Tales of the Forbidden (3 page)

* * * *

Devon watched her enter the pool party. His eyes never left her. He saw the way she sized up the exits, every move she made, every cautious action, and every attempt—most of them successful— at avoiding the other men. He sat in the far corner at a table shaded by an umbrella. He slowly sipped his drink, mostly holding it up to his lips to hide the smile when one man finally found the nerve to approach her. When the poor bastard tried to kiss her, Kera kicked him in the nuts, bringing him down. Devon found this poor man’s misfortune humorous; however, a little voice in his head told him he was probably going to end up with a knee between his legs from her as well. This confrontation would only occur if his plan went as he wanted it to.

She had fire in her, a flame in which he wanted to be engulfed.

For years he waited for a women like her—passionate, fiery, a fighter—and now that he found her he sure as hell didn’t want to lose her to another. Her skimpy bathing suit, which clearly displayed her body for everyone’s pleasure, caused anticipation to race through him. Devon knew, without a doubt, that once he tested what his gut was telling him, his bachelor status would be over; and he didn’t mind it one bit.

She had curves in all the places he loved. Furthermore, her hips were nice and round and her torso just right. Kera had meat on her bones and he was becoming very hungry to taste it all.

His hands itched to cup and feel the weight of her breasts.

His mouth watered at the thought of her nipples being ripe for him to suck on. Her hair was three or four inches past her shoulders and a silky, deep brown. Kera’s shoulders, which appeared soft as satin, seemed to beckon him to caress and kiss her smooth skin.

Her sparkling green eyes and long, full lashes had Devon mesmerized. Her delicate cheek bones glowed a soft, subtle pink, as if they were just pinched. Kera’s lips were not overly full, 21

but plump nonetheless. The preparations of the compound showed.

Devon bid his time until she not only moved closer to him but backed herself up away from the others. In less than fifteen minutes most of the men had matched themselves up. Some were enjoying the time at the pool, kissing and touching their new brides. A few were eating and drinking, but over half already headed back inside to where they would spend the rest of the day and night in one of the many private, luxurious rooms.

Taking one last drink, along with a deep breath, Devon stood up. It was time for him to confront her. This would not be easy.

He took a few steps in her direction. That was all that was needed before she turned her full attention toward him.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Kera demanded defensively as she backed away from him.
Yep, she’s very
cautious. And so she should be.

Devon didn’t answer her. Instead he kept walking toward her, watching her retreat until her back touched the wooden fence. Quickly, he closed the distance between them, leaning forward until he felt her body heat and heard the soft intake of air as she gasped.

He towered over her, but the disparity of their heights didn’t appear to intimidate his bride to be. Kera’s head came even with his shoulders.

“I’m going to kiss you,” he told her, keeping his voice low, soothing, sensual.

He brought his lips down very close to hers, expecting to kiss her, but it seemed she had other plans. Kera ducked under his arm and tried to get away. Devon was faster.

Before she could move around him, he grabbed her by the arm. Kera tried to jerk away, but he held her firmly, showing her that he possessed the power right now. Kera glared at him, which prompted him to raise a mocking eyebrow and give her a humorous grin.

“Can’t leave now,” he said with a smile. “You’ll miss the party.”

“Watch me.” She tried again to jerk her arm away, but he didn’t release her. “Let go,” she snapped.

“Now, Kera.” He shook his head and made a tsking sound.

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“Why would I want to do that?”

“H-how did…”

He grinned at her as he caressed her shoulder with his free hand. “Know your name? I made it my business to know all I needed to about you. Your strength intrigues me, as does your fire.”

With a sharp tug, Devon had Kera back in his arms. He wrapped one arm around her waist, holding her at the small of her back, and the other he fisted in her hair. Still, she fought him by twisting and pushing at his chest. She also tossed her head back and forth in order to keep him from kissing her.

Devon had to admire her determination, even when it tested his patience. With a shake, he stilled her fighting and brought his lips down for their first kiss.

He plunged his tongue between her teeth to explore the depths of her mouth. He felt her weaken against him when the full impact of the kiss hit her, which permitted Devon to bring her closer. He moaned at the pleasure of her body touching his.

Even her hand coming up to his throat, closing around it, he enjoyed.

Then it hit.

The sweetness of this
kiss had him captivated.

Devon had never tasted anything as sweet as this kiss right now. It was a mixture of strawberries, watermelon, and mangos all combined, yet better. When he broke the kiss with great regret, he didn’t let her go. He held her just as tight and looked down into her eyes. Her green eyes sparkled, her cheeks were flushed with arousal, and her mouth remained slightly open, eyes telling him she felt as shocked as he did.

“I guess now would be a good time to tell you my name.”

Lightly, he touched his lips to hers again. “After all, I know your name. It’s Devon… Nofff!” Devon started to say his last name but ended up on the ground holding his crotch.
Damn, that knee of
hers struck again.

Kera took a few steps back with a hand over her mouth and eyes even wider, looking down at him in shock.

She’d kneed him in the groin. He shouldn’t have been surprised, since he’d seen her do it to a couple of others and figured she might try it on him. Hell, to begin with, he’d half 23

expected it, but not after the kiss they just shared.

It took several minutes for him to catch his breath and for the pain to subside. Slowly, he stood. When he gave her a quick glance, she took a side step.

Unfortunately, as luck would have it, everyone who was still outside saw what happened. The talking stopped. Everyone seemed to pause and take notice of the confrontation.

“I think you’re the first to ever do that,” Devon told her, aware his irritation and pain could be heard in his voice. Damn it, if a knee to his dick didn’t hurt.

“Well, I’m sure it won’t be the last time someone kicks you in the balls,” Kera responded nervously as she took another wary step back.

