Battle Lines. Read online

  “Put me down.” She screamed at him, instantly beating her fists on his back and kicking her legs trying to dislodge herself. “You can’t manhandle me like this… put me down.”

  She hammered on his back with her fists, and her clutch bag, as hard as she could in a bid to free herself from this wretched man. But it was no use he was holding her tight and she was not going anywhere.

  Jake said nothing and he did not even break his stride. “Are you listening to me,” she shouted at him. “Put me down this instant. You big overgrown, barbaric, bully.” She pounded harder on his back again.

  She tried straightening her back so that she could shift her position. But it was too difficult to manage. “Your mistresses may appreciate your cave man tactics in the bedroom but I certainly do not.”

  He was still not listening to her. The only response she got from him was his fingers biting harder and harder into the soft flesh of her thighs as he worked hard to stop her from falling from his shoulders. “There are laws in this country you know. They are supposed to protect people like me from people like you.”

  “And why don’t you tell me what type of person I am.” Jake asked her as he continued striding towards his car.

  “You are an overgrown brute.” She shouted at him as she slapped his back again.

  “Is that the best you’ve got?” Jake ribbed her.

  “You are an arrogant swine.”

  “Come on, you can do better than that surely.” Jake told her.

  “I hate you. You’re a horrible bully. A tyrant. Put me the hell down now, do you hear me.”

  “I’m not deaf I can hear you. You are screaming at me like a wailing banshee.” He replied.

  “Jake, I am warning you. Put me down this instant or…”

  “Or what?” he challenged her, his voice sounding amused now. “You’ll slap me. Scratch my eyes out. Run and tell mummy.” So now he was going to have a good laugh at her expense was he? That was just typical of the kind of man Jake was.

  “Put me down now.” She screamed again and pounded painfully on his back. But her attempts were futile at best.

  “Settle down up there.” He told her as he patted the side of one of her thighs.

  He was the most frustrating, irritating, annoying man she had ever met. Even that did not come anywhere near close to accurately describing this despicable man.

  Jake stopped and she heard the rattle of metal and then a click before a car door opening. Her feet suddenly hit the ground as quickly as they had left it. “Get in.” He ordered severely.

  “I will not.” She folded her arms protectively around herself.

  “Get… in.” Jake took a step closer to her.

  “You can’t make me do anything Jake.” She lifted her chin defiantly.

  “I could put you across my knee. Perhaps you need a good old fashioned spanking.” He warned her.

  “How dare you.” She bristled. “You would probably enjoy that a little too much, wouldn’t you Jake.” She sneered scornfully at him. “It would appeal to your deviant side.”

  “Oh trust me. I would enjoy it immensely. But not for the reasons you believe.” Jake promised her. Amanda felt a shiver run through her and she was suddenly painfully aware that she was alone with him.

  “You are a disgustingly vile creature.” She told him.

  “No I am a man. A man who does love that defiant air you cloud yourself in. you should be careful, that along with that dress and that hair… it is a lethal combination. I might easily forget that I am your stepbrother and just take you where you stand.”

  “Jake.” Amanda shrieked the word at him as she felt the heat on her skin. That type of conversation with Jake was just plain wrong on so many levels.

  “Get in the bloody car.” His voice never rising, but she could tell that he was getting very angry.

  “You don’t intimidate me anymore Jake. You do not even know me anymore. That stupid pathetic girl I once was no longer exists.” Her eyes shot venomous darts of anger and hate at him.

  “Amanda… you are beginning to sound like a broken record. Look, either you get in or I will put you in the boot. Trust me that passenger seat is much more comfortable than lying next to the spare wheel. But if you want then I will be more than happy to oblige you.” He stared at her awaiting her response. He would do it too, the brute.

  Amanda sighed and resigned herself to the knowledge that she would have to get into the car. What else could she do?

  Reluctantly Amanda slumped her shoulders in defeat and then slowly got into the car and slid herself down into the seat. “And you were never pathetic… or stupid.”

  Jake slammed the door shut the moment she had sat down. It rocked the car and did nothing to slow down her heartbeat. She watched him walk around to the driver’s side in agitated strides.

  The door opened and he eased himself into the seat, put on his belt and then started up the engine. “Where am I driving to?” he asked her.

  Great, why hadn’t she thought of that? If she gave him her address he would hound her day and night. There would be no escape. Her one refuge would be gone. She could not allow that. So what was she going to do? “Well.” He barked.

  “The… umm. The golden maple.” She told him. Then congratulated herself on a job well done. The golden maple hotel was a ten-minute walk from where she lived. She could wait in their foyer until she was sure he was gone and then walk home. Problem solved.

  Jake pulled out of the car park and onto the road. Amanda sat still in her seat, her arms around her in a protective gesture as the silence stretched out endlessly between them.

  “So” Jake began and Amanda jumped at the unexpectedness of his voice in the profound silence of the car. “What brings you back this way? Back home. I know it wasn’t your family.”

  “Business.” Amanda replied tersely. She wasn’t going to acknowledge the last sniping remark he had made. She decided that it was beneath her.

  “Business? What do you do?” He asked her politely.

