Devlin Dynasty 2: Fall Fury (15 page)

“Yeah, and you’re getting pretty damn cranky about it, too,” Kaitlyn chimed in. “Living with you has been like two weeks with a woman with PMS
 
and
 
on a diet. Lord, you’ve been a bitch.”

“Have not.”

“Have too.”

Angelina rolled her eyes. “How old are you, girls? Really. Shannon, you might aswell face your destiny. You know it is inevitable.”

“I will do no such thing. I can’t believe the three of you are ganging up on me like this! I was merely unloading these boxes, and suddenly you have me married off to a man that, frankly, I can’t stand!”

“Methinks thou dost protest too much,” Kaitlyn said, a smug smile on her face.

“Don’t you go quoting Shakespeare to me. You should get busy finding your own

man instead of trying to match everyone else up, or you’ll end up alone.”

Kaitlyn lifted her chin and sniffed. “It’s not my time yet.”

“Well, make it your time. Mother, I love you. Kaitlyn, you’re a pain in the ass. Lissa, mind your own business. I’ve had enough of this.” She tossed a roll of paper onto the counter and whirled around, storming through the kitchen.

She skidded to an abrupt halt as she rounded the corner to find Max in thedoorway. Her eyes widened, then narrowed.

Oops.

“Great. Just fucking great. Get out of my way!” Pushing him aside, she went out

the back door, letting it slam behind her.

Max craned his head around the corner to find the three women staring at him. Hewalked in and leaned against the counter, trying for a look of chagrin. “Sorry,” heshrugged. “I eavesdropped.”

Angelina arched a brow and crossed her arms. “Didn’t your mother teach you it’simpolite to eavesdrop?”

“She tried. Obviously, I didn’t listen. But yeah, she’d smack me in the back of the

head if she’d caught me doing it.”

Angelina’s stern look turned into a smile, then a giggle. “I like your motheralready.”

“She’d like you, too. You’re very much alike in a lot of ways.”

“You miss your family,” Kaitlyn said, reaching across the counter for Max’s

hand.

“Yeah, I really do.”

“Then why move here?”

“Because it’s his destiny to be here,” Angelina said.

“I know that feeling,” Lissa chimed in.

“I don’t know about destiny, I just know it’s something I have to do. Besides, I’m plenty old enough to live away from home and survive.” He winked at Kaitlyn, who smiled brightly.

“Good. I’d hate to worry about you getting all homesick on us.” Pushing away from the counter, Kaitlyn said, “I think I’ll go see what everyone else is up to.”

“I’ll go with you,” Lissa said.

He watched them leave, then turned his attention to Angelina. “Let me put thatstuff away. You have all done enough today.”

“Just about finished here anyway, and it was no trouble. I enjoyed it. We all did.

You’re like a member of our family.”

“I’m hoping I will be some day.” There, he’d put it out there. Might as well see

how Angelina reacted.

She paused and leaned against the sink, her arms crossed. “Are you in love withmy daughter?”

Love? What did love have to do with any of this? This was about primal urges,about the need to choose a mate. Wolves didn’t love. He didn’t love. “I want her.”

She arched a brow. “Well, at least you’re honest about your feelings. But wantingsomeone and loving them enough to spend the rest of your life with them are twodifferent things, Max. I know Shannon. She won’t settle for less than your heart.”

He reached inside the box nearest him and unwrapped some glasses, placing themin the cabinet. This conversation had suddenly grown uncomfortable. Lying to Angelina about his feelings for Shannon wouldn’t have been appropriate, though,even if it would have been more convenient to just say he loved her.

“Right now, your daughter can’t stand the sight of me. So I’m pretty sure she

doesn’t love me, either.”

“Maybe. Maybe not. But if you’re not open to the possibility of love, it might pass you by. Are you willing to gamble on losing Shannon because you can’t feel enough for her?”

“Angelina, I feel a lot for her. I just don’t know yet if it’s love.”

She took the glassware from his hands and set it on the counter, then grasped hisfingers in hers. “Fair enough. I feel what’s in your heart. I’m not a mind reader,and neither are my children. Shannon can read your emotions unless you’re verygood at masking them. Sending her mixed signals will only make her back awayfrom you. If you want her, you need to let her know in no uncertain terms howmuch.”

He started to speak, intending to tell her that he wanted Shannon more than he’dever wanted another woman, but she stopped him. “I don’t mean just physically,although that’s important, too. But you’ll have to give up your heart to win her, Max. You’ll have to do something monumental, something that will prove to herthat she’s the only woman for you. Otherwise, you don’t stand a chance.”

Moving away, he scrubbed his hand over the back of his neck and shook his head.

“I won’t tell her something I don’t feel.”

“Good. Because that girl has the best bullshit meter I’ve ever seen. She only

wants your honesty. If you can give her that, it’s a good enough start.”

“I’ll do that.”

“Now, I think it’s time I round up my family and leave you and Shannon alone.” She turned and headed for the hallway, but then stopped and looked at him. “Max, remember what I said. I know you’re very powerful. So am I. Don’t hurt her.”

He knew she’d back up what she said. “You have my word.”

After she left, he stayed in the kitchen as the parade of Storms came by andwished him well. Shannon stayed outside, no doubt completely unaware that herfamily had abandoned her, leaving her alone with him.

He glanced out the back door and saw her at the water’s edge, sitting on the dockand wiggling her feet in the water. The orange sun had begun to dip toward thetrees, bathing her in its glow. Long shadows signaling the coming fall seasondrifted toward her from the overhanging trees.

Soon it would be dark. He looked up at the sky, not yet seeing the silvery orb, butinstinctively knowing what kind of night it would be. He felt it surging withinhim, the call to turn, to run free, to find others like himself.

Or to make one like him.

