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And yes, somewhere way in the recesses of my mind, that turned me on too.
“This isn’t fair,” I whimpered and tried to increase the space between us.
But Carmen must have predicted my retreat, because his large hand was at the small of my back in an instant, commanding me to stay.
“Life isn’t fair, darling. I’m sure someone’s told you that one before.” He leaned to the side a bit and kissed a featherlight trail across my jaw to that little magical spot just behind my ear. Not sure how he knew it was there, but kisses, licks, bites, to that spot alone, could make me come if done right.
A deep, husky groan worked its way up my throat and encouraged him to keep up the treatment. The man knew what he was doing, I’d give him that. I had a death grip on the material of his shirt, hoping to save myself from collapsing.
“Holy shit…holy…Carmen, oh…ooh my God. Oohhh, shit,” I muttered in a long string that was likely unintelligible to my husband, but he understood enough to keep the pace of what he was doing.
Until he abruptly stopped.
I gasped a deep breath, sure I hadn’t had oxygen in hours, and my entire body sagged into him.
“Why? Why would you do that to me?” I stammered when I finally could breathe normally enough to produce more than just vowel sounds. Frustration and physical need were center stage, but there was no way in hell I’d let him see what he’d just done to me.
I hung my head until my crown butted against his solid chest. How had this mild-mannered man—who I was sure was the typical mama’s boy type I could gobble up in one bite—gain the upper hand so quickly? He must have been playing me all along and was just lying in wait, ready to use these mad skills to take advantage of me when he saw something he wanted.
Finally, he lifted my face with a finger beneath my chin until our eyes locked. My furious glare collided with his mischievous glint, and I seethed hotter.
Then it hit me. My ire was fueling his agenda. The hotter I got under the collar, the more power I handed him in this negotiation. Or whatever the hell was going on here. All I knew was he still clutched my journal in his capable hand, and I was done being the fool.
With the practice of twenty-plus years, I wiped my face clean of all expression and became a blank slate. People thought I was emotionless—hell—I told people I was. It was the keenest defense, and I figured the tactic out very young. Emotionless reactions made people uncomfortable. Usually, when I didn’t react on the outside in a given situation, my opponent ended the confrontation soon after. And typically in an acquiescent manner.
Now, I calmed my breathing, applied zero tilt to my lips, and with an expressionless yet very alert and focused stare, I waited. I’d wait him out for twenty minutes if that’s what it took for him to backpedal. Hell! I could go longer if I had to. My difficult sister, Sheppard, was the one person who could go toe to toe with me in this arena. There was no way Sandoval would come out on top.
No way.
Chapter Five
Carmen
My God, the woman was incredible. Smelled incredible. Felt incredible. Tasted incredible. I had her right where I wanted her. Now, all she had to do was give in. Something I didn’t think she was too familiar with doing, but we both had a lot of habit changing in our immediate future.
There was no way I would ever violate her privacy and read the interesting little book I held. But the moment I saw the value of the currency, I had to cash it in. Only a fool would have let the opportunity pass by. I might be a lot of things, but I’m not a fool. I played that role in relationships before, and it just wasn’t a vibe that suited me. A lot of people made the mistake of thinking I was a pushover based solely on the fact that I had manners and a deep respect for women in general.
Wrong.
After I discovered my ex had been cheating on me, I had an involuntary dating hiatus. I was always angry, and not just at her. I was pissed at myself for being so naïve and so trusting and was pissed at humanity in general. Maybe that sounded a little extreme, and maybe it was, but I was nursing a pretty serious wound.
After a couple of weeks of self-loathing, I made a conscious decision to regain control of my social life. For every night I didn’t have a date, I spent it researching, studying, investigating different sexual techniques and philosophies. When I would land a date, I’d experiment with what I’d learned.
I looked at it as the practical portion of the course syllabus. I had always been an excellent student, and now I had a lot of tricks up my sleeve that women never expected.
That actually worked in my favor. That certain moment when something happened that a woman hadn’t anticipated because every other guy she’d ever been with failed at delivering so monumentally was thrilling.
I felt Agatha’s entire body soften beneath my touch when I found that spot close to her sexy little ear.
Seriously. Every damn feature on this woman was perfection. She was so many different things all at the same time, it was intriguing and exciting. And hot. God…so fucking hot. At the moment, I had an erection that was straining to be unleashed from the confines of my clothing. It was something I got over being embarrassed about at an early age.
Truth in advertising, maybe? That sophomoric thought made my grin stretch wider, and of course, Agatha misinterpreted my expression and thought it was because of her. Indirectly, I suppose it was, but my own thoughts were entertaining me currently. But how the hell do you explain that to someone? Especially a storm of a woman whose temper was about to blow.
“Oh, are you pleased with yourself?” she asked.
While her words were biting and confrontational, her facial expression was as smooth as a frozen lake. Calm. Still. Expressionless, actually. What a strange reaction, or nonreaction, really.
My eyes narrowed with suspicion, but I wouldn’t give in to her. I was fairly certain she was trying to manipulate me somehow.
