Author's Note: Check out the pictures of where Jacob has taken Nessie at my profile page — the house pictures and such. It's beautiful, and would make you wish you were Nessie.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything.
CHAPTER THREE
And I will never try to deny that you are my whole world
'Cause if you ever let me go I would die
So I won't front, I don't need another woman
I just need all or nothing
'Cause if I got that then I'll be straight
Baby, you're the best part of my day
- Chris Brown, With You
Jacob ground his jaw hard enough when Nessie pulled against his hold that he thought he might break a molar.
"I want to know where we're going."
She had no idea what type of fire she was playing with and it was best to keep it that way . . . for now.
Narrowing his eyes, he kept his voice controlled. "I said, you'll find out when we get there."
"I won't go with you unless I know where we're going."
"Did you think I was giving you a choice?"
Nessie looked startled, her mouth forming a delicate moue. "There are always choices, and I'm choosing not to go with you. So forget it!"
"But I just told you, Nessie. You don't have a choice."
"I'm not going with you, Jake!"
He laughed, listening to the tremor shaking her voice. "But you want to."
A telltale blush highlighted the oval shape of her face. "That doesn't mean I should."
Nessie stood so close to the precipice of desire, she was bound to plummet. He didn't want to hurt her. The gleam in her crystal brown eyes made him yearn to hold her close, assure her everything would be alright, but he couldn't let this situation continue on any longer.
Regretting that there wasn't another way, he lifted her chin so her gaze was leveled with his. "Is this all you have with you?" he asked, inclining his head toward the red leather bag lying on the pavement.
"Is this all you have with you?" he asked again, enunciating each word.
"Yes," she whispered, trying to avert her eyes, but not, he noted, attempting to pull away from his body.
The first step in overcoming her resistance had been accomplished.
Since he had met Nessie, that fateful night over a month ago, he'd taken it upon himself to discover everything about her. He'd watched her enough to know when she was discontent, angered, or worried. He also knew, first hand, when she was pleased, happy and excited.
Right now, though, she looked scared, aroused and desperate.
He'd cataloged each of her expressive features in his mind, reviewing them at his leisure, wondering what chemical compositions in her body made her act the way she did.
Feisty and bold. That was the way he would describe his beautiful and spirited lover. She had a temper. She was determined when needs be, and she was loyal to her friends. All those qualities were to be admired . . . cherished.
As he stared into her unturned face, he knew he was the only man for her. His soul called to hers. At night, when the ambient sounds of the city would quiet, his mind and body reached for hers.
He wanted Nessie with him . . . forever.
No other woman would do.
He knew what days she worked at the Fuego, so then and only then would he come to the club. He never danced with any of the painted face beauties, he kept his whole focus on Nessie, waiting and watching.
She'd come, see him and leave. That had been the pattern at first.
The few times she did stay, she didn't dance with anyone, but after a couple of weeks had passed, she began to take a few customers behind the smoky glass leading to the private couches.
Each time she disappeared behind the barrier with some intrigued, following fool, he had to restrain himself from going in after her.
He knew those moments were meant to scare him, hurt him. The few times they'd spoken in the intervening weeks, Nessie always had a choice repertoire of curse words and platitudes lined up.
The last time they'd spoken, he told her what he would do if she ever danced for another man, or on stage, again. His words had been hard, cruel even, but he'd been deadly serious. He'd known, even then, that he put her in an unenviable position. Of course, she had to work, but the time was fast approaching to bring her rebelliousness to heel, and Jacob felt pushed to the limit.
Up until tonight, she'd followed his dictates.
Tightening his jaw with suppressed fury, Jacob thought back to the sight of her lithe, enthralling body ascending to the stage. He had, at first, felt a consuming surge of lust, but when his gaze roamed around the room, looking into the eyes of the men staring at her. His desire had turned into a rage.
She'd defied him, pulling the very card that had been saving her ass all along. He had told her there would be consequences, now she was going to find out for herself.
"Get your keys and your purse."
Several moments passed but Nessie didn't move.
"Fine, then, we'll leave it here," Jacob growled, pulling her away.
"Wait. I-I'll get them," she muttered, retrieving her handbag.
