Fighting the Inevitable (2 page)

The two men were of
similar height, Caleb being the taller by one inch, standing at six
foot one. While Caleb’s colouring bordered on an almost Grecian
look with long flowing golden brown hair, his friend Demetri had
shoulder length thick hair that was as black as sin itself. His
complexion had more of an olive tint too. He was a mix between
European and Slavic, a deadly, seductive combination.

Both men were powerfully
built as well as incredibly tall. Broad shoulders supported wide,
well-muscled chests tapering down to trim waists and taut, flat
stomachs. Long muscular legs and thick muscled arms strained in
their clothing as they lounged in the booth. They were both dressed
fairly casually. Demetri had opted for tight black jeans with a
midnight blue silk shirt; while Caleb was poured into the tightest
pair of black leather pants he owned, and completed his outfit with
a black silk shirt.

The men practically oozed
sex appeal as well as power and a substantial hint of danger. They
were predators of the most deadly kind, the top of the food chain
and with the haughty arrogance of knowing it.

Caleb sighed deeply as he
ran his bored eyes around the dimly lit nightclub. He watched
barely dressed women bump and grind with horny males and wondered
once again if he was getting too old for all of this. Not so long
ago he would have been the one on that dance floor with some lithe
little beauty in his arms, grinding his hardness against her soft
body, letting her know in no uncertain terms what he planned to do
with her once they were off the dance floor. Tonight, it just left
him feeling cold, his only spark of interest being Demetri’s
earlier little display.

Not one woman in the room
sparked his lust, and he had to admit he was slightly concerned
about his lack of interest. There had always been two
constants in Caleb’s life. The first was the need to feel the sweet
taste of blood in his mouth, and the other was the need to slide
his body into a hot, willing female. So far this week he had done
neither and didn’t feel the urge to, either.

Running a large hand
through his hair, he gave his third sigh in under five minutes and
was rewarded with a deep growl.

“
For fuck’s
sake, Caleb, will you get into the party spirit?” Demetri said
tersely, his cool, green eyes flashing as he regarded his friend
with a hint of annoyance. He was starting to grate a little on the
warm buzz running through Demetri.

“
I’m bored,”
Caleb grumbled quietly. “There isn’t one decent woman in here
tonight.” His tone did sound bored and also slightly
jaded.

Demetri quirked an
eyebrow though he wasn’t really that surprised. He’d noticed his
friend becoming ever quieter in the last few weeks, especially when
they were out hunting. He was quiet and restless and out of sorts
which was unusual for him.

“
You want to
try somewhere else?” he asked, just as the main door to the club
opened and the scent of jasmine and lavender assaulted his senses.
He saw Caleb stiffen slightly, and he turned his head to look at
the woman who had just entered.

“
Fuck me!”
Demetri breathed softly, a huge compliment coming from him because
he wasn’t easily impressed with a woman’s looks.

Caleb was quite literally
stunned as he watched the woman come into the club. Fuck, was she
even old enough to be in a nightclub? She was so tiny that for a
moment he thought she surely had to be underage but the bouncers
were strict at Karpathia’s. They most definitely would have carded
the girl and asked enough questions to be reasonably certain she
was old enough to be allowed in.

Her little purple sandals
must have been at least four inches high; that would put the woman
at five feet tall in her bare feet. Her ankles looked delicate and
her calves were shapely as his eyes slowly worked their way up her
body.

He found himself taking
his time as he perused her. He didn’t want to miss a thing as his
gaze swept passed her knees and came to the shimmering deep purple
and diamante little slip dress she was wearing. The hem came to
mid-thigh and he got a good look at the pale, satin smooth skin of
her thighs before he took in her softly rounded hips, flat stomach,
and delicate waist.

His gaze continued its
upward movement, and he stopped when he reached her breasts. The
two perfect orbs were full and pert, a bit large for her small
frame but not as buxom as a lot of women tended to favour these
days. His keen eye could tell that he’d be able to completely
enclose the soft flesh in his large hands and he felt an itch to do
so right there and then.

His body hardened and he
growled softly as his gaze continued his upward movement enjoying
the swell of her breasts peaking daringly out of her dress before
he sighed as he took in her slender little neck bare of all
jewellery. Her shoulders were practically bare too with the
exception of two thin strips of material that held her dress
up.

His body twitched again
in his leather pants as he finally got to her face. Fuck she was
stunning to look at. Her little heart-shaped face seemed so
delicate. Her eyes were a strange lavender colour and framed by
long, thick black lashes, which gave her a mysterious look. Her
colouring stirred something in his memory, but he pushed it
ruthlessly away. He didn’t want to be distracted by anything but
the sight of her beauty.

Her skin was pale and
soft, her little upturned nose giving her a slightly haughty
appearance. Her lips were the most spectacular pair of lips he
could ever remember seeing. They were wide and generous and
deliciously plump, enhanced by the amethyst lipstick she was
wearing.

Her best feature though
was the glorious mane of waist-length auburn curls, which tumbled
down her back like a living flame. There wasn’t one thing about the
girl Caleb didn’t like. She was total perfection.

“
I think
we’ll stay here, Demetri,” Caleb said quietly, belatedly answering
his friend’s question as he watched the girl head over to the bar
and slip onto one of the high bar stools.

