SeduceMe(43)

Her eyes swept over the purple marks again and she frowned. She rinsed off and got out of the shower. She swiped a hand over the steam on the mirror above the vanity and looked at her naked body from all angles, studying the faint bruises where Drake had touched her.

That gnawing sensation returned full force.

Oh, no. She groaned.

He’d done it again. He’d gone all Twilight on her. In the movie, the vampire Edward had seen the bruises on the human Bella’s body when he’d made love to her and he’d vowed never to touch her again.

Had Drake done the exact same thing?

When she’d come out of his bathroom, he’d been hugely remorseful for the way he’d responded to her. He’d looked to be in more agony than before he’d made love to her, when Jane had said he’d lived with the torment of wanting her for so long.

He’d wanted to explain, to apologize. But she’d had none of it as that familiar dread and despair had consumed her when she’d jumped straight to the conclusion that he didn’t find her appealing upon close inspection.

That sparked another thought. One she absolutely had to face.

She’d been so quick to push him away. Why?

Sinking onto the plush cushion of the vanity bench, she stared at her hands resting in her lap. She thought about Jane, who’d purposely denied herself physical intimacy with a human because she feared she’d hurt him. A valid reason.

What was Shana’s excuse?

Why had she given up so easily last night? Especially when Drake and Jane had done nothing but put her at ease when it came to her image issues. They’d admired and enjoyed her body last night. They’d both been aroused by her. They’d both wanted her. And they’d made her feel wanted too. Desired. Cherished. She hadn’t imagined it and it hadn’t been false appreciation of her assets. They’d really and truly found her attractive.

They hadn’t cared about her fame and fortune. They’d wanted her for her, not her name or her notoriety. So again…why’d she give in to her insecurities so easily?

She’d let all those past, self-perceived notions of herself prickle her pride at the very first misstep by Drake. And it wasn’t even his fault he’d hurt her feelings. He hadn’t done it on purpose. She was certain of it. No one could be so territorial one moment and so turned off the next. No way.

On top of that, it just didn’t seem like him to do anything so insensitive. He was anything but. He cared deeply for Jane and he’d been a rock for Shana all night as she’d spoken of things she’d never admitted to anyone else. As she’d done things she’d never done with anyone else.

She felt wholeheartedly she’d been wrong about his reaction to her. And she could kick herself for being so quick to believe the worst, not even allowing an explanation from Drake.

It had to end. A beautiful man with a sexy smile and kind heart had wanted her last night. Only a fool would let her personal fears stand in the way of something that had the potential to be so much more.

She was so convinced Drake had been repulsed by the bruises, not her, that she quickly finished her shower, dressed and caught a cab to Body Scenes. It was Saturday night, so the club was open. She asked to see Mr. Toliver at the door and, after she gave him a desperate plea to see Drake, he took her backstage. The guard at the elevators had to clear her before he’d let her up to the office and she anxiously tapped her toe while she waited.

Finally, the doors slid open and she stepped inside, her stomach in knots, her pulse pounding in her ears.

When the car reached the second floor, she rushed down the long corridor and into Drake’s office, only to pull up short, her stomach dropping to her knees.

His back was to her, though she knew he expected her. He stood across the massive room, packing books into a box. There were several full and empty boxes stacked around the large table where he worked and it alarmed her.

“What are you doing?” she asked as she remained in the doorway, her feet rooted where they were as the fear she was too late to fix this seeped through her veins.

“Packing.”

She sighed impatiently. “I can see that. What I meant was, why are you packing?”

Still he didn’t look at her. “I’ve got a flight to London in a few hours.”

She gasped. He was leaving? Putting an entire ocean between them?

Had she been wrong earlier? Had she come to a completely unrealistic conclusion about what had happened between them last night?

No.

The answer resonated deep within her. She knew she wasn’t wrong, and for the first time in her life, she wasn’t going to doubt or second-guess herself. She was going to stand up for herself. She was going to go after what she wanted and she was going to convince Drake he wanted her too—enough to make him stay.