  “I buy and sell antiques.” She answered tonelessly. He didn’t really care what she did for a living and she knew it.

  “That sounds interesting. What made you decide that line of work?” was he for real. He was talking to her as if they were actually friends. No, she was not going to play that game. Whatever game it was that he was playing. She must not let her guard down even for a minute.

  “It’s the only thing that I found I was any good at.” She told him flippantly.

  “I doubt that is the… only… thing… you are good at.” Amanda’s heart skipped a beat in alarm. Did Jake’s voice just drop an octave? Did it become sultry? Hidden with double meaning. Or did she imagine it?

  “Well, I did work as a secretary for a while, in public relations.” She admitted.

  “What happened? Didn’t you like it?”

  “I couldn’t type.” She lied. How easily that had come to her tonight. She was going to go straight to hell, no passing go, or collecting her two hundred. She didn’t even own a get out of hell free card.

  Jake chuckled then, it sounded just as she remembered it. Rich and warm with deep sensual overtones.

  “So, where have you been hiding yourself away all these years?” Aah, there it was. The probing question that would certainly mean that she would let something inadvertently slip and Jake would be able to use that to be able to track her down whenever he wanted.

  “Well.” She licked her dry lips and gathered her thoughts carefully before answering. Going over the answer in her head before she spoke the words aloud. “You know how it is.” She shrugged one shoulder in what she hoped was a non-chalont manner. “No place very special. I do try not to stay in one place for very long. I find it becomes very boring and tedious.” Yet more lies.

  “I’m so sorry.” Jakes voice dropped and he sounded genuinely sorry.

  “What’s that supposed to mean.” Amanda demanded hotly as anger boiled in her blood instantly. Her constraint on her
tongue temporarily forgotten.

  “I am just sorry that you seem to have had such an unsettled way of life. It is not easy always on the move with no one you can call a real friend. It must have been very lonely.”

  Damn the man. Was he actually being nice to her? Absolutely not. She dismissed vehemently. The little warning voice told her not to be taken in by his act of kindness and sympathy. And that was exactly what it was, an act. There was not a kind considerate sympathetic bone in the man’s body.

  “My life has been just fine thank you. I certainly do not need any sympathy from you. I am a free spirit and I am happy. So why don’t you save your little hearts and flowers routine for someone who will fall for it.”

  “I was just trying to be helpful, polite even.” He cast an innocent look her way but she wasn’t about to give in. where Jake was concerned she could always read between the lines and what she read there was never any good.

  “No you weren’t.” She told him flatly.

  “Why do you always assume the worst in me? I am trying to be nice. It would be nice if you could find it in yourself to return the sentiment. It might help to show me that you have finally grown up a bit.”

  “Nice… you… huh.” Amanda fumed. “There is always an ulterior motive for everything you say and do. You do not say or do anything unless you have considered the most important thing, what’s in it for you. Look after number one and conveniently forget the rest of the chumps, that’s your motto isn’t it Jake?” Amanda heard Jake wince audibly as he glided the car smoothly around a corner.

  Thank god they were nearly there and she could get out of the claustrophobic confines of Jake’s car. It was filled with his scent and it was making her head spin. Even the heat from his body was invading her limbs. She could even smell the soap he had used. He was far too close he could easily touch her but he made no move to.

  She felt something inside, disappointment, she pushed it away. Of course she wasn’t disappointed, she was tired that’s all it was. The come down from the adrenaline rush of coming face to face with Jake after ten years.

  “Well.” Jake paused and Amanda sent a sideways glance at him. He was gritting his teeth and she could see the tension along his jaw line. It looked as hard as stone right now and Amanda’s hand moved towards him for the briefest second before she caught herself and placed both hands firmly in her lap.

  What did she think she was doing? “I’m not sure how to respond to that.” He told her. “You do have a low opinion of me, don’t you?” Amanda thought she could hear a chord of hurt in his voice and suddenly she felt ashamed of herself but she brushed it away. She wasn’t going to let him wriggle under her skin.

  “You gave me that opinion of you Jake.” Amanda accused him through clenched teeth.

  “Why don’t you tell me how I managed to do that?” He asked her.

  “Just by being you.” Came her terse reply.

  “Ah.” It wasn’t even a word, but it conveyed so much. And, it had the desired effect. She felt bad and, worse than that, childish. She opened her mouth to apologise but then she stopped herself. She would only give him another weapon to use against her.

  Amanda felt close to tears by the time Jake pulled up outside the hotel. The rest of the ride had been in a thick oppressive silence.

  The car came to a halt and Amanda sat for a moment unsure what to say or do. What she wanted to do was apologise to Jake for cruelly hurting him. However, her throat hurt at the thought of having to form such words.

  “Well.” Amanda managed to croak out and she cleared her throat to try again. “Thanks for the… ah… lift. I think I am quite capable of managing from here all on my own.” She put a hand on the door ready to exit the car but Jake’s hand snaked around her other wrist making her jump at the contact.

  The warmth of his fingers instantly penetrated her cold skin warming it at an alarming rate. Amanda felt the tremors catapult up her arm and the hairs on the back of her neck stood to attention. Amanda held her breath not daring to breathe as she desperately tried to regain control of her wayward traitorous body. Jake was too close for comfort.

