Heart of the Wild by Rita Hestand Page A

warred with her suddenly yielding body, not ready or willing to accept her own surrender. It became a battle of the senses. Sensations whirled her into a mindless void where only lovers met.
    This was Amory, her Amory. And the right of it homed in on her. His lips were sugar and salt, sweet to the taste, and oh, so tempting, warm and moist and conquering. Only Amory could conquer her, and leave her trembling. His smell evoked images of the great outdoors, and of male dominance, of man itself. A man of the earth, he tantalized her imagination.
    Yet with surprising restraint he managed to pull away long enough to look down into her face, questioningly. His smile was like a warm blanket, possessive.
    Pride held her still for a long moment as she forced her exposed emotions under control. But she managed to capture all his attention as she wiped her still-quivering lips roughly with the back of her shirt sleeve. The hard truth of the matter was, he had said nothing to change things in reality, only in her dreams.
    As though her wiping it away could erase the exquisite memory, she thought hysterically. Nothing would be the same again, and she knew it. Despite how he affected her, she quickly realized she had to veil those thoughts of surrender. Amory didn't love her, and she had to keep remembering that. Love her? Where had that come from? He probably hated her for what she had done to him.
    The silence between them crackled with tension.
    "Kasie, I'm sorry ..." he began.
    That did it. Sorry? That brought her back to reality—fast. Sorry, of course he was sorry. He had merely forgotten who he was holding.
    "Look, I've made chili for supper, and cornbread. I'll heat it, while you get washed up." Kasie turned abruptly away and changed the subject before she said something she might regret. There were so many things going around in her head right now, she didn't know what to say.
    When he didn't answer, she shot him a glance over her shoulder.
    His look devoured her, making her weak in the knees, as though he still possessed her. She turned away again. She couldn't look at him. She seriously doubted she ever could again.
    But seconds later he let out a slight chuckle. "Now that's chili!"
    She did look at him. And he was smiling at her.
    She'd won. She'd been kissed by Chayton Amory and hadn't shown a sign of outward emotion. She'd proven that she could cook. She was proving all kinds of things—except to herself. So why wasn't she elated over her victories?
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    Chapter Five
     
    Amory watched her from the doorway for a long moment, his mind twisting with memories best forgotten. He didn't want to remember how things were. He didn't want to think about the way she had followed him everywhere eight years ago, laughing at his jokes, listening to his hopes and dreams. She was the only person who ever listened to his dreams and didn't laugh or make a snide remark.
    Just the sight of this woman stirred something primitive within him. Something he didn't want to put a name to. Something he honestly never allowed himself to put a name to. Ah, hell. He knew exactly what it was, he just didn't want to admit it to himself, or to anyone else, for that matter. If the young Kasie stirred his blood, the new, mature Kasie stirred his being, making him want to protect her, love her, and be with her. He wanted to make her his.
    He had to get his mind off her, somehow. Everything he had set out to accomplish was slowly coming into play, only he wasn't enjoying it as much as he thought he would. Maybe true revenge wasn't that sweet. Dammit, this wasn't like him. Sure, deep down he wanted some revenge, but after last night, after having her in his arms again, he quickly realized revenge wouldn't do a bit of good. He still wanted Kasie—all of her, but on her terms. He wanted her to want him, and to freely admit it, from her heart.
    He didn't want to care. He knew it was futile to care. Yet part of him knew he