Daredevil's Mistress

Chapter 7

Shaken, she lifted her head to thank her rescuer. Her eyes met the brilliance of Cody’s gaze. Searing heat penetrated the soft material of her shirt where his hands remained on her waist. “Thank…you,” she croaked.

“Pleasure’s all mine, Lady.” He sounded genuinely pleasant then dropped his hands and opened his mouth again. “I’m sure used to women fallin’ for me.” His easy smile remained self-assured and his eyes glimmered in sardonic amusement.

She bristled instinctively. Dammit. Is there no end to his arrogance? “As charming as you think you are, falling into your arms is highly unlikely even if you were the last man on earth.” Her teeth clenched in frustration.

“I wouldn’t count on it.”

His warm breath caressed her brow. He stood too close for comfort, and Samantha tensed. Her tummy muscles tightened. The man emanated power; that much was evident. Boy, he smelled so damn good. Rich musky mint with a subtle hint of spice flared her nostrils. She wanted to bury her nose in his neck and breathe him in slowly. Without warning, her pussy lips twitched, and her nipples tingled; the brazen desire alarming. Wrestling her emotions, she tried calming her heated body against piquant sensations she didn’t feel comfortable exploring with this man. “You sure do flatter yourself, Mr. Bentley.”

“I beg to differ. I’m well versed in the art of womanly manipulation,” he said softly.

“As much as I am enjoying this little tête-à-tête, I think my company is, er…shall we say desired elsewhere. Now if you’ll excuse me…” Samantha brushed past him and ran down the landing.

****

What the fuck just happened. Cody stared at the swing of her hips and tight ass walking away until she disappeared down the stairs. That sure as hell is a first. Usually, Deborah’s pals meant trouble, nothing more than a damn annoyance. They flirted with the ranch hands, created an uproar which typically ended in drunken brawls. There were times he hustled the guys to bring order to the ranch. Against his better judgment, he got sucked into a relationship with one girl. When it ended on a sour note, he insisted Deborah meet her friends away from the ranch.

He didn’t plan to put himself through that complication again. However, when his sister asked permission for a college mate from South Africa to visit, he relented. A relative stranger would be wary. Nothing prepared him for this foreigner though. An uncanny pull and he sensed it. How strong? Wasn’t something he intended exploring right now or ever.

Cody crossed the hall and entered his room. While his brain processed what had just transpired, he tried to find fault. He couldn’t. His body and brain conspired to betray his usual calm. This little vixen was unlike any of the other girls he previously met. Her eyes were radiant, sparkling green. The kind of green which hinted at the mysterious beauty beneath a stormy sea, emitting dangerous sparks when crossed. Her hair, long black and glossy, imitated spun silk perfectly. As if that wasn’t an allure in itself. Her personality, sure as hell hinted at a sassy spitfire to be reckoned with.

Damn, different is an understatement.

He flopped backward on the bed and shook his head. Hands clasped behind his head, Cody stared at the ceiling. Definitely in a class of her own—beautiful, fiery and headstrong. Her clothes appeared one size too big but didn’t hide the outlines of a clearly voluptuous body augmented by an air of innocent sexiness she radiated. His cock stirred. The blatant arousal appalled his surefire stance.

The scent of her clung to his shirt, a smell defined as unadulterated sin in a bottle. Bringing an arm to his nose, he inhaled deeply. A whiff of scented wildflower mixed with a touch of cinnamon and earthy pine. The fragrance reminded him of the creosote bush after a fresh summer rain. Abruptly, he stopped. “What the hell? Wake up, dammit.” This is no time to be caught with your pants down…remember. He sat up, rolled his neck, and stretched.

Sophisticated or the hired help, women were nothing but trouble. Innocence belied their true form. He experienced it first-hand. Way too early to presume she was any different. Women were like cats. Despite their docile demeanor, their claws eventually appeared even if it were for the tiniest scratch. As far as he was concerned, a scratch remained a scratch and it hurt; sometimes a little and sometimes a whole lot more.

His mother started off as his father’s hired help before she became his wife, a position she used and abused which ultimately hurt his father in the process. He picked up the pieces of his father’s broken heart and raised his siblings as their only parent.

A colossal idiot, he ended up in a similar relationship as his parents with Deborah’s friend. Only he was a lot quicker to the draw than his father. He recognized the wiles of a woman with a certain ease. Don’t go there, Cody. A mental warning clanged relentlessly, and steered him away from the precipice of memories he stashed away in a dark abyss, never to see the light of day again.

Rising, he uttered a caustic laugh and headed for the bathroom.

****

Her watch read two a.m. when Samantha, Chance, and Reece eventually returned. As they climbed out the Double-cab and trailed up the stairs to the porch, Reece uttered a loud yawn. “Night folks, I need some serious sleep,” he mumbled between yawns.

