I grabbed the things I needed for Jinx, praying my regular coloring would return and my heart rate would slow down. When I got all I needed, I faced Saxon again, who stood where I’d left him. His concern had seemed to only get more intense.

  “How was your lesson?” he asked me.

  “Good,” I replied, not needing to lie about that.

  He sighed, then ran a hand through his messy hair. “Okay, well, uh, did he say he was going to continue teaching you?”

  He had. But that had been before he kissed me, then vanished.

  I shrugged. “I think so.”

  Saxon nodded again. “Yeah, okay, well, I gotta get back to the vet. He’s here to check on Iron War.”

  I held up the brush in my hand. “I’ll be here,” I said with a smile I didn’t feel, then headed back to Jinx.

  I was glad he couldn’t ask me questions. Because I had no answers.

  Two days later, and Blaise hadn’t returned. Saxon didn’t mention giving me lessons, and I didn’t ask. It had given me time to get my head on straight. I’d been able to think through my reaction to Blaise and him kissing me. Sure, it still made no sense. He had made it clear he didn’t approve of me. Why he wanted to be the one to teach me how to ride was still confusing. Garrett had mentioned it at the gala, but Blaise didn’t appear to do anything his father told him. From what little I had seen and heard, their relationship wasn’t the best.

  I finished up for the afternoon at the stables and began walking up to the house when Saxon came running up from the main arena toward me.

  “Hey!” he called out, and I stopped to wait on him.

  There were a few times today I had thought he would offer to give me a lesson, but he hadn’t. If Blaise didn’t return tomorrow, then I was going to ask Saxon to teach me. I just wished he’d offer first.

  He was grinning when he reached me. “I got an idea,” he said.

  “Okay,” I replied, returning his smile.

  “You need to learn how to swim,” he said. “And it’s been blazing hot today. I think it’s a good time to learn. You’ve yet to get in our pool.”

  “As long as we stay in the shallow end,” I replied.

  He laughed. “We will today. But eventually, you’ll have to move to the deeper water.”

  “Deal,” I agreed.

  He lifted his arm to wipe the sweat from his forehead. “I’ll meet you out there in thirty minutes.”

  While I headed up to get changed, I decided I’d bring up the riding lessons while we were in the pool. I wanted to ride again. I’d enjoyed it, and if I had to wait on Blaise, I might never get that chance. I doubted he was coming back.

  Nineteen

  Within the thirty minutes since I had agreed to let Saxon teach me how to swim, we had managed to add Trev to our small gathering. He showed up, asking if we wanted to go to the springs tonight to a party one of their friends was having. Saxon told him he was teaching me how to swim and that the springs wouldn’t be a good idea for me until I could swim.

  Declan had sent Saxon several texts about the party, and he hadn’t responded.

  We had just gotten to the pool when she arrived at Saxon’s, clearly angry. Trev looked over at me and wiggled his eyebrows as Saxon took her inside to talk to her.

  “He needs to break that shit off,” Trev said as he pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it on the closest lounge chair.

  I agreed, but didn’t say anything.

  Trev ran and dived into the deep end of the pool. I watched as he swam up and then stuck his head out of the water. He shook his hair out of his eyes, then grinned up at me.

  “You can’t learn how to swim out there,” he informed me.

  I looked down at the towel wrapped around my body and sighed. He was right, but Saxon was supposed to be teaching me. Not Trev. I wasn’t sure I trusted Trev enough for that.

  “I won’t let you drown, I swear,” he said. “Just ease into the shallow end.”

  Glancing back at the house, I wasn’t sure how much longer Saxon was going to be. There was a good chance Declan would be joining us tonight. Which meant he wouldn’t be able to teach me how to swim.

  I looked back at Trev. “Promise?” I asked him.

  He swam to the shallow end, then walked toward the slanting entrance of the pool. “On my life,” he assured me. “Get in here.”

