“The police who arrived never figured it out. He died from a single bullet wound to the abdomen, bleeding to death before the paramedics arrived.” The words caught in my throat. “But he managed to save the horse. Isn’t that a crock of shit?”
I could tell he was studying me, heard the slight grumble in his breathing.
“That’s why all of this is so important to you.” He placed his glass of wine on the hearth, his upper lip curling.
“I honestly hadn’t realized that until now, but yes. The way I look at it is that my father died a hero. Maybe I simply wanted to follow in his footsteps.”
“Admirable and understandable, but this is an entirely different situation,” he suggested.
“Is it? Is it really? I don’t know what’s going on and in truth, I’m not certain I want to know, but I refuse to allow anyone to hurt an animal. Not on my watch. If you can’t understand that then you don’t get me at all.”
He yanked me closer, his actions forcing Rattler to move. “I get you, lady. I get you more than you have any idea about. But I want to know more. I crave to learn every single thing about you, no matter how much you fight me.”
When he brushed his fingers across my cheek, a series of shivers skated down my spine. Another light switch had flipped inside him, desire blocking his ability to grieve, yet I couldn’t ignore him or my own intense feelings. “Just like you said, we’re not good for each other, Mustang. There are too many demons.”
“Maybe so, but I refuse to allow those demons to interfere. At least not right now.” There was something inside of him that continued to push hard against his crusty exterior, attempting to break free. As he captured my mouth, his fingers digging into my skin, I pressed my hand against his chest, once again marveling in his teeming muscles as they rippled against my fingers.
The kiss became more than just a magnetic draw to the man. It became the kind of desperate need that I’d always hoped I’d feel, but even my darkest fantasies hadn’t been able to imagine. My fingers tingled, my heart racing as he used his mouth to open mine, driving his tongue inside. While the man would never be gentle, his calm demeanor and the quiet way that he held me in place was so intimate, pushing me even further into a yearning that would never be requited.
Even the dogs seemed to sense this was entirely different, both giving us space as he rolled his hand over my shoulder, dragging me closer to him. I was breathless, moaning into the kiss as he finally dominated my tongue, a subtle yet effective reminder that he was entirely in control.
Mustang growled, his hand fisting my hair, his actions more aggressive. I was no longer able to focus, my thoughts running wild about possibilities for the future.
But he had other things in mind.
The second he broke the connection, my body swayed forward, a single whimper escaping my lips.
“You should go to bed. We’ll figure this out in the morning.”
He was dismissing me, releasing his strong hold on my hair even as his fingers continued to knead my arm.
“Mustang.” The single word was all I could say, another wave of uncertainty of how to deal with his anger and guilt setting into my system.
“It’s alright.” He turned his gaze toward the fire once again, as if the kiss meant nothing.
A part of me felt shattered, unable to handle his dichotomy of behavior. I loathed the shift in his attitude, the way he could simply shut down his feelings. How dare he do this to me? To us? Only then I realized there was no ‘us,’ just my yearning for what we’d shared to be something else.
After staring at him for a full ten seconds, I got to my feet, fighting the ache in my legs as I moved away. Damn it! I refused to accept we couldn’t get past this. I bit my lower lip before taking definitive steps in his direction, holding out my hand. “No. You’re coming to bed with me and I won’t take no for an answer.”
“I’m not risking hurting you. You know what I’m capable of.”
I shoved my hand in his direction again. “You’re not going to hurt me. Why don’t you try and trust me for once? If you can’t do that, then…” I