's a secret until it's done, but then
everyone knows, right?"

She broke out into a breathless, radiant smile. "Right," she agreed.
Thank God.

****

Later that night, Courtney experienced the gentlest lovemaking she'd known in her admittedly

short love life. Nick had been unbelievable, stroking every inch of her skin slowly, as if he were
entranced.

As she lay awake in the aftermath, listening to his deep breathing, her brain cells were rioting.

My God, he really loved her.

All it had taken was one small talk, two minutes of telling him what she needed from him, a few

very real tears, and he'd listened to every word. He'd listened to her and tonight, he'd worshipped her
body, his every touch gentle, his every stroke filled with love and a profound need for her.

She closed her eyes in delight. They were going to be so happy together. They loved each other

so much, trusted each other, needed each other; they fit together like a glove.

Life was so good. Finally, life was good.
Nothing could go wrong.

****

A married woman now, the drive back across the Mississippi River was different than the drive

over had been an hour earlier. Courtney couldn't put her finger on exactly what it was, but Nick held
her hand just a tad more tightly than before. He controlled the steering wheel with his left hand, and

his right hand held hers over the console as he twirled both the engagement ring and the wedding band
around and around on her finger. She glanced at his hand on the steering wheel and saw once again,
the wedding band on his ring finger that matched hers.

A shiver of delight danced down her spine.
This man was hers. Hers, by God.
He glanced at her briefly before looking back to the road. "Let's run by the house and get some

more of your things. We'll tell mom the news and she can spread the word. Later this weekend, we
can pick up the rest of your stuff and you can move in completely. That sound all right?"

"Mm-hmm," she agreed. She'd agree to just about anything right now. Her brain was floating

around somewhere in a state of blissful happiness and anticipation.

"You sound happy," he said with a growl of satisfaction.
She smiled and tightened her fingers on his. "That's because I am happy."
"Garrett's going to be pissed when you stop travelling," Nick announced with determination in

his voice.

Courtney rolled her eyes. She'd travel if she damn well felt like it but she'd cross that bridge

later. Nothing was going to interrupt the euphoria running through her bloodstream right now.

When she didn't comment but only kept smiling, he smiled in return, obviously letting his

challenge go, and then he changed the subject. "When do you want to start working on a baby? I'm
ready whenever you are," he teased. "What do you think?"

Courtney's stomach dropped as she felt the color drain from her face. Nothing could interrupt

the euphoria running through her bloodstream . . . except that. "Wh-what?" she asked in a stutter.

Nick braked as the car rolled up to a red light, and looked at her with a question in his eyes. "I'm

just kidding, babe. I'm not sharing you for a long, long time." He speared his hand through her hair as
he smiled. "Unless an accident happens, and then I'll have no choice," he teased.

Thankfully, the light turned green and Courtney was spared from answering. The happiness had

just gone out of her day, deflated like a viciously popped balloon. Shit. The happiness had just gone
out of her life. Why. In. The. Hell. Hadn't. She. Thought. About. This?

As they drove through the city, Courtney knew they couldn't tell Justine about the marriage, not

yet. Not until they'd talked. Just as he was about to board the freeway toward his mother's house, she
stopped him. "Nick," she managed, with ill-concealed dread.

At the tone of her voice, he glanced over. "Yeah?"
"Let's go to the penthouse first, okay?"
"We just decided we'd tell mom and pick up some of your things," he answered in a stilted

manner.

"Yeah, I know, but I've changed my mind. I don't feel so hot. Can you take me back to the

penthouse? Please?"

His features hardened but he turned in the appropriate direction. The five minutes it took to

arrive in the underground parking were some of the longest of her life. Dread sat like a dead weight in
her belly.

But she had to tell him. She knew she did. And then she had to let him go. She loved Nick but

she had to let him go. For his happiness.

To stop it from trembling, she bit her lip until she tasted blood.

****

The minutes in the elevator were some of the most confusing moments of Nick's life. Everything

had been damn perfect the entire day. Courtney had worn white to the ceremony, just as he'd
requested. He'd had no idea what kind of flowers she would want or if she'd want any at all. He'd
bought her a dozen long-stemmed roses, a corsage that would pin to her dress, another that she could
wear on her wrist, and finally, a bouquet of flowers she could carry if that was her choice. She'd
seemed flabbergasted by all the flowers, but she'd smiled and thrown her arms around him.

They'd made love before they left for the Belleville Courthouse, arriving exactly twenty-five

hours after they'd bought the marriage license. They'd been held up because Nick had ruined both
Courtney's hair and make-up and she'd insisted on repairing them. She'd looked beautiful mussed up,
and it had been his inclination to refuse her the time, so ready to get the deed accomplished, but he'd
swallowed down his aggression and been considerate.

The ceremony itself had been quick but it seemed to make Courtney happy. She'd been agreeable

to everything all day. He knew he'd made that quip about her not travelling anymore, but damn, he'd
had to get it out there. Anyway, that hadn't been the problem. He'd seen her roll her eyes as if he
weren't her boss but the smile had never left her eyes.

Not until he'd mentioned a baby.
At the subject, all the animation had left her face and she'd turned ashen, looking almost ill and

gaunt within seconds.

Goddamnit. What in the hell was wrong with him? Why couldn't he learn? Why couldn't he think

ahead like a reasonable human being and get his shit straight the first time?

Of course a discussion about having kids so soon might scare or worry her. There were any

number of reasons for that, and like a dumbfuck, he'd had to blurt out something that should have been
approached with care.

She was right. He was inconsiderate. Insensitive. But he swore to God, before the day was over,

he'd get a fucking clue and give her whatever she wanted.

Because there was only one thing in life that he wanted, and that was Courtney Powell. No,

scratch that. Courtney Rule.

Oh yeah. He liked the sound of that. Whatever happened, it was too damn late for her to get away

from him now. He needed to quit worrying so much. She'd married him. She was his now. He'd make
up his blunder to her somehow, and eventually, ease whatever fears she had about having children.

Yeah, he wanted kids someday. But they were still young. Anything could happen. Maybe they'd

have a house full of children, maybe they'd have none.

When it came down to it, all he wanted was for Courtney to be happy. Well, happy with him.
Yeah, that's all he wanted.

****

Courtney walked through to her suite of rooms the second the elevator doors opened. Knowing

she couldn't put the discussion off, she quickly changed out of the white dress into jeans and a t-shirt,
ready for that particular reminder of what had started out to be the happiest day of her life to be gone.

What was wrong with her? Why couldn't she want a baby? That question was crazy; she did

want a child. She wanted one desperately. But how could she be so selfish as to bring a child into the
world just because she wanted one? What would happen to that baby if something happened to her
and Nick? It would be left all alone in the world, all alone to face crushing heartache and pain.
Courtney couldn't even take the remotest chance of that happening.

The memory of what she'd been through came back with an unmerciful vengeance. Cold panic

ran through her bloodstream at the remembered trauma. And she admitted, it had been traumatic.
Looking back, she knew she shouldn't have hidden her pain so well from Justine. She'd tried so hard
to ease the older woman's burdens. But really, she'd been little more than a child and she'd done what
she'd thought best at the time. But now she realized that she'd needed help. Maybe if she'd had
counseling things would be different now.

But they weren't.
She trembled as she prepared herself to face Nick. She wouldn't have a child. She couldn't. That

was a heartache that she'd have to live with, but there was no reason that Nick should have to endure
the same emptiness in his life. She loved him too much to even think of letting that happen.

With a sinking heart, she trailed back into the living area, not surprised in the least to see Nick

tensed up, standing next to the wall of windows, a highball glass in his hand.

At her entry, he turned to face her and downed the drink. Attempting to steady her nerves, she

took a seat in the chair next to the sofa and waited.

She didn't have long to wait. He set the glass down, but instead of sitting on the sofa as she'd

expected, as she'd intended, he came directly in front of her, into her personal space and maneuvered
her legs apart with his hands on her knees. He came down on his haunches between them with a sigh.
With a gentle hand, he speared his fingers through her hair and gazed at her, his heart in his eyes.
"Sweetheart, I shouldn't have said what I did. Of course there's no rush. Baby, you're worrying for
nothing."

Unable to control her need to touch him, she sank her fingers into his hair. The chemistry that had

always been so strong between them hadn't lessened a bit. Her eyes held his as she savored what it
had been like between them, even if it had only been that way for a short while. With the words she
was about to speak, everything between them would change.

She took a stabilizing breath and began. "I'm sorry that the subject of a baby never came up

between us. I don't know why it never did." She swallowed and continued, "Of course you want a
family," her eyes filled with tears and she shrugged her shoulders as her hand dropped away from him
to land in her lap. "I can't have a child, Nick."

He was silent for a moment and although she was looking down at her hands, she knew he

studied her intently before he carefully spoke. "Why, sweetheart? Is there a physical problem that
precludes you carrying a baby?"

She bit her lip and shook her head, misery like a lead ball in her belly.
"What's wrong, then?" he whispered, his thumb rubbing along her cheekbone.
She took a deep breath and lifted her face, but kept her eyes downcast. "Being orphaned was . . .

was devastating," she answered, although that was only the tip of the iceberg.

He flinched at her words and his touch on her face tightened. "Yeah, but now you have me. We

have each other." His voice reflected confusion, genuine concern, and at the same time, ultimate
possession.

Courtney bit her lip, so badly wanting to go into his arms. She knew what he would say. She

knew he'd say they didn't have to have kids. But she also knew he wanted a family, he deserved his
own family. And he could still have that. Just not with her.

With her lip between her teeth, as he stared at her face, she looked away, unable to meet his

eyes. Tears spilled down her cheeks and she brushed them away. "I know losing your dad was hard
on you and your siblings. I don't want . . . I don't want to downplay that loss. But you still had your
mom, and the house you'd grown up in. You had stability in your life." Her words came to a quavering
halt as she thought about what she'd say next.

