“Yeah.” I nod, smiling at Trent and Lynn. “It was nice to see you. I’ll be leaving soon.” I start to walk away then turn back to Laurie. “Say hello to her for me.”
I leave alone, after Aidan insists he doesn’t need to be rescued, and doesn’t need a ride home either. As I walk down the hallway toward the main entrance, I keep feeling as if I’m being pulled back.
It’s wrong to leave like this.
I’ve got to keep trying.
And keep getting rejected.
At the doors, I stop and turn around. I’m not surprised to see Rachel a few feet behind me, at the entrance to the ballroom. She’s watching me go, her face showing regret and anguish that mirrors what I feel.
Frustration lances through me and I want to scream at her, to demand answers.
Why are you doing this?
What the fuck do you want?
Without a word, I turn back toward the exit. I will not keep trying when she won’t even do me the courtesy of being straight with me.
It pains me to walk away, but it hurts more when she tells me again and again that she wants nothing to do with me.
It’s dark outside, and I take a gulp of the cold night air. The limo stops in front of me and I stride to the door, pulling it open.
“Landon, wait.”
I freeze.
God knows I should keep going.
God knows.
I turn around and face her, and she’s standing in front of the doors. She approaches me, and I can barely stop myself from taking her in my arms.
I should take her somewhere private and unreachable by anyone else…back in time, maybe, to an era of cavemen who took the women they wanted and never let them go.
Just go away, Landon. Just leave me alone.
I swallow, watching as she stops at the edge of the sidewalk. “Landon…” The uncertainty in her voice tells me her mind still isn’t made up, that she’s still confused, but I can’t bring myself to care. Not when I’m hopelessly consumed with wanting her, and I know she feels the same way.
I’m barely aware of closing the distance between us. I take her in my arms, drowning whatever she planned to say in a kiss I need more than life itself.
She kisses me back, hungrily. Her eyes close and she clutches at my jacket, moaning, her body pressed against mine.
Please leave.
I release her, for my own sanity. Any moment now, she’ll tell me again that she’s done with me.
“Fuck!” My tone is much harsher than I intended. “What are you trying to do to me? What do you want from me?”
Her eyes rake my face. “I want you,” she whispers.
I feel like a puppet on a string, a piece of cork bobbing in ocean waves—helpless and out of control. “Stop playing games with me,” I warn. “Go back inside and join your family…or you can come with me, Rachel, and just so you know, I’m not going to stop until I’ve fucked you senseless.”
Her chest rises, her eyes holding mine in a silent agreement. “Let’s go.”
The words galvanize me into action. For now, at least, she’s mine, and I’m too desperate to question it. I hold the car door open for her before going around to join her in the back.
“The Swanson Court?” the driver asks.