“Looks like Noved can’t handle her,” someone yelled with a laugh.

Devon narrowed his eyes on Kera while he worked at straightening up. He didn’t want to get angry with her. Anger wouldn’t solve or help a damn thing right now, but fuck if it wasn’t difficult. The discomfort between his legs slowly started to go away.

Kera stopped backing up and stood her ground with her arms crossed over her chest and that chin of hers rising in defiance. He rubbed himself again, mostly just to shock her. He had to admit though she certainly had a set of balls, for a woman that is, if she wasn’t afraid to stand up to him.

“Lucky for you,” he remarked. “You only caught the side of me.”

“Really? Well, I’ll remember to kick you in the right spot next time,” she retorted.

Devon gave her a tight smile. “Oh, my sweet, there won’t be a next time.”

Kera rolled her eyes. She was trying to put on a good show like she wasn’t afraid of him, or attracted to him, but Devon saw differently. “Oh, really? This one I’ll let you get away with, since we’re just getting to know each other. But one more and I’ll be forced to have to spank you.”

“Oh, please!” She snorted. “You don’t scare me.”

“I’m not wanting to scare you. Only stating a fact, darling.”

Devon took a deep breath, rubbing himself one more time. He 24

glanced behind Kera, giving a slight shake of his head to the guards who came back in. They were ready to step in if he gave the word. He didn’t.

“Well I don’t think I can simply let the knee thing go unpunished. So—” Devon quickly took the few steps needed to reach Kera. He bent over, picked her up, and slung her over his shoulder all in one smooth action. She let out a scream and started kicking and hitting him. Devon delivered a hard swat to her ass and headed to the pool. “Your temper, my sweet, needs a bit of cooling down right now.” He stopped at the side and tossed her into the pool and, standing at the side, waited for her to come up.

When Kera’s head cleared the water’s surface, she swam to the opposite side of the pool to get out. She grabbed a towel, wrapped herself in it, and walked to the door. Devon watched her the whole time, chuckling softly at how she held all that passionate anger inside. He let her get as far as the door before he jogged up behind her. He boxed her in between the door and his body. He wrapped one hand around her wrist to stop her hand from reaching the handle and the other he slid around her waist.

“We can’t leave until I give the signal I’m ready,” he whispered in her ear. “And I’m not ready just yet.”

Devon jerked her away from the door. He strolled calmly back to his table, dragging her along, trying to twist and yank her arm free the whole way. He sat down in the chair and hauled her onto his lap.

“Now that you’ve cooled off, let’s talk.” He grunted as he fought to restrain her. He needed to talk with her or they couldn’t reach a compromise and get her out of here.

She tried twice to get off his lap, but he held onto her with ease. He placed one arm over her legs to prevent her from kicking, as much as he was able, and the other around her waist.

“I don’t want to talk to you. I want to get the hell out of here!”

she stated.

Devon held her and let her fight as much as she could with the hold he had on her, recognizing her need to be in control. He even had to block her a few times because she tried to slap him.

She was a wildcat, a wildcat with passion and desire to match 25

his own. He knew that when the time came he would adore her and give her anything she wanted.

* * * *

Kera still tried to get off his lap, to put some distance between them in order to clear her head. When he once more leaned in for a kiss, she attempted to bite him for the sole reason that each time he kissed her he stole her breath, made her senseless. And being senseless was something she couldn’t afford at the moment, not if she wanted to get away from him and the compound. Devon took her by the chin and kissed her hard, deep, and once more she tasted the sweetness of the elixir. His hand wrapped around her neck, thumb rubbing a spot that had her squirming uncomfortably on his lap as he thrust his tongue in and out, tasting her. Once more he’d stolen her breath away.

When he let up on the kiss she could still feel the stamp of his possession, grudgingly admitting he tempted her into giving in.

“Damn, you taste good,” he breathed heavily against her lips. “You make me so damn hungry I can’t think straight.” He kissed her again, teasing her lips with the tip of his tongue. “God I want to kiss each and every inch of your body.”

It took a few precious moments for her to clear her mind, open her eyes. “Not in your wildest dreams,” she huffed, irritated, trying to get her breathing under control. Why had she stopped resisting his kisses? This was crazy!

“Oh baby, soon you’ll get to see just what my dreams are all about.”

Devon held her in place and kissed her again. He deepened it while lightly tracing from her neck down to the top of her breast with the back of his hand. The contact sent shivers racing down her spine, nipples turning into hard sensitive peeks. He held her still with such ease, but so gently she didn’t even fight when he continued to graze her breast with the back of his free hand. He brushed the top of one breast and then cupped it before travelling down her stomach and then up a thigh. When he got to the hem on the bottoms of her bathing suit, she broke the kiss and the spell. Getting herself back under some kind of control she sat up straighter, moving away from where she’d somehow leaned against him.

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“Don’t,” she said in a soft yet breathless voice.

Irritated with her surrender, she pushed off his lap. He let her go but took hold of her wrist. After the kiss and the light touching Kera could clearly see that Devon was very aroused; his erection pressed against his shorts, eyes sparkling.

Something in her head screamed that it was time for them to be alone completely. That he was going to take them to one of those rooms and Lord only knew do what he’d do to her.

Devon stood up and jerked Kera to him. She tried to twist her wrist free, fear of the unknown and what was to come giving her the strength and motivation to fight once more. He dragged her along with him as he went over to the guards who waited for them at the doors.

“Take her to my room,” Devon said to them.

Kera grabbed onto the door, and glared at Devon. “You’re a son of a bitch if you think you can have me!”

“Then, my sweet—” He smiled back with that sexy grin she both hated and was starting to like. “I’m a son of a bitch because I
am
going to have you.” Licking his bottom lip, he looked her up and down. “Each and every sweet inch of you.”

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