Denying Bjorn (9 page)

“Harder,” she crooned. The words spilled out in a throaty purr as she brushed wet strands of blond hair off his face before he reached for her hands. He pinned her arms above her head while thrusting in and out of her. She closed her eyes and keened as her pussy gripped him tight.

He pumped harder, picking up the pace as his lips seized hers. His tongue spearing her mouth, his hand captured a breast, painfully tweaking her nipple hard. Her moans, now garbled in her throat, became louder as she writhed beneath him.

“Lose it with me,” she cried as he pummeled her. She bit into his shoulder as her muffled cries spurred him on.

“Babe, you’re so fucking sweet,” he cried. “I’m coming, Lydia!”

As he said those words, she came. Together, their bodies shuddered as they cried out together in one beautiful crescendo.

She tightened her thighs around his lean body as he rolled off onto his side, pulling her close to him. Groaning, he kissed her on top of her head and squeezed her tight.

Chapter Ten

Bjorn began to chuckle. Softly at first, then louder.

“What could possibly be so damn funny at this moment?” She snickered.

“We forgot to eat.” Rubbing his tummy, he lifted his head up and glanced over at the digital clock on the nightstand. “Oh yeah, it’s been three hours.” He laughed heartily. “Doll, I so didn’t mean to starve you.”

She fingered his hair and laughed. “I believe you’ve fed me well already.” She wiggled her eyebrows and laughed.

“Not well enough, I’m afraid. You need to eat. Come on. Let’s get washed up and go downstairs. Too late for Chinese food, Lucky’s down the street closed about half an hour ago.”

“Mmm,” she sighed. “Gonna fuck, me then feed me, huh?”

Bjorn rose. “Nothing like frozen egg rolls, cheese, and wine.” He extended a hand, and they trekked off to the bathroom together to wash up. “Unless you want me to break out some steaks and potatoes.”

“Oh, no, Bjorn. Not this time of night.”

* * * *

Lydia sat on the barstool in the kitchen as Bjorn retrieved the egg rolls from the stainless steel microwave. She smiled as she took a healthy swig of wine while her eyes grazed over his physique. He was lean, yet muscular. Light blond hair dusted his chest, disappearing into a trail down the black satin pajama pants. Her core clenched as she remembered how erect he’d become in the shower.

“Thinking lusty thoughts, no doubt,” he teased before setting a large plate of shrimp egg rolls on the breakfast bar. Picking up the remote, he aimed for the large flat-screen television in the living room. “Awesome! Looks like there’s something good on cable tonight.” He grinned at the Clint Eastwood movie. He walked over to the microwave, picking up a few packs of duck sauce.

“You apparently know me too well.” Lydia picked up an egg roll and bit into it. “Oh, these are so good.” She looked at the television for a few seconds. “I like Clint Eastwood.”

Bjorn chuckled as he grabbed one. “Better than sex?” He cocked his brows and grinned.

They looked at each other and burst out laughing.

“Clint Eastwood better than sex? Uh, no.” She shook her head.

“No, silly, our late-night dinner here.”

“I know what you’re talking about.” She laughed until tears formed in her eyes. “Oh God. I can’t remember when I’ve had so much fun,” she mused before looking over at him. “You’re great company.”

“Yeah?” He studied her face. “So are you.”

She watched as his face became serious. “What’s wrong?” she asked. “What are you thinking?”

“I’m falling for you,” he admitted reluctantly.

“Is it because we had sex? Please don’t tell me you’re falling for me just because we’ve had sex.”

“No. I’m afraid I’ve been in love with you for a few months.”

“Get out of here.” She glanced at the television and then back to him. “Really?” She really didn’t want to admit her feelings to him, not with the dark secret she had lurking around in her brain.

“Really,” he assured her. “I’ve always loved you. It developed slowly. My feelings were very strong last week. I was laying in bed thinking about you, throwing that nasty little temper tantrum of mine.”

She nodded. “Oh, when you thought we couldn’t be together because of your immortality?” A sudden twinge of guilt flashed through her. Bjorn had told her about his hang-up a week or so ago, and here she was, harboring a secret that most likely would ruin their relationship.

“Yes. Honestly, I’m over it some. I’ve been thinking about it off and on. It’s just that time is so fleeting, doll. I want to grab a hold of time, make it stand still when we’re together.”

“I understand. I feel the same way.”

