First Rapture (The Rapture #1)(10)

Something she could use to her advantage.

“Cinderella? Really?”

“You don’t believe me?”

She reached up to brush a piece of lint from the lapel of his jacket, allowing her fingers to linger against the strong width of his chest.

“I was actually thinking that it would be a sin against nature to tame the Dark Angel with minivans and dirty diapers.”

His eyes narrowed at her abrupt shift from bitter ex-lover to femme fatale.

“You were just complaining that I—”

Madison pressed a hasty finger to his lips. Crap. It’d all seemed so easy when she was plotting her strategy in the comfort of her New York apartment.

“Like any young girl I dreamed of taming the bad boy, and I was hurt when you walked away,” she said, not having to fake the edge to her voice.

He studied her with a puzzled gaze. “And now?”

Her hand pressed over his heart, feeling the steady beat increase as she stepped close enough to whisper directly in his ear.

“For tonight, I just want you to be bad.”

His breath hissed between his clenched teeth, his hands gripping her slender waist. “You’re sure?”

“You were right.” She nipped the lobe of his ear. “There’s always been an attraction between us, and I’m no longer that girl looking for Prince Charming. Why shouldn’t we have some fun?”

She felt him stiffen at her teasing words. Had she managed to wound him? No, that would be ridiculous.

As if to prove his point, Luc nuzzled his lips along her jaw. “I’ll have my car—”

“No need,” she interrupted. “I have a room.”

Luc pulled back, his surprise deepening. “You’re staying at the hotel?”

“Yes.” She’d checked as soon as she’d been sure that Luc was attending the party. There was no way she was completing the last act of her revenge in Kristen’s house. “Shall we?”

The dark gaze ran a slow, heated path down the length of her body before a smile of anticipation curled his lips.

“Lead the way.”

***

Luc stepped into the luxurious suite, barely paying attention to the muted ivory and tan furnishings and spectacular view from the wall of windows. He was utterly consumed with the driving need to get this woman into the closest bed.

Okay, that wasn’t entirely true.

There was a very small part of his mind that was brooding on Madison’s abrupt capitulation.

His less than admirable past meant that he was a man who understood every nuance of the fairer sex.

He knew when a glance was more than a glance. When a female was susceptible to his touch. When to advance and when to retreat.

It was a familiar dance that he’d recognized the moment Madison had stepped onto the balcony.

He understood her need to punish him for his past sins. It only added a spice to their flirtation. And he fully intended to earn her forgiveness. Even if it meant following her back to New York.

He’d walked away from her once.

It wasn’t going to happen again.

But just when he was about to suggest they return to the charity event so he could at least hold her in his arms and sweep her around the dance floor, she’d given him a smile that didn’t quite reach her stunning hazel eyes, and practically dragged him to her conveniently located hotel suite.

He wasn’t complaining, he acknowledged, his gaze glued to the tempting sway of her ass as she led him directly to the bedroom.

His entire body was vibrating with an anticipation he hadn’t felt for years.

Not since the last time he’d been headed toward Madison Philips’ bed.

Still, there was a tiny voice in the back of his mind whispering that there was more going on here than just a chance encounter.

Entering the bedroom, Madison pressed a switch on the wall, flooding the room with a low, golden glow.

Luc was abruptly reminded of that night eight years ago.

Oh, not their surroundings. Hell, it still made him furious to think of the wreck of a trailer where Madison’s worthless mother had dumped her. Now her beauty was suitably emphasized by the elegant ivory and black room that was dominated by a king-sized bed set in the middle of the floor.

But there was the same fragile tension humming around her that reminded him of their first night together as she turned and tossed her purse onto a small, glass table.

He reached up to tug off his bowtie, shrugging out of his jacket as he studied her with a searching gaze.

“You’re sure this is what you want, Madison?”

With a practiced smile she lifted her hand toward the zipper hidden on the side of her gown.

“Why wouldn’t I be sure?” she demanded, slowly tugging down the zipper.

He kicked off his Italian leather shoes, easily dealing with his cuff links so he could remove his silk shirt. Then he forgot how to breathe as the black silk gown slithered down the length of her body to pool at her feet.

God almighty.

She was…magnificent.

He forgot how to breathe as his gaze slid down the slender curves, revealing she wore nothing beneath the gown.

It was a repeat of their first night together.

Her creamy skin shimmering in the low glow of the lamp. The tightly trimmed curls just above her pu**y. And the spike heels that made her legs appear as if they were designed to wrap around a man’s waist.