She took his hand and placed it on her chest. “Feel what my heart is saying.” Her heart was racing, and she felt hot and cold at the same time. Mustering her courage, Scarlett moved his hand from her heart to her breast. “Let me show you,” she whispered against his lips before claiming possession of his mouth.

She was in control of the moment, and he surrendered to her gladly, following her where she led him. It didn’t matter that her eyes hadn’t adjusted to the dimness of the room. She was drowning in darkness. Ready to drown in Carter again. His breath was warm against her cheek as he drew her toward him.

His hands were firm and strong, tugging at her waist.

“I want you, Scarlett,” his voice was deep. It sent a shiver along her spine.

She nodded, wanting his touch. Burning on the inside for him.

Everything seemed more erotic in the dark. As if what she was about to do was ten times more exciting. It was easier to let go without the lights. It was easier to surrender to him. To give in to the impulse. To the scorching need between her legs. Let the craving he had started the first time he touched her, come to the surface again.

“Say it,” he commanded. “What do you want me to do to you?”

Her breath hitched. Her chest tightened. Carter pressed for something she didn’t know if she could give him.

“I want more,” she whispered.

His thumb traveled over her bottom lip, gently pushing into her mouth. Scarlett whimpered and sucked lightly.

“More what?” he asked. His free hand roamed along the small of her back, snaking up her shirt, and unclasping her bra.

By now she had eagerly leaned into him, gasping for his connection. His thumb made a trail over her lips.

“Tell me.”

“I-I want you.”

Even in the dark she knew he was grinning. That irresistible sexy grin. His blue eyes blazing for her.

He groaned into the side of her neck. “You’re the only thing I could think about all day, Scarlett. I was so worried about you, but now that you’re back there’s only one thing I can think of. Being inside you again. Fucking you until you come with my name on your lips.”

“Oh God.” Her knees trembled. If Carter’s arms hadn’t been around her she wasn’t sure if she wouldn’t have fallen.

“Is that what you want?”

“Yes, oh yes. So much.”

As soon as the words were in the air, Carter peeled the shirt from her body, taking with it the bra she had been wearing. He planted a kiss on her shoulder and along her collarbone, before his tongue grazed her breast.

“These are so perfect,” he growled.

Scarlett marveled at how her body responded to him. She ran her fingers through his hair while he toyed and teased her nipple, coaxing it to harden and perk in his mouth. She arched backward, sending her breast forward, abandoning shyness. Throwing logic away as he moved to the other side, flicking his tongue over the tight nub.

She sat before him in nothing but a pair of cotton panties. White. Something that used to represent her pureness. Her innocence.

Since she had slept with Carter, she didn’t know if that applied to her anymore. She wanted things she didn’t think she was supposed to want. She ached for his body. Longed for pleasure she didn’t know existed before she shared his bed.

He blew a hot breath over the fabric.

“Lie down.”

Scarlett laid down on the four-poster bed. The columns towered over her, but there was no time to take in the richness of her surroundings. Carter inched forward on his knees, leaning into her heat. His finger slid along the fabric, raking it to the side before his tongue circled between her folds.

“Ohh,” she cried.

He groaned with pleasure, “so fucking sweet.”

Scarlett bucked as he pushed a finger inside her as his tongue swirled over her clit. Her hips jutted with the jolt of lightning he shot between her legs. In and out, he pushed, pumping faster. The orgasm climbed higher and higher. She thrashed on the bed, out of control, unable to restrain the sensations sweeping through her veins.

“Oh, Carter…I can’t. I can’t.”

“Feel it, enjoy it.” His fingers latched on the corners of the cotton seam and Scarlett heard the panties rip from her hips just as the orgasm came to an epic peak. She arched from the bed, soaring with bliss. Her legs trembled. Her breath was erratic as the vibrations shook her from her core.

He never let up, pumping his fingers inside her drenched walls while his mouth worked magic over her clit.

The soothing afterglow began to lull through her limbs, when Carter moved forward on the bed, kicking her legs to the side with his knees. She heard the zipper slide on his jeans.

Her stomach clenched with the anticipation of his cock. His beautiful wide cock. It had filled her with a kind of satisfaction she was now addicted to. She had to have it. Had to have him inside her.

She reached for the hem of his shirt, dragging it over his sculpted shoulders and arms. She brushed over the raised marks of his scars. She leaned forward, kissing his arms, pressing her soft lips into his skin.

He moaned.

She didn’t care about the scars. She didn’t care about the past. The only thing that mattered was what was between them in this exact moment. The moment when his skin glided against hers. The moment when he pushed into her body, taking her to another universe. Filling her with pleasure.

His mouth covered hers with a hungry kiss. Their tongues twined as Carter lowered his body to fit against hers. His fingers tangled through hers, taking her hands over her head. There was something freeing about giving herself to him this way. The beauty in her vulnerability. The gift that she wanted to give him over and over.