Bjorn sipped some of his wine. “I’ve had wine three nights out of this week. I swear, I’m becoming an alcoholic.”

“Wine’s supposed to be good for you. A glass or two or three a day keeps the doctor away?”

They busted out laughing at the same time.

“That’s for apples, silly. Two or three a day?” He snickered. “Damned lush!”

She laughed. “No, for wine too. Hey, it works for me! Guess I am a lush because I really meant to say five.”

They howled with laughter until he rose to his feet. “Forgot the cheese. Want some cheese, doll?”

“Hell yeah.” Lydia sipped on some more wine before picking up a second egg roll. “Mmm, these are addictive.”

“They’ll do in a pinch. Glad I had them. Maybe steak shish kebabs tomorrow night? I picked up some a few weeks ago, with the peppers, steak, onions, and mushrooms.”

Lydia licked her lips. “You’re on.”

“Or, we can do them up now.”

“Damn, Bjorn! I think the cheese and the egg rolls will do just fine.”

“Oh, wait a minute.” He walked over to the stainless steel refrigerator and grabbed a bottle of hot mustard. “Come on now. Don’t tell me you don’t like a little hot mustard with your cheese.”

“Damn you!” she fussed. “Stop it!”

“You know you want it,” he teased while ripping open the pack of cheese squares. After breaking them apart, he dipped them into the jar of hot mustard and handed one to Lydia. “Go on.”

She accepted. “Mmm, nothing like sharp cheese and hot mustard sauce. I love this. It’s the wine,” she admitted. “Whenever I drink beer or wine, I start jonesing for food.”

Bjorn busted out laughing. “Yeah, I know. Cool, isn’t it? Well, at least it’s not pot. Oh, can you imagine?”

“Oh, we’d have to make some chili cheese dogs with raw onions.” She watched Bjorn’s facial expression change up.

“Hey, I’ve got that. Chili in the cupboard, hot dogs, and, well . . . no American cheese, but we can sure as hell melt the sharp.”

“Stop it!”

“Yes, stop giving me ideas,” he demanded with a snicker. “Wow.” He shook his head and picked up the wine bottle before turning it upside-down. “All gone.” He looked at her and smiled. “I’m just starting to buzz.”

“I’ve been buzzing for quite some time. Wine goes straight to my head. I think I’m going to have a headache when I wake up tomorrow.”

“We’ll sleep in.”

“Can we open up another?”

Bjorn shrugged. “Yeah, why the hell not? Up all night, sleep all day.” He winked at her as he rose to get another bottle from his shelf. “Okay, doll, Pinot Noir again or Cabernet? Oh, wait. Perhaps Zinfandel?”

“Let’s have some Zinfandel.”

Bjorn popped open the bottle and kissed her on top of the head. “Fucking lush,” he joked as he topped off their goblets.

“Takes one to know one.”

Chapter Eleven

Bjorn watched as Lydia opened her eyes and moaned slightly. The first thing he’d thought of giving her was a large glass of water.

He bent down to kiss her. “Good morning, beautiful.” He handed her the water and watched as she took several large gulps. “Much better?” he asked while imagining she’d be sucking a lot of water and juice later in the day.

She nodded. “It would be nice to wake like this every morning.” She held her head and groaned. “The wine went straight to my head.”

He caressed her. “Poor baby.”

“Oh God,” was all she could manage.

“Apparently, you’re not much of a wine drinker.” Lydia gently nudged him before he grabbed her close to his body. She tried to rise, but he pulled her back. “Going somewhere?” He gently rolled his hips against her body.

“Mmm, maybe a little more sleep?” She held her forehead.

“Can I get you anything else?”

“Nothing now.” She laid her head on his chest and drifted off to sleep.

He smiled as she dozed in his arms. Looking over at the clock, he saw it was about seven in the morning. Gently, he laid her down on the pillow and slipped out of bed. He was wide awake now, no use lounging in bed. He’d been awake since about five and thoroughly enjoyed caressing and holding her while she slept.

Now he figured he’d chisel away at another project just to ensure he wouldn’t work while she was awake and they were off to the beach or the movies.

His body needed caffeine now and some water to replenish itself. He strode over to the K-Cup coffeemaker and made a small coffee. Then he wandered over to the sliding glass door of his balcony and opened it. A fresh breeze circulated through the bedroom. He smiled and looked at Lydia one more time before turning his computer on. Several moments later, he logged on to check his e-mail.

