Fire and Ice Read online

  It took a few more moments, but finally Tanya began to feel like herself again. At the same time, she also felt her return to sanity. This had been a mistake. Okay, maybe not a mistake in the sense that she hadn’t wanted it. But it certainly hadn’t been the best time for her to suddenly give in to his demands.

  Dear God, she was at her best friend’s engagement party. There were over one hundred people just on the other side of the French doors. Anyone could have walked out on them at any time. This certainly hadn’t been her most stellar moment.

  Tanya pulled out of his arms and took a step back. “Victor, we need to talk.”

  His face hardened at her words, and he closed the space she’d put between them. “No way. This is exactly the same sort of shit you tried to pull before. I’m not going to allow you to play those games anymore.”

  “Allow? Excuse me, but you don’t have a right—”

  “I have every right. I’m the man who just gave you the best orgasm you’ve had since Christmas.”

  Damn him. He always could read her like a book.

  “That still doesn’t give you rights where I’m concerned.”

  “Maybe that’s something that needs to change.”

  A tingle went through her at those words. He couldn’t mean what she thought he did, could he?

  “Tanya, are you out here?” Molly’s voice drifted across the stone patio, making Tanya’s heart sink. They were far enough away from the door that Molly wouldn’t be able to see them clearly. Still, if she got close, she’d know exactly what had been going on. Tanya didn’t want her friend to know what she’d been doing, but at the same time, she couldn’t just ignore her either.

  “Tell her you’ll be right in.”

  Instead of being offended by his dictatorial ways, Tanya did what he suggested. “I’m here. I’ll be right in.”

  “Um, okay, but I need your help with—”

  “I’ll only be a minute.”

  “Okay, if you say so.” Tanya breathed a sigh of relief as she heard Molly reenter the party.

  “You need some help as well.” Victor observed.

  “What?”

  “You’ll need a little help before you can go back inside.”

  “Oh God, how bad do I look?” Tanya reached up to touch her hair and squeaked as she felt the tumbled mass half hanging off her head.

  “It’s not that bad. We can fix it.”

  She turned and stood there staring out over the landscape as he began to pull out pins, waves of humiliation washing over her. What a mess!

  “It won’t be exactly like it was before, but it’ll work for now.”

  Turning back around, she asked, “What about my makeup?”

  “It’s hard to tell out here. You’ve got no lipstick left, but otherwise you look fine.”

  Fine? Great. Just the superior look I was striving for. “I’ve got to go. Molly’s waiting.”

  “We will talk tonight. Wait for me after the party.” She could tell he wasn’t going to brook any argument from her. Nodding, she started to walk away, only to be pulled up short when he didn’t release her. “I better not have to track you down, understand me?”

  “I said I would be there.”

  Victor cocked his head in acknowledgment of her words. “You better go. I can see Molly hovering from here.”

  Tanya turned back toward the French doors to see her friend pacing. Something really must be wrong. She headed across the patio and into the party. As soon as Molly spotted her, the other woman rushed over.

  “Oh thank God. Antonio’s been looking everywhere for you. I didn’t know what to tell him.”

  Antonio. She’d forgotten all about him. The only reason she’d finally agreed to go out with him was because Victor had insisted she come alone to this party. She wanted a shield and figured he’d be the best one.

  “I haven’t been gone that long.”

  “Long enough.” Molly grabbed her arm, and they started weaving their way through the throng of partygoers. “He said you two were dancing and some intense-looking guy cut in. Then, when he didn’t see you again, he got worried and came looking to tell me he thought you were in trouble. I told him you were fine, but then when I started looking for you and couldn’t find you, I got a little worried myself.”

  “Oh, for goodness’ sake. He’s blowing everything out of proportion. There’s nothing to worry about.”

  Pushing Tanya through the door into the private ladies’ room, Molly asked, “Really? Maybe you should take a good look at yourself.”

