How else to describe what happened when predator and prey confronted each other?
Now, almost two decades later, she flashed back to that memory. She hadn’t run and after what had seemed like hours, but had surely been only seconds, the cat had turned and bounded away.
Jacob Wilde was coming toward her, and he looked every bit as dangerous as the mountain lion.
Until a few minutes ago, he’d watched her with an intensity that had been … What was the word? Disconcerting. His brothers had been talking to him. About her, she’d assumed, from the way he, then they, had looked at her.
She’d waited for something to happen.
For Travis and Caleb to bring him over to introduce him. Or for him to acknowledge her with a smile, a nod.
She’d waited. And waited. His stillness baffled her. Annoyed her.
Irritated her.
Was he expecting her to make the first move?
Okay, she’d finally decided, why not? She’d smiled. Raised her glass. She’d done all she could to convey the message, Hello, I’m Addison and you’re Jake, and though I don’t think we’ll really do business together, we probably should at least meet to make your brothers happy….
And then everything changed.
His jaw tightened. His mouth thinned. A hot, hungry look swept across his face.
She knew that look. It was one of pure sexuality.
She hated when men looked at her like that. They always had, from the time she’d first grown breasts.
See that, baby girl? her mother would say. Boys like you. Isn’t that nice?
It wasn’t, not when you knew, even then, that you wanted to make it on your intelligence, not on whatever it was boys liked.
So, yes, she hated that look men got….
Except, this time, a stranger looked at her the way a starving man would look at a steak, and she felt her knees go weak.
It shocked her. Flustered her. She felt breathless.
She’d tried to deal with it by changing focus.
She’d taken a mouthful of wine….
And everything had gone to hell.
His brothers said something. Jacob Wilde swung toward them. There was a fast, obviously unpleasant exchange of words.
And then he’d headed straight at her, and all she could think of was that mountain lion and how she’d felt when it had turned its savage eyes on her….
Except, he wasn’t a lion and she wasn’t a scared kid, and she’d be damned if she’d let him intimidate her.
The thing was, it was all happening in slow motion.
His single-minded approach.
His brothers hurrying after him.
“Jake,” Caleb called. “Jake, wait a minute!”
“Dammit,” Travis said, “you’re making a big mistake.”