A Reputation For Revenge (12 page)

Turning away, Kasimir started to walk towards the door.

“I intended to lose the race,” she blurted out.

She heard his intake of breath. He slowly turned to face her.

“Why?” he asked in a low voice.

She gulped. She had to be brave. To tell the truth. And do it now. Now, without thinking about the risk or cost. Now.

Josie crossed the tent to him. Standing up on her tiptoes, she put her hands on his shoulders and looked straight into his startled blue eyes. “Because I wanted you to seduce me,” she whispered.

And leaning forward, she kissed his lips.

So much for his brilliant intelligence. Kasimir had thought he was so smart, finding a loophole around his promise. Passing her in their race down the dune, he’d felt triumphant, his body tight, knowing he all but had her in his arms.

Then there was a scream, and she’d flown past him. She was such an accomplished snowboarder that she’d had no problem handling the textural differences between snow and sand. And she’d seen the source of the scream, the injured boy, half a second faster than he had. It was enough to make any man feel slow. Stupid and slow.

Which was exactly how Kasimir had felt pacing the tent of the boy’s family as his uncle, a doctor trained in Marrakech,
worked on the boy’s ugly compound fracture with his limited instruments at hand. Kasimir had looked down at the sobbing boy, wishing he could do more than order a helicopter on his satellite phone, wishing they didn’t have to wait so long, and most of all, dreading the long, jarring journey the boy would face traveling to the hospital in Marrakech.

After Ahmed was loaded on the helicopter with a stretcher, Kasimir had evaded the tearful thanks of Ahmed’s family. Shoulders tight, he returned to the tent where Josie waited—not for his seduction, but for her freedom.

The whole afternoon, from start to finish, had left the acrid sourness of failure in his mouth.

And then—Kasimir had tasted the sweetness of Josie’s lips against his.

She’d reached her hands around his shoulders, lifting up on her tiptoes, and he’d just stared down at her in shock, telling himself he was completely misreading the situation. Josie, the inexperienced virgin, wouldn’t make the first move.

Why would she kiss him? He was a man who stood for nothing and no one. She was an angel who knew how to fly.

I intended to lose the race. Because I wanted you to seduce me.

He heard a soft sigh from the back of her throat. Saw her close her eyes. And she pressed her soft, trembling lips to his.

He didn’t immediately respond. He was too amazed. But when she grew shy, and started to draw away, a growl came from the back of his throat. Closing his eyes, he roughly pulled her back against his body and returned her kiss with force, with all the passion and longing he’d tried so hard not to feel. He let himself feel it—all of it—and desire overwhelmed him as it never had before.

Her lips parted as he deepened the kiss. She returned his embrace awkwardly, hungrily. And it was the best kiss of his life.

Outside the tent, he heard the rising wind flapping and
rattling against the heavy waxed canvas. But he was lost in her. Her lips were so soft, her body so womanly, her soul so pure. As he ran his hands down her back, over her loose cotton shirt, he felt the press of her breasts against his muscled chest. Her brown hair now tumbled down her back in waves, tangling in his fingers.

It could have been hours or even days that he kissed her, standing with her in his arms, holding her body tightly against his own. He flicked her mouth lightly with his tongue, guiding her lips, teaching her to kiss. His tongue brushed against hers, luring her to explore further. With a sigh of pleasure, she leaned towards him, her arms tightening around his shoulders.

Josie. So reckless. So beautiful. She had such strange power. She made him want things he shouldn’t want…. Made him feel things he didn’t know he could still feel….

Lifting her into his arms, never ending their kiss, he carried her to the four-poster bed he’d shared with her in painful chastity for two nights. As he laid her back against the mattress, he looked down at her beautiful face.

“Tell me you don’t want me,” he said hoarsely. “Tell me to leave you be.”

He held his breath, as if waiting for a verdict of his life or death. She shook her head slightly. His heart twisted.

Then her full, pink lips lifted into a tender smile. Her brown eyes shimmered, glowing with desire, and she reached up for him, pulling him down against her in clear answer.

He felt her body beneath him, and knew he’d never again suffer the agony of sleeping beside her without being able to touch her. Because nothing on earth would stop him from taking her now.