Unerringly, his gaze fell to her heart-shaped ass and his cock twitched with desire.
Jacob knew, deep down inside his soul, every portion of her body was made for him. He could never have enough of her, and what he felt for Nessie revolved around more than just sex and domination.
He nodded toward her car. "Lock the doors," he commanded.
Mutinously, she raised her hand, pointing the electronic opener and triggering the locks.
Jacob smiled. "Good girl," he murmured. "You're learning."
IllI
"Wake up, my Nessie."
Startled, Renesmee immediately woke, twisting in the plush leather seat, pinned by the safety restraint crisscrossing her torso.
Wiping a speck of sleep from her eyes, she looked past the open car door at the line of trees reaching up to the emerging dawn. Drops of dew twinkled from the leaves, and in the distance she could hear the squeak of birds crying aloud. The fresh scent of unpolluted air teased her nostrils.
Looking around, Renesmee surmised that they must have been driving for a long time. They'd left the club around midnight, but already the bright haze from the sun filtered around, making her blink.
"Where are we?"
"At my brother's cabin in Mammoth Lakes."
Renesmee frowned, her brows creasing.
What the hell? Mammoth had to be at least six hundred miles from the club.
"What are we doing here?" she asked, still fastened to her seat, her hands resting in her lap, fingers twitching.
Jacob leaned his head to the side, peering at her. "Get out of the car," he ordered.
Staying silent, Renesmee observed his rude behavior with mute resistance.
"Don't make me carry you inside. I guarantee you'll not like the results if I do."
Resting one muscled arm against the roof of the vehicle, Jacob blocked any escape she might have thought to make. As she raised her gaze, Renesmee stared into his face for a brief moment before running her eyes down the rest of his body.
Jacob looked rumpled — well as rumpled as a rich and powerful man could look — in his dark grey jeans and expensive black, buttoned shirt. His hair bore the distinct resemblance of someone who had spent hours running fingers through it. But his black eyes were sharp, alert. He didn't look tired in the least.
More moments passed as Renesmee debated whether or not she should get out of the car. Again, her gaze roamed around the lush, green scenery, the cackle of wildlife echoing in her ears.
Sighing, conceding this first round to Jacob, Renesmee undid her seat belt and lifted her stiff legs, flexing at the knee before stepping on the crunchy ground beneath her feet. She wobbled, shuddering with fatigue. She hadn't slept in a passenger seat since —
Banishing the errant thought, she looked up at Jacob. "Is force the only way you know?"
"It's the only way I know with you. Now please let's get into the house. It's cold out here."
"Don't make me think you're suffering." Renesmee glared at him. "I know you're not cold."
"No, but it is time to go inside. I'm not going to let you sit out here all day."
"Why not?"
"Because I said so. Now move it."
Renesmee rolled her eyes before stepping under the fixture of his arm. "You were a bully in school, weren't you? A big mean, bully who stole other kid's lunch money for the hell of it, right?"
Ignoring the spate of laughter behind her, Renesmee walked up the driveway, careful to keep her features poised. The imposing structure took her breath away.
A huge log cabin, like something from the prairie days of old, stood nestled amongst the magnificence of nature. Painted in a light brown color, offsetting the rich greenery, the house brought forth ideas of home and hearth. Everything about the place beckoned to easier, softer times of the past. The half circled of logs lining the frame, the winging bench gracing the front corners of the porch, swaying haplessly with the wind, the thick-framed windows placed strategically around the exterior. Modern, yet aged, Renesmee had never seen a more beautiful building.
"This place is magnificent," she wondered aloud, impressed.
"My brother and I helped to build it," Jacob answered, pride evident in his tone.
"You and . . . Jared built this?" she asked, unable to stop the disbelief in her voice.
"We didn't do it all by ourselves, but we did spend an entire year here hammering, sawing and lifting."
Shaking her head, Renesmee glanced at him. "Why?"
"Because we both needed it," he said simply.
There was more behind his quick retort that Jacob let on, Renesmee knew, but she let it go because she already liked him too much. More knowledge about him would make it harder to let him go, and she would have to let him go.
A cold wind blew through the trees, shaking leaves and dislodging pinecones. Renesmee rubbed her bare arms, goose bumps rising along her flesh. Stepping forward, she looked over the house once more, before turning her gaze toward the forest in the background.