He glanced at her one more time. He definitely could get used to this. Still smiling, he reached into his leather briefcase and pulled out a bunch of large folders. Before opening them, he spotted several e-mails, strangely enough, from Dawn.

He shook his head stubbornly. Didn’t she ever quit? He frowned and stroked his chin, wondering why the hell she would send so many e-mails. At first, he thought maybe she was sending him a virus, because there were attachments in every message.

With a sigh, he opened the first one up, but was not yet prepared to embrace the image he saw. Bjorn’s jaw tightened, and he grit his teeth as a feeling of jealousy swept through him.

He glanced over at Lydia, who still lay sleeping in his bed. Then he looked at the picture that had downloaded itself to his computer. It was a picture of Lydia and Lars. It had to be Lars. Who else could it have been?

Lars held her, his tongue thrust deep inside her mouth. His embrace was possessive and strong, cradling Lydia in his arms. Could this be the same woman he had made love to earlier this morning? The same one with whom he strolled on the beach well over a week ago?

Anger niggled his insides as he opened the other e-mails and attachments. He studied how naturally she appeared to lean against the dhampir’s body. It looked as though they’d met during work hours, in the stairwell, out of sight from everyone. Well, apparently, not out of sight from Dawn.

He tried remembering when she would have had time to wander off and meet up with the dhampir. Pain stabbed relentlessly to the left of his sternum at the betrayal. True, Dawn sure as hell had taken the photos to drive a wedge between them. However, Lydia’s failure to tell him she was meeting with him was a totally different animal.

The sight of her willingly kissing another man while allowing his hands to roam her entire body tore his heart to shreds. A myriad of emotions swept over him as he lowered his head and tried swallowing the lump in his throat. Why wouldn’t she tell him about this? Could it have been true that she’d really planned on meeting Lars, instead of him, for lunch?

The spiraling emotions were out of control. He decided to leave the computer on. Maybe she’d get a glance at her betrayal. Would she feel some kind of remorse? Damn it, they were just starting out. This was supposed to have been a clean slate. She didn’t strike him as the type to betray.

He glanced at her sleeping peacefully in his bed, the bed where they’d shared passionate moments of pleasure only a few hours ago. The urge to yank her up out of the bed was overwhelmingly strong, but he resisted.

Bjorn immediately rose to his feet and stormed past the bed, out into the kitchen, without giving her a second glance. He’d wait, he decided. He’d probably cool down by the time she woke, and he’d have words, then ask her to leave.

Once out in the living room, Bjorn paced back and forth, running his hands repeatedly through his hair. Where had he gone wrong? He continually paced, pulling at his hair as his heart ached.

* * * *

Lydia yawned and stretched as she rolled over into the empty spot where Bjorn had lain. Feeling much better, but incredibly thirsty, she sat straight up and glanced at the clock. It was eleven thirty. Her tummy rumbled as she slid out of the large bed and stretched again. Bjorn, apparently, was downstairs, waiting for her. She smiled and became anxious, but first she’d have to wash up.

She looked over at the computer and squinted. Dread thundered through her as she walked closer, then her heart dropped, and she thought she’d faint at the sight on the computer screen.

Lydia plopped down in the black leather chair, discovering six different sets of photos of herself and Lars. “No! No way!” she blurted out loud. “This isn’t what happened!”

“Oh, but I think it is.” Bjorn appeared in the middle of the doorway, his tall physique slumped against the frame.

She jumped when she heard his voice, riddled with anger. When she looked at him, her heart slammed against her chest and she couldn’t breathe. She’d never seen this look on his face before.

“I . . . I can expl—”

His eyes grew wide. “Explain?” He cut her off rudely as he crossed his arms across his chest and strode into the room. “Please, by all means, do explain, sweetness.” Slowly he stalked over to her and casually leaned against the desk. “Found them just this morning.” He stared coldly at her, refusing to give her the opportunity to speak. “When did this happen? When did you have the time to meet . . . Lars.” His words ended with a sneer.

“I can explain . . . It isn’t what it seems.” She shuddered as she stared into his angry, piercing blue eyes.

“Then what the hell is it!” Bjorn’s voice was loud and unnerving, making her jump. He towered over her, glaring down at her with a sickened look in his eyes.