  Tanya raised her eyes to stare in the mirror and gasped. How could Victor have done this to her? Yes, he’d fixed her hair somewhat. Instead of the intricate updo she had when she arrived, her hair was now hanging down around her head.

  Her lipstick was gone, but her lips were swollen from kissing. And if she wasn’t mistaken, there was a bruise on her neck from Victor nibbling there. She looked as if she’d just had a tumble in bed, which wasn’t far from the truth.

  “So I’m guessing the intense-looking guy was Victor?”

  Molly knew her all too well. Her friend was the one person she’d told about her night with Victor, and the only person who knew why she’d been running from him ever since. Although Molly hadn’t agreed with her tactics.

  “Yes. We went out to the balcony, and well, things got a little out of control.”

  “I’ll say.” Molly chuckled. “It’s a good thing the party’s winding down, or people might start to ask questions. Especially about that.” She pointed to the love bite on the side of Tanya’s neck.

  Tanya rolled her eyes and sank onto the padded stool. “What am I going to do about Antonio?”

  “Tell him thanks for a lovely evening, and no, you don’t want to go out again.”

  “Um, slight problem with that. I told Victor I’d meet him after the party so we could finally talk.”

  “Talk? Really?” Molly sat down next to her. “So are we happy about this? Just tell me so I know which friend to be, the supportive one or the vengeful one.”

  “Definitely the supportive one.” Tanya wrapped her arm around Molly’s shoulders. “Thanks for being there for me.”

  “Of course, you are my best friend after all.” Molly stood and straightened her dress. “Okay, I’ll get rid of Antonio for you.”

  “How are you going to do that?”

  “Just leave it up to me.” Molly waggled her eyebrows.

  Chapter Two

  Victor sat nursing his drink as he watched the partygoers slowly trickle from the room. It had been thirty minutes since he’d last seen Tanya, and his erection was still nowhere near gone. She was in his blood, and now, after tasting her again, he planned to keep her exactly where he wanted her. In his bed.

  “I want to see her.” The loud declaration drew Victor’s attention away from his thoughts of Tanya to the commotion at the other end of the room. Molly was tugging on the arm of Tanya’s smarmy date. Just calling the guy her date set him on edge. That, and the fact he was giving Molly a hard time.

  “I told you she’s fine.”

  “I want to see for myself.”

  “She’s in the ladies’ room. I just spoke with her.”

  Antonio jerked his arm out of Molly’s grip. “Something’s going on here, and I’m going to get to the bottom of it.”

  “Don’t worry. She has a ride home.”

  “I’m not worried. I brought her to this party. I’m taking her home.”

  “I didn’t want to tell you like this, Antonio, but she doesn’t want to see you anymore. Just go home.” Molly grabbed his arm and started tugging him toward the door again.

  “This night has been shit. She owes me.” Antonio shook off Molly once more, and they both stumbled. “Fucking bitch used me.”

  That was it.

  Taking a gulp of the liquid left in his glass, Victor stood and slammed it down on the table. He started across the room, intent on removing the man’s head from his body.

 
; Molly had spotted him and immediately rushed over to hold him back. “Don’t waste yourself on him, Victor. I sent Josh to call security. They’ll be here any minute.”

  Logically he knew she was right, but it didn’t stop his forward motion. “Sorry, Molly, but he stepped over the line.”

  “I know. He’s drunk and acting stupid. Don’t follow his lead.”

  “I’m not drunk.”

  “Well, you’re acting stupid.” Surprised, Victor glanced over his shoulder at Tanya, unaware until that moment that she had returned to the room. Tanya’s observation had him turning his anger toward her.

  “That’s certainly the pot calling the kettle black. Who was the idiot who brought him here in the first place?”

  “Idiot?” Tanya didn’t raise her voice, but the tone indicated just how pissed she was.

  “Tanya, baby, where’ve you been?” Antonio stumbled toward them just as security arrived with Josh.

  “Thank God.” Molly waved them over. “Can you please get him out of here?”