His fingers became caressing against her scalp. "I realize you had it bad, baby. I've always

known that. It's one of the reasons I've always ached to take care of you. Don't you get that?"

She nodded her head. "I know, and I love you for it." She finally found the courage to meet his

eyes. "This is so sad, you know?"

"Why does it have to be sad?" He questioned with something close to panic in his voice.
She looked away from him again. "I can't give you the family you want, I just can't do it. I can't

ever, ever bring a child into this world, knowing there's a possibility it might go through what I went
through." Her throat began aching with unshed tears but she persevered before she broke down. She
had to make him understand. "See, if I don't ever have a baby, then there's no chance it could ever
lose its mommy and daddy, you know?"

There was utter silence in the room except for the tick of the antique clock on the mantel. After a

few seconds she felt Nick's hand release her hair and then he lifted her chin. Her eyes met his and she
was immediately hit by the anguish she saw reflected there. And it wasn't anguish for his loss of a
child, no; she knew it was anguish for what she was feeling. His voice was rough and implacable
when he spoke. "Then we won't have any. It's as simple as that."

Courtney closed her eyes and began sobbing in earnest. "I knew you'd say that," she got out

between tears. She began crying even harder, shaking her head at the same time. The harder she cried,
the harder she shook her head.

Nick tried to take her in his arms, but she pushed his hands away and stood up to walk across the

room before facing him again. She crossed her arms over her chest defensively. "I love you." She
saw pain and confusion in his eyes, so she tried to make him understand how much she loved him.
She took a deep breath and continued more softly, "I love the way you waited for me all those years. I
love the way you can't always hide your impatience. I love the way you're so selfish about me that you
sometimes forget to think of me first. I love the way you are. And I love the man you've become."
She halted as her voice cut out and she licked her lips. "But we can't be married. I can't have the
children that I know you want." She bit her lip and took a shuddering breath. "I'll always love you,
and I promise, I swear to God, that I'll love the children you'll have someday." She swallowed,
forcing the words out. "And I promise that I won't make trouble for you. I . . . I'll be happy for you,"
her voice cracked on a sob, "and for the woman you eventually marry."

With those words, Courtney turned and fled to her suite, locking the door behind her.

****

Nick took a few stumbling steps backwards until he fell back on the sofa. His head sank down

into his hands and he let out a tortured, shuddering moan. What the hell had she gone through? He'd
known it had been bad for her, but why hadn't he seen exactly how badly the death of her parents had
scarred her?

If he'd realized, if she hadn't hidden it so well, he'd have done things differently. What, he didn't

exactly know. He should have seen that she needed professional help, that she needed grief
counseling. Maybe he should have married her the second she turned eighteen. Then, at least, he could
have held her every night, been there for her the last six years, giving her comfort every day. Made
her feel that she belonged, that she wasn't alone, made her realize that she was loved.

Her pain went so deep, it was almost unfathomable to him, though in a way, he understood her

logic.

His scared, emotionally fragile, brave, selfless Courtney was trying to protect her unborn

children. She loved the thought of her future children so much that she'd give up knowing them, give
up having them, just to protect them from the pain that she'd endured.

This was an agony that she might carry her entire life. He suddenly saw her future the way that

she was seeing it. It wasn't something he wanted for her, but he might not be able to change the
outcome. If she continued to refuse to have kids, she'd never get to know the joy of being a mother,
and that made him so sad for her.

But she couldn't hide one thing. She wanted him in her life, as her husband, he knew she did,

even though it seemed she was determined to set him free. Yeah, right. He never wanted to be free of
Courtney. There was no reason in the world she shouldn't have him. It escaped Nick that he wasn't
thinking about his own loss. It never once occurred to him that he might never get to be a father. All he
cared about was Courtney's happiness and being with her. Being there for her, as her husband, her
lover, her protector, everything she needed. For always.

The fact that she'd actually stated that they couldn't be married almost annihilated him. Thank

God they were already married and she wouldn't have a choice in the matter. Thank God they'd never
had that particular conversation about children until after they'd exchanged the vows that would bind
her to him forever.

He sucked in a stabilizing breath and then another. He could give up children if he had to.

Children, to him, were an added bonus that he could do without, if necessary. There wasn't a chance
in goddamn hell that he was giving up Courtney.

****

Nick kept his eye on Courtney's door but she never attempted to leave her suite the entire night.
The next morning, her face looked drawn, but she was dressed for work when she emerged into

the living area. He stood in the kitchen, drinking a cup of coffee as she walked through to the elevator.
"You going down?"

"Yeah," she said as she kept her eyes on the door.
"I'll see you later, then."
Nick watched her as she nodded her head and then took the elevator down.

****

Five times that day he walked past her office and five times, she was safely inside. The first time

he'd walked by, her office door had been ajar and he'd noticed immediately that she wasn't wearing

her rings. It pissed him off, upset him, but he'd slid the ring from his finger and put it in his pocket, in
a move that, he hoped, was a show of respect for her wishes. What they were going through was
between the two of them only; he wasn't going to make this any harder for her than it needed to be.

She must have seen him walk by, because after that, her door had been firmly closed. At five on

the dot, he went by again. Her office door was open but she wasn't there. Grimacing, he took the
elevator up.

Thank God, he heard her moving around her suite.
Not wanting to rush her, trying his damn best to be considerate, he ordered in food and went to

have a shower before it was delivered.

An hour later, he knocked on her door. "Hey. You want to come eat with me?"
A few seconds passed and then her door opened. She was dressed in faded jeans and a

university t-shirt, and without meeting his eyes, she went into the kitchen.

He leaned against the counter as she opened the boxes, and the sight of her bare ring finger

almost did him in.

In silence, she prepared a plate for him and then a smaller version for herself. They ate together,

sitting casually on the barstools, and just as quickly as she'd consumed the tiny helping, she left the
room, mumbling, "I have a headache. I'm going to soak in the tub. Goodnight."

"Goodnight," he gritted out, frustration and utter helplessness eating him alive.

****

For two solid weeks, their days and evenings followed the same routine. They went to work,

went upstairs to the penthouse, ate in silence, and then Courtney would shut herself inside her room.

Ever since Courtney had begun working in the Rule Tower, she'd spent very few nights at the

house with his mother, and only when he'd been out of town. Nick assumed the family thought they
were just roommates, sharing the penthouse. He'd had no conversations with anyone in his family
about it, and Courtney's belongings were still scattered between both locations.

She still wouldn't open up to Nick and day by long-suffering day, he continued to give her time to

come to grips, leaving her almost completely to herself. But every time she left the building, which
was rare, he experienced a flare of panic, and had to force himself not to demand she stay; he had to
force himself not to follow her, to give her some space.

Finally admitting the truth; he knew he'd been scared to push her, afraid she'd make a move to

end the marriage. He didn't like the admission; the knowledge pissed him off. It went against every
instinct he had within himself not to take action.

But as the days and nights went by with zero to little interaction between them, he felt his anger

and frustration begin to boil to the surface. He knew he couldn't go on like this much longer; he was
fast getting tired of this shit. The time he'd been giving her to realize that they belonged together was
about up.

His mood shifting even lower, he remembered their last real conversation where she'd so

prettily told him that she loved the man he'd become, would love him forever while at the same time
explaining why they couldn't be together. Resentment built like a time bomb in his gut.

So, she liked the man he'd become? That was damn good, because she was about to find out that

he always got what he wanted. And in this case, what he wanted was marriage to her forever.

Yeah, damn, fucking good she liked the man he'd become.
She was about to get to know that man a little more fully.

Chapter Eight

Nick reached his breaking point a day later and there was no way he could allow Courtney to

slip away from him again. He opened a bottle of wine, and when he called her from her room to eat
supper, he had everything already laid out in the living room, ready for a casual meal at the coffee
table.

He'd chosen a new release movie, an instant download, and as she sat, he asked if she'd seen it.

Shaking her head, she glanced around with a look of mild panic before reluctantly sinking onto the
sofa where he'd strategically placed her meal next to his.

He knew the change of location and the bottle of wine were causing that look of fear on her face,

but son-of-a-bitch, he was fighting for his life here, for their happiness. Pushing her anxiety from his
mind, he refused to change the course he'd set out for the evening.

As they picked up their plates, he pressed the remote to start the light comedy. He had everything

planned out. Nothing could go wrong. Earlier, he'd taken a break from work and slipped upstairs to
her suite of rooms and had easily found the box that contained her wedding rings.

He was past ready to put their problems behind them and begin their life together. He wanted

Courtney and he wanted this bullshit to be over. He wanted his family to know they were married, he
wanted her to accept him and their marriage, and he wanted exclusive rights to her forever. He
wanted her submission and he wanted it tonight. Sex was part of that and he was more than prepared
to seduce her to accomplish it.

Nick knew he wasn't much of a romantic guy. But he was trying his best here and he prayed like

hell that she would like it. She had to or his happiness was doomed.

After the movie was about half over and their meals were eaten, he picked up the bottle of wine

and topped up her glass. Her eyes were on the television, his were on her, and setting his own glass
down, he moved toward her until there was no space between them. He wrapped his arm around the
back of the sofa, and began twirling a strand of her blonde hair through his fingers.

She sucked in a quiet breath, the pulse in her neck quivered, and the wine in her glass sloshed

just a bit.

He hissed out a breath in reaction, all the blood rushed to his cock, and he took the glass from

her trembling fingers and set it down beside his.

Her gaze remained glued to the television, but her lids drooped just enough to tell him she wasn't

seeing anything on the screen.