Cupping her face, he kissed her passionately, stretching her back against the bed. His hands moved up and down her body until he finally reached beneath her cotton shirt. He felt her trembling hands stroke his bare chest beneath his own ripped shirt, torn into bandages on the dune. Her satin-soft
fingertips ran along his flat belly and bare chest, and he gasped at the amazing sensation. He kissed down her throat, and his fingers were suddenly clumsy as he tried to unbutton her shirt, finally popping off the buttons in his desperation to feel the warmth of her skin against his own.

Yanking her shirt off her body, he threw it to the carpet and was mesmerized by full breasts barely contained within a lacy black bra. He sucked in his breath. Distracted, he didn’t notice her tugging on his T-shirt until suddenly it was pulled off over his head. He felt the exploratory touch of her fingertips over his flat nipples and down the light dusting of black hair that pointed like an arrow down his muscled body.

Josie. Was this really going to happen? His heart was in his throat as he looked down at her. Here, now?

Outside, the hot wind howled against the tent as he kissed her deeply, pushing her down beneath him, against the soft pillows. He cupped his hands over her bra, feeling the weight of her breasts beneath his hands. He pushed her legs apart with his knee, grinding himself slowly against her, with only fabric separating them. She trembled as he liberated one large breast completely from the bra, watching the rosy nipple pucker and harden beneath the warmth of his breath before he suckled her.

In a single movement, he unclasped the bra and tossed it aside. Leaning back over her, he felt her shiver as he slowly kissed down her neck. Pressing her full breasts together, he kissed the crevice between them, licking her skin.

He felt her fingers tangle in his dark hair as she gasped, clutching him to her. He kissed down to the soft curve of her belly, feeling her tremble, feeling the damp heat of her skin. He slowly pulled off her linen pants, lingering against her thighs and the secret hollow beneath her knees. He removed his cargo shorts. Wearing only his silk boxers, which at the moment were uncomfortably tight, he slid his hips between her legs. Instinctively, she swayed as he rocked himself
against her, back and forth over her lacy black panties. He heard her intake of breath as her hands clutched his shoulders, holding him against her.

His lips lowered to suckle a full, pink nipple. He lightly squeezed her breast, pushing her nipple more deeply into his mouth. He heard her soft muffled gasp as he ran his tongue in a swirling motion, nibbling and sucking, as his hand toyed with the other nipple. And all the while, he was slowly grinding himself against her, with only the thin separation of silk between them.

Her hands suddenly gripped his hair. “Stop.”

Kasimir sucked in his breath as he pulled back. His body ached as he held himself in check, looking down at her. It would kill him, but if she wanted him to stop….

Josie reached up, running her hands down his bare chest, to the edge of his silk boxers. She looked up, her cheeks red, her eyes bright. “I want to see you. To touch you.”

He exhaled.

“Yes.”

With tantalizing slowness, she ran her hands along the edge of the waistband, and then
—and then
—he held his breath as she reached beneath the silk. She stroked the hardness of his shaft, running her fingers along the ridges and tip.

He heard a low hoarse gasp, and realized it was his own. Her eyes were huge as they met his. And then…

She suddenly smiled.

It was a smug, feminine smile, full of infinite mystery and pride—as if she’d realized the depths of power she held over him, as she held him completely in her hands.

She pulled down the silk, revealing his body completely to her gaze. She ran her hand over him, exploring. His breathing became ragged. He closed his eyes. Her slightest touch made him wild. He felt as though he could explode at any moment.

No.
His eyes flew open, narrowed. With a growl, he pushed her back against the bed. Pulling at her panties, he tugged
them slowly down her legs and tossed them to the carpeted sand. He stroked her calves, her knees, then moved back upward, to her thighs. Gently, he pushed her legs apart.

He felt her tremble at being so exposed. She tried to close her knees.

“What are you doing?” she breathed.

“Surrender to me,” he whispered. And he lowered his head.

First, he kissed her inner thighs. Then he moved higher. Holding her against the mattress, he stretched her legs wide. For a moment, he just allowed her to feel the warmth and sensation of his breath. Then, very slowly, he moved his kisses to the core of her pleasure. She abruptly stopped struggling.

He took a long, delicious taste. “Like honey,” he murmured.

She gave a soft gasp beneath him. He licked her again, swirling his tongue lightly against her, then widening his tongue fully. He pushed a single thick fingertip an inch into her tight, wet core.