  “Wait, let me talk to him,” Tanya pleaded with the security guards.

  Victor was shocked. The man had insulted her, and now she wanted to talk to him. He never would be able to understand the logic of women. Shaking his head in disgust, he watched as she spoke with Antonio.

  “I’m so sorry I ditched you this evening, Antonio. It wasn’t fair.”

  “Damn straight it wasn’t. You took off, and I thought that guy”—Antonio shot him an evil glare—“had done something to you.”

  “I appreciate that you were looking out for me. But Molly was right. I don’t think we should see each other anymore. Tonight just proves I’m not ready for dating yet.”

  Yet? Hmm, interesting.

  “But we can be great together.” Antonio’s protests were beginning to wear on Victor’s nerves.

  Tanya leaned forward and kissed Antonio’s cheek. “I’m sorry.”

  “You’re missing out,” Antonio said before turning and walking out, trailed by the two security guards. In the meanwhile, Tanya seemed to throw herself on Molly’s mercy.

  “I am so sorry. My goal this evening was to avoid a scene, and look what happens.”

  “Don’t worry about it. It’s not a party until security is called.” Molly gave Tanya a big hug. “It has been a long night, though, so I think it’s time I headed off to bed.”

  As Molly went to join Josh, Tanya turned toward Victor, apprehension written all over her face. If he were a different kind of man, he’d let her off the hook. Tell her to go home and they could talk later. But he knew what she needed, and it wasn’t someone she could manipulate or control.

  “It’s time we headed upstairs as well.”

  She frowned. “Upstairs?”

  “I got a room for the night. I figured there was no use driving home after the party.”

  “You’re delusional if you think I’m going with you.”

  “Backing out of your promise already? I never realized you were a coward.”

  As if a steel bar had been shot through her spine, Tanya straightened in apparent indignation. “I’m no coward. I wanted to talk to you. I just didn’t know you would want to go upstairs.”

  “The party is over. Besides, it’ll be nice and private.”

  “That’s what I’m afraid of,” she muttered, following him in silence. After she’d left the balcony, he’d thought long and hard about what he was going to say tonight. The proposition he’d come up with was unique to say the least, but if she agreed, he hoped it would be the catalyst she needed to accept the future he thought they could have together.

  Once inside his room, Victor strode toward the bar. “Do you want a drink?”

  She shook her head. “No, let’s just get this over with.”

  He cocked a brow at her attitude but decided to pick his battles and leave this one alone, for now. “Fine.”

  Tanya paced around the room, her fingers plucking at the material of her skirt. “So what did you want to talk about?”

  “We’ve danced around this for far too long. We’re attracted to each other.”

  “I’m not denying that. How could I when I spread my legs so easily for you earlier tonight? That doesn’t mean we’re right for each other.”

  “I happen to disagree. I think you recognize in me what you need, and you’re running scared from that need.”

  Her eyes widened, and her mouth dropped open, before she hastily wiped her face clear of any expression. He’d watched closely as he spoke, not at all surprised by her reaction. He knew this was going to be a hard sell to her. Already he could see her pushing down all her vulnerability and coming out with guns blazing.

  “If you mean I recognize you have a dick, you’re right. And I admit it freely, last Christmas I was a little hard up and a little drunk. You scratched an itch; nothing more.”

  So that’s the way she was going to play it.

  “I’m done playing games, Tanya. You weren’t drunk, and neither was I. You’re a natural-born submissive who reacted to my dominant tendencies. That’s what happened three months ago.”

  Tanya tried to laugh, but it came out more as a choke. “A submissive? Are you Looney Tunes? I don’t have a submissive bone in my body. I like power and control, thank you very much. I’m not”—she waved her hand to indicate a show of weakness—“some mindless twit.”

  Victor dropped into a chair, kicking off his shoes. “Submissives aren’t mindless twits any more than Dominants are power-hungry, controlling jerks. At work you’re in charge as the office manager, expected to make decisions and control operations on a daily basis. Is it any surprise that sexually you respond to someone else taking control and allowing you to just be a woman and feel?”