He pressed a button on the remote to mute the sound, and without waiting, he turned her face

toward his with a single finger so he could study her.

She allowed the movement, but closed her eyes in retaliation.
He decided to let the small rebellion slide.
He leaned in and kissed her on the lips, more softly than he'd ever imagined he'd be capable of.

A whisper of sound escaped her lips and he pressed more firmly. He took his time, forcing himself to
go slowly while every instinct in his body screamed at him to rip her pants down her legs and spread
her thighs. He clenched his jaw and went slowly.

He kissed along her jaw line, along the small shell of her ear, and back to her lips.
When he felt a small, trembling hand in his hair, he knew he was close to winning.
Opening her mouth with his tongue, he worshipped her with everything he had inside of him. It

was easy to do. When her fingers clenched more tightly and she gasped for air, he dropped his head
to her breast and began stroking her nipple with his mouth and tongue.

She moaned out a hot little sound, and soon her t-shirt became saturated in that one spot. Needing

something more, he ran his hand down to the soft vee between her legs. The shorts she wore were
terrycloth, and although he steeled his guts to go slow, he couldn't stand not touching her intimately for
one second longer. His fingers snaked inside the hem of her shorts and skated along her skin, pushing
her underwear aside.

When he felt her damp heat, he damn near lost it. She was ready for him, and he slid his finger

inside, while manipulating her nipple with his teeth through the thin cotton material of her shirt.

She began mewling in the back of her throat, and Nick lifted his mouth from her long enough to

sink his fingers around the material of her shorts and panties as he pulled them from her body and let
them fall to the floor.

He glanced up and her face looked stricken, even as she breathed heavily in tandem with him.
Wanting nothing more than to soothe her, he slid his hand under the seat cushion and pulled out

the rings he'd hidden there. He quickly slipped his wedding band on his own finger, and watching her
eyes go wide, he lifted her left hand and pushed the set down onto her own finger. He closed her
fingers and kissed the small fist, looking up at her while he did so.

She bit her lip and began shaking her head, and not wanting her to have time to gain any traction

against him, he put his mouth back to hers as his hand moved back between her thighs.

She was hot again in seconds, even though it nearly killed him to know he was seducing her

against her will.

He couldn't help that; he needed this act between them. He needed her in his arms and in his bed

again. He'd lose all sanity if he couldn't attain that, and he needed it quickly. Continuing to seduce her
with his mouth and hands, he shed his shirt, jeans and underwear while she was incapable of noticing.

As he came to his knees on the floor in front of her and dragged her butt to the edge of the couch,

his hand went unerringly back to her mound. Her eyes widened and she sucked in a breath, and he
realized in that moment that she'd regained her faculties. It almost killed him.

"Nick, no."
"No?" Christ, he was going to die.
Her face crumpled as she ran her hand down to his and tried to stop him from caressing her clit.

"I can't do this. We can't make love."

"Why not, baby?" he asked, forcing his voice to maintain a degree of normalcy. At the same time,

while they stared into each other's eyes, he grabbed her fingers where they had a death grip on his
hand. Enclosing them with his, with a gentle manipulation, he brought them to her clit until she was
touching herself, with his own hand holding her fingers captive there.

She gasped and tried to back off from this new intimacy, but with a strong grip, he held her hand

over her mound, while they massaged her together.

Nick glanced down and the eroticism of the moment was almost more than he could stand.
She began thrusting her hips up to his hand, tiny, soft little thrusts, but her brain was still fighting

her body because she said, "We can't make love or we won't be able to get an annulment."

The absurdity of the notion hit him and he barked out a harsh rasp of caustic laughter. That's

what had been in that crazy-assed female brain of hers? "There's no way in fucking hell we're

getting an annulment," he bit out.

"Please, Nick," she begged in entreaty. "I'm so confused right now."
Whatever was going on inside her mind wasn't something Nick completely understood, but he

remembered her speech the day he'd manipulated her into going to the courthouse. And right now,
even though it might damn well kill him, he knew he had to be the man she needed him to be. He
wanted nothing more than to be that person, he wanted her to understand that she couldn't live without
him.

"Okay, sweetheart," he soothed, promising her something that went against the need gripping him

by the throat. "But I need to at least touch you," he cajoled. "But just touching, no penetration, I
promise, okay?"

Her eyes flared as she immediately grasped his meaning. No intercourse, but they would play.

A few tense seconds ticked by as they stared into each other's eyes while Nick continued to caress her
mound, attempting to seduce her into agreement. "Okay," she finally whispered.

"I love to touch you, I want it so much," he said slowly as he continued to tease her clit with his

fingers on top of hers. "You want that too, baby, right?"

She nodded her head and at the movement, he slid his hand down and found her wet opening,

slipping his finger inside. He heard her breath catch, and soon she was moving against him in a way
that told him she was completely ready. But goddamn, so was he. He was wild for her; he had to
come.

He glanced up and as gently as possible, removed his touch from her and laid her out on the sofa.

She was pliant in his arms and he took the opportunity to slide her shirt over her head.

He stood and leaned a knee on the couch where she lay on her back and put a single finger on a

peaked, luscious nipple. Her body jerked in reaction. She looked completely helpless, and it was
turning him on, making him even harder than he already was. "You trust me?" he asked shortly,
knowing exactly what he wanted if he couldn't penetrate her with his cock.

"Yes," she breathed out.
Watching her for one second longer, tugging on her firm little nipple once more, he let go, and

turned her body until she was lying on her side, facing out toward the room, facing him. With his knee
on the sofa beside her, he put his hand back to her breast for a moment, wanting to keep her as hot as
possible, and then he slid his fingers to cup her wet heat.

She began undulating again within seconds, and dropping down beside her, he lay beside her,

only he lay opposite of her, his head between her thighs and his groin so close to her sweet little
mouth that he had to bite the inside of his cheek until he tasted blood, just so he could have a modicum
of control.

He felt her suck in a breath, and wasting no time, he put his hands on her, spreading out her

sweet, wet lips until her hot little opening was exposed to him. He stroked his tongue down and then
up, repeated the movement five or six times until she moaned loudly and grasped his erection in her
hand.

His head almost blew off at the impact.
She held him tightly, and he slid a finger inside of her, and up, until he was touching her G-spot.

He became selfish then, unable to stop himself, and he began to lick and rub her and manipulate her
the way that was the most pleasurable for him . . . but as he continued the movements that were
driving him crazy, he realized that the reason he loved it was because it was exactly what she liked
the best.

And it worked, because she grasped his cock just that much tighter with a hold that told him she

was just as desperate as he was. He growled low in his throat and let out what he was feeling, "Your
mouth, baby. I want your mouth."

It didn't take two seconds. She took him inside her mouth and began sucking. His control

snapped, and he pushed against her, stroking in and out of her mouth with his hips, barely aware that
she kept her hand around the base of his cock to maintain some control over the situation. His teeth
and tongue continued to worship her, taking from her, giving to her. Unable to stop it, with fire
shooting down his spine and landing in a fury of uncontrollable need, he felt himself begin to come
inside her mouth.

It was unbelievable, fantastic, but he wanted more. He had to feel her pleasure. He needed her

coming with him, for him.

He moved his mouth and bit her clit, inserting two fingers into her snug channel, and as her moan

rent the air, it was impossible for him not to know that she was coming with him.

****

Courtney sat up in a flurry of emotions and pulled herself away from Nick and then the sofa

altogether. The position they'd been in . . . what they'd just done . . .what she'd just swallowed.

She grabbed her clothes from the floor and looked at him in disbelief. He was slowly coming to

a sitting position as if what they'd done had been nothing out of the ordinary. His nonchalance wasn't
calming to her at all. He was completely nude, his erection was still hard and glistening and he wore
a slight, questioning look on his face.

Her emotions were in turmoil, jumping all over the place. So, they hadn't had intercourse. He'd

given her that. But what they had done . . . how he'd slid opposite her and taken . . . Christ, she'd read
about it in Cosmo, but hadn't really thought about ever doing it herself.

She still couldn't stay married to him. God, she wanted him though. Why hadn't she moved out

of the penthouse yet? As she stood in indecision, she told herself to stop being stupid, just be happy
with him, for God's sake. But she couldn't do it. Not yet. Looking down, she saw his rings on her
finger and her control snapped. She covered her face with her hands and let out a loud, tortured sound
of anguished frustration.

When she took her hands away from her face, he was still watching her, but a mask had come

over his features, hiding his thoughts from her. She swallowed, shook her head, and then ripped the
rings from her finger. She set them on the table next to her wine glass, and fled to her bedroom,
locking the door behind her.

****

The next morning, Courtney was already gone from the penthouse when Nick walked from his

suite. Although nothing was out of place that he could see, after last night, he had a bad feeling in his
gut. He walked into her rooms, doing a double check, but she was definitely not there.

He refused to let his anxiety rise or to let his anger build. After he rode the elevator down, he

strode directly to her office. She wasn't there. It was still too early for her secretary to be at work so

Nick couldn't question the woman.

He turned and made his way to his own office, breathing deeply, his hands fisting at his sides as

he tried to contain the turmoil raging through his veins. Standing before the large windows that
overlooked the city, Nick barely contained the violent fury and fear that were screaming at him to put
his fist through the glass.

He was only seconds away from losing it when he felt his phone vibrate. Taking a deep breath,

he opened the text message.

Garrett needs me in Texas. I'm about to board a flight now.
Twin emotions grabbed Nick by the throat. One: he was going to murder his brother. Two: he

didn't know exactly what the second emotion was, but it felt a hell of a lot like relief. Even though he
detested it when Courtney travelled, traveling for the Rule Corporation was a hell of a better reason
than running from him and what he'd seduced her into the night before.

He keyed in a reply, even though it was nowhere near what he really wanted to say. Be careful

and let me know when you land safely.

