and needed a travel break. Since her mother died, she only cried when she had a migraine and when she was furious. She hadn’t
had a migraine in months and she was ecstatic. All she really
wanted was to make Phillip smile. She snatched the keys out of
her purse, and as she opened the bathroom door, it creaked
slightly.
“That hinge could definitely use some oil.” He mumbled
tiredly as he rolled to his side and rubbed his eyes with one hand.
When he opened them, he wore that damn somber expression
again. The one that made her wonder if he wished she’d get a
boob job or something.
“You don’t like it.” She glanced down at her silk nightgown
and felt like she was under a microscope. She noticed him blush
and look down at the bed.
Fuck! He’s not attracted to me anymore!
His blue eyes met hers again, and she saw raw emotion in
them.
“You look amazing.” He sounded sincere, and relief en-
gulfed her like the warm waters of a steam bath. She crept to-
ward the bed with her hands behind her back.
“I have a surprise for you.” Her coy words made his eye-
brow twitch in a naughty way that had her wondering how she
ever could have doubted him. For a moment he looked thought-
ful and then he sat up.
“I have one for you, too.” He seemed somber, but his eyes
were still warm.
“Me first.” She smiled and sprang onto the bed. He reached
out and grabbed her, swiftly pinning her to the bed.
“Right, then. Do tell.” His words were slightly muffled as
his lips traveled from her jaw to her chest. The sensations his lips created were more than a little distracting. Exhaling a ragged
breath, she pulled the keys out from behind her back and dangled them in his face.
16
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“I’m moving to Europe!” She beamed.
He blinked at the keys, his face frozen. “Wh…what?”
Once again, his expression could not have been interpreted
as positive. He seemed distressed and annoyed by her an-
nouncement, and she paused to search his features. “I bought a
couple of apartments.”
“A couple? When? Where?” He pulled away from her and
sat up fixing her with a challenging gaze. Steph didn’t move an
inch, effectively frozen by the shift in his mood. She’d been so sure he’d be thrilled to have her closer. She felt her frustration rising, but she took another deep breath.
“One in Paris and one in Milan. Christopher and my ac-
countant advised me to invest in real estate since I spend so
much time in both cities.”
“Christopher?” He spat the name, his face turning red.
“Who the hell is Christopher?”
“My agent.” Steph explained quickly. The last thing she
wanted was to fight with him. His intense reaction had her
floored. “Most of my jobs are in the big four: New York, Lon-
don, Paris and Milan. Of course I already have an apartment in
Manhattan. So investing in real estate in Paris and Milan just
makes good financial sense.”
“Why didn’t you buy an apartment in London?” He
snapped. Steph could feel his anger continuing to build, and it
was the opposite of the reaction she had expected. Her temper
flashed white hot. She sat up to face him head on.
“What the hell, Phillip? Why the hell would I need an
apartment in London?”
He raked a hand aggressively through his gorgeous hair.
“Oh, I don’t know, perhaps because I live in London!”
Steph felt her whole body relax as his words made her melt.
A smile bloomed on her face. She leaned closer to him and
rocked his shoulder with hers. “That’s why I figured I wouldn’t
need one. I was hoping to crash with you…have some little
17
TAMMY COONS & MICHELLE PACE
sleepovers.”
He blinked at her a few times. and she could almost hear
him manually cranking back the time machine and reprocessing
everything she’d said since she’d left the bathroom. Leaning in, he fisted her tawny hair, and kissed her tenderly. When he pulled away, he looked embarrassed. “I’m sorry. Of course you’ll stay
with me.”
“What’s going on in that head of yours, baby?” She placed
her hands on both sides of his scruffy, centerfold-worthy face.
The apples of his cheeks were still red from his angry outburst.
and she felt her eyes scouring his face for hints about his unusual behavior.
“I’ve just been really stressed lately, love.” He sighed and
brushed one of her fiery tendrils off of her cheek. “I need a vacation.”
She pulled his mouth to hers, and after several wet, explora-
tive kisses she pulled away. “I thought we were supposed to be
on one of those.”
“Indeed we are.” He tossed his keys to her apartments onto
the bedside table and pushed aside her spaghetti strap aside, nipping at her shoulder. She squealed and squirmed happily beneath
him. His sapphire eyes darter over her face, and his expression
turned somber again. Stephanie stared unflinching back up at
him, lovingly tracing her thumb across his lips. It would be a
new adventure, living close enough to date him for real. She
wondered if they’d last a month once he got to know her and
witnessed all her quirks and idiosyncrasies. He turned his face, kissed her thumb, and then pulled it into his mouth sucking on it.
She purred when she felt his growing hardness pressing against
her thigh.
“So just how much did you miss me?” Stephanie whispered.
He was grinding against her and she found it distracting as hell.
