We argued for another twenty miles.

We were at each other’s throats as Chaser stopped the car at a motel.

We exchanged blistering insults as we got our stuff out of the trunk. Beautiful words were exchanged like asshat, douche canoe, bitch in heat, and stupid little princess whore. Stunning, the lot of it.

By the time we were alone and finally able to face one another head on, I was in the mood for blood. Chaser’s preferably, but if anyone got in my way, I’d cut them, too.

I stormed into the motel room and threw my bag onto the floor, my temper at boiling point. Chaser slammed the door closed behind me and paced.

“Stop that. You’ll wear a hole into the carpet,” I exclaimed, turning on him.

“You’re so fucking infuriating.”

“I’m infuriating? Look in the Goddamned mirror! You’re the one with a stick jammed up your ass.”

“You’ve got the biggest attitude problem of anyone I’ve ever met. And I’ve met some fucked up sons of bitches.”

“You bet your dumb ass I’ve got an attitude. It’s a man’s world out there, Chaser. You don’t know a thing about trying to live in it with a vagina. I’ll slit a man’s throat before I let him fuck me over.”

“Like that guy you named Pube Face? I seem to remember you going slack.”

“You didn’t just say that!”

“You shouldn’t have gone into that gas station.”

“Pfft. Like hell, I was going to stay in the car and get my brains blown out. And that night at Teasers—”

“You never do what you’re told—”

“Don’t interrupt me!”

“You run headfirst into danger, your mouth is too smart for your own good, you—”

Rage exploded inside me, and I struck. My palm connected with his cheek, the fury of the slap forcing his head to the side. My skin stung as I stared at him, rage heating my veins.

“When will you get it through your thick skull, Chaser? I may not be whatever you are, but I’m fucking capable. I’m not some wallflower who’ll wait around for a man to save her.”

He blinked, his eyes flashing. “You could’ve gotten yourself killed.”

“But I didn’t.” Images of blood burst through my mind.

“That’s not the point!” he exclaimed.

“Just admit it,” I said, fisting my hands into the front of his T-shirt.

“If I admit it…” He ground his teeth, his entire body tensing.

I knew what he was thinking. If he admitted I was right, it meant he’d dropped the ball. It meant he would’ve been responsible if I’d wound up dead back at that gas station. Chaser was obviously not used to losing.

“Get a grip.” I snarled.

We stared at each other for a long time, the tension boiling right up to the flood marker of what I could bear. My grip tightened around his T-shirt, and before I knew what was happening, Chaser fisted his fingers through my hair and kissed me. Hard.

My lips parted with a gasp, and his tongue claimed mine, twisting and diving until he’d stolen all my breath. We fell against the wall, my back colliding with plasterboard as our fevered embrace rose in temperature.

He ground his crotch against my hip, and I moaned as I felt his hardening cock through his jeans. Oh, hell yes.

I shimmied out of my denim jacket, and Chaser tugged at my tank top as I pulled at his T-shirt. Material was dragged over my head, sending my hair everywhere, but I didn’t care. A half-naked alpha asshole was in front of me, his hands going straight for my breasts.

He kneaded as I unhooked the clasp of my bra, then he was pinching my taut nipples, a look of absolute enrapture on his rugged face. He’d finally given in to whatever he’d been fighting, and the sight of Chaser letting loose had me almost creaming my panties on the spot.

“Shit,” he whispered, massaging my breasts. “Shit, shit, shit…”

“Don’t say anything,” I said. “Just scratch the itch, Chaser. Scratch it hard.”

Rubbing my palms over his abs, I dug my fingers into the hem of his jeans, desperately searching for a way in.

He wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me close, his lips finding mine. His movements quickened, and his cock felt rock hard, and I knew his desire matched mine. We shared the same hopeless, desperate desire to fuck our brains out. Not just with anyone, but with each other, or no one at all.

We fell onto the bed in a mess of hands and clothing, grinding against one another.

“Get it in me,” I exclaimed with a moan. “I need your cock…”

Chaser threw my leg over his shoulder and curled his fingers underneath the hem of my jeans. He pulled, dragging the annoying material over my hips and down my legs, throwing my pants onto the floor. Forcing my legs open, he was between them in a flash, his trousers around his knees and his cock out.

There was no fingering, licking, kissing, or massaging to work up a sweat before the main event. We’d had an entire week of foreplay, arguing and fucking each other with our sharp words. It was enough to bear the brunt of his alpha asshole vibe to juice me up. That was animal magnetism in a nutshell.

I barely glimpsed Chaser’s cock before I felt him pressing at my opening. I was so wet that when he thrust, he slid right in almost causing me to come on the spot.

My back arched off the mattress as his lips found my breasts, and his tongue laved my taut nipples. He pulled back, then was driving in once more, filling and stretching my body. His hands were masterful, his mouth weaving a pattern of unbearable desire as he sated the beast he’d kept caged within.

He pounded into me, ramming into my clit over and over, the wet slapping of our bodies music to my ears. It was so hot, dirty, and fucking insane. A man had never had me like this. So desperately, so completely.

Chaser fucked me like a man driven insane by lust.

I couldn’t withstand his touch for long, and I came hard, stars erupting across my vision. Chaser’s skin was flushed, his lips parted in ecstasy as he exploded deep in my pussy. Warmth spread as I took every drop, my body shuddering around his as I ground my clit against the base of his cock.

We came down way too soon for my liking, and Chaser collapsed half on and half off me.

“Fuck,” he said, his breath hot against my neck. “I came in you.”

“I’m protected.”

He moaned, his fingers sliding through my seam and dipping into me. He felt himself in me, and his eyes rolled back slightly as he stroked.

“Do you like that?” I whispered.

His gaze found mine and held for a long time as his thumb circled my clit. Sparks of pleasure ricocheted through me as we lay there, the room full of the lingering tang of sex.

“I’m so fucked,” he finally said.

Covering my body again, his lips found mine, and we kissed long and hard. Then his cock slipped into my pussy once more, and we ground the night away. I came three more times—one of those being on his tongue—before the itch of desire had finally been scratched.

We were in so much trouble I didn’t even know where to begin.

Nestling into his side as he drifted off to sleep, he never once pushed me away or spoke a harsh word. It was as if he’d finally resigned himself to the fact he gave a shit about me. Me, the upstart bitch with a mouth the size of Texas.

I didn’t want to fall in love with Chaser, but I understood there was no choice. I would fall or I wouldn’t.

Whoever he was, it didn’t matter. Whoever he might be was a moot point. When the heart got involved, all bets were off.

It was time to redraw the battle lines.