Her answer came swiftly. k.
Nick stared at the single letter. K? k? That was it? What the fuck? Where was his 'I love you'?

And why the hell couldn't he key the words in and tell her first?

Jesus Christ, this was going to be even more difficult than he'd thought.

Chapter Nine

Nick knew exactly when Courtney would be back and he had everything planned out perfectly.

The weeks she'd been gone had been hell and right now, if she wouldn't wear his ring, then he had one
mission in mind: seducing her into consummating their marriage vows. His cock hardened as he
thought back to their last time together. Seduction had worked before, it had to work again.

He couldn't stand it any longer. Their marriage had to be consummated.
When the elevator opened into the penthouse and Courtney walked through the door, Nick felt the

atmosphere ignite. He'd been sitting on the sofa like a caged tiger, deliberately barefoot and wearing
only jeans, listening to the droning sound of the television while watching the door for her arrival.

As she entered the room, she glanced at him, her eyes taking in his bare chest, before quickly

looking away again. "Hey," she mumbled.

Feeling tension so strong it was about to snap, Nick stood to his feet and walked over to her,

collecting her suitcase and taking it straight through to his suite of rooms.

"Nick--"
"Yeah?" he asked with a hint of challenge, knowing she was trailing slowing behind him.

Moving just inside the room, he dropped the case inside his door and turning, he grabbed her hand
and pulled her in with him, pinning her up against the wall.

****

Courtney tried to breathe evenly and remain in control, but it was impossible when Nick was her

competition.

He was physically stronger than she was, possibly smarter than she was, he was definitely more

skilled at this cat and mouse game they seemed to be playing. As he held her pinned to the wall, the
weeks of separation they'd suffered through didn't help the situation. She wanted him. She needed
him. She was still utterly confused, but there was one thing she wasn't confused about. She wanted
him as badly as he wanted her. She always would.

His hands released her from their hold, but only to strip the clothes from her body with rough,

agitated movements. Panting softly, she let him have his way because it was what she wanted too.
When she was completely naked, his mouth reached down for hers and his hand landed on her breast
with complete possession. Kissing her with a ruthless intent that she never tried to fight, his hands ran
up and down her naked body. His masculinity was an addiction she couldn't fight; she began to sink
under his spell.

His hand slid from her breast but his mouth stayed on hers, and she barely had enough sense to

realize that he was shoving his jeans down and off. He came back to her, spreading her legs, but then
suddenly changed direction and picked her up, carried her to his bed and dropped her to the center.
Following her down, he pushed between her thighs. Her hands slid over his torso, feeling his
washboard abs. Anticipation slithered down her spine and she felt damp heat pool between her
thighs.

His touch was intoxicating, an enticing compulsion she knew she'd never learn to overcome, no

matter what happened between them. She pushed every unnecessary thought from her mind as she
kissed him back. Her hand slid down and found his erection, harder and stronger than she'd ever
known it to be. Was that just her imagination?

He lifted his mouth away and she opened her eyes to find him looking at her with unapologetic,

masculine demand. His legs forced hers wider. "I want inside you. Right now, right this instant, my
gorgeous little wife."

Courtney sucked in a breath and froze underneath him. It was 'my wife' that did it. Damn it, why

the reminder now? She couldn't be his wife, could she? "Nick . . . I . . . I'm not your wife," she
whispered.

"What?" He made a grab at her hands and pulled them over her head. Holding them with one of

his, he reached down and brought the head of his erection to her wet opening.

He held still there, and at her silence, he demanded, "Explain that."
God, he felt so good. Fighting herself was so much harder than fighting him. "I think we should

get it annulled--"

He let out a bitter laugh. "You're asking me to stop again? I'm not buying it this time." With the

tip of his penis exactly where it was supposed to go, he reached down and began stroking her clit. "I
guess you don't want me to do this either, right?"

Courtney's eyes rolled to the back of her head as he massaged her in the one place she needed it

the most. When she focused again, she could clearly see the look of restraint on his face and how
much it was costing him. She tried to ignore his magical fingers and whispered, "If we have sex, we
can't get an annulment."

"We aren't getting a fucking annulment," he hissed. "That's ridiculous and archaic."
"Maybe so. But it's true. If we have sex, the marriage can't be annulled."
As he continued to hold himself over her, a drop of sweat slid down his temple. "I don't want an

annulment." He paused for a moment and Courtney had to wonder what he was thinking. When he
spoke, he said the last thing she expected. "If you want out, we'll have to get a divorce, okay?"

Courtney worked her bottom lip between her teeth.
When she didn't answer, he continued to touch her with his maddening, skilful fingers. "Deal,

baby?" he asked, as if he were dying to be inside of her.

His fingers became unrelenting and she needed him inside, so very desperately. She took a deep

breath. "Deal."

The very second she said the word, he slammed inside her.
Courtney sucked in a breath and felt the reverberations all along her spine. God, it had been so

long. She'd missed this so much. He pulled out, made an adjustment to her thighs and surged back
inside. Stars hit her from all sides. He stared into her eyes as he continued to thrust. It had been good
before; it had been good every time between them. But there was something about this time, something
that made it special, and then Courtney realized that they were consummating their marriage.

She was his wife now. For real and for true.
Maybe not forever, but for right now at least.
She couldn't claim she didn't love him, and he wouldn't claim he didn't love her. Forgetting for

the moment the angst she knew wasn't behind them yet, she let herself go and reveled in her need for
him.

Nick was her perfect lover. He knew her body and he knew the exact spot she needed him to hit.

He went for it, pushing all the way inside and holding himself there. He brought one hand down and
found her clit again, and with a surge of delight, she rocked against him as his strokes became more
powerful by the second.

He surged to his knees and brought her with him, forcing her to sink onto him, impaling her so

deeply that she gasped. Nothing had every felt better. He lifted her at the buttocks, and she held him
at the shoulders. He stroked into her again, three, four, five times until with a great roar from his
throat, he began to come.

She slid into ecstasy and followed him over the edge.

****

Courtney woke up slowly the next morning, having slept deeply, her mind and body replete. The

night before came back to her and she let the memory of their lovemaking sink in as she came fully
awake, wondering if Nick was in the bed with her. She opened her eyes and tried to focus. Her arms
were wrapped tightly around a pillow and she was lying on her stomach.

Lifting her torso up and looking around, she found herself alone, Nick obviously missing from

the room. She sighed, tossed the pillow aside and did a double take when she noticed her left hand.

Her wedding band and engagement ring were once again on her finger.
She hadn't felt him put them there, and she didn't know how she felt about him taking the liberty.

But the fact that what they'd done last night had made her his wife? Nothing but tingles all over.

She sighed again. If only she could just go with the flow.
And then it kind of hit her. Why couldn't she go with the flow? The marriage was consummated

now; there was no question of an annulment. Granted, there were a few other reasons in the twenty-
first century where an annulment was allowed; and although Courtney certainly agreed that Nick's
touch made her insane, she didn't think an insanity plea would fly.

Getting out of bed, she peeled off the rings and carefully placed them on the bedside table. She

wasn't going to give in that easily; Nick still deserved everything she couldn't give him; thinking about
children was like an open would in her heart, and she for sure wasn't ready to tell the family yet.
Going through to the shower, she wondered what the day would bring.

****

Nick glanced inside his--their bedroom when he heard the shower running. Walking fully into

the room, he stood still and inhaled the sweet, lingering scent of Courtney. His wife. He let the inner
peace of knowing she was here, at least for now, travel down and settle in his system.

He took a breath and looked at the mussed-up bed where so many of his deepest fantasies had

come to life during the dark of the night. He couldn't contain a wicked, pleased smile.

And then his eyes fell to the bedside table and he saw the gleaming bands of gold that once

again, she'd tossed aside.

His mood deflated, irritation in its purest form gripping him by the throat and bleeding down his

spine. He felt a maddening rush of resentment rise up and seize him, threatening to break down the
last bit of discipline and patience he'd tried so hard to maintain.

Being considerate and gentle only got a man so far.
Fuck this shit.
She wanted to do battle?
He'd give her a war.

****

The following week was hell on Nick's nerves. Every night after they'd eaten the evening meal

where they had no meaningful conversation, he picked Courtney up and carried her through to his
suite and made love to her.

Making love to her was the only way he knew how to communicate with her these days. He tried

to get it to sink into her head. He loved her. He wanted her. He needed her, not just today, but forever.

Although he didn't say those exact words, he thought his feelings had to be clear.
Damn straight, he knew his feelings were clear to her.
But it never fucking failed. He'd slip his rings onto her finger after she'd fallen asleep, but every

morning, he'd find them on the bedside table.

The situation was slowly driving him out of his fucking mind.

****

When Saturday came, Courtney sat in a booth beside Nick at a small bistro on the west side of

town. They were trying to have a leisurely lunch, but it was obvious that they were both stiff and
unhappy.

She knew none of this could be easy for him, but this afternoon, he seemed more upset than

usual. Was it because she'd taken her rings off again this morning? He had to know that it was her one
rebellion that said she hadn't settled into this marriage of theirs.

Last night, he'd been so content and she understood why. She'd told him she loved him twice

during the night. She hadn't been able to help herself, he'd made love to her with an adoration she'd
felt clear to her bones. But that hadn't stopped her from removing her rings this morning. Stupid,
confused woman. She couldn't blame him for being upset with her. She was upset with herself.

And now, although he tried to contain it, there was no question that Nick was pissed.
She looked across the restaurant where a young couple with two little kids were being seated.

The children were loud and boisterous and when she glanced back at Nick, he was contemplating the
family with a pensive, almost wistful expression on his face.

