"Adam." His name slipped out of her lips. He waited for her to open her eyes, to face him, and explain what the f.u.c.k was going on. But the slow, even breathing from her chest told him she was still in a daze and not even aware of his presence. He raked a hand through his hair and walked over to the window. The fight that raged inside him the last three days left him drained. He lowered his weight on the Lorraine armchair and checked his watch. It was well past ten. It wasn"t like Lily to sleep this late.
Abruptly he came to his feet and charged down the stairs, down the hall and found Jason, now freshly showered from their morning run and dressed in jeans, chopping vegetables.
"What"s wrong with her?"
Without looking up from his task, Jason shrugged his shoulders. "I already told you, I don"t know."
Adam shook his head. His friend may be in the dark but he was willing to bet Jason"s cute little fiancee was well-versed on whatever the mystery was. "Minka knows. If she knows, you know."
"Normally that would be a true statement." Jason placed the knife on the counter and opened the refrigerator to retrieve a box of organic eggs from Herring Creek, the farm owned and operated by Forrest"s parents. "However, my fiancee has not said a word to me, nor have I asked."
Adam started to walk past his friend. Might as well find the second best source.
"Leave my girl alone," Jason warned in his usual bada.s.s att.i.tude. If anyone could keep up with Adam, it would be Jason. "I told you we would drop Lily over today, but your impatient a.s.s couldn"t wait."
Adam leaned against the wall and crossed his arms over his chest. "She"s avoiding me for a reason."
Jason snickered as he chewed on a piece of pepper. "You f.u.c.ked up. Now you have to beg for forgiveness and brace yourself for the worst."
Uh. What? But more importantly who was this person talking to him? Surely, an alien had kidnapped his friend and taught him the word beg, because the Jason he knew didn"t have such a verb in his vocabulary. Jason dumped the sliced vegetables in the pan over the eggs.
"You beg to Minka?"
His friend placed the pan in the oven, kicked it close with one leg then focused his attention on Adam. "I don"t have to. I"m a perfect fiance. But I would if I royally f.u.c.ked up."
Adam dragged his fingers through his hair. "Jesus, I didn"t f.u.c.k up."
Jason snickered. His friend didn"t look the least convinced. "You didn"t kiss anyone?"
"For the record, that woman kissed me. And I stopped her." And that was f.u.c.king six weeks ago. Since then, they"d spent days having s.e.x in her apartment.
"Slept with anyone?"
Adam paced around the kitchen to the sliding door overlooking the large porch that Jason built himself. As a matter of fact, he refurbished this whole d.a.m.n house by himself when he was in a p.i.s.sed off mood. "The only woman I want to sleep with is upstairs and she doesn"t want to see me."
"You"re s.e.xually frustrated."
He flipped his friend the bird. "I"m going back upstairs."
Another chuckle from Jason. "Seriously, if you beg, I guarantee you she"ll say whatever you want when you make up."
"Lily already has a dirty mouth in bed."
Jason turned away and burst into laughter. Swearing under his breath, Adam walked out of the kitchen. Whatever happened to his cynical, moody friend?
f.u.c.king love happened. s.h.i.t. That only made Jason more annoying than ever.
As soon as Adam opened the bedroom door, his gaze went to the empty spot on the bed. She was no longer there. f.u.c.k. Surely she couldn"t have left. He would have noticed, unless she snuck out with Minka. Double f.u.c.k.
He was about to walk out of the room when the bathroom door opened. Their gazes locked. Lily stopped mid-stride then took a step or two backward, a dazed look on her face.
Why the f.u.c.k was she surprised?
Did she really expect him to accept a breakup over the phone? The thought almost made him laugh.
"Adam."
Yup. That"s me. In the f.u.c.king flesh.
"I was going to text you," she continued.
But he wasn"t listening.
He was done listening. Done giving her s.p.a.ce. It was time to speak the language they both understood. With urgent strides, he stepped into her personal s.p.a.ce. "f.u.c.k texting, phone calls, tweets, Facebook messages and all of that other bulls.h.i.t. I want you with me. In my bed. On me. Under me." He caught a hold of her arm. "Wherever the f.u.c.k you want to be, Lily, it"s going to be with me. Now let"s go home."
Chapter Eight.
"Just because I let you go, doesn"t mean I wanted to."
