Soft, gentle, tingles, pleasure, the taste of soda mixed with something uniquely him... Clarissa groaned as those words reverberated through her head. Would these words ever go away? But it was worse now as she felt things she wasn't sure she could handle, very passionate, fiery, intense emotions. It was the last day of school and she felt like sitting alone in the garden. She grunted staring hard at the book she was supposed to be reading wondering if it would read to her. A shadow blocked the light from the sun, causing her to look up. She expected to see the wild wolf standing in front of her but it was his girl Letizia instead.

"Hi," Letizia said sitting down in front of her.

"Hi" Clarissa replied.

"What are you reading?" She pointed to the book.

"Much Ado About Nothing." Clarissa answered, wondering why Letizia was seeking her out.

"Is your brother still mad about the dare I put in the basket?" Letizia asked.

And there was the reason for Letizia's visit, Clarissa thought to herself. "Most likely but Vincenzo will protect you." Clarissa responded quietly.

"I saw you dancing with him on prom night." Letizia disclosed watching Clarissa.

Clarissa froze inside but her face was expressionless. Her father had taught her to play poker, there was always a tell with an opponent and you always had to make sure you didn't have one. She was now so grateful for those lessons. She shrugged, "I lost a bet."

"This is the second time you have danced with him." Letizia acknowledged. She wasn't sure why this was bothering her. She had been too far to see their expressions, but there had been something about the way they had danced together that night.

"I lost 2 bets to him." Clarissa shrugged watching Letizia closely not giving any hint of the guilt she had felt about wanting to kiss a taken man over and over again.

"And you kissed him." Letizia stated pointedly.

"It was your dare." Clarissa met her gaze head on.

"I didn't think anyone would really do it." Letizia admitted.

"I make it a point never to back away from a challenge," Clarissa replied. Unless it's a heated one with the wild wolf, her treacherous heart reminded her.

Letizia stared at her, trying to read her but she couldn't which was surprising as Clarissa was generally very expressive. She wasn't even sure why she was asking these questions as her relationship with Vincenzo was a charade. However, she needed to keep up appearances just in case someone else had seen them dance. She couldn't have word going back to the Lucianos who were still in town. "What do you think of Vincenzo?"

Clarissa looked at her, managing to keep her amusement from showing. Because what Letizia really wanted to do was warn her away from Vincenzo and she didn't want to be offensive because of her big brother Tristan. But Letizia didn't realize that she could take care of herself. "He is a friend."

"Most people stay away from him." Letizia raised her eyebrow.

Clarissa shrugged, "I have known him since I was in diapers. Doubt I will qualify as most people."

Letizia's eyes narrowed. Had she underestimated her? "Interesting. You seem more like frenemies."

"We like to joke around and challenge each other sometimes. I guess some people may call that frenemies." She picked up her books and stood up. "I have to drop these off at the library before it closes. See you in class."

Letizia reached out to hold her arm, "I am dating Vincenzo. I am his girl." She had to keep up the pretense but she couldn't be too offensive. She wasn't yet ready to be taken out by the Luciano's hit men, but was that really the only reason she was acting this way?

Clarissa looked down at the hand on her arm, "Good for you." Removing her arm, she turned around and walked away, trying to ignore the turmoil of emotions rolling through her. How she felt about Vincenzo having a girl, how she felt about that night. She wanted to tell Letizia she had no interest in boys, especially Letizia's man, but would that be the truth? If it was, why couldn't she get that night out of her mind... vivid, fiery, intense emotions. She wanted to scream out her frustration. She wanted him to stop haunting her dreams and most of all she wanted to stop feeling guilty.

Letizia stared at Clarissa as she walked away. Clarissa was friendly, feisty, confident yet kind and she liked to think they were friends but she knew Clarissa had always been a little wary of her, though not as wary as Angelia. Yet she had stood up for her, when Mr. O'Neill and Tristan had wanted her punished for that dare which had led to Clarissa kissing Vincenzo. She had been surprised Clarissa had completed the dare and in all honesty, she had felt a twinge of something when she heard about it. She wasn't mad as he wasn't really her boyfriend, but she wondered why Clarissa had chosen him.