He abruptly pulled away. and she started to object, but she re-
leased a contented sigh as he descended her body, skillfully pull-18
RAGE
ing off her panties with his teeth. When his mouth returned to
hers, he wore a fiendish grin. A desperate moan escaped her as
he gently tugged at her lip with his teeth.
“Oh, about nine inches.” He growled, pushing one of his
muscular thighs between hers. She gasped and clawed his ass
with both hands as he roughly entered her.
19
CHAPTER TWO
“Aren’t you going to eat that?” Phillip nodded to Steph’s
peanut butter crescent. He’d been watching her disapprovingly
all through breakfast as she pushed fruit around on her plate. To pacify him, she’d forced herself to eat more fruit than she’d intended to. She wrinkled her nose and shook her head. He
snatched the crescent off her plate and ripped into it with his
teeth. My caveman.
“I’ll take more coffee, though. With cream.”
He picked up the French press and warmed up her cup with
a wry smile. “You’re quite a fan of the cream.”
“Charming.” Steph quipped as she dumped an indecent
amount of half and half into her coffee. She would never be a tea drinker, and silently thanked God that Phillip was a coffee afi-cionado. “So when we’re back from your grandparents’, will you
show me around the grounds?”
“With pleasure. I’ve always wanted to do it in the great out-
doors.” Phillip mused. She giggled and ro
lled her eyes.
“Mr. One Track Mind…” She leaned across the table and
gave him a lingering kiss. When she pulled away, she lowered
her eyes in a bashful manner. “Are you sure this outfit is okay
for meeting your parents?”
He looked her over in her sleeveless navy dress with a
blinding smile. “That dress, love? Is anything but okay.”
20
RAGE
His announcement late last night that his parents would be
at the estate had caused her to toss and turn so much that she’d barely slept. Now her stomach felt like it was tied in double
knots, making it nearly impossible to keep down her food. The
latter would normally have been a good thing—diet and all—but
the thought of Phillip’s parents hating her filled her with dread.
She knew she was not a people person, and the impending doom
of this afternoon’s tea hung heavy over her like a midnight black veil.
Her sense of foreboding steadily increased as they pulled in-
to the stately drive of his grandparent’s picturesque estate. She took in the immaculately groomed grounds in the sunshine and
knew she should have been overjoyed to be back. His grandpar-
ents’ home was as impressive the second time around, and in
anticipation of its splendor. she’d had her camera out before it had even come into view. Sophia and Paul had been the most
welcoming people she’d ever met, so she felt slightly puzzled
over her leeriness. Still, Stephanie was no fool—she knew her
gut instincts were not to be brushed aside or blown off. She
glanced at Phillip who chewed on a toothpick nervously and
seemed to be wearing his pre-show game face. She wondered if
he was as nervous about having her meet his parents as she was
to about meeting them. A pain gripped her mid-section, and she
inhaled through her nose and exhaled through her mouth. It
passed quickly, and she noticed she’d dug her nails into her
palms. She fanned herself with her hand and took a long swig of
coffee from her travel mug and hoped it would counterbalance
what was she prayed was jetlag.
Phillip parked in the exact same spot he’d parked on their
first visit. He hopped out and rushed around to her side of the
car. She couldn’t help but drool over how handsome he looked in
khakis and a camel colored summer jacket. He opened her door
and waved his hand theatrically.
“My lady.” He tossed the toothpick aside and offered his
21
TAMMY COONS & MICHELLE PACE
hand to her.
She took it and allowed him to pull her from the sports car.
Her wry smile was uncontainable. “My liege.”
He slammed her door then aggressively pressed his tower-
ing frame against her, pinning her to the car with his body. Steph had always loved the way he manhandled her, but this time she
winced at the pressure of him against her midsection. His face
fell, but she covered with a small smile and pushed him back
away from her.
“Your parents might be looking out the window.” She
murmured.
His eyebrow twitched, and his sly smile made her moist in
unmentionable places. He leaned in, and his kiss was thankfully
light and gentle. When he whispered in her ear, his breath sent a shiver throughout every inch of her.
“Come along then. Don’t want to keep the family waiting.”
As they climbed the ancient stone steps hand in hand, Steph
tried to fight the feeling that Phillip was leading her down death row toward the electric chair. Releasing her hand, he turned to
her and wrapped his muscular arm around her waist, pulling her
to his side.
“I love you.” His delivery was concise and matter-of-fact,
though he’d never said anything of the sort to her before. Steph was still gaping at him when the door swung open and Nana and
Grandad’s beaming faces appeared before them.
“Lippy! We were beginning to think you got lost. Oh! There
she is!” Nana clapped her hands together and reached out for
Steph’s cheeks. Though still reeling from Phillip’s sudden declaration, Steph couldn’t suppress a genuine grin. Phillip’s grand-
mother, Sophia, had a glow about her that was infectious, and
she and Steph had immediately bonded the first time they met.