Courtney's insides clenched with pain. As she reached for her glass of Diet Coke, what she saw

in his expression was so upsetting to her that her fingers began trembling. A second later, the glass
slipped from her hand and ice and cola spilt all over the table and then, to her horror, all over Nick.

He looked back to her, undoubtedly reading the emotion on her face that she couldn't conceal.
Ignoring the sticky liquid running down his shirt and seeping into his jeans, his eyes grew dark

and stormy. "I don't need children," he hissed as he downed the last of the water in his glass.

She swallowed but didn't answer, and as they'd already finished their meal, Nick paid the bill

and began to escort her out. As they passed through the vestibule of the restaurant before hitting the
main doors, Courtney glanced at the rack of newspapers and flyers that were grouped together. One
rack held free copies of a real-estate magazine that featured apartments for lease, and she made a
mental note of it, knowing that if she intended to make a move out of the marriage, it would
undoubtedly be easier sooner rather than later.

As she glanced back up, Nick was watching her carefully, a mask of fury on his features. As she

continued to walk, she knew it wasn't her imagination that the hand he held at her spine seemed to
become more controlling.

When they got back home and walked inside the penthouse, Nick's keys hit the table beside the

door and his fingers clenched around her wrist. "I'm going to go take a quick shower and when I get
back, you better be ready to talk. Understand?"

Courtney took a deep breath and could do the only thing she was capable of at that moment. She

nodded her head.

****

Five minutes later, Nick walked out of the bathroom, barefoot, dressed in jeans and nothing else.

Running a towel through his hair, he left the bedroom, intent on a showdown with Courtney.

He was so pissed, he could taste it.
They had shit that needed settling between them, and it was happening now, this instant. As he

walked through the apartment, it hit him immediately.

She'd left.
Cursing several saints, God, and his mother, Nick picked up his phone and tried Courtney's cell.

She didn't answer.

Motherfucker.

He was completely dressed and had his keys in his hands not three minutes later. Trying his best

not to panic or to be pissed at himself for pushing her too far and too fast, he went down to the
parking garage and found that her car was missing from its usual space.

Cursing under his breath, he took a wild guess and drove to his mother's house. When he saw

Courtney's little red Volvo sitting in the circular driveway, he couldn't contain the feeling of relief
that bled through his system. Relief, blending with raw, territorial anger.

He walked inside on silent feet and found both his mother and Courtney in the living room.

Courtney's back was to him, but his mother spied him and she gave him a smile that seemed to be
trying to communicate something to him, but he didn't understand what it was. "Nick, sweetheart." She
began patting the seat next to her on the sofa, which was across from the chair where Courtney sat.
"Come join us."

"Sure," he tossed out, but walked to the sideboard first. He didn't really need a drink, didn't want

one even, what he needed was a moment to survey the room and get a grip on his temper and a handle
on Courtney's mood. Under the guise of mixing a drink, he was able to do that, at least enough to
breath evenly. As he prepared a very weak bourbon and water, he asked, "Anybody want a drink?"

Both women declined, so he strolled to the sofa and kissed his mother on the cheek. "What's

going on?" he asked as normally as possible, his gaze trailing over to Courtney, who turned ashen as
he sat down. His lips flattened as his mood deflated another notch.

"Nothing much, darling," Justine answered. "Courtney's tired of running back and forth between

here and the penthouse and she's trying to decide where to live," his mother told him with what
seemed to be a forced nonchalance.

"Is she now?" Nick lifted a single eyebrow and stared across the coffee table at his intended

target. Moving out of the penthouse? Oh, that shit was so not happening. From his position on the
sofa, he could stare all he wanted at his wife, without his mother noticing, and he did so now. As he
kept Courtney within his sights, he took a healthy drink, and then balanced the glass on his knee.
"Obviously there's plenty of room for both of us at the penthouse."

"That's exactly what I told her," his mother replied. "And since she's working in the tower, why

in the world would she want to drive way over here just to sleep at night?" After his mother said
those words, she turned to Courtney. "Darling, you don't have to worry about me. I learned how to
enjoy living on my own during your years at college. I've been doing it quite a while now. Of course,
you can live here if you want, I'd love to have you, but don't you think it would be inconvenient to
have to make the drive twice a day?"

As Nick listened to his mother's spiel and waited for Courtney to respond, it occurred to him that

he'd been right in his previous assessment a few months back. His mother knew about them.
Obviously, she didn't know about their marriage, but she knew there was something going on between
the two of them. And because she was trying to talk Courtney into staying at the penthouse, Nick also
could see that his mother approved. So for that reason, he'd forgive her for her machinations. Poor
Damian, he'd been caught in the middle of all of this. His mother's ploy had been only that, a ploy
designed to make Nick jealous. But now he had to wonder, was Courtney finally getting it too? She
had to realize that his mother was actually trying to push the two of them together, and not Damian
and Courtney, as she'd pretended before that damn party several months ago.

That was certainly going to work in his favor tonight.
Watching Courtney now, sitting demurely in her seat trying her damn best not to meet his eyes,

Nick felt his aggression rise. But being the considerate husband that he was, he decided to spare her
any more grief in front of his mother. Besides, he'd had enough; he needed to get her alone.

Setting his drink on the glass-topped coffee table, he stood to his feet. Not caring what his

mother would think, in fact knowing she would only approve his move, he walked to Courtney and
snagged her hand, pulling her from her seat. "Let's go take a look at your bedroom and see if the idea
of you living here is even feasible. You need a workstation now, and a bigger closet." His mother's
home was so massive that he knew his words were ludicrous, but he didn't really give a shit, they
were only an excuse, and with that, he pulled Courtney from the room and dragged her all the way up
the stairs and into the bedroom she'd always used.

Shutting the door behind them, twisting the lock, he leaned against it and crossed his arms over

his chest. Courtney walked to the center of the room, obviously trying to ignore him, but Nick could
see her frame subtly trembling. His temples began to throb as she went to the bed where she picked
up a robe, the only single item out of place in the entire room, and hung it in her closet. Then she
moved to the bedside table and straightened the picture of her parents that was always kept there.
When she continued to ignore him by moving to her chest of drawers and opening the top drawer, he'd
had enough.

"Courtney," he demanded flatly.
She continued to fiddle with the contents of her drawer as if she were alone in the room.
"Courtney," he said again. "Look at me."
With an ostentatious show of reluctance meant to piss him off, she turned to face him. And it

worked for a split second until he saw what lurked in her eyes. And then his temper died as his heart
clenched. Need. Pure and simple. Need. For him. Knowing he wasn't the only one feeling anguish, he
swallowed as his muscles relaxed a small bit. "Come on, baby. Let's go home."

Exhaling a sad sigh, she shook her head.
At her obstinate refusal, he attempted to temper both his voice and his impatience. "Sweetheart.

We'll work this out, but we're going to need some privacy to do that."

"There's nothing to work out," she said softly, looking at the floor.
"Well, since you're my wife, I'm going to have to disagree."
Her eyes lifted. "That's not your choice, Nick. I get it a say in this."
Pissed now, he sucked in oxygen through gritted teeth. "No, I don't think you do."
Her eyes sharpened. "Don't be that way."
He ground his back teeth together as he braced his legs apart. "I'm losing patience here, so get

anything you might need. I'm ready to go."

"I'm not going with you."
Every muscle in his body tightened again. "I believe you're mistaken."
Hesitantly, she shook her head.
Nick took a deep breath and tried not to lose it. He tried to remember that Courtney thought this

was for his own good. She was wrong about that, but still, he needed to be gentle with her. Where the
hell had he been when lessons on gentleness had been given? He gritted his teeth and attempted a
calm tone. "Has it occurred to you that my mother obviously knows about us? She wants us to be
together, babe. She loves you and wants to keep you in the family. She's smart. She probably figured
out years ago that I had it bad for you. Why the hell do you think that I was the first person she called
every damn time some kid started hanging around you when you were in Florida?" As he said the
words, he realized he was only now beginning to understand the depth of his mother's past
manipulations.

Nick straightened to his full height when Courtney's face paled. When she remained silent with a

tightened face, as if she were digging her heels in, he pushed off the door and paced toward her. "We

can play this a couple of ways," he threatened, pretty much losing patience entirely and looking for
her immediate compliance. "You can grab some more stuff if you need it and come home with me
where you belong, or I can stay here tonight," he paused for a moment. "With you. In this room." He
let her absorb that statement before continuing, "Trust me, my mom would love it if that happened.
She'd be pushing for a wedding in the morning, you know she would. You want that to happen?"

Her brows furrowed and her eyes began to swim with tears, a look of misery crossing her face.

"Why are you doing this to me?"

He steeled his guts against her distress. Did she really think he was going to simply let her go?

He wasn't going to lose her. He. Would. Not. Lose. Her. Unable to hide his feelings, he asked in a
curt voice, "Are you kidding me? Why are you doing this to me?"

Pink highlighted her cheekbones. "You know why."
This time, it was Nick who shook his head. "You're not thinking straight. I'm tired of waiting.

Get your stuff."

She stood completely still for a moment, looking dazed. "You wouldn't sleep in here with me,"

she dared. "Not with your mother in the house. It would be way too embarrassing. For all of us."

Nick locked his eyes on hers, fighting both arousal and temper. He knew she was trying to call

his bluff, bless her baby heart. She needed to learn and she needed to learn now: He never bluffed.
"Try me," he issued the challenge in a tone that demanded her instant capitulation.

As she stared back at him, obviously struggling for control, Nick knew the exact moment when

she realized she'd lost this particular fight. With a graceful motion that tied him in knots, she turned
away from him, went to her closet and took a small bag from the top shelf.

He let out a slow relieved breath, refusing to think about how badly things could have ended.