As nice as Vincenzo was to her, he was someone she was wary off. That was why she didn't quite understand his relationship with Clarissa. They seemed to be friends but were always throwing little jabs at each other and joking in ways she couldn't comprehend. Vincenzo was also very protective of Clarissa, beating up boys who even mentioned her name. She supposed it was because the Rosarios and the O'Neills were close. But there had been something about the way they had danced that night. Something she couldn't put her finger on.

**********************************

Clarissa walked out of the library, running into a rock-hard body, she looked up groaning as she realized it was none other than the boy haunting her thoughts. She wasn't sure she wanted to handle him right now. Her emotions were all over the place and she was frustrated she couldn't get him out of her mind. She nodded a greeting and continued walking past him.

He placed a hand gently on her arm, stopping her movement. "What were you and Letizia talking about?"

"Nothing." She replied calmly turning to walk away, ignoring those tingles where he touched her.

"Terza.." He raised his eyebrow.

She groaned silently. When had Vincenzo let anything go? She looked around quickly spotting an empty room and tugged at his hand, dragging him into the room, shutting the door behind them. She turned to face him seeing a smirk on his face as she realized what she had done. She had just willingly gone into an empty room with a boy she had been avoiding, a boy who made her feel things she didn't want to accept, a boy she couldn't get out of her mind.

"And there I thought you were avoiding me." He smirked.

"As if I could," She mumbled under her breath, knowing he had heard her as his smirk widened.

"What did Letizia say?" He raised his eyebrow.

She sighed, "Nothing."

"Did she see us dancing on prom night?" He asked astutely wondering who else had seen them. O'Neill? He hadn't said much that night but yet he had said enough.

She sometimes disliked how perceptive he was and how he could see through her. She shrugged. "Who knows?"

"Did she warn you away from me" He asked, his gaze intense.

"Why would she? There is nothing going on between us." Clarissa shrugged.

"Yes there is and you know it." He shot back refusing to let her deny that something had changed between them that night.

"You have a girl Vincenzo this conversation is over." She turned away from him, groaning as he pulled her back against his hard-muscular chest. Those sparks again.. those words again...soft, gentle, tingles, pleasure, the taste of soda mixed with something uniquely him.... She really needed to get them out of her head. She gritted her teeth, feeling his warmth behind her. If she was honest with herself, she could stay in his arms all day. He made her feel warm, safe, protected, like nothing bad would ever happen to her. Unconsciously she leaned back against him sighing.

He smiled slightly as she leaned back, bending his head as he inhaled her jasmine scented hair. He wanted to kiss her so badly and was finding it difficult not to cross the line. "Do I really?"

She closed her eyes gritting her teeth. His riddles again. Yes, she had always noted something off about his relationship with Letizia but that was his problem not hers. She turned around, gasping at how close he was to her. His gaze was feral, appreciative, possessive. Something had truly changed that night, something indescribable. She fought herself from leaning up to kiss him and rather put a hand on his chest pushing him back a little, unable to control her groan, as she felt his rock hard muscular chest. " It doesn't matter what secrets you are hiding. What matters is what you do in public. She is your girl in public." She pushed hard against him but he wasn't budging.

"This isn't going away Terza, even if you are not ready for it." He stated calmly, ready to push back, refusing to let her go. "I will tell you my secrets one day but you can't run from what has changed." He leaned closer to her, whispering softly into her ear. "Besides you can't avoid me all summer."

She couldn't deny that something had changed but she realized it didn't matter because he had claimed a girl in public no matter what secrets he hid and she needed to live her life. She had received acceptance letters from summer programs of various colleges with pre-law courses. Her father had encouraged her to accept the summer internship programs in Ireland and Australia where they had family. She wondered if his encouragement had anything to do with piece of jewelry he had seen on her dresser. She had managed to deflect the questions, when he asked about where she had gotten it from, like a true O'Neill, but she knew her dad wasn't done asking questions. She didn't intend to keep it a secret as she was very open and honest with her dad but after that night she needed to figure out what she was feeling before talking to him.