She cried out, writhing beneath him as she gripped the sheets. Licking her, sucking her hard nub, he thrust a second finger inside her gently, and she moved her hips unthinkingly, twisting in an agony of need. He lapped her with his tongue, swirling against her taut center, as he felt her tense up. Her back arched off the bed, higher, higher still, until she exploded with a scream of joy.

And just in time. His whole body was sweaty and aching from holding himself back. As she exploded in her pleasure, he could no longer wait. In a swift mindless movement, he drew back and positioned himself between her legs. Lowering his head, he kissed her mouth, and then thrust himself roughly inside her, sheathing himself deep, deep, deep.

J
OSIE GASPED AGAINST
his lips as he thrust inside her, and she felt an unexpected fleeting pain.

Still deep inside her, he did not move, allowing her to gently stretch to accommodate him. His mouth was motionless against hers in a suspended kiss as she grew accustomed to the now dulling pain. She barely heard the wind outside, or felt the soft mattress beneath her and the weight of him over her. She was overwhelmed by the huge feel of him inside her.

Then, keeping his body still, he flicked his tongue against hers, tantalizing her with a hot, seductive kiss as she grew accustomed to the thick feel of him, like silk and steel inside her. The pain receded, like a wave drawing back beneath her feet. He pressed his naked body over hers, cupping her face with one hand to kiss her more deeply, and her hand trailed down his shoulder to his back as pleasure began to build anew inside her.

She’d never known the pain would be so great—and yet so suddenly gone. She’d never known pleasure could be so intense, so explosive—and could just as suddenly begin again. Sex was a more intense experience than she’d ever imagined. It left her breathless and weak.

So did he.

Josie’s heart raced, pounding frantically in her throat, as she looked up at his handsome, sensual face. She’d been bold
and daring enough to tell him the truth, and this was her reward.
This.

Their hot, naked bodies twisted and moved together, sweaty, hard, sliding. She ran her hands down his chest, feeling his hard muscles and taut hollows. His body felt as amazing as it looked. Pulling him down against her, she kissed his shoulder, tasting and nibbling the salt of his skin.

With a shudder, Kasimir pushed her back against the bed, kissing down her throat. She gasped, tilting her head.

He finally began to move inside her, riding her. He filled her in a way she’d never imagined, deeper with each thrust. Her hands scratched slowly down his back, finally clutching his hard backside. She felt new tension inside her, coiled to spring. She felt the tautness of his muscles, heard the hoarse pant of his breath, and knew he was fighting to keep his body under control.

And
she
was causing that. She was the one driving him wild with desire. Her. Plain, frumpy Josie.

But she wasn’t that Josie anymore. He’d changed her. Or she’d changed herself. But either way, she’d become the woman she’d always known she was born to be. Brave. Reckless. Even a little wicked…

His eyes closed. His sensual lips parted in a silent gasp as he pushed inside her, filling her to the hilt, stretching her to the breaking point. He was trying not to hurt her, she realized. He was still holding himself back.

Reaching her arms around his shoulders, she dug her fingernails into his flesh and whispered, “Don’t be afraid.”

His eyes flew open. He looked down at her with a choked intake of breath.

Giving him a little smile, she ran her hand softly down his hard, muscular body. “Stop holding back.”

A growl came from the back of his throat, ending in a hiss. Pushing her back hard against the bed, he pushed more roughly inside her, riding her faster and deeper.

Now it was deepening pleasure. Their intertwined bodies tangled in desperate passion, clutching each other tightly as her hips lifted to meet each explosive thrust. Josie heard the hot wind howling outside and didn’t care if a sandstorm flung the tent up into the sky. She was already flying….

The new pleasure continued to soar, rising and surpassing the first. It was deeper and different and sharper than before. Clutching his shoulders, she hung on for dear life as the pleasure grew so big it was almost too much to bear. Finally, it exploded inside her. Sucking in her breath, she tossed back her head and screamed with joy, heedless of who might hear, as she fell, fell, fell, plummeting off the edge of reason.

In that same instant, she heard his low answering roar. He slammed inside her with one final deep thrust, gripping her tightly with a low hoarse shout.

His muscular, sweaty body was heavy as he collapsed on top of her. Rolling next to her on the bed, he clutched her to his heart. A smile traced Josie’s lips as she closed her eyes, pressing her cheek against his chest. She felt changed, reborn in his arms. She’d been born to be his wife….

