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Ch5:Cold City Chick

Embry headed toward the marina before he returned home the next afternoon. An icy silence had reigned between Leah and him when he took her to shore yesterday. His irritation had only frothed when he had noticed Austin had been in the process of hauling one of the Superboats up the ramps. The exterior had been damaged, though not pierced.

The Superboats seemed to send out a siren call to any idiot who didn't have a clue how to handle the sleek, powerful craft on the Pacific's rough waters. He knew he should question Austin about the damage and get an insurance claim filed, but he had been crabby enough over Leah's cold attitude. He hadn't wanted to deal with the annoyance of some drunk jerk wrecking his boats on top of that.

What the fuck was with that woman? It pissed him off yet again to recall that brisk, businesslike tone she had used when she had asked if she could take him to dinner. Which really meant that she wanted to contract his services again. Her cool, low voice still echoed in his pissed off brain.

I see. Thank you for today, then. I appreciate your making time for me.

Like he maintained a fuck schedule or something.

He'd never known it was possible for hot molten lava to exist inside ice until he met Leah Clearwater. Too bad it was fucking phenomenal being buried inside her when he erupted. If things had been otherwise, he might have been able to stop thinking about her.

The strength of his anger surprised him a little. Sure, Embry liked to be in the driver's seat in bed, but he wasn't a die hard dominant. If a woman wanted to crawl on top of him and ride him to the finish line, that was all fine and dandy—as long as she realized he was going to have his way in the end.

But Leah's detachment really bugged the shit out of him for some reason, and if he had to tell the truth, it wasn't because he felt like a victim of a vicious expansionist culture. Sure the phenomenon existed. Vacationers frequently treated natives—both women and men—like they were exotic playthings. But he'd never been intimidated by the thought of a woman who just wanted him for a good time in bed.

Maybe that was because it rarely occurred. Most women wanted him for a hell of a lot more than a night or two of sex. Usually he'd preferred they saw him as a disposable sex toy. All parties satisfied; easier all around.

He didn't care to dwell on the fact that he wouldn't allow Leah Clearwater to treat him like that. He could imagine her kissing the living daylights out of him at the airport, giving his dick one last flirtatious tug through his shorts, and pursing her lips in a sexy goodbye kiss.

The fact of the matter was, it was a familiar enough scenario for him.

But imagining Leah's face in the scene really stoked his temper into a hot flame. What made his fantasies ten times stupider was that Leah never looked like some sultry, manufactured seductress. Her expression was a beautiful, frozen mask, defiant and furious, or so heartbreakingly somber it made him want to do anything to change it. When he'd finally seen her smile, he'd been stunned.

The weird thing about it?

It seemed as if he'd been waiting for that smile for a lot longer than the four days he'd known her.

A hell of a lot longer.

But he was just going to have to get over his obsession, wasn't he? He was carrying his longtime fascination with her music too far…starting to act like a teenager with an infatuation on a rockstar. For all he knew Leah Clearwater was in a plane over the Pacific right now. Best thing all around if she was.

A fleeting vision of packing up all her CDs and tossing them in the garbage hit his brain. He almost laughed aloud at the irrationality of it as he approached the marina entrance. Next thing he knew, he would be drinking like a fish and blubbering pitifully to his friends and cousins. Disgusting. And just the kind of thing he secretly hated, whether it be a guy or a woman who was doing the blubbering.

All because of a few fantastic fucks with an uptight, cold city chick.

Yeah, just keep telling yourself she's cold, he thought dourly as he opened the screen door and entered the dim marina.

"Never mind," he heard a familiar voice say determinedly. "I'll drop them off myself. You're busy. What are you doing, Austin?"

"I'll take it to Bry's," Austin replied in his typical calm manner that never wavered. Much to Emma Call's irritation, it surely never wavered for her. Austin came off to many as being as mild as a spring breeze, but his even keeled character disguised a stubborn streak that went a mile deep. Embry's cousin—although Austin wasn't technically his cousin, just intimately entangled in the far reaching Call family web—would never allow Emma Call to row herself out to Bry's houseboat. There was a knight in shining armor beneath Austin's wizened face and strong little body.