And right now, she knew it wasn't going to be a good idea to be around Vincenzo this summer because they would cross that line and she was afraid to let that happen no matter what secrets he was hiding. Putting her hand on his chest she pushed him back again noticing that though he moved back a little, he still kept his hands loosely around her waist. She ignored the tingles, realizing that they would always be there whenever he touched her. "I don't need to. I am spending half my summer doing an internship in Australia and the other half in Ireland. I have family there and I can also visit Azurine."

"You are running away." He looked feral and furious.

"I am living my life," She shot back.

"Terza..." He began infuriated, jealous and exasperated that she was putting so much distance between them this summer.

"You can't change my mind," She wasn't going to allow him to talk her out of it. She gasped slightly as he pulled her closer to him, even as she stepped back, trying to keep a respectable distance between them. "Vincenzo," He had moved her closer to the wall, placing his right hand on the wall beside her head, his left arm wrapped around her waist.

He knew he couldn't change her mind, he could see the determination in her eyes. And of course, there was that matter of his girl's very overprotective feral father. Falling for a girl from a powerful family wasn't easy but he was still going to lay down some rules. "I have resources," His gaze was dominant, dark, savage, possessive, dangerous. "You date, dance with or kiss any boy in Australia or Ireland.... I will have them killed." He stared her down, his words ringing with promise and vengeance. "I went easy on the boy you danced with. But I won't go easy on the next boy." He was a possessive, feral, jealous, vindictive jerk and he wasn't afraid to show it. "No dating boys Terza, no dating any boys."

Was shock a good word to describe what she was feeling? Was her heart pounding in excitement, elation, anticipation or was it just an overload of emotions, emotions she couldn't process now? Because right there he was laying a claim on her. After that night, after what changed between them she couldn't deny it anymore. Feral wild beasts who looked at her like they did that night, like he did now, who made these proclamations only meant one thing that they were laying their claim. But didn't he have a girl? Vincenzo was honorable so she knew he wouldn't do this without being confident he could. Goodness he was frustrating. Did he think it was a good idea to lay this on her, to dictate her life when he had a girl? She was running on pure emotion right now. When she got back to the safety of her bedroom she would process what all this really meant.

"What is wrong with you? You have claimed a girl in public and now you want to put me in the middle? Is it because I protected a boy I danced with, which I will always do? Don't you think I have choices in my life? Don't you think I have a right to live my life, my way? Why do you want to hold me hostage to your threats? Why do you want to cage me in while you live your life?" She was frustrated and irritated.

"But hear this, if you kill a boy I date or dance with I won't stand for it and I will never forgive you. You can't bully me Vincenzo!" She slammed her hand against his chest in frustration, irritated he barely budged. He was like the rock of Gibraltar not moving. But who was he to tell her how to live her life, who to date, dance with or kiss? But right now she wanted all her tumultuous feelings, the sparks to go away... she wanted those words to disappear .......soft, gentle, tingles, pleasure, the taste of soda mixed with something uniquely him.... though now she was sure they never would. Not when the wild wolf was laying claim to her. She pushed hard with both hands against his chest, incensed that he still wasn't budging.

"That's not what I am doing." His gaze was very feral, domineering as he stared her down, capturing her furious gaze, daring her to look away, ignoring her attempt to push him away. To his minor satisfaction, she didn't mention kissing another boy. "Fine I will do my best not have them killed but I mean it, no dating of any boys." He wasn't going to allow any boy she protected to go unpunished, to not feel his wrath. He would keep his word and not have them killed as it was clear she wouldn't forgive him, but he would hurt them so badly they would wish they were dead. Death would be preferable compared to what he would do to them.

"Doing your best to not have them killed is not good enough. I meant what I said." She gritted her teeth in frustration tempted to tell him which bridge to jump off. But knowing him, he would retaliate and given that her emotions were all over the place she didn't want to find out if she would like his type of retaliation. "This conversation is going nowhere."