It was time to set thing straight between him and Shannon. Time to lay it on theline and tell her his thoughts and feelings. One way or another, their futureswould be decided tonight.

Tonight was the full moon.

Determination firmly in place, he headed to the refrigerator, thankful he’d hadthat appliance delivered early. Grabbing a bottle of wine and a couple glasses, hefilled a basket with cheese and slices of French bread.

He opened the back door and stepped out on the porch, a mix of certainty anduncertainty racing through his mind and heart.

Did he love her? Was he even capable of it? He was a cold, calculating,unemotional bastard in business. Arrogant, self-assured and damned successful.

With women, though, he’d never had to prove himself. They flocked to him likemoths to the only light for miles. Not once had he given his heart. It had neverbeen necessary.

Maybe it would be, this time. Shannon infuriated him. She was bossy, as arrogantin her business demeanor as he, and as alpha a female as he’d ever met.

She was his match in more ways than just sexually.

Sucking in a deep breath of courage, he pushed the screen door open and went toher.

Chapter Nine

Clouds gathered overhead and the wind shifted, coming in off the water. Shannonfelt the change in the weather deep inside her, as she always did when her seasoncame about.

Sometimes she wondered if the elements reflected her moods. Other than the onesshe conjured up, of course. But sometimes the overall weather patterns in the fallseemed to come from within her. She’d asked her mother about that once, but hadonly been given a vague “it depends” as an answer.

She splashed water onto her legs, cooling her sun-heated skin, content to just sithere and brood.

Something would happen soon. Something major. If she had a better handle onher emotions, she’d be able to get a clearer picture of what was on the way, butshe was too mixed up right now to discern what it was that unsettled her—theweather or her feelings about Max.

Try as she might, she couldn’t put that needed distance between them. Andbecause she’d been so damn stubborn, all it did was cause friction between them. Maybe it was time that she just played out this game with him and see where itled.

Down the road to disaster, no doubt. She’d walked that road before with a manshe’d been highly attracted to, and what she’d felt for him was nowhere near thejumbled sensations that electrified her whenever she was around Max. Given thateven being near him threw her emotions in a state of chaos, giving in to herfeelings and attraction for him couldn’t lead anywhere good.

And yet, she couldn’t seem to separate from him. God knows she’d tried like hellthe past couple weeks, to no avail. Even when he wasn’t physically present, shefelt him. His earthy scent clung to her clothes and on her pillow when she laiddown at night. Ridiculous, since he’d never been in her room. They had someweird psychic bond that defied explanation.

Hell, considering her own inherent magic, who was she to deny that mysticalforces surrounded them? Look at what she was capable of, and she thoughtherself an ordinary person.

Maybe Max possessed some type of powers, and she was drawn to that part ofhim.

“Thinking?”

She shrieked at the unexpected sound of Max’s voice. She hadn’t even heard himcome down the dock. Laying her palm against her breast to calm her speedingheart, she said, “You scared the shit out of me.”

He squatted down next to her. “Sorry. You were deep in thought and obviouslydidn’t hear me. What are you doing?”

“Thinking.”

“About?”

“Stuff.”
 
Like you. And me. And us. And this infernal battle waging war in my

brain right now
.

“Want to talk about it?”

“Not really.”

He shifted and sat, resting on his left arm. Shannon took in the sight of him,admiring the way his jeans fit snug against his powerful thighs, the way his T-shirt hugged his chest. Damn he had broad shoulders, too. If she’d bothered topay attention she’d have noticed that, but she was so busy picking the right wordsof denial out of her mind that she hadn’t focused on the gorgeous man who satnext to her now.

“I brought us a snack.” He reached behind him and pulled out a basket containing a bottle of white wine and two glasses, a wedge of cheese and some bread. “Thought we’d have a little picnic and talk. If that’s all right.”

She frowned and looked toward the house. “Where’s my family?”

“They left.”

She sniffed, more than a little bit irritated at the oh-so-obvious setup. “Still doinga bit of matchmaking, aren’t they?”

“Apparently.” He smiled. She’d never noticed his dimples before on both his cheeks, so close to his curving mouth. A sudden desire to press her lips to one of those indentation made her lean back a bit, still unsure of where she wanted to go with all this.

Max poured the wine and handed her a glass. He sliced a thin wedge of cheeseand lifted his fingers to her mouth.

She hesitated, the act seemingly so familiar. Still unsure how intimate she wantedto get with Max, she reached for the cheese, intending to feed herself.

But Max snatched it out of her reach. “Uh uh. Let me.”

Warily, she opened her mouth and he slid the cheese inside, his fingers lingeringas she closed her lips over the slice of brie. She shuddered at the taste of finecheese and the equally exotic flavor of Max’s finger.

He popped a slice into his own mouth and washed it down with a swallow ofwine. She watched the movement of his throat as he swallowed, then took a longdrink of her wine to escape the sudden dryness in her mouth.

When he lifted a piece of bread toward her mouth, she shook her head. “I can feedmyself, Max.”

The gold and green in his eyes danced like the flickering rays of sun filteringthrough the trees. “I know you can. This way is more fun.”

She didn’t disagree with that, and allowed him to continue to feed her. A simpleact, and yet so incredibly erotic that she wanted to try it out herself. She reachedfor a small wedge of cheese on the plate and lifted it to his lips.

One corner of his mouth curled in a wry grin, and he opened, letting her slide thecheese onto his waiting tongue. Before she could snatch her fingers out, hecaptured her wrist and held it in place, then closed his lips around her fingers,sucking them into the moist heat of his mouth.

Desire shot between her legs. Her panties dampened and the very air around themseemed to still and warm. When he slowly pulled her fingers from between hislips, she knew what it must feel like for a man to sink into heat like that.