It could have been minutes later, or hours, when Josie’s eyes flew open in the darkness. She realized she hadn’t just given her virginity to Kasimir tonight.

She’d given him her heart.

So this was how it was to fall in love. In all the books she’d read, all the movies she’d seen, she’d dreamed and wondered how it would be. What it would feel like, when she gave herself to a man completely.

It was like this. Overwhelming. Powerful. Sweet and full of longing. But also…

Terrifying.

Because loving him was an astoundingly simple thing to do. She’d been dazzled by him from the moment they’d met. Infatuated before they were wed. But now… she was in love. Truly and deeply in love for the first time.

Josie swallowed, slowly turning to look at the handsome face of the man sleeping beside her. One side of his face was turned toward the silver moonlight glowing softly through the white canvas. The other side of his face was in shadow, dark and harsh.

And that was Kasimir’s soul. This was the man she’d given herself to—body and heart. The man she loved had one side filled with light. This side encouraged, protected, demanded, respected. He was strong and calm in a crisis; he’d rushed to the side of the injured boy.

But Kasimir’s other half… was filled with darkness.

There are rumors about me,
he’d said.
That I am more than ruthless. That I am half-insane, driven mad by my hunger for revenge.

But loving him changed everything. She no longer wished to escape him. Or even to be his make-believe wife for a few weeks in a marriage of convenience.

Josie wanted to be his real wife. Always and forever. Complete with children and the white picket fence.

But Prince Kasimir Xendzov was not a white-picket-fence kind of man.

She turned her head, blinking back tears. Such a risk. Such a stupid risk. She loved the good in him—the man he’d once been, the man he could be again.

But the pain of past betrayals had warped his soul, turning him dark and ruthless. Giving him reason to keep the world at a distance. Her heart twisted in her chest.

Could she make him see that forgiving his brother wouldn’t be weakness, but strength—freeing him for a new life? Could she show him that the world could be so much more? She yearned to show him his life, his future, had just begun.

Just as hers had…

With a low sigh, she nestled closer to him in bed. His eyes remained closed, but his strong arms instinctively pulled her closer against the warmth of his body.

It felt so protective, so good. Closing her eyes, she pressed her cheek against his chest.

She would find a way. She yawned, safe and sleepy in his arms. Kasimir had changed her life.

For so long, Josie had been afraid. Since she was twelve, Bree had protected her like a mother hen, not letting her take risks, warning her about the evils of the world. Josie had listened. After all, Bree, older by six years, was the smart one. The strong one. Josie was the burden. The helpless, hapless one. The one who, just by being born, had caused her mother to die. What right did Josie have to ask for anything at all? What right to speak her mind, to make a fuss, to live her dreams?

But Kasimir had changed her, completely and irrevocably. He’d forced her to be who she really was inside. And shown her that living boldly was the only way to honor the sacrifice her mother had made, and the life she’d been given.

He’d done that for her. She yearned to do something for him. She wanted to teach him that being vulnerable, that trusting others, could be his greatest strength. Josie snuggled deeper into his arms. She would help him break free from the chains of anger and revenge….

Morning sunlight was bright against the white canvas of the tent when Josie opened her eyes. She sat up abruptly. She was alone amid the tangled sheets of the bed. Much of the tent, too, was empty. She saw his packed suitcase beside her own backpack at the door. Weird. Were they going somewhere?

But where was Kasimir?

Kasimir.
Just his name was like a song in her heart. Rising from the bed, she splashed fresh cool water on her face from the basin, then pulled on a clean T-shirt, a cotton skirt and sandals from the wardrobe and went outside.

Her heart pounded as she looked for him. She was going to tell him she loved him. Now. Today. The instant she saw him.

But where was he? All of the servants in the encampment seemed to be rushing around strangely, boxing up, packing. She wondered if they were tidying up from the wind storm the night before. Maybe it had been a big one. Not that Josie had noticed. She’d been too distracted by the sensual storm in their bed. A sweet smile lifted her lips. She started towards one of the women, to ask if she’d seen Kasimir. Then Josie stopped.

He was standing alone on the highest dune. His powerful dark silhouette dazzled her. He was like the sun—her northern star.

With an intake of breath, she climbed the sand dune towards him, as fast as she could go. Looking around, she realized she’d come to love the vastness and beauty of the desert. It didn’t feel so lonely anymore, or make her feel small.

