Chapter 3 Fire Behind Closed Doors

"What would you like from me?" Her voice was confused and frustrated as the words flowed out before she could stop them.

Maximo's lips curved into a small smile, but it was hardly comforting. He moved slowly, his big frame throwing shadows across her. With every stride he made, the distance between them seemed to shrink.

"I told you already," he continued, his voice calm and low. "Protective."

But his eyes carried something deeper, something more that would chill her. Cathy stood rapidly, her chair dragging across the floor. Her heart hammering in her chest, she retreated. She responded, "I don't believe you," the words cutting even if the vulnerability was starting to show in her voice. Maximo, you are not only safeguarding me. You are keeping me here, near for another purpose.

Maximo did not falter. Stopped just inches from her, his presence overwhelming. She could feel the heat emanating from his body, his scent-a concoction of pricey cologne and something deeper, more lethal.

"You think I keep you here for my benefit?" he questioned, his voice a whisper but it slashed across the air like a razor. "You believe I am using you?" He moved nearer still, his breath warm across her cheek. "No, Cathy," I am presenting you with a choice. Still, you haven't yet worked that out.

Her pulse surged as she moved reflexively back, but Maximo moved faster. His hand rushed out, grasping her wrist with startling force before she could respond. His body pushed against hers as he drew her back towards him.

Her breath stopped as the shock of his touch shot through her. Neither of them moved at first. Time itself seemed to have stopped, leaving just the sound of the storm outside and their hearts pounding fiercely. The tension was intolerable, poised between them like a taut wire just ready to break.

Trying to release herself, she pushed against his chest, but his hold tightened and he drew her in. Cathy felt it, the heat between them, the unquestionable force drawing her towards him as his eyes met with hers.

Then Maximo kissed her, as though motivated by some unsaid directive.

Cathy's body shook as her mind spun with Maximo's kiss deepening. His hands went to her rear, dragging her closer as his heat seared her flesh. Just as much as the storm raging outside was chaotic, furious, and all-consuming, she could sense one roaring inside her.

She wanted to retreat from the intensity, but something prevented her. Her body deceived her while her intellect shouted for reason, for control. She melted into him, the heat between them a magnetic pull she was powerless to resist.

Maximo's hands slid to her waist, dragging her into him while his lips worked with a desire she had never imagined was feasible. Her hands found their way to his chest, grabbing his suit as if she needed to hang on to something real, something substantial, and her vertigo set in motion.

The room appeared to shut in on them, the flickering candles creating wild, untamed shadows on the walls that matched their intensity. The world outside seemed so far away like a far-off recollection lost of relevance. Now, the storm between them one that had been gathering since their first meeting-was all that counted.

Cathy's heart surged faster as Maximo's kiss slipped down her neck and his breath scorched her skin. She lost her ability to reason. Not breathed at all. He ate everything, including the lightning arcing between them with every touch and every kiss.

Then Maximo withdrew, his eyes black with longing, his breath laboured, as if the world had suddenly come back into focus.

Shaking, Cathy stood there trying to gather her breath. Her lips still throbbed from his kiss, and she struggled to gather herself. She turned to face him, the man who had carried her off her feet into this whirlpool, this anarchy. What recently occurred? Was that merely a moment of weakness? Was it something more, then?

Her body begged for more as her brain spun. Though her heart felt something deeper, the want flared through her veins. Inguilt? Contusion? She was unable to discern.

Maximo backed off, his eyes never leaving hers. "I warned you," he continued, his voice rough-a challenge in the words. "After this, you'll never be the same."

Her eyes lowered to her hands, quivering slightly as she struggled to calm her anxiety by fumbling with the buttons of her blouse.

Her gaze drifted to the bed, where Maximo had left his coat haplessly thrown. She suddenly caught the glitter of something on his hand.

The ring here.

It was clear, a complex pattern, the crest from her childhood house, the same emblem she had observed before. She had seen it in that vintage picture and the corner of her memory, buried for years. She was struck with awareness like a flashbulb.

Her fingers quivering, she grabbed for the ring and grasped it. Now imprinted in her brain, the symbol under the skin was a part of her past she could not avoid.

Uninvited and unexpected, her childhood house, the same crest, the same emblem hit her in a flashback. Memories washed back, confusing and overpowering.

Cathy lay fully awake, the weight of the night crushing down her breast, the silk sheets twisted about her body. Though lovely, the estate seemed stifling; its large, empty rooms were a sobering reminder of her solitude. Outside, the storm had passed into a gentle drizzle; the eerie soundtrack to the solitude within came from the rhythmic sound of raindrops pounding against the glass.

Maximo slept next to her, his deep, steady breathing. His body, a silent power next to hers, still felt too near and too strong. Cathy felt as though the shadows of his universe were engulfing her. She had come here for solutions, but all she had discovered was more ambiguity, more questions hovering like ghosts in the margins of her consciousness.

Her pulse accelerated, and she slid the blankets off, silently leaving the bed. Maximo had not moved; his strong form remained calm under the covers. Barefoot across the frigid marble floor, Cathy went quickly, trying not to make noise. She wanted distance from him, from the weight of his presence, room to breathe, to think.

The villa was dark; only the dim light from the corridor gave her enough sight to lead her towards the door. She stopped down the corridor to listen. Apart from the distant buzz of the storm outside, the home was calm. Turning the corner, Cathy saw she was in the study. The room was darkly lit, with hefty leather chairs strewn all around a big oak desk.

Her gaze looked about the room, but she was drawn to the sound of a subdued voice. The phone is used. Still lying on the side table in the living room, Maximo's phone

Her fingers shook slightly as she went over to grab the receiver, her heart racing. Though the tone was clear, with a subdued urgency, an edge of anxiety in the air, the talk was low and too delicate for her to completely hear.

Though his voice was subdued, Maximo's voice came through clearly and she might be the one. "There won't be any turning back if we play this right."

Cathy stopped, her breath seizing in her throat. She could be the only one. The words tasted like a smack. Whose was he referring to? The only sound filling the room as the silence stretched was her fast heartbeat.

Maximo's voice fell to a still lower mutter. Verify that she is kept close. She is too vital to lose right now.

Not with the questions chewing at her, not with the mysteries she could not escape, she could not be here. Maximo had kept her near for reasons she did not know, and the closer she approached the truth, the more deadly it felt.

She headed towards the door and her heart thumped in her chest. She had come to her decision. She did not yet trust him. Not sure what more he was hiding, she also couldn't stay at this villa. The door creaked softly, and she entered the hall, the frigid outside air calling her towards freedom.

She pulled her bag off the chair, just stuffing the basics. Her hands moved quickly; every second that passed thumping in her chest. She wanted nothing except for Maximo to wake up and discover her gone, but the idea of facing him once more-of confronting whatever this was intolerable.

With light but quick feet on the chilly stone floor, Cathy grabbed the remainder of her belongings and headed for the rear exit. She lacked a destination or a strategy, yet it made no difference. She owed it to get away.

The cool air struck her like a slap as she passed the rear door into the night, the villa silent. She could go free. For now at least.

But the heavy door behind her opened just slightly as she reached the grounds of the villa, and in the distance, someone moved among the shadows. Her imagination flashed Maximo's face, his icy eyes, his smile, the force in each of his every movement.

She raced but could not get away from the sudden tug of something deep inside the villa.

The door to her release smashed wide.

Inside Maximo woke with a start, his eyes opening to the vacant room next to him. His face was a mask of frigid wrath, and his eyes strayed to the door.

She had left. And every solution he had wanted to come upon with her.