He nudged her knees wider, and she sighed when she felt the tip of his cock rest at her entrance. Just one thrust and he’d be inside her. One breath and he’d fill her.

He hovered over her.

“Please,” she begged. “Please, Carter.” She didn’t recognize her voice. She was breathy and raspy. She thought she even sounded sexy.

“I’m not letting you out of this room tonight,” he promised. “Not out of this bed. Not out of my arms. I have to fuck you until the sun comes up. Do you understand?”

“God, yes. Yes.” She breathed, eager for all of it. But most of all for the rush of heat his cock would give her. The fire that burned between them.

With a sudden thrust Carter plunged inside her.

“Oh fuck,” he growled.

There was no more hesitancy. No more doubt. She wanted him to feel all the ways he made her feel good. Her hips bucked with each one of his thrusts. She clenched around his cock, gripping it with all her energy. He felt so amazing. So satisfying. So fulfilling.

The pace quickened as they melted into each other. His body grinding into hers. She clasped his hands, feeling the weight of his chest rubbing over her sensitive nipples. It was all too much, too fast. There was another orgasm on the edge, ready to crash and burn through her blood. She thought she could build up a resistance, but there was no such thing where Carter was concerned. It was as if his body was made to give her this. To show her carnal desire. To set her skin on fire. To torch the place between her legs no other man had ever known.

He panted in her ear. “I meant it. All night. Like this.”

She nodded, but knew the walls were crumbling. The barrier was gone. The orgasm ripped through her as she screamed Carter’s name to the ceiling. Like rapids, it rushed through her veins, spreading white hot heat.

She wanted it to last. She wanted to hold on to every shred of joy his cock pumped into her. The way her body fit with his. How she felt safe and protected in his arms. Worshipped in a way no man had dared before.

She felt the dew on her skin and the heat radiating from his chest. Just when she thought she was spent and all her energy was gone, she heard the deep stirring in his breath. He was on the edge.

She looked in his eyes, wishing she could see all the mesmerizing shades of blue. His thrusts grew more powerful. More urgent. More pleasurable. He hit deep inside her walls.

“Fuck,” he groaned as he stiffened. Then one. Two. Three more pumps and he collapsed sweaty and out of breath.

Her eyes closed. The only sound in the room was the racing beat of their hearts.

“I’m falling in love with you,” he said as he laid down next to her.

Scarlett knew it was a big step for him. She let his words fill her heart as he filled her body, and then she was lost in a vast ocean of love and desire, drowning in her own satisfaction.

“I have to be honest with you.”

Scarlett turned her naked body so she could look into Carter’s blue eyes. “Okay.”

“I am worried how you’ll feel after I’ve completely destroyed your father.”

“He might get the money for the house.” It seemed unlikely, since she had no clue how her father would accomplish such a miracle. “After he pays you what he owes you, your business is finished. I’m not going to hold a business deal against you.”

He shook his head. “It’s more than business, Scarlett. My dealings with Terini are very personal, and I won’t be satisfied until I’ve seen him reduced to the lowest point a man can reach.”

“But why?” She needed to know the truth. Why Carter’s family hated him so much.

“It’s not for you to know,” he said simply. “You must understand that I will do my best to ruin your father, and there’s nothing you can do to change that. I won’t let anything interfere with my revenge, not even my growing feelings for you.”

“What if I don’t accept that?” asked Scarlett, raising her head proudly.

“There can be no future for us,” Carter answered baldly, but there was sorrow in his eyes.

Feeling pressured, Scarlett slid from the bed, taking the sheet with her. “I don’t know if I can stand by and watch you tear my father down. I love you, but unless I can understand this unreasonable hatred you harbor for him, I don’t see how I can condone it.”

“It’s not unreasonable.”

“Then please tell me why you hate him,” Scarlett begged, holding her clasped hands in front of her, momentarily forgetting the sheet as it pooled on the floor.

“It will serve no purpose for you to know.”

“I need time,” she whispered, turning away from him after retrieving the sheet.

“Of course,” he agreed distantly. Rising from the bed and grabbing his clothes he said, “I’ll leave you to think.”

Scarlett watched him go without speaking again. After the door closed behind him, she dropped the sheet and slid on a white terry cloth robe before dropping on the bed.

He was asking the impossible of her. How could he expect her to stand by and watch him destroy her father, while still loving him? How could he be so cruel to her as to pursue his campaign of revenge even though he knew how it would hurt her? Why was it so damned important to him? What terrible deed could her father have possibly done to warrant such anger and hatred?

Her thoughts was interrupted by another knock at her door, a knock too quiet to be Carter. “Come in,” she said wearily, and was surprised to see Lydia standing in her doorway, clutching a file to her chest. “What do you want?” she asked, puzzled.

Lydia closed the door behind her, engaging the lock, and for a moment Scarlett experienced déjà vu. “My brother has gone to the wine cellar to open a bottle of wine to drown his sorrows,” Lydia said stiffly. “It will be some time before he returns.”