“Sophia, Paul. It’s lovely to see you again.” Steph mur-
mured, and she leaned against Phillip as she felt a wave of pain again. She was very warm and couldn’t see how he could stand
22
RAGE
wearing his jacket when she was sleeveless and boiling. Thank-
fully she’d had the foresight to wear her hair up, or she’d be in a puddle of her own sweat by the end of tea.
“I knew you’d be back, Darlin’.” Sophia kissed her cheek.
Steph noticed Sophia moved a bit slower than the first time
they’d met, but her eyes were as vibrant as ever. Sophia frowned at her. “Are you ill? You’re pale as a wraith.”
“I’m just getting used to the time difference.” She replied,
but she was glad Phillip was still holding onto her as they
crossed the threshold, as dizziness consumed her once more.
She’d be humiliated if the first image Phillip’s parents had of her was her sprawling on the floor like a clumsy newborn colt.
“Are you sure you’re feeling alright?” He stopped in his
eyes. “You feel a little warm.”
“Yeah, it’s just these damn shoes.” She forced a semi-
convincing chuckle. As they entered the grand foyer, two young
women rapidly descended on them, carrying what appeared to be
mimosas. Both were blonde and lovely, though Steph noticed the
one who handed her a drink had a fading, jagged scar down her
cheek. Remembering Phillip’s story about a broken beer bottle
during a fight at a show, realization dawned on her. These were
Phillip’s sisters.
“I’m Danielle,” the girl with the scar offered her hand to
Steph. She had a sweet soprano voice and a friendly grin. Tall
and waifish, Danielle was a knock-out, regardless of her facial
disfigurement. Steph felt like a short, fat Oompa Loompa stand-
ing next to her. Phillip had once mentioned that his baby sister Danielle wanted to be a teacher, and she certainly seemed to
have the disposition for it. “I can’t believe we finally get to meet you!”
“No doubt. It’s as if Phillip’s been hiding you from us. I’m
Linda.” The other blonde shook Steph’s hand forcefully. Linda
bore a much stronger physical resemblance to Phillip than Dan-
23
TAMMY COONS & MICHELLE PACE
ielle. She was also tall and had his golden brown skin and smile.
Even in her sundress her athleticism was obvious. Phillip had
mentioned she was a triathlete and that she planned to attempt to swim the English Channel soon.
Phillip rolled his eyes at his sisters. “I’ve told you two cows
more than once she’s never here. And when she.. ”
“Ugh, we know, we know. You have better things to do.”
Linda groaned, and Phillip gave Steph a naughty look. Red-
faced, Steph wanted to murder him. Had he not just stunned her
with those infamous th
ree little words outside, she likely would have stabbed him with the closest sharp object. Instead she took an overly large gulp of the drink which thankfully was cold and
contained alcohol.
“Shall we?” Phillip’s grandmother obviously saw her em-
barrassment and grasped Stephanie’s arm, leading her toward the
west wing. They entered a vast space that Sophia called “the
great hall.” Steph had taken many photos of Phillip for her fa-
ther’s magazine in this very room. She lovingly remembered her
favorite being a shot of him at the billiard table leaning on a billiard stick and looking out the window at the sprawling grounds.
She had had it blown up and shipped to her new apartment in
Milan where she planned to hang it in the living room. She was
pulled from her thoughts as she saw a mature luminous brunette
playing Bach on the grand piano and a bearded older gentleman
close by reading on the settee. The butterflies in Steph’s stomach started to riot.
These had to be Phillip’s parents. Shit.
“Mum. Dad.” Phillip sounded nervous, grasping Steph’s
hand and pulling her forward with him. “This is Stephanie.”
Phillip’s dad dropped his book and crossed to shake her
hand. Phillip had his dad’s thick, unruly hair and sandy beard. In his tweed suit coat and brown loafers, he looked exactly like the type of man who ran a bookstore. He had a nutty professor quality which Stephanie found instantly charming. “I’m Nigel. It’s a
24
RAGE
pleasure.”
“I’m Emily. We’ve heard so much about you.” His mother
moved like the poster child for a finishing school and like her
daughters, her couture was posh. Unlike the rest of the family
who sounded delightfully British, she had a hint of an Irish ac-
cent. Steph smiled at her nervously and glanced down at Emily’s
beige Jimmy Cho’s and her own bright Espadrilles sandals. She
wanted to haul back and kick Phillip square in the ass with them, but realized that asking a straight man for fashion advice was
like asking a rooster for directions to the mall. Emily Kersey
smiled at her, but Steph felt as if her brown eyes scrutinizing
every pore on Steph’s body.
“Nice to meet you, too.” Stephanie’s voice sounded weak to
her own ears.
“You really are the spitting image of your brother. Are you
twins?” She felt Phillip’s hand tighten around hers, and she