Possessed by a Stranger (2 page)

“Does Jay know you’re here?”

“Don’t know and don’t care. He’s deep into
something. You know how he gets with his tunnel vision. . .
probably better than me.” She pointed to her index finger, from
under her chin, toward Larry, which seemed to confuse him even
more. Larry and Jay were thick as thieves so she knew Larry knew
where Jay was and what Jay was doing. What Larry wasn’t sure of was
if she knew. But that was probably due to her reaction. Still under
the influence of ‘seeing was believing and believing will set you
free’, her euphoric state of mind had surrounded her in a cocoon of
unbelievable joy. Larry’s eyes remained on her face. He stood stiff
as a board in front of her.

“Give the lady a frozen margarita. Make it
gold and a double.” A deep masculine voice commanded the drink
order. A man slid onto the stool beside her. He pushed a
twenty-dollar bill toward Larry. He sat his drink down on the bar,
scotch, she guessed from the smell.

She folded her arms on the
bar, turning her head to look at the mystery man. His right hand
rested on the bar within a finger’s touch of his glass. His left
elbow extended off the back of the stool. He had built a blockade
with his stance, caging her in. The definition of his bulging chest
muscles was exposed to her view through his tight shirt. The shirt
collar gapped open with several buttons casually left undone. Even
in the relaxed position, he sat tall on the stool with his head
held high. It looked as if his bronzed flesh came from outside
activities, not from wasting time in an artificial sun.
The distinct features of his face complimented
each other. Tall, dark and very handsome stimulated her interest,
pleasing her vision. Her previously subdued sexuality rose inside
her, freely coming to life with her first glimpse of him. Whether
caused by hormones, pheromones, or the circumstances of the day,
that gorgeous hunk of a man sent a fiery heat searing through her
body. With her back arched, she twisted the stool from side to
side. Hannah watched him, as he watched every move Larry made as he
mixed her drink.

The expensive designer suit, the Rolex on his
wrist, screamed he was corporate something or other and money was
his mistress or maybe, his bitch. The way he demanded the drink
order and the fact he insured it was what he ordered by his
constant glare made her opt for bitch.

Larry returned with the drink, placing it in
front of the man. She assumed to eliminate his culpability when he
recounted the incident to Jay. Boy, she would love to be a fly on
the wall when that happened.

The man picked up the glass with the napkin,
placing it in front of her. That's when he looked into her eyes,
his own grayish blue’s devouring her, and she was drawn into his
web. His silence surrounded her, drowning out the music and the
buzz of voices in the bar. They sat alone, protected from the rest
of the world, inside the mesmerizing haze of his presence. His musk
of virility filled her nostrils with every breath she fought to
inhale.

She lifted the glass to sip
from the straw, not wanting to break his connecting, electrifying
gaze. Her taste buds sharply sparked in response to the sour shock.
With the straw still held between her lips, the frozen gulp came
precariously close to freezing any brain cells she had left. “Thank
you,
kind sir; I thought I was going to
have to celebrate somewhere else.”

“It seems I walked in at just the right time
to rescue a damsel in distress. Well, I’m hoping this is a rescue
and the bartender’s reluctance to serve you isn’t from past wild
crazy drunken episodes. What are you celebrating that would make
you want a drink stronger than your usual?” The sensual tilt of his
lips and the hint of a tease in his voice enticed her farther into
his seduction. Hannah went willingly. His voice lulled her into
believing she still had a choice.

“You can relax, I don‘t get drunk and rip off
my clothes and dance on the bar. I just don’t normally drink
anything stronger than a diet soda. I’m celebrating being
unengaged.” She waved the fingers on her left hand with her ring
finger free from the burden of that God-awful ring.

He chuckled, low in his throat, as he twisted
the stool to turn her way. “If you don’t normally drink than
there’s a slight chance I might get to see the free show. I might
want to stick around for that. But until then, you can entertain me
with why your celebrating being unengaged. Where are the tears and
sobs of losing your one true love?”

