Van's mouth drops open, and for the first time I see confusion in his eyes. It's brief and flickers out as quick as it ignites, but I've rattled him.
"I really, really like to have sex," I add, knowing I'm probably throwing him into mental overload. "And you look like you'd be fantastic at it. I mean...I'm fantastic. I'm also quite bendy in bed. My flexibility is--"
I stop in midsentence as Van turns on his heel and bolts out of the room.
Without hesitation, I roll off the bed and follow him. I find him in the kitchen with his head tipped back and the beer flowing down his throat as he chugs it without interruption. When he finishes, he tosses the bottle into the garbage and pulls another out of the fridge.
I strike a sexy pose back against the half wall and wait for him to look at me.
He finally gives me his eyes after he takes the cap off the new bottle and tosses it. With a shake of his head, he says, "You're not right in the head."
"Of course I am," I say dismissively. "I'm just thinking you've never had a woman come on to you before."
"Well, let's just stop this right here," he says coldly. "I'm not interested in you."
"Simone," I say with a pointed look.
"Simone what?" he asks, his eyebrows knitted together in confusion.
"If you're going to say something like that to me, say it with conviction. It will help if you put my name on the end of the statement. So like you'd say, 'I'm not interested in you, Simone.' "
Van's lips press tight and anger flashes in his eyes. He enunciates his words clearly, leaning slightly toward me. "I'm. Not. Interested. In. You. Simone."
I wrinkle my nose and shake my head. "Nah...you see, that wasn't really convincing. But I do love the way my name sounds coming out of your mouth. Try it again, though, if you want."
For a brief moment, I'm afraid Van might stroke out. There's a vein that pops in his temple, and his jaw locks so hard I can hear his teeth grinding. He opens his mouth to what I'm guessing is to repeat the words, but I decide to give him a little distraction.
Standing up from my sexy lean against the half wall, I pull the sheer blouse up over my head until it comes free. I drop it to the floor and bring a finger up to drag it across the top edge of the lace cup. Nudity is obviously something I'm very comfortable with. My voice goes husky when I ask him, "Do you think this bra is what I should wear with this blouse? I worry that it might be a little too risque."
Because he's a man and I didn't expect anything different, Van's eyes drop to my breasts. The anger in his eyes is still there, but I am completely rewarded by a flash of genuine male appreciation as he doesn't give my boobs just a glance.
He looks.
And I mean...he looks.
A shiver of excitement runs up my spine as I watch him taking in his fill of me, and I consider the brief possibility that I might be late for work tonight. I hold my breath to see what he does.
Dragging his eyes up to meet mine again, he says in a flat voice, "Still not interested."
Well damn.
I give him a pouty look that's not put on at all. I'm really disappointed. "Oh come on, Van. I'm half naked in front of you. I happen to know my breasts are fantastic. Lucas is with Stephy tonight. What the hell is wrong with this?"
"You're not my type," he says with a cocky grin. "I like my women a little less loose."
I'd gasp if I were really offended, but I'm not. I'm totally acting like a hussy, but I can't help it. Remember that petulant desire I have for him. I just need to charm him a little bit more with my quirky ways--and because I can tell he did, in fact, like my breasts--more cleavage.
I take one last stab at getting what I want tonight. I take a few steps toward him, swaying my hips. That effort's wasted, and Van's eyes come back to my chest for a moment before locking with my own.
"Bet if I were to cop a feel right now, your body would prove you to be a liar," I murmur to him.
He doesn't respond, but his eyes flash at the prospect of me putting my hand on him.
"Or," I say teasingly, "I'll leave you unmolested, and you can at least just admit that you're slightly attracted to me."
I barely get the words out before Van is backing me up with his massive size. He doesn't even touch me but walks right into me, and I'm so stunned by the quick, catlike reflexes he's showcasing that I start backing up. Right into the half wall, where the molding digs into my back.
Van tips his head down and puts his face right into mine. Our bodies are just inches apart and I'm slightly unnerved and slightly turned on by his sudden move.
"I'm only going to tell you this once more, Simone," he says with emphasis on my name. "I am not interested in you, so just stay out of my way. You do not want to see me pissed off."
My breathing has actually turned into a pant, and I'm pretty sure my nipples can't get any harder. He's so close I could kiss him, and despite his words of warning, I saw the thick ridge of his cock pushing against his jeans. He can deny it all he wants, but he's totally attracted me.
I lick my lips to wet them, and decide to try some reason. "Van...I think--"
Before I know it, Van's got his big hand wrapped around the back of my neck, his thumb pressed under my chin. He gives me a warning squeeze that doesn't hurt, but it lets me see a glimpse of his power. He forces my head to tip back slightly, moves his face closer to mine.
"This is the only warning," he says softly.
And damn, those eyes. Not icy or impenetrable, but burning with anger, frustration, and God help him...lust.
For me.
He should have never shown me that. He should have kept that secret from me, because I'm even more determined than ever to chip through this armor he's wearing.
God help me, because before I really only wanted to know Van carnally. But now I'm interested on a little bit of a deeper level.
Now I really want to find out what makes a man such as this.
> Van's eyes bore into mine, and I know he thinks he's intimidating me into being complacent, but I don't scare that easily. His fingers press into the back of my neck, perhaps as an additional warning, but all I can think is that I'd love to have him hold me down like that.
After another moment of staring, Van releases his hold on me, and for the first time ever, I hear him stomp through the house. Gone is the grace. He's walking like a man who's pissed as hell and beyond annoyed.
He even slams the door on his way out of the house.
I let out a tiny sigh of defeat. I glance at my watch, and I'm going to have to leave for work soon. I plan on spending my shift concocting a new game plan, because clearly what I'm doing so far is not working.
Chapter 3
Van
The front door bursts open and Lucas is crashing through, going to his knees. When he stands up, he lurches, and it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out he's shit-faced.
I smile in amusement, sipping my own beer. On the evenings that Simone works, I can just kick back and relax. I don't have to be on guard every damn second, keeping up a constant wall of resistance to her flirting and sexual innuendos as she comes on to me when Lucas is out of earshot.
Lucas tries to take a step forward, but stumbles to the right, where he slams into the living room wall.
Christ, he's fucked up.
"You okay, man?" I ask as I lean forward from my perch on the couch. I set my beer bottle on the floor.
His head slowly turns my way and his eyes are completely glazed over. He looks at me like he doesn't even recognize me.
He also doesn't answer my question, but tries to walk again. This time he pitches forward and slams face first down onto the carpet.
"Jesus," I say as I come flying up off the couch. I take a step and then go down to my knees, rolling Lucas over onto his back. I expect to find him passed out, but his eyes are open but not really seeing me. There's a small rug burn on his chin from when he hit the carpet, and he's lucky he didn't bust his nose or some shit.
Lucas tries to sit up, and I put an arm under his back to help him. He continues to try to push up off the floor, and I help him do that as well by hauling him to his feet.
"You okay?" I ask again, although clearly he's not. Not that Lucas doesn't drink, but I've never seen him drunk like this.