Besides everyone knew Austin was sweet on Emma.

"Don't be ridiculous. There was customers on the dock. You work too hard, Austin. Are you losing weight? Been eating those disgusting TV dinners again?" Emma snorted. "Those things ought to be illegal. Come out to the farm tonight. I'm slow cooking a nice pork roast. Hopefully it won't overcook while I'm watching little Claire—"

"How come you're babysitting Claire?" Embry interrupted. "I thought there was an official ban on gran babysitting the—what was it at last count?—seventy two great grand kids."

"Oh, Embry good!" his grandmother flashed a smile that had warmed hearts for almost eight decades. She didn't look a day over sixty, Embry thought as he leaned down and kissed her. Her cheek felt smooth and soft beneath his brushing lips. Her brown eyes sparkled with life. Her curly white hair was cut fashionably short. Like many older people in Hawaii, including Austin, she was slender and well-muscled from regular exercise in the temperate climate.

"I was on my way to the restaurant to drop these off for tonight when Rebecca called me," Emma explained. "She thinks Collin has the chicken pox. I told her I'd watch the baby while Quil and her take Collin to the clinic, so I need to head back in the other direction."

"Claire is my goddaughter. I'll go watch her, Gran," Embry said. Claire Ateara was the infant daughter of Embry's favorite cousin, Quil Ateara.

"Rebecca's already expecting me. I'm going to finish the pies she was baking. Anyway, I was on the way to Bry's to drop these off." Emma shoved a large plastic bag into his arms. "Can you take these with you when you go later?"

Embry knew the bag was filled with leis. Emma liked to sell them at his restaurant, and Embry knew Bry's customers thought the flower necklaces added to the festivity of their evening out. He had long since gotten over his amazement over the fact that Emma Call spent most of her time making leis when she was a millionaire many times over. Her involvement with her flower gardens and gazeboes was more than just a hobby, flowers were an essential part of her personality.

"I'll see you at church tomorrow?" Emma asked Austin as she dug in her purse for car keys. She referred to the Kawaiaha'o Church where she volunteered a good deal of her time. She often convinced Austin into attending. Austin grudgingly went most Sundays, despite the fact that he was raised in Mexico and didn't understand a word of the Hawaiian language service.

Austin sighed and nodded.

"I won't even bother to ask if you'll be there," Emma said with a disapproving glance at Embry who just grinned.

"Just like your father," Emma muttered under her breath as she headed toward the door.

"I was in church for Clairebear's baptism," Embry called out.

"Claire's first birthday luau is next week! You haven't been to church in a year boy."

"I'm hearty Gran. I only require a dose of godliness every five years or so."

"Heathen," Emma said with an exasperated expression that segued into a fond smile. She pushed open the screen door.

Austin gave him an inscrutable look before he reached for the plastic bag Embry held. Embry chuckled when the older man carefully removed a brilliant white, yellow, and pink plumeria bloom from a lei and then ran out of the marina. He glanced out the screen door in time to see Austin tenderly tucking the flower behind his grandmother's ear. Emma beamed at him.

"I should take lessons from him," Embry muttered under his breath. Austin knew what he was doing when it came to the ladies.

"She's never going to slow down, that woman," Austin observed when he returned to the marina.

"Yeah, well, she says the same thing about you. When are you going to ask her to marry you anyway?"

Austin scowled. "A woman like her—she owns a quarter of the island. What could I bring to a marriage to Emma Call?"

Embry rolled his eyes at the old argument. "Yourself. That's all she wants."

"Yeah well there are a few people in your family who thinks Emma marrying me wouldn't be in her best interest."