Chapter Ten

Courtney beat Nick to the tower by a full seven minutes, extremely pleased with herself. As she

raced across the penthouse, she'd had plenty of time to run to her original suite of rooms and lock her
bedroom door against his possible intrusion. Possible, right. He'd be trying to get inside her room
any second. After changing clothes, she began unpacking her bag, not because she was happy to still
be here, but because she didn't want her clothes to wrinkle.

The loud banging on her door made her jump, even though she'd been expecting it sooner or

later. "Courtney. Open the damn door."

She looked at the door while she tried to breathe evenly. "No. I'm here where you wanted me to

be. Now go away," she responded loudly enough for him to hear but keeping her tone below a shout.

Unfortunately, Nick had no problem shouting. "Open. The. Door. Now."
"Go. A. Way." Pushing the syllables out one at a time as he did, Courtney sank down on her bed

and waited, knowing damn good and well this was another battle she was going to lose.

"You want me to break down your goddamn door?" he asked, changing tack, his voice coming

out almost pleasantly.

"No, I do not," she answered back with a false sweetness.
"Then make a choice. You've got five seconds."
Courtney's pulse began hammering.
"Five." The word came our harsh and threatening. He sounded even angrier than she'd thought

he'd be.

But she didn't think that Nick would break down the door.
"Four."
Could he break down the door? He probably could, but he'd only have to get it repaired later.
"Three."
Shit.
"Two."
Courtney opened the door and glared at him. Her eyes narrowed when she saw the key in his

hand. "You've got a key to my room?" His expression was pissed, but his stance appeared casual. He
was barefoot, obviously having kicked his shoes and socks off while he'd counted outside her door,
and the fact that he'd started stripping was making her heart race even faster.

"Yeah. I could bust the door, but why not use the key?"
"So you lied to me?" she asked. "Were you trying to scare me? Didn't you think the threat of

using the key would be bad enough? You had to threaten to bust down the door?"

He shrugged as if unconcerned and took a step forward while she took a step back. "All's fair in

love and war."

She studied him a moment, seeing the steel in his demeanor that he was making little effort to

hide. Suddenly tired of the heartache, about half of the fight went out of her. "So is it love or war?"
she questioned him softly.

His eyes narrowed as he pocketed the key. "I think it's love but evidently, you want to make it

war." Courtney's heart raced triple time, both from the look in his eyes and from the knowledge that
he could unlock her door anytime he cared to.

She stiffened her spine as Nick took another step forward and then another until he'd backed her

up against the wall. He lifted one of her hands and held it above her head, pressing his torso into hers.

He stared down and she couldn't miss the fire in his eyes. Holding her hand captive against the

wall, he pushed against her. His muscles were tensed, his body rigid when he spoke. "I'm about to
show you how much I love you, how wrong you are to want to get away from me, but I have one thing
to say to you first." His inflection changed on the last few words and Courtney heard anger in its
purest form infiltrate his tone. When he fell into an aggrieved silence she swallowed and braced
herself for whatever was coming. His eyes pierced into hers and then he continued in a forceful hiss,
"If I ever catch you driving that fast again, you're going to live to regret it, understand me?"

His tone turned so antagonistic that she froze, not moving or speaking.
"You understand me, Courtney? I swear to God, you take a chance like that again, I'll personally

peel your pants off your little ass and spank you so hard you'll be blistered for a week." Her lungs
seized up at his air of menace. His features darkened and grew even stormier. "Got me, babe?"

Courtney swallowed hard, thinking about her choices. She knew she'd been somewhat careless,

but she wasn't about to admit to it now. "I was being careful. I know how to drive," she shot back,
belligerence only a heartbeat away.

His gaze became even more pointed and his jaw flexed in pure, unadulterated anger. "Wrong

fucking answer." With that, his strong arms hauled her away from the wall and over to the bed. She
began to yank on her hand and dig her heels in as he backed down on the bed to sit. It was useless, he
was too strong, and as he pulled her down and over his thighs in the classic pose of a spanking about
to happen, Courtney began to struggle in earnest.

"Let. Go," she enunciated loudly and clearly, thrashing her head as she pushed her legs, trying to

get away. It was impossible. Nick laid one brawny arm across the back of her thighs to hold her in

place.

"You're never going to drive that fast again, understand me?" he pushed out in a pissed, labored

tone.

Courtney couldn't move her legs at all, and panic began to set in as she tried to swivel her body

toward his to get her butt away from his line of fire, but his grip was too strong. "I want a divorce!"
In an effort to get him to stop what he was about to do, she repeatedly drummed one arm on his leg
until she realized that it was futile and that she was only bruising herself. When she felt him drag her
satin tap shorts down and scrunch them around her thighs, exposing her naked butt, she went wild.
"Stop it! Goddammit, Nick, stop it!"

"You're not getting a goddamn divorce," he yelled back as his hand came down in a single slap

but then stayed there, grabbing her butt cheek and squeezing.

She hit his leg again, trying to get him to stop. "Let me up. Don't you dare."
His fingers continued to clench around her buttock in a threatening way. "Are you going to stop

driving like a wild woman?" he bellowed. "And baby, you better answer correctly this time, you get
me?" With that, his hands quickly peeled her shorts completely off and tossed them aside, not letting
her up, controlling her movements the entire time.

When she remained furiously silent, he lifted her until she was forced to straddle him, their

torsos banging together, and she took the opportunity to pound him on the back. "You cannot hit me!"

"I didn't hit you," he denied, baring his teeth. "I tapped you on the ass. One time."
"Well you can't tap me on the ass." When he only stared at her, she hit him again, this time on

the shoulder. "Understand me, asshole?"

He ignored her swipes as if they were nothing more than a pesky fly landing on him. "You can't

drive like that. You'll kill yourself or somebody else. I'll do whatever it takes to make sure that
doesn't happen. And don't call me an asshole."

"Well threatening me with a spanking me isn't an option. You think I'm going to stay in a

marriage where you manhandle me against my will? Fuck that! You better think of another way to get
your message across."

At her words, obviously taking them as a challenge, he flipped her over until she was lying on

her back and he was looming over her in a sexually threatening position, with his expression showing
little to no remorse. "We can move to option two. I can subdue you this way, and trust me, there's
nothing I'd love more." He stared into her eyes, his gaze running over her hair and face and down her
torso to land where her naked thighs came together. His features pulled into a frown and then finally,
as he began to breathe more steadily, he rasped, "I know I didn't hurt you."

"Yes, you did!" He hadn't, not really, but she was still infuriated.
Any remaining gentleness left his face. "You've been hurting me, too." Suddenly floored by the

pain she saw etched on his features, she wasn't ready for it when his mouth fell to hers.

His kiss was strong, fierce, annihilating. His tongue thrust possessively and he began taking from

her mouth, stroking in and out as if he couldn't get enough. His scent went to her head; it was a
powerful aphrodisiac that never failed to entice her. As his kiss continued, against her will, Courtney
began to melt in his arms.

He lifted up just long enough to peel his shirt and her camisole off. She was completely naked

now, and he held her pinned to the bed, one hand going to her breast. His fingers were like magic
against her nipple, kneading her there, and Courtney lost all thought and reason.

He lifted his head and growled, "You can't drive that recklessly. I'll die if anything happens to

you, understand?"

"Nick--"
"I'll die if I don't have you. It's that fucking simple," he exhaled on a pant as he lifted away and

shoved his jeans and underwear down and off.

He came back down to her and pushed between her thighs, ready to impale her. Lifting his head,

he stared down at her, their breath coming quickly in tandem. "You're killing me," he growled,
stopping at the brink of entering her.

"It's killing me, too," she answered back, lifting her hand and running it through his hair.
"I love you," he growled, sounding none too happy about it.
"I love you, too," she snapped back, her emotions high, right before his mouth came back to hers.

He kissed her hard, long, forcefully.

And then, with no warning, he lifted his mouth from hers and he stared down into her eyes.

Shifting, he forced his knee between her legs, pushing it against her naked, unprotected mound. "Are
you my wife?"

She breathed deeply, trying to control the runaway fever in her blood. "Yes, but--"
"No buts. It's a yes or no question. Are you my wife?"
"Nick--"
"It's a simple goddamn question, babe. Are. You. My. Wife?"
She blew out a breath. "Yes."
"And do you want to stay that way?" He breathed enraged fire over her, his words coming hot

and scorching. When she remained mute, he said, "That scene at the restaurant. That was bullshit and
you know it. I don't care about children. I don't give a shit about having a family. How many more
times do I have to say it? What do I have to do to get that message across to you?"

He was lying, how could he not be? Courtney licked her lips and stuttered, "Maybe not . . .

maybe not stare at the children you see with such a look of longing?"

His expression tightened. "Let me ask you something, babe." His hands reached for hers as he

pinned them above her head. "Toddlers are cute, right? Kind of like puppies. You telling me you don't
even think they're cute? You blaming me for glancing at a couple of kids?"

Holding her breath, she shook her head.
His lips flattened. "We've never really had a serious conversation about this. About why you're

so scared to have kids."

Her eyes narrowed on him, swallowing as he continued to press his knee against her. "I've told

you why."

Nick scorched her with a look as his hands held hers captive to the mattress. "You promised me

for better or worse. I get that you think that this is a huge problem, but I'm telling you, we don't need to
have children. Would you like me to prove it? I could go get a vasectomy and then there'd be nothing
left to fight about."

She pushed against him, horrified at the suggestion. "Don't you dare!"
"Oh, so now what I do with my body is your choice? That hardly seems fucking fair considering

you're not giving me a choice about our marriage." The angry words spilled from his mouth and then
he blew out a breath, as if to calm himself. "Okay. You don't want to talk about depriving me of
children. I get that." His words stopped a moment and then gentled. "You're sweet. It's why I love
you." She felt her heart melt but she remained silent and he continued, "Then let's talk about having
kids."