Turning back toward Jacob, she lifted her chin, gathering her strength. "I don't know why you brought me here. I won't be your little woman."
"But you're already my woman, Nessie," he disagreed, closing the gap between them, his heated hands caressing and warming her skin. "I don't know what I have to do to convince you of it, but I am determined. I know what I want. And . . . I want you."
Renesmee laughed. "This isn't the Cro-Magnon era. You can't just drag me off by my hair. I have a job, school . . . and things I need to do."
"Tell me, Nessie. Look at me and tell me you don't shut your lids at night and see me behind them. Tell me, honestly," he paused, grasping hold of her cold hands, "but you have to look me in the eyes and tell me this."
A rush of air escaped from her lungs, mixing with the howling wind. "I can't deny that, Jacob. I-I can't say that I don't think of you, but this . . . thing between us. That's all it is. Just a thing," she whispered.
"It's more than that, Nessie."
"Jesus, Jake. I don't know what to say! You want me to tell you that I can't stop thinking about you . . . then fine. I can't stop thinking about you. But none of that matters! You and I can't be together. This . . ." Renesmee yanked her arms from his grasp, putting some distance between them. "This isn't going to work! I have a life a-and it doesn't include you."
Jacob clenched his fist, his breath whistling through his teeth.
Afraid she had pushed him too far; Renesmee took a hasty step back.
"Your life and mine are threaded together, Nessie. Believe me, I've thought about it. I will have you. There's nothing you can do to stop it."
"What if I want to stop it?"
Jacob smiled, his pearly white teeth straight and glistening. "You are most welcome to try."
Renesmee expected that answer, but still she frowned at him, hoping to convey her displeasure.
For as long as she had known Jacob, his dominance, determination and zeal were the most glaring aspects of his personality. She'd known that, yet still had thrown a gauntlet to him the first evening they'd met . . . Five thousand dollars for a dance.
That's what brought her to this juncture. Had she heeded Kim's fraught tension that fateful night, and turned around to head back toward the dressing room, she wouldn't be standing here today. But she'd been drawn, almost against her will, toward him, and from that day forth, things had never been the same.
Her gaze moved over Jacob, and tingles coursed down her spine.
At the time, she'd denied the feeling to herself, and Kim, but later when he kept coming back to the club, she couldn't stop the feelings from taking control. Nevertheless, the fear of his encompassing nature allowed her to keep her distance.
Now, as she stood here looking at him, a scant three feet separating them, Renesmee wondered what it was about Jacob that had made her step to him so boldly?
She'd spent a lifetime raised in the school of hard knocks. She knew danger when she saw it, knew when to confront, when to retreat.
So, why did you ever go up to him in the first place?
The question in her mind begged to be answered, but Renesmee shook her head, turning away from Jacob to look back at the cabin.
"I have to go back on Monday. If you want to have a weekend fling . . . fine, but this can't go any further. I-I don't want it to go any further. I can't be the person you want."
The sound of crunching gravel sounded behind her. Lowering her head to her chest, she waited as his rich fragrance of spicy, tantalizing cologne surrounded her.
Arms like steel bands crossed her chest, nestling under her breasts, pulling her close to a heated source of warmth . . . and comfort.
"We'll see about that."
The heated words were whispered across her ear and it was as though a storm of anxiety released in her body. She bowed down to the feelings, afraid and beguiled.
She couldn't help herself.
Again her gaze lifted toward the vivid, encompassing scene around her, and the severity of the situation finally dawned on Renesmee.
She was alone with a forceful, demanding and dominant man, one she was drawn to even as everything in her tried to resist.
If she couldn't stop Jacob from taking control of her life, no one would be able to save her.
No one.
Sneak-preview of the next chapter:
Renesmee shook her head. "I'm not going to familiarize myself with your house."
"Jared actually owns it, but over the years it's become a retreat for the entire family."
"I'm not family, though, am I?" she grumbled. "You and I both know why we are here, and it's not for rest and relaxation."
"Give it a break, will you?" he sighed. "If I only wanted to fuck you, we could have stayed in that parking lot."
-Don't forget to check out the pictures.-
