“You really love throwing pity parties for yourself, don’t you?”
“Excuse me?”
“Oh, boo-hoo,” she whined. “My unrequited love married someone else, and I can’t get over it, so even though the man she married defied tradition and made me, a white man, second in command of an entire cartel, I’m just going to be a little bitch and whine about it.”
“Jesus, what the hell is wrong with you?”
She jumped to her feet, her hands clenched into fists by her side. “Why don’t you try watching the cartel you grew up believing was your destiny implode in front of your face? I ran for my life because I found out what you’d done. Instead of taking what I’d rightfully earned, I was shunned.”
“Adriana…” Not sure what else to do, I stood and held out a hand, unprepared for her to slap it out of her face.
“That was my time to shine, Brody.” Balling her fist, she beat it against her chest. “That was my chance to show everyone that Marisol Muñoz was smart and brave and capable. That was my time, and you cheated me out of it!”
This time, I didn’t back down. If we were doing this, we were going to do it. I was tired of dancing around it. What better place to have a shitty showdown than in a shitty shack in a shitty part of Mexico. Closing the distance between us, I wrapped my hands around her shoulders and pulled her toward me only to have her twist out of my hold.
“Don’t touch me,” she hissed. Swiping the back of her hand across her eyes, she picked up the still full shot glass off the table and stomped into the kitchen. Even from across the room, I could hear her labored breathing as she fought for control. Dumping the contents of the glass down the drain, she tossed it in the sink and braced her hands against the counter. “Hijo de su puta madre.” Son of a bitch. “Everybody causes cracks in me, Brody. Maybe you’ll be the one who finally breaks me.”
I watched her. I listened. And then I finally learned.
Adriana Carrera was a damn liar. She claimed she didn’t want me to touch her, but nothing could be further from the truth. She pushed me away because she used control not only as a weapon but as a shield. But it was breaking her piece by piece until eventually there wouldn’t be anything left but a shell.
Despite our differences. Despite our past. Despite our dislike for each other, there was a magnetic force drawing us together. Energy that left alone was destined for self-destruction, but combined, it ignited a power capable of deadly strength.
Her vulnerability awakened the monster in me.
And he was ready to feast.
Chapter Twenty
Brody
Pouring one more shot, I tossed it back and followed her into the kitchen. I didn’t ask permission. I just placed both hands on her back, feeling her body go rigid and still. Without saying a word, I dragged them down her spine to the small of her back and rounding over the ass that had played a starring role in every single dream since she stormed into my bar. Her broken groan was music to my ears, but I didn’t allow myself to linger. Stepping forward, I grabbed the indentations in her hips.
“I said, don’t touch me,” she rasped, her breath stuttering.
She didn’t mean it. We both knew it, so I pushed her into the counter, grinding against her ass. “Quiet,” I commanded, dipping my nose into her hair. The minute I got a whiff of her sweet licorice scent, my cock swelled. “The rules from the game stand. You have to do what I say, no questions asked.”
Adriana opened her mouth to argue, so I dug my fingers into her hips. As expected, she shut it. Such a small power play spoke volumes.
“Look at me.” The minute she tilted her cheek toward me, I traced my lips across her jaw, slowly making my way to her ear. I was treading on dangerous ground, but the high was too addictive not to chase.
“I—” she whispered, trying to turn away, but I cut her off by sliding one hand from her hip up to her throat. I stroked my thumb over her pulse, feeling it dance under my command.
“No questions.”
I watched the conflict play out on her face. Her every instinct told her to fight me, but she didn’t. Rolling her lips over her teeth and pressing them together was her single act of defiance. I wasn’t pissed. In fact, it made me smile. I knew her rules against kissing, and I had no intention of breaking them. Besides, I didn’t want her mouth.
Reaching under her T-shirt, I ran my hand along her stomach, feeling her sharp inhale as I toyed with the lace at the top of her panties. Her fingers curled around the counter and the steady thump thump thump of her pulse under my thumb detonated as I slipped my hand inside. I closed my eyes at her tortured groan and sank my finger deep inside her.
Fucking hell, she was wet, and I couldn’t get enough. I pumped faster, adding a second finger. The more I pumped, the tighter her walls gripped me, and I almost came undone imagining what they’d do to my cock.
Adriana’s head flopped back against my chest. “Oh, fuck.”
Keeping up my brutal pace, I shifted my hand, pressing down on her clit as I thrusted. We weren’t looking at each other, but neither of us cared to. This was primal need in its most basic form. Adriana’s clenched hands shook against the counter as she whimpered, a sound magnified by the feel of her ass grinding against my cock.
Jesus, if she didn’t stop, I was going to come in my fucking pants.
“Give me what I want, Adriana,” I growled in her ear. Curling my fingers, I sought out the one spot I knew would bring her to her knees.
“Shit!” she screamed, shaking violently. “Oh, dios, por favor no pares. No pares.”
No worries, princesa. I have no intentions on stopping.
“Scream my name, Adriana, or I swear I’ll throw you on this counter and eat your pussy until you pass out.”
I hit the fleshy button inside her again, and she erupted like a volcano, convulsing and clawing my arm as her ear-piercing scream rattled the thin windows. “Brody! Brody! Brody!”
I released my hold on her throat, and she collapsed against the sink, the demon that haunted her gone—at least for now. She was spent but calm. Almost as if by stripping away her control, I actually restored it.
It was a heady feeling. And then the reality of what we’d just done crashed down around her. Adriana’s spine stiffened, and she pulled away. I could see her frantically rebuilding the wall I’d just knocked down, and if she thought I’d allow it, she was crazy.
Laying a hand on her shoulder, I spun her around, making her watch as I sucked the taste of her off one finger at a time. When the last one was licked clean, I straightened her T-shirt and ran the pad of my thumb over her bottom lip. “Get some sleep, princesa. We have a long day tomorrow.”
She blinked. “There’s only one mattress.”
“I’ll take the couch.”
“Are you sure?”
I smirked at the subtle question in her voice. I’d have to jerk off all night just to be able to function tomorrow, but tonight’s experiment was over.
“Adriana, if I lay next to you, I’m fucking you.”
All the color drained from her face, and she took a step back.
I walked away with a wink. “That’s what I thought.”