  “Is this…” Tanya’s voice stuttered to a halt for a moment, and she swallowed before continuing. “Is this about that slap to my ass? Because I can enjoy sex games without being submissive.”

  “It’s more than a little slap and tickle in the bedroom. In fact, I having a sneaking suspicion you know a lot more than you’re letting on.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Tanya’s pacing was beginning to wear on his nerves.

  “Don’t you?” If it weren’t so important to him, Victor might actually find it amusing to watch Tanya’s desperate attempt to run from who she was. But the time for diplomacy was long gone. “You responded so well out on the balcony when I had your hair wrapped in my hand and I was telling you what to do.”

  “You’re twisting the situation.”

  “Come here.”

  She stopped her pacing and took a step toward him before she stumbled to a halt. “Why?”

  He suppressed the smile he felt at her immediate response to him and instead shrugged his shoulders. “Your constant back-and-forth is giving me a headache. Come sit down while we finish our talk.”

  She seemed torn for a moment and then nodded, joining him in the sitting area. Her every action screamed to him that she wanted to submit and was fighting her natural instincts. He watched as she traced the designs of the chair fabric with her fingers, unconsciously waiting for him to continue.

  No time like the present.

  “I have a proposition for you.”

  “If the proposition includes sex tonight, I’m all for it. What happened downstairs wasn’t exactly what I had planned for this evening, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t mind if it continued to its natural conclusion.”

  He cocked an eyebrow in surprise. “Why the sudden change? Earlier tonight you tried to tell me to get lost. Hell, you brought a date to the party.”

  “Look, I made a mistake bringing him to the party. You were right, okay? Isn’t that what you wanted to hear?”

  “I’d prefer hearing the truth.”

  “The truth is I am attracted to you. And I enjoyed having sex with you. What happened out on the balcony only…reminded me of that. So yeah, I would be interested in a hot-sex, no-strings-attached get-together.”
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  “That’s not exactly what I was proposing.” Although it was refreshing to know she wasn’t denying her need for him any longer, he was no longer content with just a sexual conquest. He wanted more. And knowing she was hoping for sex played right into his plans to delay her physical gratification.

  She pursed her lips. “Then what is it?”

  “I say you’re a submissive, you insist you’re not. I’d like to prove my theory.”

  “How are you going to do that?”

  “I want you to be my submissive for the next week.”

  “Wow, I know I inferred you were crazy earlier, but I had no idea you were certifiable.”

  “I’m completely serious. I believe there’s something between us, but unless you’re willing to truly be open to the concept, it will fail.”

  Tanya sat there for a long moment, staring at him as if she could crack open his skull and peer inside. Victor suspected she’d dallied with the submissive lifestyle in the past, although he had no hard evidence to back up his beliefs. Just a gut feeling. If he was right, then she’d either been burned by someone or had the wrong Dom. Whichever was the case, he was willing to overcome those barriers, if she had them.

  He could see the confusion warring on her face before she finally asked, “What exactly are you asking of me?”

  Satisfaction coursed through him. She was at least considering the idea. “Right now all I’m asking is that you sleep on it. If you decide to go forward, there will be rules, and you can drop out at any time.”

  “I guess this means no sex tonight, huh?”

  “No. I really want you to think about this decision.” He stood then, stretching his arms over his head. “You take the bedroom. I’ll bunk out here. Then, in the morning, we can talk more.”

  “I’m not sleeping here tonight. I only agreed to come up so we could talk.”

  “You were willing enough to sleep here when you thought we might have sex.”

  “Actually, I had no intention of sleeping.”

  “Why do you have to fight me on every little thing? You’re tired; I’m tired; we’ve both been drinking. I wouldn’t be able to sleep knowing you were driving home. I promise, I won’t read too much into it if just this once, you give in.”