"Fuck 'em," Embry replied flippantly to a topic that he actually took quite seriously. His grandmother's happiness—not to mention his friend Austin's—was no light affair. Still, he knew he couldn't push a character as stubborn as Austin. He set down the bag of flowers on the desk and glanced at the customer sign-in log for the day.

"Do I even want to hear the story about the damage on the Superboat?" Embry asked.

"Not really, I have it spelled out in the report, you want it?"

Embry nodded.

"That was one pretty lady I took out to your boat yesterday."

Embry grunted as he accepted the paperwork Austin handed him. "No one can argue that."

"More than just pretty though. She'll be back."

Embry realized he wasn't absorbing any of the report he was trying to read. He glanced at Austin's wrinkled face. "She's a vacationer, what makes you say that?"

Austin just shrugged his thin shoulders and exited out the back door.

Leah zipped up Rosalie's new sexy fuchsia dress. Both of them inspected her in the hallway mirror of Rosalie's suite. They'd had fun shopping all day for the perfect outfit for Rosalie's date this evening. She and Emmett had decided to venture out of the bedroom for a night out on the town.

"You look gorgeous," Leah proclaimed eventually. "Are you sure you're not going to break a bone dancing in those heels?"

"More likely to break one in the bedroom later on. Emmett likes me to keep on my heels when we fool around and things can get pretty…athletic."

Leah chuckled. "That sounds dangerous, nice but dangerous."

Rosalie's laughter faded. "Are you sure you're okay with me going out with him again tonight? I feel like a real bitch, abandoning you so much."

"The purpose of this vacation was for you to have a terrific time. I couldn't be more happy that you are."

Rosalie gave Leah an impulsive hug. "Thanks so much. If it weren't for you, I would have never met Emmett and ended up spending all my nights alone, thinking about Royce and crying myself to sleep."

"Well, we couldn't have that," Leah hesitated as she examined Rosalie's glowing face. "But… you're sure you're not falling for this guy right? Maybe it would have been better to try out one or two other guys from Hawaiian Nights."

"Leah you worry too much," Rosalie said distractedly as she turned to the side and examined her figure in profile. She inhaled and held her breath for a second before she exhaled, scowling at her curvy tummy. "Emmett is a sweetie, and he's fantastic in bed. He's patient and kind. But he'd not exactly Albert Einstein or anything. Not that I'm complaining. I just mean… Well, like I said, you don't have anything to worry about. I mean, come on… you can't actually imagine that I want to get permanently involved with a male escort. Shit, can you see me trying to explain that to Tia someday?"

"Some things are just better left unsaid between mother and daughter. I'm sure you'll feel the same about Tia's secrets someday."

"Don't even go there." Rosalie ruined her dire warning by joining Leah in laughter. "I just wish you could have had as much luck with your date the other night as I did with Emmett."

"I was very happy with my guest," Leah murmured.

"Really? You sure didn't act like it was anything special, and you never saw him again," Rosalie muttered as she reapplied her lipstick. She popped the tube back into her metallic evening bag. "I feel so guilty that you've been spending your nights alone."

"You shouldn't. I spend most of my nights alone. That's the norm, not the exception."

"Yeah, but we're on vacation in Hawaii. You're supposed to indulge the senses." Rosalie waggled her blonde eyebrows.

"Maybe I will venture out tonight."

Rosalie was clearly surprised. "You're going out alone?"

"Just for a drink maybe," Leah glanced at Rosalie's reflection in the mirror. "I'm a big girl. I should be able to handle it. And were leaving the island the day after tomorrow. Might as well enjoy it while I can."

Hunger pains urged him out of his office at Bry's at around eleven that night. He wandered into the kitchen, which was still operating at a frantic pace. Bry's did a booming late night business. His chef, Mike Newton, and his staff would be busy until the waiters and waitresses stopped taking food orders at midnight.

"Hey Bry. Jessica was just looking for you." Mike said as he dumped a handful of scallions into a pan and gave the steaming skillet a few quick jerks tossing around the colorful ingredients. "They sold all the leis, and she was wondering if you had any more."

