Chapter 20- I Do Not Love Thee

I do not love thee! No! I do not love thee!

And yet when thou art absent I am sad;

And envy even the bright blue sky above thee,

Whose quiet stars may see thee and be glad.

I do not love thee! yet, I know not why,

Whate'er thou does seems still well done, to me --

And often in my solitude I sigh --

That those I do love are not more like thee!

I do not love thee! yet when thou art gone

I hate the sound (though those who speak be dear)

Which breaks the lingering echo of the tone

Thy voice of music leaves upon my ear.

I do not love thee! yet thy speaking eyes,

With their deep, bright and most expressive blue --

Between me and the midnight heaven arise,

Oftener than any eyes I ever knew.

I know I do not love thee! yet, alas!

Others will scarcely trust my candid heart;

And oft I catch them smiling as they pass,

Because they see me gazing where thou art. Aletta hesitated instantly and pulled back. She knew she wanted to continue, but her heart was fluttering too fast and she had a substantial sensation of vertigo. His dark, scintillating stare was still concentrated on her face as her own was on his chest, refusing to meet his steely, impious gaze.
"I apologize," she said, not abiding the awkward silence any longer.
She moved to walk into the tent, but stopped to turn and look back at him. She didn't know why.
"Are you angling for a compliment, in that case?" Snape taunted lightly, but with appealing irony.
"A compliment?" she repeated blankly.
"Wasn't I supposed to be affected by the saccharine vision of your loveliness in the moonlight?" His mouth twisted into a jeering smirk.
Aletta tossed her head back to send him a glittering look. "The evening is much to peaceful to start another argument with you."
"You've failed to be conciliatory all evening. Why start now, Aletta?" The husky issuance of her name started a disturbing reaction in her stomach.
She swallowed involuntarily, glancing furtively around, the realization of them being entirely alone dawning on her. Of course, they have been alone for many days now, but that fact had not bothered her as much as it was now.
"First time I've seen you lost for words," he said mockingly as he smoothly started toward her. "Am I hallucinating? I must be since you kissed me."
"Excuse me!" she said, anger sparking in her eyes as she unflinchingly met his steady look. "I believe it was you who kissed me."
Snape shrugged slightly as he came to a halt in front of her. "I suppose that's accurate. Though you were intending it."
"If it was my intention, I would surely have picked a man who at least was attracted to me. You've made your dislike of me very clear," she responded boldly.
"On the contrary, I am attracted to you. I may think you're an irritating little witch-" his mouth curved into a humorless smile when he lazily inspected her upturned face "-but it doesn't lessen the desire to make love to you. You're a very beautiful woman."
The bluntness of his declaration sent shivers of ice down her spine. "Save your compliments for some other woman. I'm sure she would appreciate them much more than I do," Aletta lied sharply, averting her gaze.
His thumb and finger caught her chin and turned her back. "Jealous?" Snape mocked huskily, his eyes glittering over the deepening color in her cheeks that not even the dim light could hide.
Her eyes blazing, she wrenched away from his touch. "Of who you conceited, arrogant-?"
The sheen in his eyes turned to onyx coal as he clamped a hand over her mouth, shutting off the tirade with the swiftness of a slicing blade. Her hands came up to tear his fingers away and she was crushed against his chest.
"I wondered how long it would take before you lost your temper." Slowly he removed his hand. "You can scream all you want. There isn't anyone around to hear you."
"Let me go!" Aletta hissed.
Snape smiled coldly, lacing his fingers through her hair to prevent her from twisting her face away. His mouth descended toward her and Aletta was helpless to avoid it. And she didn't want to. Though a gasp of protest was torn from her throat as he nuzzled the throbbing pulse in her neck.
"Make your token resistance if you must," he jeered, raising havoc with her heartbeat as he nibbled at her ear, "but you know you intended this to happen all along."
"No," she denied desperately.
His mouth trailed over her cheek to taste the corner of her lips, the warmth of his breath caressing her skin.
"No?" he said, more than questioned. "Somehow I doubt that."
The tantalizing closeness of his mouth, sensually touching without taking, was unnerving. A purely physical reaction started a trembling through her limbs.
"Don't!" She spoke against his mouth, fire leaping somewhere inside her. "I guess I sort of wanted it to happen-"
"Naturally," he agreed.
"I thought that maybe we could be more than . . . than friends," Aletta explained frantically. "That's why I teased you."
His head rose from hers, a brow arching in satisfaction. "Now I know the truth," he murmured, relaxing his hold so she could pull free.
Staring at him, Aletta bit into her lip still burning form the nearness of his. "You tricked me, didn't you?" she accused in a shallow breath. "You never intended to try to seduce me."
"Could I have?" The grooves around his moth deepened.
"No!" She spun away, somewhat disappointed.
Her flesh still tingled from the imprint of his male form and there was a funny empty ache in the pit of her stomach. Could he, a tiny voice inside asked.
"No!" The second vigorous denial was made to the voice.
"You'd better get to bed," Snape said with a silent laughter in his voice, "while you're still trying to make up your mind. If you aren't convinced, then I may become curious enough to find out for myself.
It sounded very much like a threat to Aletta. A threat I wouldn't mind, she thought involuntarily. Sometimes it was better to retreat and lose a battle than to stay and lose a war. Right now Snape was much too disturbing and influence for her to think straight.
As Aletta entered the tent, Severus had other plans. A great deal of thinking. When she had shut the opening to the tent, Severus sat back down next to the struggling fire. He couldn't believe what he almost did. Thank Merlin I thought up a plan to scare her away, he thought contentedly. He had ashamedly given into his wants and desires. He thought back to his reply from earlier. "Kiss you." Yes, he had meant it, but could not surpass the thick headedness of him. He was glad he had made her see him as a conceited seducer. He admired her, and maybe he liked her a bit more than just that. Severus Snape, however, would cut off his arm before he would admit that.