His expensive cologne was manly and sensual.
She almost leaned closer just to sniff his neck. “It’s surprisingly
non-existent, which should explain the celebration.” Her gaze
alternated from the movement of his lips when he spoke, back to his
persuasive eyes. Lowering her shoulders and stretching her neck she
imagined how soft, yet commanding, his lips would feel gliding down
her neck.

“I can’t imagine any man would give you up
without a fight. So, is your ex going to come bursting in the door
to kick my ass?” She knew from his firm grin, the body of a weight
lifter, and fearless air, he didn’t consider his ass being kicked
by anyone a probability and neither did she.

She flirtingly touched his upper arm, testing
his muscles with a squeeze. Actually, she just wanted to touch him,
to see if he was real. If this was a dream, she prayed she would
sleep forever. “I don’t think so. The last time I saw him, his dick
was stuck in his secretary.” She sipped slowly on the straw to
avoid a brain freeze… Lesson learned. The tangy drink spread warmth
through her body even though it was ice cold. . . or the warmth
might be from the mysterious stranger.

Her frank response received an amused nod of
his head. “I can see where that would be a deal breaker. That
brings up another question. Why would you be engaged to someone you
seem so happy to get rid of?”

She laughed, tilting her
head, now slightly embarrassed to disclose the pathetic choices of
her lily-livered life. “Okay, let me warn you. I realize how
idiotic this is going to sound. Try not to laugh hysterically or
judge me based on one sliver of my life. Yes, it turned out to be a
big sliver… However, I’m not as brain dead as you might think after
hearing my comedy of errors.” His intense gaze coaxed her to
continue. “It was the natural progression of growing up together,
hanging out in a group, dating and then the inevitable
engagement. We were paired together through years
of friendship. It was expected and comfortable. I found myself
stuck on a Ferris wheel with no way off. The other cars kept
picking up baggage, gaining momentum, making it impossible for me
to leave the monotonous circle. My life is one of those…you really
had to be there things.”

His voice disguised his amusement but his
smile didn‘t. “So, your ex stuck his dick in the gears and you
jumped off.”

The image he created was satisfying and
gratifyingly humorous. Her laughter spilled passed her lips. She
twisted the stool so her knee touched his elongated leg still
planted on the floor. Face to face with her left arm on the bar,
she leaned back to admire the strong presence of the stranger that
had her heart doing double time against her heaving chest.

“Good one….but it was more like I was shoved
out of the car… at the tiptop of the wheel. After the initial
shock…just like that…” She snapped her fingers. “I discovered I
could fly.”

“I can actually relate to that. All of us
need a good kick in the ass every now and then. It looks like I met
you just as your wings are starting to unfurl.”

Larry slammed his hand, holding a damp bar
rag, down on the bar. “Can I get you anything else?” Larry asked
with a low growl.

“We’ll let you know.” The mystery man
answered.

Neither of them looked Larry’s way. She was
completely alone with the gorgeous hunk of a man in the crowded
bar. No one or nothing penetrated the electrifying connection
between them.

“I’m curious, would you have gone through
with the wedding if your ex hadn’t given you a way out?” His eyes
searched her soul. His confident air teased her into believing he
already knew the answer. How could he, since she didn’t? Hannah was
thankful she would never know the answer.

“I don’t know. I’ll never know for sure. I’m
thankful he made the decision for me.” Talking to someone
nonjudgmental and not vested in her broken relationship increased
her natural high. She was released from her bonds of commitment.
Free to do as she pleased.

He moved closer, exchanging his arm’s resting
spot from the back of his stool to hers. “Truthful and
beautiful…that’s a dangerous combination. What are the chances
you’ll forgive him tomorrow?” A single finger trailed across her
bare shoulder. His touch heatedly tickled her skin and her need for
more. The violent twitch in her lower abs moved south from his
touch. His seduction was slow, confident, barely detectable and yet
extremely efficient and absolutely perfect. He was the one, Mr.
Perfect in the flesh.

“There’s nothing to forgive. What was done
was done. You can’t change the past; you just live with the
consequences. What brought you into this bar?” He imprisoned her in
his barrier by moving his hand from the bar to her knee.