"Damn. My grandmother gave me some, and I forgot to bring them when I came this evening. What's good tonight?" Embry asked as he peered into the many pans on the stove and myriad delicious smells wafted up to his appreciative nose. His stomach growled more vocally.

"If you're really hungry, the butterfish I bought for the special is out of this world. If not, the pesto grilled opah is nice and light."

"I wouldn't be here if I wasn't hungry," Embry replied with a grin.

A minute later Embry walked out of the kitchen with a plate of butterfish prepared in a wasabi, ginger, and cilantro sauce. It smelled so good that when he paused at the bar to get a glass of ice water, he couldn't wait to get back to his office. He took the seat that was always reserved for him at the crowded bar and asked Jared for utensils. He completely tuned out the lively crowd while he savored the decadently rich fish. As usual, Mike's culinary combinations orchestrated a sublime symphony on his tongue. The talented chef cost Bry a small fortune but the man was a genius.

"Guess it was good," Jared joked a few minutes later when he cleared Embry's empty plate.

"Don't tell Mike I inhaled it. He'll get an even bigger head."

Out of the corner of his eye he noticed Sam waving him from the front terrace where he sat at a table with a bleached blonde and Edward Masen.

Just fucking great.

Embry wasn't in the mood for the sophisticated crime boss. Embry waved back, pretending to interpret his cousin's gesture as a greeting instead of the beckoning that it was.

Jared laughed at Embry's comment, but he seemed preoccupied. His dark eyes fixed steadily on a moving target as he filled up Embry's ice water. His bartender saw a lot on any given day at Bry's. Jared was in his early thirties and possessed the aura of a wounded latin lover. Women seemed to adore his world weary sexuality. If something caught Jared's jaded eye, it must be worth looking at.

Embry glanced over his shoulder.

In a sea of brightly colored shirts and floral print dresses, she wore black. The blouse fastened around her neck, leaving her lithesome arms and silky looking shoulders bare. The soft fabric didn't cling in indecently to her breasts, but it ghosted them in a god awful sexy manner as she moved, hinting at their fullness and shape. His dick twitched—his and more than likely, just about every other guy's in the room. It was obvious she wasn't wearing a bra. She met his eyes, but her expression remained unreadable.

He held his breath as she slowly made her way toward him.

"Hello." Had she sounded a little breathless? Embry wondered. Hard to say given the noise level in the bar.

"You look like you're you to find some trouble." He quirked a brow at her.

Leah laughed. "I came looking for you."

"Like I said," he murmured quietly. He tapped at the ice in his glass with a straw, his eyes glued to her curving mouth. He couldn't believe she had just walked into his place looking hot enough to ramp up the testosterone in the room to record breaking levels, and cool enough to not give a fuck. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Jared was hovering in the vicinity, probably hoping for an introduction. Jared was one of the few friends he possessed who liked Leah's soulful music as much as he did, and he obviously recognized her.

"You're business is doing good," she said as she glanced around, her voice low and rich as premium scotch. "Not a seat in the house."

"It's full moon. People are out on the prowl. I could find you a seat, but it'd be a hell of a lot quieter than this. If you're looking for a party it might not be your thing."

She arched her brows. "I told you what I was looking for."

"Yeah, you did." He had been pretty damn gratified by her admission too. Surprised but pleasantly so.

He leaned over the bar. "Send Lauren out to the patio when you get a chance will you?"

Jared nodded grudgingly. He still stared at Leah, but Embry wasn't in the mood to introduce her. He didn't feel like sharing her, even in that small way. He was still reeling from the shock of turning around and being unexpectedly treated to the sight of her cool elegance amidst a sea of rowdy, half-drunk tourists.

I came looking for you.

Embry grabbed her hand and led her through the milling, standing crowd out to the front veranda, where they could walk easier amongst the seated patrons. Too late, he remembered that Sam and Edward were out there. His cousin stood up, his liquid black eyes glued on Leah.

