Chapter 4
CHAPTER FOUR
“Good evening.”
Hailey stepped into the room and shut the door behind her.
Her palms dampened with nervous perspiration.
Her stomach slid and rolled like she was on a roller-coaster.
The worst part was knowing the sensations were caused by excitement—not fear.
She forced herself to return his greeting. “Good evening, Phantom.”
He wore the black cloak. His mask tonight was smaller, still blinding white, but of a smoother material that fit snugly over his eyes and nose, but left more of his mouth free.
His lips were full and perfectly sculpted, with a savage curl to the lower one that told her he could be cruel when he chose.
The diamond in his left ear flashed as he turned his head. “Did you dream about me, Hailey?”
“Yes.”
He walked towards her then, with a slow, masculine grace.
Dark blue eyes gleamed with sexual appreciation as he took in her figure.
The long tight sheath shimmered with gold sparkles, emphasizing the curve of her hips and the thrust of her breasts.
“I’m glad,” he said softly. “Will you walk with me?”
She drew back in surprise, then nodded. “Of course.”
He led her through the party and out to the garden.
The sweet scents of citrus and wild flowers saturated the air with a potency that made her feel slightly drunk.
Hailey maneuvered her way over the cobblestones and when she stumbled, he reached for her hand.
All five fingers interlaced with hers in a union that staked his claim.
She expected a rush of intimidation. Instead, she experienced excitement.
He allowed the silence of the night to soothe and relax her.
The faint sounds of Frank Sinatra’s Summer Wind stroked her ears as he stopped at a stone bench hidden within the lush tangle of trees and flowers.
She sat beside him. He turned her hand over and his thumb began to press and massage the sensitive skin of her palm.
An involuntary sigh whispered from her lips.
He smiled. “Where do you live?”
“New York, born and bred.”
“And what do you love about New York?”
She gave a chuckle. “Never ask that to a native. We love a good bagel, good baseball, and a good argument.”
“So, you never wanted to leave?”
The memory teased the fringes of her mind and brought a touch of sadness.
Almost as if he felt the change in her, his touch moved to each of her fingers, rubbing, pressing, soothing from the base to the fingertip.
She opened her mouth to make a lighthearted remark and move on, but then she remembered her promise.
Hailey took a deep breath and started talking.
“I almost left once. After my parents died, I found myself wanting to experience a different life. One of my own making. I had no other relatives so I was alone. The crowds I was so accustomed to made me even more lonely. I almost packed everything up and moved down South, but then I remembered an old friend of my father who worked in Manhattan. I decided to look him up.”
“You didn’t want to run away. You were strong enough to try and find who you are in the same place where you lost yourself.”
His statement made her head swing around to face him. The words touched something deep within her. “Yes. That’s exactly what I wanted.”
“Did you father’s friend help you?”
She nodded. “He was kind. He worked for a small computer firm and got me a job. I took the opportunity to learn everything about the business and made my way to manager. Now I have security. Money. Safety.”
“Do you have everything you were looking for?”
Hailey thought of the long nights alone, staring out at the city chaos and longing to be one of them. She thought of Theodore, her best friend, who she used to protect herself from the unknown. “No,” she said softly. “But I’m still trying.”
His thumb pressed into the pulse at her wrist and felt the slow steady beat of her heart.
Then he trailed his fingers up and down her arm, brushing the sensitive area behind her elbow.
Comfort blended with sensuality and caused an inner battle within.
His voice spun an intimacy of longtime friends.
His touch spun a web of raw edged desire and hunger.
“Sometimes it’s easier to blame your past. Parents seem to have this control over children. And when they’re gone, we realize there are no more obstacles to stop us from what we really want.” He paused. “What did your parents keep you from?”
She sighed into the night and let the words spill from her lips.
“Everything. Life. My mother got pregnant young and my father was forced to marry her. They never let me forget I was a mistake so I was raised that sex was wrong. Especially after they found religion.” She shook her head at the memories.
“My weekends were spent in church and confession. I was never able to date, or go to parties, or be a normal kid. I always dreamed of making my own choices. I wanted freedom so desperately, but when I didn’t have my parents anymore, nothing made sense. ”
“You have to find your own sense.”
Something changed in the air. She sucked in her breath as they both felt the comfort twist to desire, and his fingers tightened around her arm.
Their brief talk had smashed all the barriers she erected last night, and the trembling began deep in the pit of her belly as she realized tonight her Phantom would stake his claim.
“I want to ask you a question,” he said softly. “Were you excited when you thought of what we had done in that room?” He accepted her nod as an answer. “And did you pleasure yourself in your bed last night?”
Her voice came out in a whisper. “No.”
His fingers reached out to touch her face.
Slowly traced around the gold mask she wore.
His thumb roughly pressed over her mouth, parted her lips, and dragged his flesh across her lower teeth.
She tasted his skin and wanted more. He lowered his head.
His warm breath caressed her as he continued speaking.
