with the force of his breaths.
“Raven?” she said warily.
His teeth were clenched, his palms fisted, every vein on his neck stood out in stark relief as he visibly strove for control.
“Are you alright?” she asked, laying a hesitant hand on his strongly corded biceps.
Sweat poured from him in torrents as his breath hissed out from between his teeth. He seemed to be in pain, she observed in confusion.
“Was it something I did?” Lisa asked, close to tears now as she watched him. She was repulsive! She was so fat and repulsive that just kissing her had almost sent the guy into a seizure; and not in a good way.
“Rave n ” she began, laying a hand on his chest.
His eyes flew open. His pupils were dilated so much they seemed almost like tiny pinpricks in the middle of his eyes.
“Get out!” he spat, his face contorted in what she thought of as contempt.
Raven was fighting hard to hold in the beast, that wild, untamed part of him that her kisses had unearthed. But he couldn’t very well tell her that.
Her spine straightened in affront, “Can I at least call a cab? Your place is in the middle of n o ”
He tossed the keys to his car at her, cutting her short, “Get out Lisa. Now! Just go!”
With one last glare at him, Lisa turned on her heel and unhurriedly strode through his front door and out of his life.
She didn’t let the tears fall until she had managed to gain the sanctuary of her bed. Then she opened the floodgates and cried.
She cried for herself; how could she have been stupid enough to think a man like that would want her. She cried for him; how could he have been so mean after leading her to believe he was nice? She cried for herself some more; no one could ever really love her as she was.
She rose to stare at her reflection in the mirror. She was overweight, she thought, curling her lips contemptuously. She was curvy and beautiful, she knew, but sometimes she wished she could shed some weight. She hadn’t jogged since the last time she had run into that beast on the trail.
A cold finger of fear pressed down her back; why was she thinking of that now? She had buried that thought and pretended it never happened.
She stared at her reflection one more time. It really wouldn’t do to pretend she was happy with her weight. Perhaps it was time to start working out again, she thought.
With a sigh, she flopped onto her bed again and slowly drifted off to sleep even as silent tears leaked from the corners of her eyes at the thought of a tall, handsome man with silver eyes with flecks of gold in them.
CHAPTER FOUR
“Lisa? You haven’t responded to the email from Kindergarteners,” Leslie Halliday called from her desk through the open door of Lisa’s office.
Lisa rolled her eyes. The woman was a walking organizer.
“Will do, Leslie,” she yelled just to get her off her back as she pressed ‘send’ on her reply to the said email.
Another beep drew her attention to a new email; this one was from Raven Kindersley! Lisa’s hand trembled over her mouse. She had not seen hide nor hair of him in the three weeks since she had left his home after he treated her so abominably.
She had tried to return his convertible to his office but had been advised by a stern, unsmiling dragon-lady that while Mr Kindersley was out of the country, he had left strict instructions that “no one was to receive that car or any other alleged possessions of his from her or anyone else”. It had sounded official enough to make her dizzy.
She had tried returning it to his mansion but there had been no way of getting past the damn gates.
She opened the email. It was a terse, one-sentenced invitation requesting that she personally bring three kids from the orphanage for a weekend retreat at Raven’s mansion. He hadn’t even had the courtesy to sign it himself but had instead handed it off to his secretary.
“You miserable oaf! I will send the three kids alright, but someone else will bring them.
“Raven?” she said warily.
His teeth were clenched, his palms fisted, every vein on his neck stood out in stark relief as he visibly strove for control.
“Are you alright?” she asked, laying a hesitant hand on his strongly corded biceps.
Sweat poured from him in torrents as his breath hissed out from between his teeth. He seemed to be in pain, she observed in confusion.
“Was it something I did?” Lisa asked, close to tears now as she watched him. She was repulsive! She was so fat and repulsive that just kissing her had almost sent the guy into a seizure; and not in a good way.
“Rave n ” she began, laying a hand on his chest.
His eyes flew open. His pupils were dilated so much they seemed almost like tiny pinpricks in the middle of his eyes.
“Get out!” he spat, his face contorted in what she thought of as contempt.
Raven was fighting hard to hold in the beast, that wild, untamed part of him that her kisses had unearthed. But he couldn’t very well tell her that.
Her spine straightened in affront, “Can I at least call a cab? Your place is in the middle of n o ”
He tossed the keys to his car at her, cutting her short, “Get out Lisa. Now! Just go!”
With one last glare at him, Lisa turned on her heel and unhurriedly strode through his front door and out of his life.
She didn’t let the tears fall until she had managed to gain the sanctuary of her bed. Then she opened the floodgates and cried.
She cried for herself; how could she have been stupid enough to think a man like that would want her. She cried for him; how could he have been so mean after leading her to believe he was nice? She cried for herself some more; no one could ever really love her as she was.
She rose to stare at her reflection in the mirror. She was overweight, she thought, curling her lips contemptuously. She was curvy and beautiful, she knew, but sometimes she wished she could shed some weight. She hadn’t jogged since the last time she had run into that beast on the trail.
A cold finger of fear pressed down her back; why was she thinking of that now? She had buried that thought and pretended it never happened.
She stared at her reflection one more time. It really wouldn’t do to pretend she was happy with her weight. Perhaps it was time to start working out again, she thought.
With a sigh, she flopped onto her bed again and slowly drifted off to sleep even as silent tears leaked from the corners of her eyes at the thought of a tall, handsome man with silver eyes with flecks of gold in them.
CHAPTER FOUR
“Lisa? You haven’t responded to the email from Kindergarteners,” Leslie Halliday called from her desk through the open door of Lisa’s office.
Lisa rolled her eyes. The woman was a walking organizer.
“Will do, Leslie,” she yelled just to get her off her back as she pressed ‘send’ on her reply to the said email.
Another beep drew her attention to a new email; this one was from Raven Kindersley! Lisa’s hand trembled over her mouse. She had not seen hide nor hair of him in the three weeks since she had left his home after he treated her so abominably.
She had tried to return his convertible to his office but had been advised by a stern, unsmiling dragon-lady that while Mr Kindersley was out of the country, he had left strict instructions that “no one was to receive that car or any other alleged possessions of his from her or anyone else”. It had sounded official enough to make her dizzy.
She had tried returning it to his mansion but there had been no way of getting past the damn gates.
She opened the email. It was a terse, one-sentenced invitation requesting that she personally bring three kids from the orphanage for a weekend retreat at Raven’s mansion. He hadn’t even had the courtesy to sign it himself but had instead handed it off to his secretary.
“You miserable oaf! I will send the three kids alright, but someone else will bring them.
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