Anonymous Everything about Adam told Lily to surrender. He stood before her with an unshaven jaw, in dark grey loose-fitted sweats and a blue retro crew neck with Italia printed across his chest. His broad shoulders stretched the material of the T-shirt. He was too close, his body almost touching hers from chest to waist. She needed to put s.p.a.ce between them, yet her body could not, would not, move away from those hard lean muscles. She craved his touch. Adam was her drug. An expensive, illegal, soul-crushing, life-ruining, highly-addictive drug and she needed to leave him alone.
"I can"t go with you."
One long finger came to rest under her chin and held her gaze. "You can"t or you won"t?"
Fearing that she might capitulate to the carnal desire burning in his eyes, Lily lowered her lids to shut him out. She had not been dreaming after all. Moments ago, stuck between sleep and consciousness she"d felt his thumb caress her face and called out his name. The touch had sent an electrical jolt through her, forcing her eyes open. She scanned the room for Adam and was greeted by silence.
Yet, everything in her had sensed his presence. For a while she had remained on the bed contemplating how to handle the situation when they came face to face until the usual morning sickness flared again, forcing her to dash to the bathroom. Well, thank goodness she had taken the time to freshen up afterwards. The warm water she splashed on her face even brought some color back to her skin.
"Liliana, can"t or won"t?" he asked again.
She shook her head. "What"s the difference?"
"You"re a teacher. You know the d.a.m.n difference."
Crossing her arms over her chest, she walked past him to her suitcase and started pulling out her clothes. Hoping the small distance gave her strength. "I mean, does it matter?" she asked over her shoulder.
"Is there someone else?" he asked, his voice curt and matter-of-fact.
"No." She could have lied. That would at least cover the can"t-an outside force making her unable to continue sleeping with him.
"Then this is your choice." That would be the won"t-her own choice not to continue sleeping with him.
With her back to him, she nodded. Stillness filled the room as they processed the information. Lily herself was having a hard time accepting the reality of the curtain closing on their relationship, however casual it was.
"Tell me why," Adam asked into the silence.
Still clutching at herself, Lily fought the pain in the back of her throat and choked out the words. "We can"t do this anymore."
She heard him move across the room as he came to stand behind her. The bedroom windows were cracked open, allowing a cool brisk air into the room. Still her temperature spiked from the heat of his body.
"Liliana," he said, his breath warm against her earlobe, causing her to visibly jump. He caught her wrist, spun her around and pulled her to him.
"Tell me how I f.u.c.ked up," he demanded in a low rough voice, "and I"ll fix it."
From any other man, the words might have come across as begging. But not from Adam. Her gaze swept over him. His dark, brooding features set in a hard, determined expression, streaming with an abundance of testosterone and pheromones. Not an ounce of weakness. The man before her was an image of a fiery untamed steed, temperamental, and filled with determination. Not to mention s.e.xy as h.e.l.l.
She brushed her hand over the scruff along his jaw. His muscles ticked under her touch. "It"s not you, Adam," she started gently, her heart twisting in pain to a degree she never thought possible.
He caught her wrist and pulled her hand away from his face. A short, bitter laugh came from the back of his throat. "Don"t give me the "it"s not you, it"s me" line, Lily. I coined that line."
His voice was loud, so thunderous, that she couldn"t concentrate on what he said. The shortening of her name told her he was done playing nice. The few times Adam had used her shortened name were when he was near the edge over a disagreement between them.
"Tell me the truth." His voice cut her. "I, we," he motioned one hand between them. "Deserve at least that. Then I"ll leave you alone."
I"m pregnant with your child. She wanted to say, but a small lump sat in her throat, taking away her ability of speech. He"d caught her off-guard. She exhaled, trying to release some of the tension built up in her shoulders. "We don"t work."
His eyes narrowed. "From what I remember, we work pretty well together."
"There"s more to life than great s.e.x."
He looked at her as if she"d suddenly grown a second head. "s.e.x is a natural part of life."
Her lips curved into a smile. And like the predator that he was, he pounced on her momentary lapse. Adam slid a hand around her waist and drew her in, his mouth brushed against hers.
"Do you feel that?" he whispered against her lips.
His hand roamed over her back, manipulating her senses, making it impossible to think. She blinked and her lips parted. His mouth brushed over hers, a soft touch at first then sure and demanding, and the hunger she thought she had under control consumed her, scorching and chilling her insides all at once.
As if he was equally affected, Adam let out one low, inconsolable laugh and muttered against her mouth, "Chemistry. We have it. It"s so strong we can incinerate this place."
Lily"s heart pounded against the cage of her ribs. She couldn"t deny the animal attraction between them, pure physical chemistry. Everything about Adam made her crave, the way he looked, smelled, tasted, the feel of his body and the sound of his voice. He was overwhelming and uncontrollable.