  I took the towel and laid it on the table beside me, then slipped off my flip-flops before walking over to the water. I went in just deep enough that it hit my knees, then stopped. It was hot outside, and the cold water was a shock.

  “How did you just dive into this?” I asked and shivered a little before moving slowly in until it hit my waist and I felt moderately covered up.

  “Get in and get it over with—first rule. Easing in like that is harder,” he says.

  I started to argue that I doubted that when he moved his hands against the water, splashing my formerly dry upper body. I squealed as the icy water ran over me.

  “Trev!” I yelled, moving to get out of the water.

  He was laughing, and I glared back at him.

  “I’m sorry! Don’t get out. I was trying to get you used to the water. I won’t do it again.”

  “Uh-huh,” I replied, not moving up too far, just away from him.

  “It felt good though, didn’t it?” he asked, grinning as he walked closer to me.

  I held out my hand to stop him. “Don’t get any closer. I don’t trust you,” I said.

  He stuck out his bottom lip, and I laughed.

  “That’s not nice,” he said and moved like he was going to splash me again.

  This time, I ducked and moved deep enough so that I could do my own splashing. My attempt wasn’t as good as his, but I still got the side of his face just as he turned away. When he looked back at me, I knew I was in trouble. I’d started something.

  “Game on, Maddy,” he said.

  I squealed, then stepped back, only to realize I couldn’t touch.

  Just as I went under, I saw Trev’s eyes go wide before he shot toward me. My feet didn’t even get a chance to touch the bottom before Trev’s arms were around me and my head was above water again. I clung to Trev as I coughed up the water I’d swallowed. He moved me back to the shallow ground, but even after I could feel the bottom again, I didn’t let go of him. I needed to hold on to something while I caught my breath and stopped coughing.

  Just as I started to feel like an idiot and moved the wet hair out of my face, a deep, threatening voice said, “Get the fuck away from her!”

  It startled me and caused Trev’s body to tense up. My eyes snapped open as I blinked away the water falling from my lashes.

  Blaise.

  “Come here, Madeline,” he commanded when my gaze met his.

  I didn’t move, but Trev did. His arms let me go, and he stepped back from me.

  “You okay?” Trev asked me.

  I nodded and looked back at him. He studied me for a moment, then turned his attention to his brother. The way his jaw clenched, I thought he might tell Blaise to leave or at least stand up to him. But he didn’t say anything.

  “Madeline, now,” Blaise demanded again.

  No longer coughing, I managed to glare at Blaise. “No,” I shot back at him.

  A laugh caught my attention, and I realized Declan and Saxon had also come outside. Saxon was shifting his gaze from Blaise to me while Declan had her hand over her mouth, looking surprised. I didn’t want to have this … whatever it was in front of anyone. Especially someone like Declan.

  I looked back at Blaise as he reached for his shirt and pulled it off, tossing it on the chair behind him. His gaze locked on mine. When he began unbuckling his jeans, I glanced at Trev, who shook his head as he walked into the deeper water before diving under.

  I turned back to Blaise. “What are you doing?” I asked him.

  “Coming to fucking get you,” he replied and started to push his jeans down.

  “Don’t!” I yelled.

  His green eyes darkened. “Are you going to come out?”

  Afraid of what he was planning on doing if he came in the water, I gave in and nodded. When I began walking back up out of the water, Blaise pulled his jeans back up and fastened them, never once taking his eyes off me. His heated gaze slowly moved down my body, and I wished he hadn’t done that. I didn’t want to react to him. I wanted to feel nothing.

  When I was completely out of the water, he walked over to grab the towel I had left on the table and then took four long strides to me. The towel was wrapped around my body tightly before his eyes met mine again.

  “What are you doing?” I asked him.

  “Covering your ass up,” he replied, and then he walked away from me as I stood there, watching him. He didn’t look back at me as he grabbed his shirt and pulled it back on.

  “Why?” I was still trying to figure out what was going on.

  This man was going to make me crazy.