  “You should come and see mum.” He stated simply. “She misses you terribly.” Amanda swallowed hard against the painful lump that was tearing at her throat.

  “If I have time.” She tried to sound off hand but the words came out strangled and then she winced as Jake’s hand tightened its grip around her wrist. His cruel, hard fingers bit into her soft pliable flesh. Amanda would not be surprised if there was bruising there tomorrow.

  “What happened in your life that turned you into this heartless, bitter bitch?” Amanda opened her mouth and then closed it again. She had not expected such a question and she felt the impact of his words. They dug deep under her skin and she felt the sting of tears in her eyes.

  “You happened Jake.”

  “Me?”

  “Yes, you. Because my parents adopted you and I was pushed out of the loop. I became a disappointment. In fact, I was so far out of the loop that it was hardly worth my time in being there at all. So I did us all a favour and I left.”

  “If you want me to believe that drivel then I would also have to believe that you are a self-centred spoiled brat.” Jake told her.

  “Maybe I am.” She flung at him.

  “Credit me with more sense than that. I know you better than that. Don’t try to make yourself into something that you are not.” Jake sounded angry with her.

  Had she been so wrong? What was she so angry with him for anyway? It made her feel guilty that she could not truthfully answer her own question and infuriated that Jake was making her question herself.

  The trouble was, she had been at war with Jake for so long even she had lost sight of what it was about anymore.

  On the other hand, maybe she did not want to face up to the reality of what was really going on between them.

  Not that there was anything going on between them, she reminded herself. She hated him and he hated her and she was fine with that. More than fine in fact.

  “Jake, you never knew me and you never will. You may have thought you did but…” her voice trailed off and she sighed deeply as tiredness and weariness took over. “Let go of my arm.” She told him.

  She just wanted to be away from him. She did not want to feel the heat from his hands reach into her skin as it was doing right now.

  “You are so wrong.” He told her as his thumb began to rub on the sensitive skin inside her wrist. Amanda shuddered and swallowed hard. She tugged her arm trying to free it but Jake had her firmly in his grip and she wasn’t going anywhere.

  “I don’t think I am.” She told him. “Please.” She whispered hoarsely.

  “Please, what?” Jake’s voice barely a whisper in the confines of the car. But his tone became seductive and Amanda’s heart began pounding in her chest. Her stomach somer-saulted and worse than that, she felt a throbbing deep between her legs as the muscles there contracted. How was that fair?

  “Let go.”

  “Is that what you want?”

  Silence filled the car, a thick expectant silence. She opened her mouth but then closed it again as a small whimper escaped from her throat. She wished Jake would stop stroking her wrist with his thumb.

  “Jake, please. We are different people now. Move on. You don’t know me anymore.” She told him.

  “I know you better than you think.” He told her then and let go of her arm.

  “You have never known the real me Jake, not really.” Amanda mouth twisted into a cynical sad smile. “You have always been too busy with being Mr perfect. Who can probably turn water into wine? Mr super Jake the wonderful who can do no wrong in everyone’s eyes. You probably think you can walk on water too. Don’t you Jake?

  What must it be like to be so much more high and mighty than the rest of us lowly mere mortals? You should take care not to fall off your golden pedestal, but then, you were always too caught up in your own self-importance to notice anything or
anybody else.

  We may be insignificant bugs to be squashed by you but some of us have values, it’s a shame you don’t have any or scruples. If you did then perhaps you would see yourself for what you truly are, as insignificant as the rest of us.”

  Even Amanda winced at her cruel, untrue words. She could feel the guilt creeping into her heart to make its home. The silence stretched out endlessly until it became uncomf-ortable. Finally, Amanda said. “I am… sorry…” she mumbled the words.

  “Wow…” Jake paused. “Little miss I’m perfect Michelson has just apologized. This is a real landmark occasion. Perhaps you could write it down for me so that I can get it framed for prosperity.” Jake goaded her.

  See. Amanda thought. I apologized for my actions and where did it get me? He threw it back in my face. Well for that he could take her apology and stick it…

  “You know what? I take it back. I am not for one minute sorry. In fact, I enjoyed telling you what I really think of you. God knows it was long overdue. I should have plucked up the courage to say it a long time ago. And I will tell you something else. You really need to learn to get over yourself.”

  Chapter 5.

  Amanda was shaking as she departed hastily from the car. She did not want to give Jake the opportunity to have the last word. He always got the last word. It was time she managed it for a change.

  She ran clumsily up the steps of the hotel and into the foyer. Tears blurring her vision as she went. She ran through the entrance and into the ladies where she had to work hard not to fall apart.

  Once there Amanda tried to pull herself together. She took deep breaths, she paced and then when everything had failed she bounced on her feet and shook out her hands. Slowly her heart stopped racing and the adrenaline rush calmed.

  She waited there for ten minutes or so before deciding that it would be safe to see if Jake had left. Slowly she made her way to the door and looked out. She could not see his car. She looked both ways making sure, good he was gone.