Breaking Bad by Karin Tabke Page A

times had she told herself that over the years? It took seeing Jack again, and his casual dismissal of her, for her to finally believe it. The last kick dropped her to her emotional knees. Then to sit there beside him, voyeurs experiencing Spoltori’s sadistic world. Holy Jesus. As twisted as it had started out, it had turned highly erotic when Mario tied the woman up.
    “Idiot!” she screamed as she roundhouse kicked the bag. It swung away from her. Before it swung back to her, she turned and kicked it again. How could her body be on fire for a man who was a careless Lothario? “I. Hate. You. Jack. Thornton!”
    Abruptly the garage door she had open for ventilation began to close behind her.
    “What the—” She turned to the control panel to see her nemesis standing angrily glaring at her as the door closed behind him.
    “Get out of my house,” she snarled.
    He shook his head and stepped farther into the garage. It was finished, the floor checkered-flag black and white, with high-end gym equipment surrounding half of the mats with a rack of free weights, bench, and several bars in the mirrored corner closest to her. A sofa she kept meaning to have picked up was pushed to the edge of her workout mat behind her.
    Jack’s predatory gaze held her. A dark shiver swept through her. She’d seen that look before.
    “Get out,” she said again, though this time the words barely made it out of her dry throat.
    Jack yanked his jacket off, loosened his tie and slid his shoulder holster off. He tossed them onto the sofa, then loosened his tie some more.
    “Why are you here?”
    “To get the fucking out of the way.”
    Her body jerked. “Whaaat?” He was crazy!
    He continued his approach. “If we’re going to work together, we’re going to scratch this itch until it doesn’t itch anymore.”
    “You’re crazy.”
    She swallowed hard when his hot gaze swept the length of her. He stopped just an arm’s length from her. “And you didn’t say no.”
    “I don’t have to say no. You won’t touch me.”
    He grabbed her by the waist, pulling her hard against his chest. “You have a short memory, then.”
    His lips lowered to hers. “When it comes to you, I take what I want and you give it to me. Gladly.” He grabbed her braid and pulled her head so far back her breasts stabbed his chest. Once a dominant always a dominant. Just as it had all those years ago, her body submitted to him. “You’ve needed this, baby. Haven’t you?”
    This time her brain had more control. “I’m not a naive girl fresh out of college.”
    “No, you’re a smart-ass grown woman whose pride fucks everything up.” His eyes glittered as he pressed his heated lips to her neck. They both felt the jump of her pulse against his lips. His body inflated with the taste of her. He licked her neck. “I’ve missed the taste of you, Stevie.” He pulled her braid back more. “Remember how sweaty we got? Just like this on the mats? You would come to me after hours pretending to want more instruction. Silently begging me to put my hands on you.” He nipped her bottom lip. “You liked the way I broke through your resistance each time. Taking what you wanted to give but were afraid to offer.” He sucked in her lip, then slowly released it. “The Ice Princess could only thaw when her control was taken away.”
    He chuckled as his knuckles swept the pulse of her heartbeat along her throat. “You were smooth as glass in the classroom. Unforgiving on the mats. Marksman on the range and fearless on the course. That class had more than four hundred recruits. My precious little Ice Princess didn’t allow one of them to get close enough to her to know what she ate for breakfast.” His lips pressed against hers. “But I learned your secret, didn’t I?”
    She closed her eyes; her heart beat so hard in her chest she felt like she was going into cardiac arrest.
    “You liked it when I took command of you. And when it was just you and me, Stevie . .