Lilac Temptress (16 page)

* * *

Drake entered the tavern and found it
rowdy with the night crowd. Stella seated him. Drinks were on the
house she told him, before quickly hustling away to chastise a
pretty young girl for “sitting on her rump,” as she described it.
The scene did little to distract him from the one woman who seemed
to constantly pervade his thoughts. He’d found it quite difficult,
in fact, to concentrate long enough to complete the documents for
his upcoming negotiation.

“
Drake—I was hoping you’d
come back for more,” Jasmine spoke softly into his ear from behind.
He shifted in his chair to face her and lifted her hand, brushing
his lips across the back of it and guiding her around to stand
before him. “Where’s your friend Liandra tonight?”

“
I thought you liked me
better.” Jasmine pouted her lips outward.

Drake grinned at her. “Maybe I
do.”

Jasmine accepted the answer because
she couldn’t resist him. “Lian got into some trouble with Sierra,
one of the other show girls.”

Drake provided Jasmine his absolute
attention.

* * *

How will I face Drake
after the stunt I pulled last night?
Sierra
panicked while she tugged at the stubborn back-strings of her
violet dress. She knew Drake would return tonight. He had promised
her he would. She would tell him she made a mistake in wanting to
sleep with him. It was only because she had been frightened that
she’d ever thrown herself at him in the first place. She had only
wanted to express her gratitude, but offering her body was a
foolish thing to do.

Of course, much of her regret stemmed
from the fact that she knew he’d left with Jasmine and Liandra, yet
she still threw herself at him. He had already found his pleasure
with two women. What must he think of her after she offered to make
it a third? A light rapping at her bedroom door interrupted her
thoughts.

“
It’s unlocked,” Sierra
called out.

Drake stepped inside and closed the
door behind him, locking it to avoid any disruption. He removed his
hat and then his frock coat, hanging them on a wall
hook.

“
I’ve thought of nothing
but you all day,” Drake confessed. “I went to the tavern in search
of you tonight and spoke with Jasmine. She told me what happened
between you and Liandra. Why did you assault her?” Drake tried to
use as much tact as possible in his questioning, but he knew that
there was no way to address the situation that would not get him
into trouble.

“
Don’t flatter yourself. It
wasn’t over you—Liandra insulted me,” Sierra snapped, backing away
from him as if he were poisonous.

“
I never said your quarrel
was over me. Was it?” Drake asked, knowing before she replied that
she was lying. It wasn’t the first time women had quarreled over
him. And Sierra was a spitfire, likely to engage in such antics,
particularly when riled up. She was impulsive with her emotions,
but loyal to herself. He liked that about her from the
start.

“
I told you, Liandra
insulted me,” Sierra insisted, her heart racing while she tried to
sound convincing.

“
Yes, indeed she did. It
was a dispute over being called a whore.” Drake’s lips curved into
a knowing smile at the flustered look on her face, which suggested
she hoped the girls hadn’t relayed the ugly details of the brawl.
He pushed the subject deliberately, “Something about you never
being with a man.” He smirked at seeing the guarded expression on
her face.

“
I told you from the start,
I am no harlot!” she said defensively. She had acted foolishly by
confronting Liandra and now Drake knew the truth about her lack of
experience.

“
I know you aren’t
a
harlot
. The
girls just confirmed what I somehow already knew,” Drake replied
earnestly.

“
Why all of a sudden do you
believe me when you never did before,” Sierra asked uneasily,
slowly backing away from him as he continued to advance toward
her.

“
You weren’t convincing
enough,” Drake answered.

“
You saw me the way you
wanted to see me,” she countered.

“
For God’s sake woman, look
at your surroundings! What did you expect me to think?” Sierra’s
stomach lurched. She had wanted him there so that she could
renounce her advances, but now she was defenseless prey being
stalked by a relentless hunter. What point was he trying to make
with all of his remarks?

“
I tried to tell you... but
you wanted to believe that you could buy me, didn’t you?” she
quietly asked, feeling humiliated.

“
No, that’s where you are
wrong. I never wanted to believe it—and somehow, I knew that you
weren’t tainted by the way that you kissed me—the way your body
moved against mine, how you responded to my touch,” Drake spoke
seductively. He knew he was unfair and even downright heartless to
belittle her innocence. And somehow knowing the truth about her
changed his perspective. She was even more beautiful and more
tempting, more vulnerable and more in need of his
protection.

Protection, what the hell was he
thinking, protection from whom—William? His mind was playing with
his conscience now. He only had a single thought in his head—he
wanted her tonight. He wanted her to experience her first time with
him, though he had never even touched a virgin before to his
knowledge. But if he thought too long and hard about her being
vestal, he might be discouraged from taking her to bed.

“
You know that I keep
coming back because I desire you,” he said.

“
What makes you think I
would give myself to you, especially after you have been with
Liandra and Jasmine?” Sierra leered at him, her eyes hard and her
voice defiant.

You knew I was no novice from the
moment you kissed me, Sierra. “I’ve been with many women. Is
everything different because you assume that you know what went on
behind closed doors? Would you attack all my past lovers if you
knew them? Knew what we did?” he goaded. Drake knew he had said the
wrong things, but he wanted her to call her bluff. He wanted her to
admit how much she desired him.

“
Is knowing this
supposed to persuade me to sleep with you?” Sierra had to think
quickly. She wanted to be angry with him, but her resolve was
fading. Her lingering gaze on his beautiful smile certainly didn’t
help, and if she let him seduce her, what would happen afterward?
He would leave her, she was certain of it. Take the gift of her
chastity and return to his precious
Newhaven
—alone. “I don’t want this. I
don’t want you!”

