Roman
Madison wearing nothing but a towel was not what he’d been expecting to find when he walked through the door of her house and barged into her bathroom. Her thick hair had been up in the back. Loose curly strands gently framed her face. A girly fragrance floated in the air. Her golden skin was still damp from her bath and dewy drops of water streamed down in areas not yet touched by the towel she gripped tightly. So tight, in fact, that her breasts threatened to spill over the top. He knew she had long legs but never dreamed they would be this shapely. Even her toes were sexy, red polish dotting the ends. Growing aroused, he knew he needed to leave, now.
Arlo was supposed to have had her packed, ready to go, and out of here. Instead he decided to pack her things first. Give her time to finish her bath, Arlo had explained, trying to ease the tension. He knew Roman would be pissed as shit when he had to come out here.
Hell, he didn’t have time for this. She was a distraction and one he couldn’t afford. He was going to keep her safe and find out who was behind the destruction of her shop. Or the bigger picture in the scheme of things, find out who might be moving into their territory.
Roman wanted her, needed her, but it was not the time for that. Things had been so much simpler when they first met last fall. It was important to keep his head in the game. Making her his own would have to wait.
“Get dressed now.” It was best to remain angry at her right now, but desire and possession overtook him. He wanted her and damn everything else to hell. His fingers itched to rip the towel from her body. Roman had to get out of here before he took her slippery and wet up against the bathroom wall. That was definitely not how he wanted their first time together to be.
“Don’t order me around. Get out of my house.” Her deep blue eyes were wide and her cheeks pink and flushed. He secretly hoped it was because of him and not her recent soak in the tub.
“You’re coming with me.” He stepped out of the bathroom to address Arlo and gain relief from the tightening in his pants.
“Do you have her things packed yet?” he barked.
Arlo stood perplexed in front of her closet, a sweater in one hand and a pair of sweatpants in the other. If Roman wasn’t in such a hurry, the sight of Arlo trying to figure out what to put in her suitcase would have had him bent over in laughter, but this was serious and knowing Madison was only in a towel in the next room made him hot all over again.
“Uh, it might be best if she picked out her own stuff.” His best friend had never looked so stressed.
Poking his head back into the bathroom, he narrowly missed being beamed by a roll of toilet paper. Madison still hadn’t moved. “That’s all you’ve got, sweetheart?” He smirked and leaned against the broken door frame.
“Get out.” She screamed and whipped a jar of lotion at his head. This time, he wasn’t as fast. The container cracked him right on the bone below his eye. That would surely leave a mark. He raised his fingers to his now throbbing cheek. Damn, that hurt.
Roman exhaled, feeling his cheekbone throb and counted to ten in his head. Wandering back in her bedroom, he spied a robe on the bed. Determined, he grabbed the robe and headed to the bathroom for the last time.
“You have two choices. Either put on this robe or keep the towel. One way or the other, you are leaving with me in ten seconds.” His eyes narrowed. “You decide.”
Madison stepped closer, reaching cautiously for the robe. Finally, he breathed a sigh of relief.
Suddenly, everything went black. What the hell? Roman was blinded by soft fleece and small hands thrust at his chest. Madison had thrown the robe over his head and pushed. His shoes slipped on the water soaked floor and he fell back against the tub just narrowly missing landing in the water. “Son of a…” He cursed, flinging the robe from his head.
“Arlo, grab her.” Roman’s voice was at an ominous low.
Regaining his feet, Roman rushed after her. Arlo had her by the arm, stopping her. There was no escape now.
“Put her things in the car. We’ll be right out,” Roman snapped.
Arlo, happy to get the hell out of there, released her, grabbed her haphazardly filled bags, and left the room in a hurry.
Madison stood proudly before Roman, smug and defiant. She wasn’t giving an inch, and he couldn’t help but admire her will.
He held the robe out one last time. “Like I said, we are leaving, so wear this or go naked. I don’t care.”
In a stunning display of defiance, the beautiful woman in front of him narrowed her eyes. Dramatically, she dropped the towel. His heart stopped and the front of his pants constricted again. She snatched the forgotten garment from his hands and quickly donned the robe.
With a determined glare on her face, she stomped her foot then folded her arms across her chest.
“I’m not going anywhere. This is my home. I’ve been bullied enough for one day.”
Roman chuckled and wished she’d kept the robe off. In a swoop, he bent down and tossed her over his shoulder, fireman style. Madison squealed and kicked with her feet.
“You can have your way some other day, but right now, like it or not, you’re coming with me.”
“Put me down,” Madison screamed.
“Not today, sweetheart.”
“This is kidnapping,” she cried. “You’re no better than Diego. I thought you were different.”
That comment cut like a knife to his heart. They were nothing alike. Diego was a vicious abuser of women. Roman stopped at the front door and set her on her feet. He kept both hands on her forearms to keep her immobile.
“You’re coming with me. Now, you can either have your neighbors see you be carried out over my shoulder or you can come willingly.”
She opened her mouth but he stopped her with a gentle tap to her lips with his finger. “I’m trying to protect you. The person who trashed your business and threatened you may come after you again. This is for your own good.” Her eyes misted and his heart ached to pull her into his arms and promise that everything would be okay. “Are you willing to take that chance?”
Madison wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.
“What’s it going to be?” He had her backed into a corner figuratively. Madison looked torn.
She stomped over to the closet and flung open the door. She mumbled under her breath, but he couldn’t make out what was uttered. As she threw on a coat and slipped on a pair of Uggs, he thought he made out a word or two, bastard, asshole. He’d been called worse, but hearing it from Madison’s pretty bowed lips stung like hell.