Demetri chuckled lightly
as he watched his friend’s intense expression. He was a little
regretful that he wouldn’t get a chance at the auburn haired
beauty, but this was the first time in weeks he’d seen Caleb
express any genuine interest in a woman so he wasn’t about to queer
his pitch.

~~~~~

Rhianna steeled her
nerves as she took a seat at the bar, her hands shaking slightly.
She had no idea what had compelled her to come out tonight. Perhaps
it had been the fact she’d just had the worst day of her life and
she needed some kind of distraction. Perhaps she just needed to be
surrounded by noise, and strangers; people who didn’t know or care
who she was. Whatever the reason, she was here now, signalling the
bartender for a glass of red wine. He set it down in front of her,
and she was just raising the glass to her lips when she felt
someone slide onto the stool next to her, and she turned her head
to the left.

Her eyes connected with
the buttons of a black silk shirt and slowly moved upwards. Her
breath hitched in her throat as she found herself looking at the
most stunningly beautiful face she’d ever seen. The man was so
stunning she actually considered whether a God had descended from
the heavens and sat down next to her.

Warm golden brown eyes
roamed over her face as she took in the strong, rugged jaw line,
thin, straight nose, and high chiselled cheekbones. He seemed to
blink in slow motion, long lashes hiding his glittering amber eyes
before revealing them again as a slow smile curved his wide
generous mouth.

He wore his hair long to
his shoulders and it looked shiny, thick, and so incredibly soft.
Her breath caught again as she took in his wide shoulders and
chest, all rippling with hard muscles. The man was clearly enormous
and she felt even smaller than usual sitting next to
him.

The most astounding thing
about him was he made her
feel.
After a week of total
emptiness, it was an incredible sensation to stare up at him and
feel attraction towards him. She gripped that emotion tightly and
held onto it for dear life.

“
I’m Caleb,”
he said, and his rich deep voice sent a shiver down her spine as
she gazed open mouthed at him. He could have uttered the most
ridiculous sentence in the world and she still would have shivered
as his voice whispered over her. She felt a sharp stab of pleasure
in her stomach and she blinked in surprise that a simple
introduction could affect her so badly.

Rhianna watched his
luscious lips curve into a wider smile as he leaned closer and
inhaled deeply at the side of her neck while she sat there like a
stunned rabbit in the headlights of a car about to mow it
down.

“
And you
are?” His sexy voice whispered against the shell of her ear and her
breath hissed out as another shiver went through her and the
pleasure magnified in her stomach.

“
Rhianna,”
she answered breathlessly, almost crying out in disappointment when
the man, Caleb, pulled back from her and sat straighter on his
stool.

“
It’s my
distinct pleasure to meet you, Rhianna,” He gave her another bone
melting smile, and he really did sound genuinely pleased to meet
her.

Rhianna stared into his
gorgeous eyes and
 
saw his pleasure
mixed in with a healthy dose of blatant sexuality. She dragged her
gaze away from his face, looked down self-consciously, and then
stifled a moan as her action brought her eyes lower down his body
to the skin-tight black leather pants he wore and the very obvious
bulge.

She issued a startled
gasp and dragged her gaze back up to see Caleb watching her with an
amused expression on his face, not in the least embarrassed about
his body’s reaction.

“
I was just
about to leave when you walked in,” he said conversationally. “I
took one look at you and my body hardened instantly.”

Rhianna felt her cheeks
flush scarlet at his forthrightness, and she picked up her glass of
wine and took a large slug, struggling not to choke as the tart
liquid slid down her throat. She heard him chuckle lightly as he
watched her, and she felt liquid heat slide through her body at the
sound.

“
You
shouldn’t be embarrassed,” he said with more than a hint of
amusement. “You’re a very beautiful woman and I like very beautiful
women. It’s only natural my body would react to seeing someone I
want.”

If he thought to ease her
embarrassment, he was going about it in the completely wrong
direction. Her cheeks reddened further. “You like to move fast,
don’t you?” she asked, keeping her eyes firmly on her glass of
wine, and pleased to hear she didn’t sound as gauche as she was
feeling.

She could almost sense
him shrug beside her. “What’s the point in beating about the bush?”
he countered. “I know what I want and I’m not afraid to come right
out and ask for it. Tonight I want you, Rhianna. Will you come home
with me?”

Her hands shook around
the stem of the glass. He was incredibly handsome and he had the
most amazing body she’d ever seen on a man. She was sure he would
be a very skilled lover. She could imagine many a woman taking him
up on his offer to go home with him. However, she wasn’t many a
woman. She just didn’t do things like this. It was completely out
of her comfort zone.

Rhianna turned to tell
him so and found herself locked in his heated gaze. She hesitated,
biting her bottom lip nervously and saw his eyes drop to her mouth
when she did so, a sharp intake of breath coming from him. This
beautiful man truly did want her, and there was something about him
that called to her very being.

She could lose herself in
his strong arms so very easily. She could almost imagine what his
mouth would feel like on her body as he pleasured her. She wanted
to forget about everything tonight. She didn’t imagine she’d be
thinking of anything other than Caleb if she went home with him. He
could make her feel the most incredible sensations, and she heard
herself saying yes before she’d even realised she’d made the
decision.

As she uttered the word,
she saw a flare of intense male satisfaction cross his face as he
leaned forward slowly, halting when his lips were barely a fraction
of an inch from hers. “You won’t regret your decision, Rhianna,” he
whispered quietly just before his tongue snaked out and very slowly
licked along her bottom lip.

The thoroughly intimate
gesture stole her breath away and she stared into his eyes with a
slightly startled expression. He moved back once more and smiling,
slid from his stool and helped her from hers.

Rhianna knew that it
wasn't the wisest course of action, but she allowed him to lead her
from the nightclub and settle her into a very expensive looking
silver Porsche sports car.

CHAPTER tWO

Caleb drove fast but
expertly. Rhianna didn’t think he obeyed one speed limit the entire
twenty minutes it took to reach his big white mansion on the
outskirts of town. Still, she hadn’t been afraid by his driving. It
had been fast and almost wild, and just the thing she needed
tonight. She wanted to be wild and uninhibited.

“
You drive
fast,” she said, her voice sounding breathless as she allowed him
to help her from the car.