Jess Michaels Read Free Page B

exhausted sigh like she couldn’t be bothered by him anymore. “Please, just go away.”
    Without a further word, Cassandra turned to leave the room—to walk away from him just as she had done all those years ago. Only this time he had the power to stop her. Without stopping to think, Nathan crossed the room to her in a few long steps, caught her elbow, and yanked her around, forcing her to look at him.
    There was no resistance in her frame, no stiffening of her body. Her soft curves molded to his as if this embrace were perfectly natural and cordial. Her scent wafted up to him, a heady lilac that made him want to breathe her in.
    But that wasn’t what broke his last shred of self-control. When he looked down into her eyes, he finally got a glimpse of her soul. No matter what she said or how she tried to dismiss and deny him, burning hot lust boiled in her green stare.
    So he took it. Dropping his mouth to hers, he branded her with a kiss that matched the heat of their connection. Without finesse or gentleness, he breached the barrier of her lips and drank in her taste. Fresh mint and orange citrus melded on his tongue and he uttered a groan into her mouth.
    She echoed the wanton sound, gripping his lapels in fists as she opened wider, thrusting her tongue to duel with his. He drew her closer, her breasts flattening against his chest, his legs tangling in her skirts as he rocked his body to hers. Beneath his trousers his cock pushed hard, ready and randy to join with her, as if he hadn’t had a woman in all the time they’d been apart.
    Only one thing marred the experience of touching her again. This wasn’t the kiss of the woman he remembered, who had been so shy, so innocent in her passions. This kiss was a reminder that Cassandra had been far from innocent since she threw him over. He knew she had been with several men. He’d wager she’d done many a wild and passionate thing with those men.
    He pushed her backward toward the chamber wall, his anger at that realization making him rougher, more demanding in his embrace. But it didn’t dull the desire he felt. Not in the slightest.
    Before he could reach the barrier, before he could lift herskirts and have what he so craved, Cassandra pressed her palms against his chest and shoved. She staggered away from him a few steps, her breath coming in pants, but she didn’t look away. She didn’t blush with embarrassment. She just stared at him.
    “That is enough,” she whispered between gasping breaths.
    He shook his head, in no mood for denials—not after so many years. “No, it’s not. It’s not enough, Cassandra, I want more.”
    She tried to keep her face stony, he saw her fighting to remain stoic, but she failed. The blood drained from her cheeks and her lips, swollen red from his passionate, rough kisses, parted on a gasp.
    “More?” she said, her voice no more than a broken whisper.
    Nathan shut his eyes briefly. What he was about to say was utter folly, but it didn’t matter. He had been deprived of his desire for too many years, and soon he would not be at liberty to pursue his needs. This was his one chance to purge this woman from his memory. To make sure she knew what she had thrown away. To get retribution in the most pleasurable sense of the word.
    When he opened his eyes again, he knew how cold he appeared and how cruel he sounded. “Yes. You see, I am here to find a wife.”
    An almost imperceptible twitch marred the corner of her lips. So she was thinking about how once she had been his chosen mate, just as he was. Well, those days were long gone.
    “Someone from a titled and appropriate family this time,as the last time my foolishness led to nothing good,” he continued with a sneer.
    To her credit, she did not react to his taunting. “Well, I wish you luck with that endeavor. But I see no reason why it should have anything to do with me, my lord.”
    “It doesn’t, not this time.” He shook his head. “But I do need someone to warm my