Page 4 of Prince of Tides
The mirror shimmered and beckoned me forth like a sudden abyss. I didn’t even have time to shout before I was suckedintothe mirror.
And just like that, I was standing on a second-floor balcony when someone pushed open the doors to confront me.
Chapter Three
Laurie
Ipushed open the door and was greeted by the sight of a confused giant of a man with long, pale-white hair fluttering in the cool breeze.
“Can I help you?” I asked, wondering why he was standing in front of my balcony doors. The second-story balcony ringed the entire rear of the house, stretching from one end to the other. Each room had its own little offshoot from the main pathway, precisely where the man stood.
“Perhaps,” he said, looking directly at me, providing the first glimpse of a pair of turquoise eyes the likes of which I’d never seen before.
“O-okay,” I stammered, thrown off balance by the physical impact of locking gazes with the stranger.
It was doing strange things to my body, provoking reactions that no simple gaze should be allowed to do. I inhaled deeply as blood rushed through my body, courtesy of a rapidly accelerated heartbeat. It’d been calm, but now it was racing at top speed, like a drag car off the starting line.
There was more to it than that. A thrill ran down my spine from how well his plain black button-up shirt was contoured to his body. The broadness of his shoulders was well evident, and he definitely did not skip leg day.
Stop it. You’re engaged.
But my body wasn’t listening. Things were becoming enflamed that shouldn’t, and my bra suddenly felt tighter as my nipples hardened. I was breathing harder, too, almost sniffing the air, desperate for the scent of the strange man outside my room.
He was staring at me expectantly, the sharp lines of his face drawn tight as he regarded me with an odd curiosity. Had he not been expecting anyone in the room?
“You must be one of father’s new grounds crew,” I found myself saying. “I don’t recognize you.”
Frown lines deepened on his forehead, then relaxed as an easy grin spread across his face. “Yes, I am.”
“I’m Laurie,” I said, extending a hand. “Nice to meet you.”
“Laurie,” he murmured, repeating my name. “A pleasure to meet you. I’m Rip.”
To my surprise, instead of shaking my hand, he swept it up into his meaty paw and brought it to his mouth, brushing his lips against the back of it. “A pleasure,” he repeated, his eyes looking up at me through surprisingly thick lashes.
I tried to calm my thudding heart as the rest of my body clamored formoretouches from him. It wanted his lips to explore the rest of me. Preferably the parts still covered in clothing.
“Who do you do here, Rip?” I asked, then inhaled sharply, knowing my normally pale cheeks had to be as red as tomatoes. “What do you do here?”
“Whatever is required of me,” he said. “A bit of this, a bit of that. Your father sent me up here to ensure everything was perfectly cleaned for your arrival. I must admit, I was later arriving than expected. I should have been gone by the time you got here,” he said with the casual confidence of someone who knew they weren’t in trouble.
“That sounds like him,” I said wryly. “Always trying to control everything.”
Rip shrugged. A quiet type? I cursed, knowing I had a soft spot for those. There was a depth to them, and of Rip, I knew he fit that type. There was so much unsaid. I could only pick up parts of it in his eyes. Not all of it was good, either. Rip had seen things, bad things. I didn’t know how I could tell, but I could.
We stood in silence, me looking up at him through my lashes, knowing I was inadvertently pulling off a slightly sultry attitude. It was wrong. I shouldn’t be acting like that around a stranger.
And a stranger shouldn’t be setting fire to my pussy just by staring me down. I don’t care how unique and mesmerizing those turquoise eyes of his are. They don’t own me. He doesn’t own me. I’m free to make my own choices, and I choose not to be seduced by his looks!
“I hope it’s to your satisfaction,Laurie.”
My knees quivered and heat coiled between my legs, burning more intensely, like a rattlesnake sounding its warning, ready to strike if anyone came closer. I hoped he couldn’t tell just how strongly he was affecting me because if he could, and Rip wasn’t a good type, I would be in serious trouble. Just the way he said my name had me wanting to do all sorts of things to him—right there on the balcony.
“I-it’s great,” I said, eventually stuttering out the reply, hating how I sounded so awkward. My voice was throaty, distracted, and, to my mind, at least, full of sex.
I struggled to take another breath of cool air without reacting, but the inhalation caused my chest to rise and my nipples, stiff and taut, to rub against the inside of my bra, which only made the matter worse as I realized something else.
I wanted Rip to touch them. To touch me. No, I didn’t want it. I waseagerfor it. Ineededit. Needed him.