Drake eyes twinkled
disbelievingly as he continued to advance until he had her pinned
against the dresser. “Don’t you think it’s time that you and I stop
playing games? You like me, at least a little, and you want this as
badly as I do. Not because you feel you owe me anything, but
because you
desire
me. So say it Sierra, I need to hear it.”

A familiar faintness came over her
limbs as she put her hands against his chest and pushed him back to
keep some distance between them. She would not allow him to see any
weakness within her.

Exhausted with the chase Drake begged,
“Sierra, don’t do this. Just let me show you.” He swallowed the
remaining space between them. “I didn’t sleep with Liandra or
Jasmine. We had a few drinks at Liandra’s place, but I turned them
down. I only left with them to punish you. I couldn’t stand to see
you dancing for all those men. I wanted you to think only of me. I
wanted you to dance for me.”

“
Drake...” Sierra couldn’t
bring herself to say anything more. She knew she had danced
provocatively to rouse him and she had grossly underestimated his
anger.

“
You are different from any
woman I’ve ever known, unusual and charismatic. I want to make you
believe me. You are beautiful.” Drake pressed his body to hers,
pulling her into his arms. “I’m sure many men have told you so,” he
whispered in her ear. He nuzzled his nose in the sweet scent of her
hair.

One minute she was pushing him away,
the next she was enveloped in his arms. “What will happen after
you’ve gotten what you wanted?” she asked softly.

Drake hesitated. It was a question he
was asked all too often by women and he could not tell her the
truth, that he would leave her shortly and return home.

Sierra stepped away from him. “You are
avoiding answering my question. What men like you do to trusting
women is quite scandalous.” Sierra gave him no time to respond.
“You want a one night stand, right? No attachments?” If only Drake
wasn’t so handsome she might be able to make herself sound
formidable, she thought, as images of his hands on her bare skin
exploded into her mind. However, she knew about men like him. His
intentions were to use her for his own gratification, she was
certain of it.

“
If you desire me so badly
then convince me that giving myself to you won’t be a mistake that
I will regret. If I think you are worthy, then maybe tonight you
won’t leave here so unsatisfied,” she said curtly.

“
You are teasing me again.”
Drake unbuttoned his collar and withdrew his shirt over his head,
tossing it to the floor. “I do not play games for long,” he
cautioned her, exasperated. He never had to work so hard for any
woman.

“
How about I show you how
worthy I am of you?” Drake didn’t intend on letting this
opportunity escape him again. And tonight he was ready for her—more
ready than he’d ever been for a woman.

Sierra’s eyes drifted over the hard
lines and ridges of his chest. She lost her breath at the sight of
his masculine beauty. He stood before her, his piercing blue eyes
devouring her, and she wanted to let him take her, but she
hesitated at the thought of what he might do to her. After all, she
had never made love to a man.

“
I’m afraid,” she
whispered.

“
You don’t have to fear
me,” Drake uttered.

“
Then... I think that I do
want you, despite my reservations, but first tell about the scar
near your navel—how did you get it?” Sierra hoped to distract him
just long enough for her to decide if whether she should start
undressing or dart through her bedroom door, away from him,
allowing herself a moment to clear her head.

“
I don’t wish to discuss
it. Not now, Sierra.” His decisive tone let her know in no
uncertain terms that the time for talking had come to an
end.

Rather than flea, Sierra gathered her
courage and moved nearer to him, looking straight into his eyes.
She lifted her hand, and though the scar was barely visible, she
traced her fingertips along its outline perfectly. Impulsively, she
bowed her head down and pressed her lips tenderly along the marred
skin.

Drake’s breath caught in his chest at
her bold gesture. He never realized just how sensitive the area
was. He lifted her chin gently with his hand and guided her
away.

“
Does it still hurt?”
Sierra knew she had struck an uneasy chord in him.

It was Drake who now created distance
between them. He began to wonder what the hell he was doing there.
Her questions were not easy for him to answer because she spoke of
things that brought back unwanted memories. Sierra made him recall
a painful place, a deep-seated vulnerability that he kept well
hidden or so he thought. He withdrew from her, sitting on the edge
of her bed.

“
I haven’t felt any pain
for a long time now. You are right Sierra; bedding with me tonight
would be a mistake. Don’t become entangled with the likes of me.”
Drake’s eyes searched the room for the shirt he had
tossed.

“
With the likes of you—what
do you mean by that? Are you leaving me now?” Sierra was plainly
baffled. She wanted to know what she had said or done that made him
lose his nerve.

“
Yes, I am leaving you and
I promise not to trouble you again. This will be the last time we
meet this way. In three days I’ll be heading out of Jadesville. It
is better for the both of us not to become any more
involved.”

Sierra stared at him, unsure of what
had just happened, but realized in that moment more than anything,
she wanted him to stay with her. “Drake, please don’t go. We’ll
talk some more. Remain with me the entire night. It can be your
last.”

Drake gazed at her pleading eyes. She
looked amazing with her hair in twirling crimson curls, hanging
loose over her shoulders.

“
If you are angry with me
about what I asked you, then please say so. You can say anything
you want to me. I won’t take offense,” Sierra pleaded.

Drake remained silent.

Angst flooded through her; she didn’t
know how to ease the tension and continuing silence. “Will you tell
me more about New Orleans? Tell me about how you spend your days,
from what you eat for breakfast in the morning until you go to
sleep at night.”

Drake understood her need to change
the subject. He had even felt the thickness of the air in the room.
He smiled at her. “And to think that at first I thought that money
could sway you.”