His Unexpected Lover Page 0,18

plants that looked pretty rough except for the deep red tomatoes, the dangling cucumbers that seemed to be greener than normal. In fact, all the vegetables in his garden looked to be much more vibrant and colorful than what she normally saw in the grocery store.

She stared, still not believing that he actually did all this but she could easily tell that this was not a professional garden. It wasn’t messy so much as just…well used.

“Okay, I’m convinced,” she laughed.

“So next time I tell you something, you’re going to believe it, right?”

Kiera looked up and realized that he was closer than she’d thought. Her breath caught in her throat and she tried to take a step backwards, but the garden fence was behind her. “I think…” She felt trapped but didn’t really want to remove herself from the trap. For so long, she’d remembered the strength and power of Axel’s body, the way his arms would wrap around her or the way his hands would touch her, as if she were his woman and she’d never wanted any other man to touch her like that.

“I think you should come back up to the house and let me make love to you.” He stared at her, his ice blue eyes demanding that she follow through with his suggestion.

She thought about it long and hard. There was no question that that intense chemistry was still there between them. Her body wouldn’t mind experiencing the mind-blowing release that only Axel could give her.

But in the end, she simply couldn’t risk it. She’d been so hurt the last time and she’d trusted him completely six years ago only to have him turn around and break her heart because he hadn’t been willing to make any sacrifices for their relationship. He’d wanted her to do it all. In her mind, that only proved that she’d been more invested in their love than he had been. Or maybe not, because she hadn’t been willing to drop everything and follow him. Or maybe he hadn’t loved her enough to sacrifice. Maybe they had both been too young and stubborn.

Either way, she’d been too hurt and she couldn’t go through it again.

“I need to go home,” she said softly and looked away. She didn’t bother to wait for him but trudged through the yard back to his house. Inside his mudroom, she took off the boots and placed them carefully to the side while she slipped her own feet inside her shoes.

“I’ll call a cab,” she said.

Axel was furious at the suggestion. It was just like it had been that last time, both of them angry and hurt and all she wanted to do was run away. Not this time. “I’ll drive you,” he snapped at her.

Slow down, he told himself. He had to be practical about this. Kiera was here, he had to show her that they could work together. He had to show her that they could build upon their past and make this time work out.

Unfortunately, he didn’t want to be practical and he was having a damn hard time slowing down. He had been watching her walk through his garden, enjoying her being there but also knowing what was underneath that dress. His mind could vividly picture her body in that black lace and he wanted to strip off the clothes and show her exactly what they could be like together.

Instead, he grabbed his keys and headed out the door to his garage. He wouldn’t let her even turn towards the front door and slammed the passenger seat closed once she was seated inside.

When he was sitting in the driver’s seat, he took a deep breath and calmed down. “I’m sorry, Kiera. I know that was out of line. But I remember what it was like with you, how good we were be together.” He turned to look at her, his blue eyes intense and unrelenting. “We will be together again, Kiera. Count on it,” he said.

Without another word, he started up the car and backed out of his garage. It took barely twenty minutes to reach her apartment building and the only words spoken between the two of them were her directions. When she reached her building, she jumped out but just before she was about to slam the door and race inside, she bent down and stopped. “Thank you for your help last night. I appreciate the breakfast too. And the tour of your garden.”

With that, she closed the door and walked