“Before I take you back upstairs, I want truth. What stops you from taking your own pleasure? I can’t believe you’d turn away from your own sexuality for all these years.
Your parents are gone, Hailey. What else are you afraid of? ”
She didn’t want to answer, but his fingers gently stroked her cheek, her hair, her jawline. She was vulnerable to him when he was kind, and the knowledge gleamed in his eyes, reminding her at the end of the masquerade he would have more of her than any other man.
She had never spoken of that night to anyone.
But now, with her face safely hidden, she decided to tell the truth.
“My parents didn’t allow me to go away to school, so I went to the local community college and lived at home.
I was nineteen when I met him. He was in my Biology class.
I thought he was beautiful. Blonde hair, green eyes, and a smile that made me melt.
I’d never strayed from my parent’s rules, but that weekend when he asked me out, I couldn’t say no. ”
She took a deep breath and continued. “I lied to my mother and snuck out to meet him. We went to one of those college parties I heard so much about. I remember the drinking, and the drugs, and the wild sex going on in the rooms. I was overwhelmed but excited. I felt ready to take a chance and finally be a normal teenager.”
He remained silent, his touch on her cheek supportive.
“After a few drinks, he took me into one of the rooms. We just talked at first, then started kissing. I never felt like that before. All geared up and wanting something I was so afraid of. But then he started moving faster, and too soon his clothes were off, and I was confused. I just wanted to kiss, but he kept going and…”
Hailey trailed off. Raised her chin. Then forced the words out. “We had sex. I didn’t want to, but didn’t really remember fighting him. Things happened so fast and it was over and I felt…. used. He put on his pants and thanked me for the good time. Then left the room.
“I heard laughter from outside and knew he was telling his friends how he got laid. I ran all the way home and never saw him again.”
Ciro’s hand was gentle as he stroked her hair. There was a protective gleam in his eyes she found comforting. “So, your first experience confirmed what your parents had been telling you all along.”
She gave a bitter laugh. “Yes. I was afraid to go back and run into him. I was afraid I would be pregnant and end up exactly like my mother. That’s when I decided they were right. Sex took away control, and I promised myself I would never feel like that again.”
The emotions warred inside of her, until every secret fear she battled spilled helplessly from her lips. “Don’t you see?” she whispered. “I don’t want any man to have that power over me. At least I’ll be safe.”
“You’ll be alone.”
“But safe,” she repeated fiercely.
Warm hands cupped her cheeks. His lips stopped inches from hers.
“Turning away from your womanhood is giving you a false sense of control. You let that asshole rapist win. You’ve let your parents win.
Use me and fight back, Hailey.” His words dripped over her like hot caramel.
His eyes dared her to meet his lips halfway.
“You’re a beautiful, sexual woman who had a horrible experience.
I can show you how to take your pleasure from a man without feeling shame.
When I’m done with you, you’ll beg for more.
And you’ll feel empowered—not degraded. Do you want me? ”
Her voice broke. “Yes.”
“Come with me.”
He led her back through the garden, up the stairs, into the room they shared the night before. Shut the door. Then faced her. “Do you want me?” he asked again.
The dam broke open. Hailey stumbled two steps and reached for him, standing on tiptoes to meet his lips. She repeated her answer with a deep sense of hunger, her rush of breath mingling with his. “Yes.”
“Kiss me.”
His lips took hers, his tongue sliding with slow, deep strokes to engage in a sensual game of plunge and retreat.
He tasted of smoke and fine brandy and hot male wanting.
His tongue tangled around hers, his lips closing in a gentle suction as he took her fully into his mouth.
They drank of each other with greed. His teeth sank into the plump lower lip and bit down carefully.
The hot wave of sensation seized her between her legs.
A sob caught in her throat. She wanted him to take her like an animal, wanted to open herself up to every fantasy he ever had, and as if he knew what she was thinking, he drew back slightly and lowered the zipper of the gold sheath.
The fabric pooled around her feet. She wore nothing underneath.
Theo stared at her, hot eyes devouring every inch of her skin.
Plump white breasts were swollen, tipped by tight pink nipples.
The smooth skin of her belly trembled slightly, sloping into a mass of fiery red curls that hid her lips from him.
Cherry red toenails curled into the burgundy carpeting in anticipation of what was to come.
Theodore swore softly under his breath. All the questions had been suddenly answered.
He fought the need to rip off his mask and take her in his arms for comfort.
He fought the rage that urged him to find the man who had hurt her and make him pay.
But he did none of that. He knew this was a chance to give her something back – something that had been taken from her too young.
And he knew in that moment he had never loved anyone as much as he loved Hailey Ashton.
He wanted to give her an ecstasy she had never experienced before.
He wanted to free her of demons and watch her smile.
He wanted to possess every part of her body and soul – even if she met his unmasked face at the end and turned away.
This woman shared deep truths about herself.
He respected her strength, and her honesty, and swore by the time she walked away, she would never deny her sexuality again.
Tonight, he would claim her like no other man had before.