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A knowledge

No woman had ever surrendered so easily to him

No one had ever opened that part of him he kept so carefully hidden That he hid even from himself And now it tore open He felt it Felt his soul rip in half and soan to flow fro was enough, until he hungered even as he becaiven

Until nothing, no one existed but Courtney and the ravaging needs building inside his own soul

It wasn’t enough He could still feel her beneath hier for ht to catch her breath She ilder than the wind, hotter than the deepest pits of a volcano and as pure as the deepest reaches of the ocean And soout to hi a part of his soul to hers

"It’s sex," he growled at her ear then, furious, savage, fighting to reclaim what no one else had ever possessed "Do you understand me, Courtney? It’s sex Noit, keeping him hard when he should have been satisfied, should have been sated Keeping hier he couldn’t hide froer "Whatever you say, Ian Whatever it is, can we do it again?"

He forced hith inside him he forced hirip she had on hiret as the broad head popped free

Tearing himself from her was harder He wanted to screa to return to her, to feel the soft touch of her flesh against his As though the electrical currents flowing between the ripped apart, the pain sliced at his flesh

"I have work to do" It was i within hi feel her rolling over on the bed, her gaze caressing his back as he jerked his pants froet away from her He had to break whatever the bloody hell was suddenly binding theether, and he had to break it quickly Before it wentwatched hih his body at the soft, welling emotion in those deep brown eyes Eyes that ensnared hi hell, if he wanted to feel this, he would have sought her out She wouldn’t have had to coer pu his heart to race to keep it flowing through his veins

"Yes, Ian It’s just sex," she agreed, too softly, too easily and with too et it" He jerked the shirt over his shoulders before bending to collect his shoes and socks "Never fucking forget it"

"Never, Ian" She sounded satisfied, not sated, but her voice echoed with pleasure

Clenching his teeth against the surging forces rising within hi quickly to his own

It was just sex…

He pushed his fingers roughly through his hair at the thought If it was just sex, if it were nothing more than he had knoith all the women before him, then why did he crave her touch now, er for so that now ate at his soul and he kneould never again allow him any peace

If it was just sex, then why in the hell was his soul screa that it wasCourtney wanted to do was leave Ian and have lunch, go shopping or try to be civil in any way, shape or form She wanted to race after Ian, wanted to screa fro out to her

But she showered, dressed, and when she left her roo violently

Ian, of course, was no place to be found

Hiding

Coward

She wanted to rage with hiive hiainst her She wanted to hold hi she had known could exist between theh her senses and left her shuddering in the aftermath

"I think we need drinks before lunch," Tally Conover coaze sharp, her expression thoughtful "And we definitely need to talk to Ki at her

"Coirls’ day out Do you need to inforers clenched on her purse as she fought to make herself follow the other woman to the door the butler held open politely

"Please inforht," she informed him imperiously "I’m certain he’ll understand why"

Courtney hoped to hell he did, because she didn’t

Her senses were overloaded She had no business venturing out into the real world right now, and she knew it

"This hed as she stepped into Tally’s sporty little Jaguar "Perhaps we should go shopping soree with you one hundred percent" She ree, but the amusement in her voice assured Courtney that the other wo whatever plans were in the

"I think a nice quiet lunch at my home, with a few friends, and plenty of drinks are in order What do you say?"

Courtney turned to stare at her as tires screaave the vehicle She jerked in the seat, frowning at the thought of whiplash

"Will we get there in one piece?" She winced as Tally shot onto thetraffic as she did so