"No Terza, this conversation is going somewhere," He gritted his teeth, trying to temper his frustration and impatience. Why was she throwing so many roadblocks his way? He was tired of this. Tired of this charade. Everything be damned. He was ready to tell her his secrets if she would listen. "I need to tell you about my secrets."

She glared at him, not in the mood to hear his secrets. "I don't want to hear about your secrets right now because it changes nothing."

"Yes, it does," He shot back.

"No, it doesn't." She moved back needing to get away from him and all these intense feelings of frustration, guilt, feeling like she wanted to jump out of her skin. "I have to go."

"No." He gritted his teeth. "I am not done yet."

They glared at each other, no one backing down. Blue on blue, caught in a staring match of dominance versus defiance, electricity crackling, the tension between them churning into a storm of fiery, intense, heated emotions.

Biting her lower lip, unable to handle whatever this was, she gasped slightly as he moved his right hand cupping her left cheek, caressing it softly with his thumb. His left arm still firmly wrapped around her waist pulling her even closer to him. Those sparks again, those tingles and warmth she now felt whenever he touched her. That respectable distance between them decreasing by the minute. She closed her eyes unable to handle his intense, passionate, possessive gaze.

"Terza," He whispered softly, staring ardently and possessively at her. She was so beautiful, so feisty and his.

She opened her eyes making a sound as the intensity of emotions swirled around them, heated, fervent, extreme feelings. She licked her dry lips, groaning as his ardent gaze, which rested blatantly on her lips, darkened. She couldn't cross the line as much as she wanted to. "We can't do this."

He closed his eyes knowing she was right. Trying to get control of his feelings he opened his eyes groaning as he met her gaze, the powerful, heated emotions between them not dissipating. This was so difficult. He leaned forward unable to help himself, his gaze fervent as she initially leaned forward then held back fighting herself. He wanted to get a kiss before she went running off to Australia or Ireland.

Just as their lips would meet gently, she pushed him back slightly, breathless from anticipation. "You kiss me and I will slap you."

He smirked, "Kinky. I will remember that."

"Oh goodness," She blushed furiously.

He grinned, "So I do make you blush."

She rolled her eyes moving out of his arms and this time he let her.

"Remember my warning Terza." His gaze was ferocious, savage, dangerous. She needed space and he understood that but he wasn't going to let anyone have what was his.

"You mean your attempt to intimidate me, into living my life the way you want me to live it, even though you have a girl?" She raised her eyebrow.

"Call it whatever you want." He shrugged, ignoring the part about him having a girl.

"Don't you think I could say the same thing?" She smirked slightly at him.

"What do you mean?" He raised his eyebrow.

"If I had a man," She groaned as he narrowed his feral, dominant gaze. "If you were my man," She amended biting back a sound as his gaze turned heated and possessive. "I could also threaten any woman you danced with or kissed." She stated. "You don't like to share and neither do I." She paused looking him straight in the eyes. "If you were my man and you danced with or kissed another girl who wasn't me, you had better sleep with one eye open all night." She was certifiable to be excited by that fiery, gleam of possessiveness in his blue eyes. "You see, I have this lovely Celtic sword my dad gave me and at night it could slip from my hand and you never know where it may land."

"Freaky," He smirked moving towards her. "I wouldn't expect anything less from you." His heart racing at her calling him, her man, at her future possessiveness. His girl was feisty, fearless, unpredictable and just made for him. Whenever he threw her a challenge, she just upped the ante. Oh, he was going to have so much fun with her. "Why would I want to look at any other girl if I have you? You are beautiful, feisty, fearless, kind and just made for me." He groaned as she bit her lip, fighting back a blush, the heated, fervent emotions rising again between them. If he didn't lighten things up he would cross that line and kiss her. "Besides, I always wanted to know whether it hurt when you fell from heaven." He smirked as she rolled her eyes, the intense emotions dissipating a little.