  He moved over to me and grabbed my arm, then began pulling me with him toward the house. Saxon said nothing as we passed him. He wouldn’t even look at me; he just stared at the ground at his feet. Declan barely glanced at us before her wide eyes quickly looked in another direction.

  I waited until we were inside and away from my friends and Declan before pulling my arm free of his hold. “What is wrong with you?” I asked him angrily. “That out there, what was it about?”

  Blaise reached out and grabbed my chin in his hand. “Can you fucking swim?”

  I wrapped my hand around his wrist and pulled his hand away from my face. “No!” I shouted.

  The small distance between us was gone as he stepped so close to me that I had to tilt my head back to continue my heated glare at him.

  “You went under,” he said simply.

  I waited for more, and he said nothing. We stood there like that for several seconds.

  “Don’t go in a motherfucking pool if you can’t swim,” he said in a low voice that sounded like a growl.

  I leaned closer to him. “Saxon was going to teach me,” I said through clenched teeth.

  Blaise inhaled sharply. “No,” he replied. Then, his hand wrapped around my upper arm again, and he began forcing me to walk through the house. When we reached the stairs, he stopped and looked down at me. “You need clothes,” he said.

  “Why? Are you going to force me to stay inside? What happens when you leave?” I taunted him.

  “Either you lead the way to your room or I’ll find it,” he replied in a clipped tone.

  Whatever this was, I decided to just let it play out. Maybe he’d leave if I did what he said. I wanted him to leave. A knot in my stomach, however, said another thing. The part of me that wanted him around was growing. I was obviously deranged and needed counseling.

  I pulled my arm free from him again and held on to my towel tightly as I walked up the stairs. Every step I took, he followed me up.

  When we reached my door, I waved a hand at it. “We are here. You can leave now,” I informed him.

  He took the knob and turned it, then opened the door. “Go,” he said as he put a hand on my back and pushed me inside.

  I stumbled inside and let go of the towel to steady myself. My temper spiking again, I swung my gaze back to him to demand he leave when the towel fell to the floor at my feet. Blaise’s eyes moved from my cleavage to my stomach and stopped at the bikini bottoms. I didn’t say anything.

  The door closed behind him, and he was in front of me then. His cotton shirt felt soft against my chest. I closed my eyes and tried very hard to focus. This was Blaise. My body needed to snap out of it. I should be yelling at him to leave. Drawing attention to the fact that he was in my bedroom.

  The tips of his fingers touched my stomach and brushed the bare skin. “This wasn’t supposed to happen.” His voice was low and raspy.

  Those fingers moved lower and slid just inside the top of my bottoms.

  “I can’t stay away,” he said, his head dropping forward. His breathing was heavy against my ear. “I should,” he whispered as his hand moved until his fingers were between my legs.

  I cried out as his middle finger ran against the sensitive, swollen flesh. My knees buckled, and Blaise grabbed my waist with both hands, then tossed me back onto the bed in one swift move.

  My hands fisted the comforter as I lifted my body up, my breath now coming out in gasps. I opened my eyes to see Blaise was already climbing onto the bed, and his eyes were where his fingers had just been. His hands grabbed my knees and pushed my legs open to his view.

  This shouldn’t be happening. I knew it. He wasn’t safe. Nothing about him was safe. But as he moved his hands up the inside of my thighs, all I wanted was for him to touch me again. I wanted his hands there. The desire was more powerful than anything else.

  “AH!” I cried out as his fingertips brushed the thin strip of fabric he met when he reached my bottoms. “Please,” I panted, lifting my hips.

  Sanity was gone. It was just pleasure controlling me.

  “This …” he whispered as he slipped a finger under the fabric.

  I moaned, and my body trembled at the contact.

  “Soaking wet.” His deep voice felt almost as good as his touch.

  His finger slipped out of my bottoms.

  “No!” I pleaded.