"Sam, you're out early tonight. Edward nice to see you," Embry greeted as he shook both men's hands. He nodded at the blonde who had her red lips wrapped around a straw. She studied him with open curiosity as she sucked strong enough to hollow out her cheeks. His gaze lowered over enormous tits capped with nipples pointed enough to poke a guy's eye out. He quickly surmised she was one of Hawaiian Heat's dancers. Sam made a habit of sampling all the new strippers he hired.

"Yeah, well, Irina here wants to get to bed early tonight," Sam said suggestively, his dark eyes never leaving Leah's face. "And who do we have here?"

Embry hesitated, not liking his cousin's hungry stare. But Leah extricated her hand from his hold and held it out in greeting.

"Leah Clearwater," she said smoothly.

"I'm Embry's cousin, Sam. This is Irina and Edward Masen."

Embry saw Leah's face stiffen slightly when Sam gave his name, but she recovered almost immediately. She nodded a greeting to both Irina and Masen. "So… you're the one responsible for my getting to know Embry so well."

Sam's wide grin was as guileless as a child's. He looked first at Leah then at Embry then back at Leah again. "That's right. I'm so pleased it turned out. We aim to please at Hawaiian Nights. Isn't that right Irina?"

The blonde giggled and gave Embry the same look she probably gave her customers as she gyrated on the stage. He noticed Leah's eyelids narrowing in anger as she considered Sam. For a second Embry thought she was going to ream him out for breaching the confidentiality of his customers. It wasn't like Sam didn't deserve a dressing down, but Embry was relieved when Leah just studied his cousin with arched eyebrows, a sarcastic smile tilting her lips.

"Please join us Bry… Ms. Clearwater," Edward waved at the two empty chairs, his manner as suave and proprietary as if he owned Bry's himself. "We actually came here tonight hoping to see you Bry. Maybe you're heard that the position of liquor commissioner is about to become available?"

"Yea I did hear that," Embry replied in a friendly manner. "Kind of hard for the former commissioner to do the job from prison, I guess."

Edward shrugged elegantly. The guy was Ian Somerhalder smooth, Embry had to give him that. The people he fucked over probably thanked him politely after the fact.

"I was hoping you might consider taking on the position," Edward continued. "We could use a good man there, and it would be an ideal stepping stone for other jobs in public office."

Embry tried to hide his annoyance. He knew perfectly well the former liquor commissioner, who had been indicted for taking bribes from various Honolulu nightclubs and taverns, had been on Edward's payroll. Embry was about as likely to accept Edward's proposal as he was to shove his head in a hungry shark's mouth. Edward knew the exact same thing. The crime boss was just stalling. He obviously wanted to discuss something else with Embry, and that topic was more than likely the acquirement of a certain piece of Emma Call's land.

"I thank you for the offer, but as I've told you before, I'm not interested in public office. You'll have to excuse us. We'd like some privacy." Embry grabbed Leah's hand and pulled her along the terrace, leaving Sam with his mouth handing open at the abrupt dismissal.

Just as they reached the end of the tables, a hand reached out and grabbed his forearm. Embry clenched his teeth in annoyance being interrupted again.

"Bry Call? Look, honey it's him."

"Well I'll be damned it is," drawled the man sitting beside her. His Texas accent was as thick as his blonde hair. He had a sunburn and wore several flashy gold rings on his fingers. He stood and reached out a hand to Embry. "This is a mighty fine establishment you've got here young man. I watched you win every one of those medals in Sydney. Hell of a fight you put up for some of 'em."

Embry shook the man's hand and then did the same with the next man who stood, never releasing Leah. He dutifully asked how the party of four was enjoying themselves, wanting to get this over with as quickly as possible. When he saw one of the women eyeing Leah with interest, he stepped in front of her, sending a subtle message that while he may be on display, Leah was not. He chatted up the two couples with practiced ease for the next half minute, finally breaking away after recommending the mai tais and the chocolate soufflé.

