Taken by Storm by Kelli Maine Page B

hammered with her rapid heart rate.
    The server brought their plastic dishes of gelato, breaking the tension, and the three of them piled back into MJ’s car. He turned the radio up loud on the way back so none of them could hear each other to talk.
    There was something about him so inherently dominant, but at times, he fell vulnerable and needy. MJ’s moodshad always shifted from hot to cold faster than Maddie could catch her breath.
    MJ parked his car in the driveway and turned to her. “I need to talk to you. Alone.”
    She froze with her hand on the door handle and his eyes on hers, searching again like she had all the answers.
    She did have the answers, she just never allowed herself to give them to him.
    Maddie pushed her door open and hopped out so Rachael could climb out of the backseat. “Thanks for lunch. It was fun.”
    “You’re welcome. Thanks for coming with me.”
    Maddie smiled and watched her stride toward the house.
    MJ got out and stood beside his door while Maddie rounded the car. “What do you need?” she asked, almost afraid of the answer. He’d been so cocky this afternoon, God only knew what would come out of his mouth.
    “Follow me.”
    She hated the emotionless, monotone, monosyllabic way he spoke to her. Skeptical, she narrowed her eyes, but followed behind as he led her around the garage and through the door to the stairway up to her dad’s apartment.
    “If there’s a problem,” she said, halting at the bottom.
    MJ grasped her wrists and pinned them above her head, pushing her against the wall before she could finish her thought. His lips claimed hers in a hard, possessive kiss.
    At first, she fought against the flame igniting in her belly and stayed unresponsive and tense. She had to push MJaway. She should
want
to push him away. But she couldn’t stop her lips from moving against his, and finally her entire body gave in to his demands. Fighting her feelings for MJ was as futile as attempting to make time run backward.
    He teased her bottom lip with his tongue and cupped her breast with one hand, the other wove through her hair, pulling her even closer. Her mouth opened in response. She quickly grabbed her ring and ran it along the chain behind her neck and let it dangle between her shoulder blades.
    He couldn’t see it. Not like this.
    His tongue met hers, and she sighed relief into his mouth, running her hand up over his shoulder to the back of his neck.
    She’d wanted him for so long. It was wrong, but at the same time, he was the only thing that had ever felt completely right in her life.
    The little plastic cup of gelato in her hand fell between them. Breathless and dizzy, she barely registered the icy-cold wetness dripping down the neck of her shirt. The cup clattered to the floor, and his went with it as his hand clenched her hip.
    His mouth left hers, and when their eyes met, she saw a spark of regret in his. But, instead of backing away from her, he dipped his head and ran his tongue down the sticky-sweet path of melted gelato. He nibbled and kissed her before setting her down, letting her go and leaving her breathless as he walked back out the door.

Seven
    J esus. What the fuck had he been thinking? That he could take what he wanted and keep enough control to make her go crazy without becoming invested in being with her? Really? This was Maddie, and he was an idiot for even trying.
    MJ tore his hands through his hair and paced around in the back hallway inside the big house. He wanted to get out and go to Coach’s bar, but getting drunk and fighting again would only get him kicked out and piss off Coach.
    There was nowhere to run. Staying felt like being a rat trapped in a maze, but this rat knew where the cheese was. He’d just tasted it and ran like hell. That cheese had poisoned him before. You’d think he’d learn his lesson. He’d make one dumbass rat.
    He cracked his knuckles then pounded his fists against his forehead. He could smell her perfume on him. It