As long as she was with Kasimir, the world was a wondrous place.

She stopped. Was she making a mistake to tell him she loved him? Would it ruin everything?

She looked at him again, and her shoulders relaxed. Her momentary fear floated away, evaporating like dark smoke into the blue sky, like a shadow beneath the bright Moroccan sun. She didn’t have to be afraid. Not anymore. Kasimir had believed in her.

And now, she believed in herself.

“I’m not afraid,” she said aloud. Her legs regained their strength. She started to walk towards his broad-shouldered shadow on the top of the dune, silhouetted against the bright sun.

A warm desert wind blew against her skin, tossing tendrils of her hair in her face as she reached him. She was so happy to see his handsome face that tears filled her eyes. “Kasimir. There’s something I need to…”

“I have good news,” he interrupted coldly.

She looked at him more closely. His desert garb was gone.
No more tight black T-shirts. No more cargo shorts or jeans, either. Instead, he was back in his dark suit with a tie and vest. He looked exactly like the same dangerous tycoon she’d first met in Honolulu.

In the distance, she heard a loud buzzing noise. Suddenly feeling uncertain, she echoed, “Good news?”

He gave a single sharp nod. “I’m taking you with me. To Russia. So I can get your sister.”

“Oh,” Josie said faintly. “That is good news.”

It was. But why was his handsome face so expressionless, as if they were total strangers? Why did he seem so suddenly distant, as if they hadn’t spent last night ripping off each other’s clothes? Why did he look at her as if he barely knew her when just hours before he had been gasping with sweaty pleasure, deep inside her?

“Time to go,” he said flatly.

Looking at him in his suit, Josie suddenly felt cold in the warm morning air. The joyful, emotional barbarian with the unguarded heart, the one who’d taught her to ride horses, to snowboard sand, to make love—was gone. She bit her lip. “When?”

He glanced behind him, and she saw an approaching helicopter in the wide blue sky. “Right now.”

Shivering, she wrapped her arms around her body, feeling chilly in her cotton shirt. They stood only a few feet apart on the sand, but there was suddenly a deep, wide ocean between them that she didn’t understand.

His cruel, sensual lips curved. “We’re leaving to find your sister. Aren’t you happy?”

“I am,” she said miserably. Then, reminding herself she was brave and bold, she lifted her gaze. “But why are you acting like this?”

He blinked. “Like what?”

“Like…” She looked straight into his eyes. “Like last night meant nothing.”

“It meant something.” He took a step towards her, his face hard as a marble statue. “It meant… a few hours of fun.”

It was like a stab in the heart. “Fun?”

Kasimir gave her a coldly charming smile, looking every inch the heartless playboy the world believed him to be. “Oh, yes.” He tilted his head, looking at her sideways. “Definitely fun.”

For an instant, Josie could hardly breathe through the pain. Then she saw a flash of something in his expression, something quickly veiled and hidden. Her eyes widened as she searched his gaze.

“You’re deliberately pushing me away,” she breathed.

His expression hardened as he set his jaw. “Don’t.”

“Last night meant something to you. I know it did!”

“It was an amusement, just to pass the time. But that time is over. Let’s get this done. Get our divorce. Then we’ll never have to see each other again.”

She licked her lips as the approaching helicopter grew louder. “But you said… we could still be friends….”

“Friends?” He gave a harsh, ugly laugh. “You really think that would work? You expect me to give up my life and join you in your fairy-tale world, where families love and forgive?” He slowly walked around her, his eyes glittering in the white sun. “Tell me. Are you already picturing me mowing the lawn outside your storybook cottage with the white picket fence?”

“You’re using my dreams against me?” she whispered. His sneer ripped through her heart. She blinked back tears. “Why are you being so cruel?”

Kasimir stopped. The helicopter landed on the pad some distance behind him, causing sand to fly in waves. His black hair whipped wildly around his face as he looked down at her. When he finally spoke, his voice had changed.

“Whatever happened between us last night,” he said quietly, “cannot last. Someday soon you will learn the truth about me. And you will hate me.”

She shook her head fiercely. “I will never—”

“I’m not giving up my revenge.” His blue eyes suddenly blazed. Reaching out, he grabbed her shoulders. “Don’t you understand? You can’t make me give it up, no matter how good or kind you are, or how you look at me. I’m never going to change, so don’t even try.”