Courtney felt her eyes flare in panic. She began pushing against him and Nick's patience seemed

to snap as he held her all the more tightly, possessively, protectively. "Here's the thing that you're not

getting. You don't have a choice whether or not you spend the rest of your life with me. That's the part
of the fucking equation that you're missing. No choice. I'm here and I'm not leaving and you're not
going anywhere. You can get the goddamn idea out of your head; you're not getting your own
apartment. You're not moving out." He blew out a breath and then took another. "The choice you do
have is simple. Have kids or don't have kids."

At his ultimatum, Courtney wavered, her feelings divided. His words were so strong and true

that she was reassured that she'd get to have him forever. Relief rushed through her; he was taking the
choice away from her and she was going to let him. But still, the fact that she was the one getting what
she wanted out of life didn't seem fair and she said so. "That's not fair--"

His expression became harsher. "I don't want to hear what's fair or not fair." Holding her wrists

with one hand, he trailed the other down to her cheekbone and gripped her, looking into her eyes
intently before he continued in a ragged tone, "What wouldn't be fair to me is living my entire
godforsaken life without you. Can you not see that I'll lose my sanity if I can't have you?"

"Nick," she remonstrated softly.
"Right. You're getting it. I can see it in your eyes. So tell me, why do we have to make this

choice about children now? Let's don't have kids. We'll stay protected. If you change your mind later,
the option will be there."

"It's not that simple."
"It's entirely that simple."
She relaxed her hands, giving herself over to him, but said no more.
"Baby," he began gently, "You had no family. None at all. Our kid, or kids, if we have them, will

have my mom and my brothers and sister and their future families. Trust me, my siblings will
eventually get married, they'll have families, and any children that we might have will be loved by not
just us, but by their grandmother, aunts, uncles and cousins."

Courtney sucked in a breath, his words hitting her brain in a rush. Nick did have a huge family.

And they were her family as well. She felt her face flush and at her silence, he seemed to understand
she was really listening and he pressed further. "What we ought to do, if you decide you want a kid, is
to have a shit-ton of them. We could have four or five and then they'd never be alone. God forbid,
even if something happened to us, they'd have each other, right?"

She licked her lips, totally gobsmacked. She swallowed and held his eyes. "I've never . . . I've

never thought about it that way. The thought of having kids, leaving them orphaned, has always
terrified me so much that I've never thought about having a bunch, instead of just one."

He swirled his hand up and into her hair, holding her closer. His forehead fell to hers and he

said gently, "Well think about it. You don't have to decide right now." He lifted his head and
continued, "Stay on the pill if you want. I'll even wear condoms for double protection if it'll make you
feel better. We'll decide this stuff later. But baby, please, please say you'll stay married to me. Let me
put my rings on your finger and please, leave them there."

"Are you sure, Nick? I might never change my mind."
"It's a chance I'm willing to take. I need one thing and one thing only in my life to make me

happy. And that's you." They stared at each other as the tension between them began to build. His eyes
dropped to her lips and Courtney felt a flare of butterflies at the same moment as a rush of wet heat
came between her thighs.

"I love you," Nick groaned as his mouth dropped to hers. His kiss was all things: gentle, loving,

possessive, forceful, a promise.

Courtney kissed him back, pushing against the hand that held hers captured. He let go, and

immediately, she sank her fingers into his hair.

His scent was all around her, his hard muscles surrounding her and she tried to stop herself, but

she couldn't contain her need. She had to lift her hips, just so.

His hand trailed up and lifted her chin. "Ask me nicely."
"Nick, please," she whispered, not wanting to say it.
"No. I want to hear you say the words. You've been putting me through hell and back." He

reached down and kissed her so aggressively her brain almost splintered in two. Without her volition,
her hips lifted against him again, begging for him. He tore his lips from hers. "I've already held you
down against your will and abused your sweet little butt, no way am I going to be accused of a worse
crime."

His words were half-teasing, half-serious, and Courtney speared her fingers through his hair and

smiled up at him. "You're forgiven. Love me, Nick. Make love to me, please."

A sizzle hit the air as a feral look transformed his expression. He shifted his legs, surged back

and with a power and dominance she'd never felt from him before, thrust inside her with one
powerful stroke.

Courtney was inundated by the exquisite fullness she'd quickly come to crave. As he pushed in

and held himself there, she knew in that second that the situation between them really was killing her
too. She couldn't live without him and she never wanted to have to try. This was killing them both and
she couldn't keep it up another moment.

Swallowing hard, deciding to trust him to know what was right, trusting him with her entire

heart, she whispered, "Nick."

Continuing to hold himself deep inside, he took her chin with one hand and nipped at her bottom

lip, before opening his eyes. "What, sweetheart?"

She stared at him for several long seconds as the heat began to build between them. "What,

baby?" he asked more gently.

"Did you mean what you said?" she asked, her voice full of entreaty.
"I usually mean what I say," he answered carefully, kissing her on the lips before stilling again

and catching her eyes with his.

"About . . . about the children," she elaborated.
His shoulders stiffened almost infinitesimally as he took a sharp breath. "What about them?" he

asked gently.

"Can we have a bunch?" she asked quickly. "You really meant it, right?" As she watched him,

she couldn't stop her lips from trembling. "I couldn't have just one. We'd need four or five, at least.
You're right, they'll need to always have somebody else, you know? In case something happens to us."

Nick closed his eyes for an instant, an immediate, all-encompassing look of peace descending on

his features. When he opened his eyes and looked back at her in total concentration, she read
complete relief mingled with joy. "I meant it."

Her breath hitched at his words of assurance. "And what if . . . what if something happens after

the first one and we need to adopt the rest? Would you be okay with that?"

"Absolutely, baby. They'll be ours. I'll be able to love them all, just the same."
She took a deep breath, a strong feeling of contentment bleeding through her entire being. "Thank

you."

He pushed his fingers through her hair, gripping her scalp, a look of utter relief and happiness on

his features. Without missing a beat he asked, "Does that mean you'll wear my rings?"

"Yes," she whispered.

"And the entire family can know? Tomorrow?"
She smiled as she felt him push farther into her, insisting on an answer. "Yes."
He looked heavenward and then back down to her. "Thank you." As he spoke the words,

Courtney didn't know if he was thanking her or a higher being.

But it really didn't matter.
All that mattered was the love they felt for each other and the chance of the future they'd been

given.

****

Epilogue

Many, many lovely years later

Courtney rushed ahead of Nick while he strolled more leisurely behind her, watching the

smooth, luscious backside that still held him enthralled after all these years.

"Mr. and Mrs. Rule are in the backyard with the children," the housekeeper said as she led them

through Damian and Angie's house until they'd reached the rear doors that opened up to the huge,
landscaped backyard.

By the time Nick walked through the double doors, Courtney had already raced ahead of him,

kicked off her shoes and was standing on the second step of the swimming pool, completely ignoring
the hem of her sundress that was now in the water. Her arms were open wide, waiting while their
youngest, Emily, who was only four, paddled up to her with a big grin. After hugging her mother
tightly, she asked, "Where's Daddy?"

Courtney kissed Emily's forehead and pointed behind her as Nick came up and took their

youngest child from his wife's arms.

The backyard scene was chaotic. Children were everywhere, their laughter contagious. Damian

was grilling burgers in the outdoor kitchen while Angie watched over the children from her chair next
to the pool. "Melissa! Stop splashing your cousins," she remonstrated one of her fourteen-year old
twins as she put a bandage on her seven-year old son, who wriggled around, ready to get back in the
pool, despite the recent scrape to his knee.

Nick studied the swimming pool, counting heads until he'd pinpointed their other three children

amidst the mayhem. Leaving Courtney to catch up with Angie and their older children, Nick began
strolling over to his brother with Emily hanging around his neck, dripping wet, babbling to him the
entire time. "Madison got in trouble last night," she whispered conspiratorially as they neared her
Uncle Damian.

Only halfway across the yard, Nick stopped in his tracks as he looked at his daughter in surprise.

Angie and Damian's twin girls were always angels, as far as he'd been aware. "What'd she do?"

"Nobody would tell me 'cause I'm too little," his youngest complained, a pout on her lips.
"Your brothers and sister wouldn't even tell you?" he asked, knowing that his and Courtney's

four kids always stuck together.

"The boys wouldn't; they were being stupid. They prolly don't really know. Jenny didn't know

either but she told me Aunt Angie took Madison's cell phone away."

Nick kissed her on the cheek and scolded softly, "Don't call your brothers stupid, baby."
"Even when they're being stupid?" Emily asked, staring up at him with big eyes that couldn't fail

to remind him of his wife.

Nick chuckled. "Even then." He kissed her again and then set her on her feet. "You've got twenty

minutes left to play with your cousins before we head home. You want to do that or come with me to
talk to Uncle Damian?"

"Play!" she screamed as she ran back across the lawn toward the pool.
Nick walked up beside his brother and pounded him on the back in greeting. "Hey, man." he

greeted as Damian flipped burgers.

"Hey," Damian responded with a nod.
"Thanks for having the kids."
"Not a problem. You kept ours last month; paybacks are hell," Damian quipped. "So, how was

the Caribbean?"

"Awesome, as usual. Traveling there and back sucked, though, just like it always does." Even

after all these years, his wife wouldn't travel on the same flight with him. She said it was more
dangerous than putting the President and the Vice-President on the same plane. It just wasn't done.

Damian laughed. "You have to keep cutting her some slack, Nick. Courtney may never get over it

completely."

"You're probably right," Nick responded, knowing he'd happily deal with that one small

inconvenience in his otherwise perfect life. At least Courtney agreed to go away with him once a
year, to leave their children with either his mother or his siblings and their spouses. His life had
worked out brilliantly as far as Nick was concerned, he wasn't complaining about shit. He knew he
was the luckiest man alive.