Still, he wasn"t in her future, not the way she needed him to be, and she wouldn"t let a baby sway her toward thinking they could be more. Their relationship was based on s.e.x, really great s.e.x. And G.o.d help her, she wanted more of him.
Leaning into him, she struggled to keep her eyes open. His mouth floated over hers as his gaze searched hers. "Don"t look at me with those f.u.c.k-me eyes if you don"t want to be f.u.c.ked, Liliana."
He gave her an opportunity to deny him and waited. She stood frozen, waiting for his mouth to capture hers. When she didn"t respond, he hauled her in against him. One hand palmed the back of her neck, the other pulled her hips against his. A low moan escaped her, and his mouth edged up in that sinful smile that always made her shake with desire. Today was no different.
He kissed her then, and the room fell away. At the taste of him, Lily realized she"d been starving for his touch. Lost in absolute, l.u.s.tful ecstasy, her eyes slid shut and the s.p.a.ce between them exploded. Her heart missed a beat and she wrapped her arms around his neck, and pulled him closer, molding her body to his.
They had kissed many times before but she"d never felt so lost in a kiss. It burned her alive. He kissed her as though he were famished. The kiss swallowed her, owned her. No one had ever made her feel so consumed. She heard a whimper. Hers. Any rational thoughts she had escaped her as she melted against the ridges of his body.
"You here, and me at home alone doesn"t add up." His voice was low and husky as kisses trailed against the nape of her neck, leaving her head spinning. "Let"s go home and I swear I won"t stop making love to you until your legs are shaking." His lips brushed her earlobe, and her knees wobbled. "Let"s go get lost in each other, Liliana."
Her body yearned, ached for him. She moaned.
He chuckled, a soft, s.e.xy sound in her ear. "h.e.l.l, we can start here." He lowered his weight to his knees in front of her, lifted the silk top to expose her flat stomach. His lips moved down and settled against the flesh just below her navel, and planted a kiss there. Where their child lay. She gasped instantly, her whole body tensing.
Lily froze and gripped Adam"s shoulders. "Please stop," she begged and quickly moved out of his reach, accidentally knocking a jar vase off the nearby table. The gla.s.s shattered and everything fell silent.
She saw the confusion cross his face, and then it was gone. With his eyes still on her, he came to his full height and dragged a hand through his hair, the muscles in his arms taut as he stood watching her. Silently screaming for an explanation.
"I..." she started, but a hard knock on the door drew her eyes away from Adam"s. "Come in," she said in a shaky voice.
"Go away," Adam barked. His face set into a scowl, clearly irritated.
The door opened nonetheless and Jason stepped inside the room. His blue, a.s.sessing eyes shifted between them.
"Is everything okay?" His gaze was on Lily, studying her.
Unable to speak, she nodded.
"Jason, give us a minute," Adam said to his friend without taking his eyes off Lily.
She held her breath and prayed Jason didn"t give in to his friend"s request. The two men were close, business partners, childhood friends. She stood no chance. Dizzy and feeling weakness in her legs, she lowered herself to the bed.
"I think whatever it is the two of you need to discuss should wait another day," Jason said in an easy tone. "Lily looks like she"s about to pa.s.s out. So why don"t you both go into your respective corners and suit up for the next round, which I"m sure will come. She"s here for two weeks, after all."
Jason"s words forced Adam to look at Lily once again and take in her delicate appearance. She looked sucker-punched, her skin translucent. Her wide eyes, usually filled with life and laughter, appeared damp and overly bright.
"You want to end what we have together." The words were a statement more so for him than her.
Still, she nodded.
His stomach hit his throat and he shoved it the f.u.c.k back down. "Well, too f.u.c.king bad. We"re not done. Not by a f.u.c.king long shot."
She looked at him with a dazed expression. Adam shoved his hands in his pockets then glanced at Jason, who remained silent. "I"ll see you at Vapor tonight."
Adam stormed past his friend. He was breathless, sweating, and shaking like he"d taken a curve at 200 mph with no idea what was on the other side. Nothing made sense. He breathed heavily as he hurried down the stairs. All the trees on the island couldn"t supply enough oxygen. He needed to get away.
"Adam," Minka called after him.
He stopped midstride and turned to face the woman who had become a friend. Her face was nearly buried underneath a ma.s.s of spiral curls. He impatiently brushed back a mane of hair to expose her pretty features. She flashed him an apologetic smile. In spite of all the tension inside him, he smiled back at her.
"Give her time," she said gently.
"She wants out."
Minka flinched. "Oh."