Lauren was already at the table on the patio lighting a candle when Embry and Leah got there. She took their drink orders and hurried back inside. The noise of the busy restaurant was muted out here, as it was vying equally with the sound of the waves hitting the beach. He kept a few tables on the side patio for private use. The view of the beach wasn't as good as it was along the front veranda. He took one look at Leah's face cast in moon glow and candlelight, and doubted he would have glanced once at the ocean anyway.

For a moment neither of them spoke.

"So what did you and Rosalie do today?" he finally asked.

"We went shopping," she said with a small smile. "I'm not much for shopping, but it was fun."

He glanced down appreciatively at her moist shoulders. "It looks like you were out in the sun at some point."

"Believe or not, this tan is just from yesterday. And I thought the California weather would color my skin even more…"

Their eyes met briefly, and she looked away. He wondered if she, like him, thought of sitting in the lagoon while the sun gilded her naked body.

"So that was your cousin?" she asked.

Embry nodded.

"The one who sent you to my hotel room the other night?"

"Yeah," Embry admitted, looking away from her steady stare.

He'd been too horny and too irritated to feel any shame for his conspiracy with Sam to get into Leah's bed, but he felt a little guilty now. Thankfully she didn't scold him.

Lauren arrived and set the drinks on the table. Leah calmly took a sip after the waitress had left them alone again.

"That story you told those people over there about the mai tais…" her voice faded off.

"Yeah?" Embry prodded.

"Why didn't you tell them you were part Makah? You made it sound as if the drink only got the splash of Makah whiskey because your grandmother randomly visited Washington once," she murmured, puzzlement and humor playing across her expression.

He shrugged. "People have a fixed idea about what I should be like. I don't like to rob them of their fantasies."

She bit down on the large slice of pineapple that came in her drink as she studied him soberly. He trailed the thin rivulet of juice that trickled from her full lips to her chin with his gaze.

She took another bite of the fruit before she bothered to wipe off the juice. "So you made up a lie about it? Just because it's good for business?"

He paused in the action of reaching for his glass of iced tea when he registered her tone. "It's not a lie. My grandmother really did add the mix to her usual recipe for a mai tai after going to Washington. So what if I do tell the story to add some atmosphere to the restaurant?"

"And sell a few drinks?" she quipped.

"You have a problem with good old fashioned capitalism?"

"So that was the only reason your grandmother altered the recipe?" Leah queried back, completely unscathed by the edge of his irritation. "Because it strikes me as being a little more personal than that. She made it into a Makah, Polynesian blend. Very unique. I'm sure she must have been thinking of you when she did it."

Embry gave a bark of laughter. He didn't know whether to thank her or be offended. "My private life is my own. I don't feel there's a need to share the details with complete strangers."

She shook he r head. "Never mind, I just don't know how you do it."

"Do what?"

"Work in the tourist trade. It seems so…"

"What?" Embry growled softly when she stopped. "Fake?"

She met his gaze. "You really have to be 'on' a lot."

"Publicity is a must when you do what I do. I could say the same for your profession. You perform constantly."

"No. It's not the same at all. I sing what I want to sing, when I want to sing it. Plenty of people have tried to convince me to do stuff for a mainstream audience, but I've refused. The second I start doing that, it'll be like slavery."

Embry's eyebrows went up at her adamancy. He had never seen her so passionate… except when she was making love. "Don't you think you're being a bit black and white about it? Everybody makes small concessions for their career."

"I don't," she replied swiftly. "I'm a very private person."

Embry didn't want to insult her, but he couldn't help but grin widely. "Well, why don't you just tell me a few things you do bend a little for, Leah?" He placed his forearms on the small tabletop and leaned toward her. "Besides sex, that is."

Her mouth fell open. "Well, I enjoy… Do you really want to know?"

"I asked didn't I? What? Are you worried I'm making chitchat so you'll buy another drink?" he asked irritably.