“What do you expect me to do about it?”

Sighing impatiently, Lydia said, “I did not come to ask you to intercede with his drunken binge. He seldom indulges, and I see no harm in the occasional episode. I’ve come to tell you why he hates your father.”

Scarlett’s eyes widened, and she sat up completely, staring at Lydia as she stood over her. Pieces fell into place, and she said softly, “He doesn’t want you to tell me this, does he?”

“Of course not.”

“Then I don’t want to hear it,” Scarlett said, feeling as if her loyalty rested with Carter. He had his reasons, and she would respect his wishes.

“I’m going to tell you anyway. You have to know the truth.” Before Scarlett could interrupt her, she said, “Your father killed my husband and left Carter with the scars he bears today.”

“No,” Scarlett denied quickly. She’d inferred Lydia believed her father to be responsible for her husband’s death by her previous statements over the past few days, so her accusations came as no surprise. Scarlett dismissed them as the imaginings of a grief stricken widow. “I don’t believe you.”

Lydia’s face twisted. “Believe what you like,” she said with a shrug. “But I’m going to give you such a large dose of the truth that you will choke on it.

“Carter was a brilliant student, and he gravitated toward electronics in college. He has been hailed as a visionary in his field, though his presence is circumspect these days. Fresh out of university, he formed a partnership with his best friend, Justin, my husband. Together, they created Roche Electronics. They used Justin’s name for the company, I’m sure you’ve heard of it.”

“I fail to see how this is important,” Scarlett said, determined not to listen to any more of Lydia’s words. It wasn’t just her loyalty to Carter that drove her determination to shut out Lydia. A cold fear was stirring in her stomach, and she sensed an oncoming disaster.

Ignoring her, Lydia continued, “They invented a revolutionary memory chip that held three times the industry standards of ten years ago, but was less than half the size. Your father approached them about buying the chip, but Justin and Carter knew it would make them rich. They refused Terini’s persistent and dogged attempts to gain the memory chip.”

Lydia fell silent for a moment, drawing in a deep breath before continuing. “Terini got tired of waiting, and he sent a security team to the warehouse where Roche was headquartered at the time. The men beat Justin and Carter until they were unconscious, stole the chip, and set fire to the building. “

“Darren was returning with food, and he was able to pull Carter from the fire, but the building was engulfed with flames before he could even think about returning to the inferno to retrieve Justin. My husband burned to death on the direct orders of your father. His men were instructed to kill Carter and Justin and cover their deeds with arson.”

“You have no proof,” Scarlett insisted stridently. “Those men could have come from anywhere.”

“My brother is still old-fashioned in many ways,” Lydia said with peculiar satisfaction. “He spent two years tracking down a member of the team, working with the only lead he had. The face of the man whose mask he’d displaced in their fight.” She tossed the manila folder down on the bed. “In exchange for my brother’s silence, Louis Venetta confessed to his part in the crime and signed this statement. Carter has not pressed charges because he wants revenge himself. However, he is a fair man, and would not pursue Terini until he was positive that he was the one responsible.”

Numbly, Scarlett flipped open the file and read the two page statement from Venetta as Lydia maintained a hostile silence. “This man is a liar,” she said, but her tone lacked conviction.

“In addition to the statement, Carter had preliminary proof when Terini released the MX-187 chip, almost an exact replica of his prototype, less than six months after the fire and Justin’s death.” She gazed down at Scarlett.

“What more do you want?” she asked weakly.

“Now you can see why a future between you and Carter is impossible,” Lydia gloated. “His hatred of your family will always interfere. It is best to end things now, before you fall in love with him.”

“Too late,” Scarlett said bitterly. “I’m sorry to disappoint you, but I have no intention of breaking my relationship with Carter. I love him, and now I understand his rage at my father, thanks to you. I will support him no matter what he does to my father.” Lydia’s plan had backfired, Scarlett would make her see that. What a terrible sister she was.

“Brave words,” Lydia mocked. “But time will show how well they hold up,” she added, leaving the room.

She’d left the folder behind, and Scarlett impulsively hid it in her suitcase, wondering if she would need it in the future for some purpose. As she returned the case to the closet, Lydia’s words sank in, and sobs burst from her chest. The man who’d raised her was a murderer. How could she ever look at him the same way again?

A fierce wave of love washed over Scarlett, and she was grateful that Carter had tried to spare her this pain. Dashing the tears from her eyes, she belted the robe securely and hurried from her room, practically running down the hall to his bedroom. She pounded on the door, then impatiently again when he failed to answer immediately. His door finally swung open, and Scarlett threw herself in his arms. “I’ve made my decision. I’ll stand by you, no matter what action you take against my father. I love you.”

Carter sighed as his heart lifted. He pulled her against him and crushed her mouth under his in a fierce kiss. “You won’t change your mind?” he asked.

“Never,” Scarlett vowed.

“I won’t let you,” Carter whispered as he pulled her into his room.