"So, what happened with Madison last night?" he asked his brother.
Damian glanced away from the grill and looked at him with a smile that didn't quite reach his

eyes. "You've heard already?"

"News travels fast when one of the angels gets into trouble," Nick teased, although it looked as if

his brother was not happy.

Damian frowned and Nick could tell just how upset his brother was. "We'd warned her three

times about texting late at night. Shit. She's supposed to be asleep."

Not particularly shocked and not really thinking the transgression was all that terrible, Nick

asked mildly, "How'd you catch her?"

"Cell phone statement," Damian answered.
"Past her eleven o'clock bedtime again?" Nick mocked, expecting this 'late night' terminology to

mean eleven-fifteen or so.

"Dude. Two o'clock in the fucking morning."
Nick just stared at his brother, stunned. "You have to be shitting me."
"I shit you not."
"What the hell do fourteen-year-old girls need to talk to each other about that late at night?"
Damian turned completely toward him but only smirked condescendingly. "You have a lot to

learn, little brother."

"What do you mean by that?" Nick asked, confused.
"Madison hasn't been texting a girl. Hell, no. Not as easy as that."
Nick was completely floored. "She's texting a boy at two a.m.?"

"Oh, it gets worse," Damian announced, his muscles stiffening as anger became apparent on his

visage.

Nick couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Do I need to sit down?"
"You might."
"Tell me," Nick demanded.
Damian lowered the boom. "The kid she's been texting is sixteen."
Nick stared at his brother for a moment before glancing at Madison who was lying on a lounger

with ear buds in her ears. Christ. Were those curves on that little kid? Moving his eyes to Melissa,
her twin, he saw the exact same curves but she was rambunctiously playing in the pool with her
cousins and little brother so they weren't as transparent. Nick swallowed and glanced back at his
brother. "Have you put out a contract on the kid?" he asked, only half-teasing.

"Wish I could. Just wait. You'll see, it'll happen to you one day."
Ignoring that prediction into his future, Nick asked, "Where'd she meet him?"
"School. Summer practices. He's on the football team."
Nick caught on quickly and felt his brother's pain. "Fuck . . . she made freshman cheerleader."
"Yeah, and classes start next week. It's not like we can ground her from school," Damian said

flatly.

"You think anything's going on?" Nick asked, almost flinching at the thought.
"We don't think so, but we're pretty much dumbshit parents, you know? You think we grew up

fast man? These kids grow up at warp-speed."

Nick shook his head, not liking the sound of things. "How's Angie handling it?"
At the sound of his wife's name, Damian turned, his gaze searching for and finding her. "Better

than I am. She's talking to Madison about it, a lot," he said, continuing to watch his wife from across
the yard.

"Well, that's good, I guess," Nick answered, although it appeared he'd lost his brother

somewhere. Damian's attention was firmly on his wife, and as Nick glanced in Angie's direction, he
saw she was watching her husband as well. Her glance moved to Nick for a second, and she flushed
before quickly smiling and then looking away. Feeling as if he was interrupting a moment that was
suddenly private, Nick cleared his throat.

Damian's attention turned back to Nick and the waiting grill. "You guys going to stay for lunch?

We've got plenty," his brother offered, almost as an afterthought.

"Can we take a rain check?" Nick asked. "We have a million things to get ready with school

starting next week."

"Sure, no problem."
"I better get to it then," Nick breathed out. "You know how long it's going to take to round 'em all

up."

Damian just laughed, nodded his head and began flipping the burgers again.

****

Later that night, all four kids were accounted for and in their bedrooms, if not asleep.
Nick leaned back in the bed, hands behind his head and waited for Courtney to come from the

shower, his body hardening at the mere thought. He loved the smell of Courtney all the time: when she

was made up and ready to go out, when she was fresh from a swim in the ocean, even when she was
covered in dirt from working in the garden.

But the smell of her right out of the shower did him in every time. It wasn't so much because of

her squeaky clean scent or because he knew she'd be naked under her nightclothes.

It was because she was ready for bed. And the connotation of that was like a red flag to a bull

where he was concerned.

He certainly didn't live his life just for their love life. He loved every second of every day of his

life. He loved the family they had together. The kids meant everything to him and Courtney was
completely happy now, and she was the perfect mother.

But when she took a shower at night and came to bed, it was to be with him. He didn't mind

sharing her during the day with the kids, or even at night if one of them happened to be sick, but most
nights, nights like this one, she was his and his alone.

It never let up, the love he felt for her. It had always been there, since his early twenties, and it

had only grown and deepened as the years went by.

He heard the water stop and a few minutes later, she began walking toward the bed, taking her

hair from the elastic band she'd tied it in.

As the soft blonde curls fell around her shoulders, he groaned and bit out, "I love you."
She glanced at him, undoubtedly hearing the intensity he couldn't keep from his voice and she

stared at him a moment, her heart in her eyes. "I love you, too."

He patted the spot beside him, "Come to bed."
She smiled and began to switch off the light.
"Leave it on," he rasped out.
She sucked in a breath and then sent him a small, seductive smile. "We're going to play a game?"
Leaving the light on usually meant Nick was in a certain mood and Courtney knew him well

enough to recognize that fact. They only very rarely played sexual games. There was really no need.
The sex was fantastic without anything extra. But for some reason, there was a certain thought that
was tantalizing him tonight. He raised an eyebrow. "You want to?"

Her eyes lit up and she nodded her head. Putting first one knee on the bed and then the other, she

paused and whispered, "Tell me your rules."

"My rules?" he asked, barely keeping the amusement from his voice.
Her palms went to his chest and with her hot touch against his naked skin, his amusement fled.

"The situation you want," she prompted softly, running her mouth along his ear, all too eager to please
him.

His hands landed on her outer thighs, gripping her where she kneeled eagerly next to him, ready

to try anything he wanted. "Okay. You're eighteen, and I find you home, all alone."

"Oh, I like the sound of that one," she smiled wickedly.
A rush of blood hit his groin. "Shit, me too, baby."
She lifted her head, about to begin, but Nick ran his hands up to her shoulders and she paused,

searching his eyes. He swallowed, "You're eighteen, Courtney. You're eighteen, I'm twenty-four, and
I'm going to strip you naked like I was never able to before." Her eyes flared and his heart began
racing as he demanded, "but you're happy, understand, baby?"

She continued to search his expression, her eyes turning serious, until a tiny smile lifted her lips.

"Okay, I understand."

"Do you, sweetheart?"
"Yeah, I do." She gave him a soft, bittersweet smile as she ran her fingers through his hair. "You

never want me to be sad again, not even in make-believe."

He lifted his hands to her hair, gripping her at the scalp. "That's right. I want you to be happy.

Always happy. Like you make me and the kids."

Her bittersweet smile turned so sweet that his stomach flipped. "You don't need to worry. I'm

always happy, Nick. You and the kids are my happiness."

He felt a shot of instant relief, and unable to wait a second longer, his lips dropped to hers and

he began kissing her like he planned on doing for the rest of his life.

The End

###

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15th, 2014:

Sarah's Surrender

by Lynda Chance

A USA Today, full-length, stand-alone book

Excerpt:

Sarah left the restroom and began walking down the darkened corridor toward the main area of the

dancehall. She hadn't taken more than ten steps when her wrist was enclosed by a strong, ruthless grip
that pulled her into a dark room. The door was slammed shut, trapping her inside a room that was in
shadows, only a subtle glow from a small table lamp negating the otherwise darkened interior of the
room.

Her spine landed against the closed door, and a hard, masculine hand came up and covered her

mouth, cutting off the scream that tried to leave her throat. Fear, vivid and real slammed through her
and made her pulse take off so fast she could barely concentrate enough to breathe through her nose.
Her mind ran away from her as every nightmare she'd ever had hit her from all sides.

The need for flight kicked in and as her eyes widened in fright, she began struggling against the man

who held her.

He controlled her easily, dominating her entirely, and gave her one shake before she felt his hot

breath in her ear. "Sarah."

She recognized that voice easily and went completely slack with the shock of discovery. A huge

feeling of relief that she wasn't about to be brutally violated engulfed her. She swallowed behind the
hand that held her mouth; at least, she didn't think she would be violated. Butterflies immediately
followed the relief as she realized it was his steely muscles that surrounded her. His hand stayed over
her mouth, but he lifted his head from the side of her hair where he'd spoken her name, and now he
looked into her face.

She was starting to adjust to the darkened room; she had no trouble making out his features. His eyes

glittered down into hers and she could see them smoldering with lethal fire. The sexual significance
of the moment hit her deep inside, the aggressive hold that dominated her had a stark, primal
connotation that incapacitated her and rendered her helpless.

"You're safe. I only want to talk to you." His voice was firm, his jaw clamped, and she swallowed

deeply, managing a small nod of her head.

Her heart was banging loudly in her chest, she breathed roughly through her nose, and excitement that

she couldn't deny, laced with fear and panic, skittered down her spine.

He continued to hold his hand over her mouth, taking his time to release her as he pressed his torso

into hers and tightened the hand that still held her wrist captive. She felt her eyes flare and she knew
he must see the apprehension in them.

"I'm going to take my hand away now. Don't. Scream." His words were rough, resonating deeply in

the small room.

She swallowed and remained still.

He slowly lifted his hand from her mouth but continued to hold her wrist in an intractable grasp. His

palm left her mouth and slid to her cheek, then to her scalp as his fingers fisted in her hair and held
her trapped. The talk he wanted to have with her must have been secondary, because the moment his
eyes fell to her lips she felt a groan shudder through his chest and then his mouth lowered to hers.

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