She watched her fingers as she carefully wiped the condensation off the side of her glass. "No. More like because you feel like you have to before we have sex again." After an extended silence, in which Embry might have ground a layer of enamel off the back of his teeth, she looked up uneasily. "You shouldn't feel like you have to 'chichat' me up. It's not necessary for you to charm me… seduce me. We both want the same thing. You can just be yourself."

"Who says I wasn't being myself? Who says I wanted to have sex with you again?" he demanded, not bothering to hide his fury. Damn it, he couldn't even try and find out a little about her without her throwing up her walls.

"You said I knew where to find you. You said—"

"That you would have to play by my rules. And guess what? My rules are that we talk to each other like civilized human beings instead of being so mercenary about the whole damn thing. Having a normal conversation isn't the same as kissing ass, Leah." He stood abruptly and moved next to her chair. "Shit, if I hadn't heard you sing, if I hadn't fucked you, I would think there was a robot in there instead of a woman."

He stalked away from her down the narrow patio.

"Wait, Embry."

He paused against his better judgment.

"I'm sorry I just don't want to make this harder on anyone than it has to be."

"So your bitchiness was really an attempt at being nice?" he clarified sarcastically. "I'll recover quickly enough when you leave, Leah,"

"I have no doubt of it. I was actually referring to myself."

His mouth sagged open at her unexpected admission. Shit, this woman kept him on the starting block, hyper alert for the sound of the starting gun.

"When are you leaving the island?" The words were out of his mouth before he had the opportunity to censor them.

"The day after tomorrow."

He retraced his steps slowly. He touched the line of her perfect jaw with his fingertips. "There's still time then."

She didn't blink as she stared up at him from her sitting position. "That's why I came. Because there is still time," she replied in a hush whisper.

"If you come with me now, I want you to stay the night on my boat. You're mine until tomorrow evening." It surprised him a little that he had said it. But damn his spirit, he couldn't walk away from the challenge of her.

He saw her hesitate. "I came here with Rosalie."

He brushed his thumb across her lower lip and pressed into her wet, firm flesh. Her humid breath flowed across his fingers. His dick responded like she had exhaled along its naked length.

"I have the feeling your friend will be very understanding. What kind of friend wouldn't want to see you relax a little if they actually gave a damn about you?"

Her lip curved beneath his thumb. "I'm not as uptight as you seem to think I am, Embry."

"I'm just going by all the available evidence." His hand stretched around the elegant column of her throat. She wore her hair up, and he experienced a primitive urge to delve his fingers into it, and ruin her perfect, sleek knot. Instead, he nudged her head forward slightly until her chin came within inches of the fly of his shorts.

She stared up at him with that smooth, somber expression that he also wished he could shatter. The rapid flutter of her pulse next to his palm told him she wasn't as impassive as she appeared to be.

"I'm asking for twenty hours of your life. Nothing more. Nothing less. What do you say?" he asked gruffly.

He felt her throat constrict as she swallowed. "I'll leave earlier if you change your mind."

He grabbed her hand and pulled her up into a standing position. The sensation of her nipples pressing against his chest made him curse the twenty minutes it would take to get her to his boat. He kissed her softly first. But when he caught a hint of her scent, he recalled why he almost couldn't stop ravaging her sweet mouth yesterday, even when his dick was buried inside her tight, hot channel, ready to burst.

A minute later he lifted his head. Silver moon glow revealed her dazed expression.

"I'm not going to change my mind," he growled.

He took her hand and led her off the patio. The next twenty hours she was all his and the challenge was on.

So no lemons in this chapter, I just wanted to give more into why Embry is being an ass.

He's a hot ass, but I hope you understand him a little better. I know he's probably giving some of you guys whiplash, but if you don't know why yet you'll understand soon :)

The lemons will start up again next chapter though in full force... So get ready :D

I'm only updating this story today since it's the only one I had time for and i already have so much homework and two tests! Two!... boy do I miss the easy days of highschool...

But anyways Review :D