“Goodnight,” Samantha and Chance said in unison.

Reece unlocked the door and slipped quietly inside. “Thank you, Chance, for an awesome evening.”

“It sure was. I’m glad you joined us.” Chance leaned forward and planted a soft kiss on her cheek.

Samantha blushed. “Goodnight.”

“Sweet dreams, sweet Samantha,” he whispered then stepped away down the stairs toward the ranch quarters at the back of the house. She entered the living room amid a soft chuckle and tiptoed toward the stairs.

“Must’ve been some night, Lady?”

Samantha jumped at the deep voice. Fingers splayed across her heart in fright, she spun on her heels. “What the…?” She stiffened her face hot. Cody lay casually sprawled across the large three-seat sofa. “Do you make it a habit of spying on your guests, Mr. Bentley?”

He switched on the large ornate side lamp. His gaze dropped, slid over her, stopped at the ‘v’ of her tight denims then meandered up over her exposed midriff. Unhurried, his gaze paused on the white tank top and grazed across the outline of her breasts. Next, as if in an open challenge and with a smug cock of his brow, Cody’s gaze jumped to her face.

Torn between arousal and anger, Samantha silently cursed herself for the discarded shirt she donned when they left, now stuffed behind the seat in Reece’s pickup. Then Cody offered her an odd smile. His frank stare momentarily frazzled Samantha and appropriate words defeated her normally sassy mouth.

“You ain’t exactly my guest now, are you? Seeing as this is my house, I’m answerable to no one and do as I please.” His emphasis clearly insinuated she wasn’t welcome.

His tone irked her into a frenzied wreck. Samantha fought the annoyance yet it stayed on the tip of her tongue to tell him go to hell. She restrained herself. “Thank you for the clarity. I’ll be sure to keep you abreast of my plans so as not to disturb you,” she said through clenched teeth.

He sprang out of his seat with lightning speed. Samantha held her breath catching sight of his undisguised irritation. Cody closed the distance between them, and she found herself the object of an aggressive stare.

Damned if you do and damned if you don’t flittered through her mind as Samantha repelled the urge to take a step back. The intimate proximity of his body flustered her and she suffered that deep impulsive stir once more. Her nipples ached and suddenly hardened. The turn-on tripped her up. It took sheer effort not to clench her thighs instead she scrunched her fists. Her nails dug into her palms.

Curse him for having this effect. Those eyes of his penetrated her defenses. Probably read her thoughts a little too well. “While I’m honored to be in your company, I’d rather go to bed,” she said at last, her tone dripped sweet sarcasm. Samantha sidestepped him, but he gripped her arm.

“I reckon you’d do well to stay away from my workers, Lady.” His tone filled with an alarming softness.

Fuming, she yanked her arm free and resisted the impulse to slap away his arrogance, instead rasped, “And you’d do well to remember that I am not your sister. I will see whomever I please.”

Visibly startled, he stepped back. His look of disbelief was almost comical.

Not waiting for a reply, she hurried away, reaching her room in a sprint and closed the door firmly behind. Puffing hard, Samantha leaned against it and waited. Almost afraid he would follow. Did the man pride himself on getting his way?

Moving away from the door, she imagined his surprise stemmed from the fact he hadn’t expected a stranger calling him out on his brash behavior toward his sister. Her words probably stirred a hornet’s nest for Deborah, and there’d be repercussions for her no doubt. While Samantha’s desire to hurt him remained strong, it seemed her words did far more harm than a slap her itching hand would’ve done. Perhaps she caught him off guard, perhaps not. Whatever the case, she achieved some sort of impact. In the bathroom, she eyed her flushed face in the mirror. Don’t allow him to annoy you. You’re strong.

Samantha stepped into the shower and slowly soaped her body. The hot water massaged her into calmness. Touching her cheek, she recalled Chance’s soft lips, yet her reflections drifted involuntarily to Cody and the sultry ache he initiated deep inside.

His sheer magnetism concealed by overt anger driving her, and everyone away. She fought the man yet couldn’t understand the thumping pulse, her ragged breathing, the tightened tummy muscles, or the subconscious crave within her core. This was unchartered waters, new reactions, and new sensations. It scared her a little, probably a lot more than she cared to admit.

She shivered, silenced a moan.

Damn he’s beautiful…powerful…physically sizzling…curt…insolent…obnoxious.

God, blunt to the point of nastiness. Is he generally rude, or only to me? His words more than hinted he wasn’t the type of man easily thwarted by a woman. And little ol’ Samantha rocked his boat, not once but thrice in one day.

“Watch your back, girl. He’ll come after you with his guns blazing,” she warned with a giggle. Barely two days into her holiday and she made an absurd enemy of her friend’s brother? Could things get more complicated?