“I was looking for something to distract me
from my sorrow. I’m quite certain I found the perfect distraction
sitting on a bar stool in need of my assistance. I’ve heard once. .
. you save someone . . . you own them.” His voice slowly resonated
from deep inside him with a hypnotizing result. She hung on his
words, his touch.

“I think you might have twisted that quote
just a hair. So you randomly chose this bar for a glass of
scotch?”

“No, as an upstanding citizen, I felt it was
my civic duty to rescue the walkers of the city from an enchanted
nymph. Her long curls flowed in the breeze with the sunlight
reflecting off the golden and auburn highlights.” He singled out a
single ringlet of her multi-faceted hair and twirled it around his
thick finger. “I might have passed on by but then she performed
perfect pirouettes, in the middle of a crowded street, I might add.
I knew that creature was exactly what I needed. Now I’ve discovered
she also needed me.” Hannah sat spellbound from his romantic words
as his hand that had started out on her knee slid up her thigh to
the last button actually buttoned on her dress. His thumb moved
soothingly over her heated flesh. Sparks flew up her leg. She
allowed, or more truthfully, welcomed the seduction of his
touch.

She knew she should walk
away, regroup, and get a frigging hold on her raging hormones. But
that would entail separating herself from him, so screw that plan.
The feelings he incited inside her were new, exciting, and
undeniable. After years of Jay’s groping attempts to entice her
into having sex, her body craved the intimacy from a stranger. As
senseless as it seemed, she wasn’t about to pass on this
opportunity, even if it was only for one night. This sexy stranger
proved her lack of sexual desires had derived from her choice in a
partner…
not some mental or physical
illness as Jay so frequently proclaimed.

“Now I’m embarrassed. You saw my moment of
complete insanity. I can’t believe I actually did that. In my
defense, I’ve been known to openly express my emotions. You don’t
strike me as a man who would wallow in sorrow. I suspect whoever
caused your sorrow might regret their actions. But, I hate to think
of you being sad. If you tell me the problem, maybe, I can help dry
up some of your tears.” Tears would be a snap, since she could
evaporate a river in a second with the heat radiating through her.
Her sexuality, now awakened, seemed shockingly as loose, free as
the curls on her head, and maybe as unruly.

“I missed out on an investment. But you’re
right, someone will have serious regrets. I can think of many ways
you could help me feel better. Of course, not here and preferably,
without clothes.” His eyes narrowed slightly for a bulls-eye view
of hers.

Oh yes, she knew that look. She felt the heat
of being his target, cross-haired in his sights. Her complete
surrender was imminent. “Does that mean you’re an investor?”

“Not as an occupation. I only invest for
personal reasons in things I really want. Once I want something I
don’t stop until it’s mine.” His eyes scanned a trail of fire over
her body, hotly and wantonly molesting her with his gaze, and his
words implied it was her he wanted.

Their transparent flirting was a spectacle
that caused a stir in the bar. Several mutual friends of hers had
sauntered up to the bar to order a drink. You would have thought
the space behind her new acquaintance was the starting point of a
free drink line. The usually quiet bar was becoming crowded, with
more friends milling in and no one attempting to leave. She had
grown up in this neighborhood. This was one of those bars, where
everyone not only knew your name; they knew your life history.

She finished her drink, running her finger
around the rim, collecting the salt. She licked the tip of her
finger before she placed it in her mouth and pulled it out. His
eyes never wavered from her lips. For the first time in her life,
she felt power over her destiny. Her choices belonged to her and
her alone. She liked it, a lot.

The tall dark haired man scanned the room,
moving his hand to her back. Her fingers tingled as she imagined
them entangled in those unruly waves, holding his head as her lips
touched his.

“I think we should cut out of here and find
somewhere with some ambiance. I’m thinking darker with candles and
some soft music. Your bartender friend is most likely on the phone
with your ex. I wouldn’t want this evening to be spoiled by a
confrontation.” His voice was low, slow and seductively
enticing.