"It is not up for discussion." she snapped back instantly.1
"It should be." He retorted back with a calm, cool manner.2
"Ugh! Have you always got to infuriate me so much?" Beth spat.3
"What can I say? I can't resist the little dimples you get when you are annoyed with me." He grinned, looking smug at her ever-growing irritation.4
"Mark just piss off I'm not in the mood." She lashed at him, walking down the posh avenue of bungalows and stand-alone houses. 5
"My, we certainly aren't are we? And on a nice day like today." He lightly joked, paying no attention to her brutal attitude.6
Stroking his hand down his crumpled black shirt, he slipped his hands into his dirty black jeans. Turning his head, he glanced at her, smiling slightly at the murderous look she had on her face. She was always such a challenge when she was like that.7
"Talk to me." He sweetly asked, trying to melt her icy facade.8
"What about then?” 9
"Where are we going for a start? You know I am not keen on coming down here, the old biddies always think I am going to nick their gnomes and flower baskets." He seriously stated.10
Holding back the urge to smile, she tried to give him the best "its not working" look she could, and failed miserably. 11
"Ah! We have a smile." Mark instantly noticed.12
"Perhaps if you didn't look like an offender waiting to happen they wouldn't be worrying their garden people are about to go walkies would they?" She sarcastically informed him.13
"Wow! Someone’s sharp today, but at least your talking so I will have to make do."14
"I have already told you what you can do." Beth answered sardonically. 15
Continuing down the street, she turned quickly down a little alleyway almost losing Mark.16
"I can tell you’re not in a good mood." Mark almost shouted at her, trying to keep up.17
"Oh! And you say I'm the sharp one today, how did you work that one out Sherlock?" She carried on mocking.18
Mark stopped in his tracks. He was getting nowhere; her mood was still dark no matter what he said. 19
"I can't keep this up all day Beth, by now I would have walked off but…” Before he could finish his sentence, Beth jumped straight down his throat.20
"Why don't you then, in fact didn't I just tell you to piss off half an hour ago?" Beth fumed. 21
Taking in deep breaths, she waited for the reply. When she heard nothing she turned around to find Mark had vanished.22
A little disappointed he had not tried harder and slightly annoyed at herself for not giving in quicker, she fumed more.23
"Great now I feel worst!" She moaned to herself.24
A thought passed through her brain for a moment, "How did he disappear so quickly? I didn't take that long to turn around, not long enough to get down the alleyway surely." Beth shrugged it off; however way he had managed it he was still gone. 25
"Fast bugger." She mumbled to herself, before realising she was indeed talking to herself.26
Sneaking a quick glance, she looked around quickly in embarrassment hoping someone was not around to see he manic ranting. Luckily, there was not.27
By the time, Beth had managed to walk off her anger she had reached a little ornate bridge overlapping a calm gushing brook. Beth perched herself onto the wooden side railings and sombrely stared into the flowing water.28
Beth was narked by the fact she had pushed Mark into leave her alone, he had never done that before, no matter how aggravated she was. "He hasn't really taken offence to the offender comment has he?" She pondered to herself before shaking it off. "He's not that childish." Her thoughts argued.29
Breathing out a sigh, she continued just to stare. Darkness started to fall around her and take hold of the landscape by the time Beth was ready to move. Gracefully she lifted herself up over the railings and back to the wooden boards of the bridge. Time to walk home.30
It was 11.30pm by the time she reached home and her apartment was in pitch-blackness. Entering her hallway, she switched on the light and dumped down her keys into the little bowl on the end table.31
Beth dropped down onto her burgundy sofa when she reached the living room and rummaged down the sides to find the television remote. Feeling general worry, she had upset Mark; unease bubbled up in her throat and burned.32
She did not trust anyone, not after what happened, but ever since she met him on that dark rainy night, something in her wanted to have that with him, though she could not quite fully bring herself to do so. He disappeared for long periods and always looked rough when he eventually came back, that alone made her weary. 33
Many times, she had asked him if he had family or a partner he went back to, but he swore he had no one. Only a dog for some reason, but no one else. A little tap came at the door which jerked Beth out of her trade of thought. Standing up she walked to the door and glimpsed out the peephole.34
"Who is it?" She called out.35
"It's me." The deep masculine voice replied.36
She immediately knew who it was and proceeded with opening the door. When the door was finally opened, there stood Mark dressed mostly in black as he always did and looking enigmatic as ever.37