  That beautiful mouth curled into a wicked grin as he pulled the bottoms down my legs with an aggressive tug that freed them from me quickly. My eyes were locked on his face. I was anxious for more. The finger he’d had inside me slipped between his lips, and he sucked on it, then grabbed my knees, pressing them back onto the bed. His head lowered between my open legs, and the moment his tongue licked my core, I cried out, fisting the covers in my hands and closing my eyes.

  The tip of his tongue circled my clit before slipping inside me. Just when I didn’t think I could take any more before exploding, he slid a finger inside of me as he continued to taste and suck. I wasn’t sure what I screamed as the crest of my climax washed over me. It felt as if the wave was never going to let me go, and I shook, unsure if I could take much more when I slowly came back to earth.

  I couldn’t open my eyes. The reality of all that had just happened was sinking in. The bed moved underneath me, and I was afraid if I looked, I’d see Blaise leaving me. I wasn’t sure I could watch that. Not when I was this vulnerable.

  I pulled my legs up against my chest in an attempt to protect myself from the rejection I knew was about to come. Except this time, it had been more than a kiss. I’d been intimate with him.

  “No,” Blaise said as he grabbed my arm and pulled it away from my knees.

  Opening my eyes, I looked up to see him standing over me.

  “Get dressed,” he said and inhaled sharply. “Quickly, or I’m going to fuck you right here.”

  My eyes flared at the words, and my sated body suddenly stirred awake again.

  “Don’t,” he said, clenching his teeth tightly. “Get up and get on some goddamn clothes.” He turned and stalked toward the window with his back to me.

  I sat up and stared at his rigid back. He didn’t look happy about what had happened. In fact, he looked furious.

  “Just go,” I said, wanting to lie back down, curl up, and cry.

  “Not without you. Now, get dressed,” he said with his back still to me.

  I stood up and walked to the closet, as if obeying his commands were normal. I would stand my ground once I had my body covered. I quickly dressed in the closest sundress to me, and I slipped on panties, then walked back into my room.

  He was still at the window, but he turned to look at me, and his eyes swept over my dress. Then, he glared at me. “Do you not have something that covers you up more than that?” he asked, clearly angry.

  I had needed that. It was the face slap that I’d needed to get out of the haze he’d put me in. “Just leave! Why are you still here? Why did you …” I stopped, unable to finish that question.

  He shook his head slowly. “I won’t be leaving without you. Not sure I can do that again,” he replied. “I don’t want to be here, but I can’t fucking stop it. And, baby, now that I’ve had you on my mouth, it’s about to get much worse. That sweet pussy just became mine.”

  Had he really just said that?

  I stared at him with a mixture of fury, confusion, and desire.

  What was happening? Why was he doing this to me? Where had my brain gone?

  “I can’t stay in here with you any longer. Wear the damn dress with no bra. You’d better hope no one looks because I’m not completely in control right now,” he said, reaching for my arm and starting for the door.

  Fear gave me the strength to jerk back from him. “I’m not leaving with you!” My voice cracked slightly, and I hoped he didn’t notice.

  He pushed me against the wall as his eyes held mine. The fury inside those green depths was mixed with need. It was as exciting as it was terrifying, and I realized that defined Blaise. He was equally both of those things.

  “Madeline.” He said my name and took a deep breath. “This is a real fucking thin line you’re walking. You’re gonna leave with me. You’re gonna stop fighting me. There were other paths for you. Better fucking choices. But if another man ever touches you now, I’ll have to kill him.”

  When his mouth covered mine, I forgot all my questions about what he meant by that and the concern that when he had threatened to kill someone, it had sounded like he actually meant it.

  I was clinging to him, helpless to argue, unable to make good choices, and desperate to have more of him when he broke the kiss and grabbed my hand, then started for the door again.

  I went.

  I walked with him down the hallway, the stairs, and out the front door.

  When he opened the door to his truck and lifted me up to put me inside, I didn’t fight him. We were driving down the dark road as the scent of leather and mint surrounded me.