"I came to see if you got home alright." He announced in a sullen tone.38
In that moment, Beth dropped her smart attitude and went back to being her normal self.39
"Yes. I'm ok." She answered.40
"Thank you." She added, her crystal blue eyes shining with repentance. 41
"Good." Mark replied, moving his hand down to touch hers, which was resting on the door frame. 42
He never could get over the stark rush of something, some emotion that flooded through his lifeless and cold body when he saw into those eyes. He had never felt anything like that before, and the current of it somewhat unnerved him. 43
She felt so warm he thought if he looked down, he would see it flowing from her and into him. Flushing and creeping into his veins to bring life to him once more. Mark moved his hand away and directly put them into his leather jacket.44
"Would you like a brew? It has gotten cold out there now." She kindly asked, trying a little to make amends.45
"I don't drink..." He paused.46
"Go on then." Mark reformed, realising if he turned away her gesture it might be her last.47
Mark saw the beautiful smile that came across Beth's face when he agreed and it tore at his heart. It pulled at his soul that he had thought long dead and gave a beat to the heart he long thought had stopped pulsing. She was such an attractive creature. He had never met anyone like her in all of his years. 48
"How many sugars would you like or would you prefer coffee, because I have coffee… somewhere, I will make you that if you like?" Beth began to ramble, a certain anxiety of him being in her apartment starting to hit home. 49
She had known him awhile but he had never been home with her and it seemed he was so close to her, she felt hot. 50
She swore Mark had noticed this as he inched closer to her, standing behind her as she faced the counter, spooning in the granules of sugar into her mug.51
"Tea is fine." He whispered near her ear as she continued preparing the drinks. 52
She felt his ice cool breath on the hot skin of her neck and it brought goose bumps to the surface. Mark could smell her intoxicating scent and it drove his senses wild, she smelt so good. She always had. Twisting round she plucked up the courage to face him.53
"And sugar?" She innocently asked, trying to pretend she was not becoming aroused by the closeness of this man. 54
He stood so tall and bold, his dark brown hair roughed up to a sort of roguish appeal, his shirt unbuttoned at the top to reveal the peach coloured goodness of his skin. 55
"Hopefully I am sweet enough." He responded to the question, bringing little flushes of red to Beth’s cheeks. 56
"Maybe." She courageously toyed back.57
"Will you have to find out?" He inquisited. 58
Feeling she was becoming way out of her depths, she turned back to the mugs and poured the now boiling hot water into the teapot. She could still feel him so close to her, him eventually brushing up against her that made her choke on her breath. He was tormenting her or enticing her, she was not sure, but what ever it was, it was working.59
Mark knew what he was doing; he could see it in her face, what he was feeling too. He knew what he was doing was going to cause trouble but he could not help it, he wanted her and there was no denying it, even though ever since he met her, he had tried to. 60
Beth turned back around, her braveness returning once more. She knew she would eventually get hurt if she went down the road she could see this heading, but she could not stop herself. 61
"So how am I to find out then?" She flirtingly found herself asking.62
Mark was over taken, he was lost in those ocean blue eyes and how her sensual brown locks seductively lay on her shoulders. He felt himself drawn to her lips, he sweet pale pink lips that he knew would taste better than anything that had touched his. 63
Any moment his barrier, her barrier, was going to slip and they were going to fall into something there was no going back on, and he could not take that risk. Moving back away from her, he girded his screaming emotions and blankly stared at her.64
"It's getting late; I am going to have to go." He tried to say with no trace of anything at all emotional.65
Beth looked mystified at him as he backed up to head for the door.66
"But what about your tea?" She asked confused.67
"Another time. I have to go." He answered, an in a moment was shutting the door as he left. 68
Beth shocked and starting to hurt stood bemused, the half finished cups still lying on the counter. A slight tear welling in her eye she wiped it quickly away and took in a deep breath. 69
Adding your comment:
Your style of writing-OMG-I LOVE it!!! The way you decribe things, pull me into a sensual world I can breathe and touch. The dialoge, oh, it is so intoxicating! I wil definately read more! EXCELLENT job!
You are so talented at romance, This kind of writing best suits you, just as well, if not better than the more cryptic kind of writing you have with Ravenhearst.....
