“Yesterday was a fairly big shock to my system,” she murmured, “and I was obviously reacting to it. But I’m usually much better at keeping myself even.”
“Even?”
She squinted up at him, the butter-yellow sunshine doing mesmerizing things to her fiery hair, as if it were streaked with crimson and gold. Aiden was fighting the urge to reach out and touch it, digging his fingers into the silken mass, when she asked, “Have you ever been around a Mallory witch before?”
He thought for a moment, then shook his head, realizing the answer was no. He’d known some Reavess, and even some Bailey witches, but never a Mallory. “Can’t say that I have.”
“Well, if you had,” she explained in that same odd monotone that was really starting to get on his nerves, “then you’d understand.”
Pushing one hand back through his hair, Aiden searched his mind for anything he might have heard about the Mallory. “Because of their curse, they affect emotions, right?”
Olivia nodded, her gaze sliding away again as she said, “If I wanted to keep my sanity, I had to learn to keep myself on an even keel. Any strong emotion gets blown out of proportion when you’re around a Mallory witch.”
“Well, for what it’s worth,” he muttered, “I liked you better the other way.”
Her gaze snapped back to his, and he couldn’t help but welcome the flash of temper that flared in her eyes. “I’m human, Aiden. Remember? You shouldn’t like me at all.”
It was his turn to break eye contact, and he shoved his hands into his front pockets, not trusting the hunger itching beneath his skin, pushing him to act on impulse and just take what he wanted. “I have good reasons for the way I feel, Liv.”
“Honestly, what is it with you?” The low words were flavored with anger and accusation. “I mean, I keep trying to figure out what you’re after, but you’re making my head spin. One second you’re pushing, then you’re pulling back. You’re flirting, then you’re running from the room. It’s like a freaking roller coaster. What in God’s name do you want from me?”
A muscle ticked below his right eye, his muscles coiling for action, though he refused to move. “I want more than you could ever imagine,” he bit out, wondering if she had any idea how much it had cost him to pull away from her last night. To give her the space that she’d needed. How much it’d cost him not to lay himself down on her when she’d been lying in bed that morning, all soft and warm and more tempting than any other woman he could ever remember having beneath him. “And I want it a hell of a lot more than I should.”
Her eyes were huge, the smoky violet burning with heat, luminous and bright, like stained glass backlit by the sun. Her mouth trembled with all the sharp emotion she’d been trying so hard to hold inside. “You’re crazy.”
“Crazy or not,” he countered in a deep voice roughened by need, crackling like a bed of autumn leaves, “it’s going to happen between us.”
“It isn’t.”
“It is. You might as well stop fighting it.”
“It doesn’t make any sense for you to want me!” she burst out, that smooth shell of control cracking even further. “I’m a sexually repressed kindergarten teacher and you’re a womanizing tomcat! We’re completely wrong for each other!”
“What the hell does that matter?” he shot back, his own gnawing frustration getting the better of him. “God, Liv, it’s not like I said I want you forever!”
CHAPTER NINE
IT’S NOT LIKE I SAID I want you forever….
Whoa. Jesus. Had he honestly just said that to a woman? To Olivia?
Nice one, man. You might as well have gone ahead and told her you want to fuck her a few times, then walk away, leaving her behind with your buddies while you go off and find someone else to screw around with.
Popping his jaw, Aiden wished he could turn around and kick his own ass for sounding like such a prick. At the same time he wondered what it was about this woman that made him act like such a jackass. He hated the way she reacted to the callous words, that beautiful heat in her eyes quickly fading to something brittle and cold. Or maybe that was simply the bleakness of his own emotional wasteland reflecting back at him. Either way, Aiden knew he’d messed up, and he fought hard to undo the damage. “But there’s no doubt that I want you, Liv.”
He’d left some significant parts of that statement unspoken, but she’d heard them anyway.
“You mean you want me for sex.” A wry, crooked smile played at the corner of her mouth. “And that’s supposed to be enough?”
He took a deep breath, then slowly let it out. “It could be, if you let it.”
She shook her head, looking as if she was trying hard to close down again. “Even if that was a sane idea, I’d be an absolute fool to trust you.”
“For a relationship, yeah.” He pulled back his shoulders, instinctively fighting against the guilt. God, it wasn’t as if she was still going to want him around anyway, once she finally clued in to the differences between them. Sooner or later she would come to think of him as an animal—one who had been bought and used in the basest, vilest of ways—and then those hot looks of lust would change, replaced by disgust. Or worse.
Yeah, it might be selfish, but Aiden knew he’d rather not be around when it happened.
“But you could trust me for an affair.” He tried to smile, but couldn’t really pull it off. “I’m great affair material, Liv.”
She started to laugh, but the sound was hollow, and they both winced. “Affairs can be just as painful as relationships, Aiden. I have no desire to be used and tossed aside.”
“You can’t be worried that I’ll use you, if you’re the one using me.” He knew he sounded close to begging, but he couldn’t stop. Couldn’t stand the thought of simply turning away from her, going back inside the restaurant and finding some other woman to scratch the itch that she’d started. What was the point, when he knew he’d walk away from whoever he chose with this same raw, scraping need eating away at his gut, burning under his skin?
No, the woman he wanted was standing right in front of him, and in that moment he honestly didn’t give a damn that she was human.
He just wanted her.
“I’ll make you feel good, Liv. Seriously, this can be all about you, if that’s the way you want to play it. Just me giving you whatever you want, making you come like crazy, however many times you can take it.” He finally allowed himself to move in, crowding her against the truck. “Just…let me get close to you.”
“I can’t.” She wet her lips as she tilted her head back, holding his stare. “It would be a mistake, and I need to focus on Jamie right now. I can’t afford to get involved with you, even if it is just for sex.”
“Sure you can.” Forcing an easy, boyish grin to his lips, he shifted even closer, trapping her between his body and the truck. And damn, but it felt good. Better than good. The intimate press of her lush breasts against the wall of his chest, of her smaller body crushed against his larger frame, was just about the best damn thing that he’d ever experienced.
“Take my word for it, Liv.” Lust gave a guttural edge to his teasing tone. “I promise I’ll be cheap.”
She was still snuffling a soft burst of laughter under her breath when Aiden lowered his head, pressing his mouth against the tender side of her throat, his nose buried in the thick mass of her hair. The heady, provocative taste of her skin sent a deep, pulsing burst of pleasure sliding up his spine, curling around the backs of his ears, sharpening his breath. As he braced his hands against the cold surface of the truck, caging her in, a low growl vibrated in the back of his throat, the feel and scent and taste of her burning through him like a blistering wave of heat. It seemed like some kind of madness, how badly he wanted her, as if he’d been years without a woman, rather than a mere matter of weeks. “You smell so good,” he groaned, his hands fisting against the window in hard, tight knots. “Taste good. Feel good.”
For a moment her body remained rigid with tension and
remnants of anger, her breath panting and sharp against the soft sounds of the morning. Her fingers danced along the bare skin of his arms, as if she wanted to grab hold of him but was struggling to fight the temptation. Then she trembled as he ran his tongue around the tender shell of her ear, nipping the delicate lobe with his teeth, and the stiffness flowed out of her on a soft groan, her head tilting to the side to give him better access as she whispered his name.
“Don’t fight it.” The order was thick, husky…raw hunger pouring through his veins in a heavy, visceral surge. Gripping her hip with one hand, Aiden quickly shoved the other under her hair, his long fingers holding her in place as he kissed his way across her jaw, until he found the lush, petal-like softness of her mouth. The wind rushed against their bodies, pulling at the long strands of their hair…whipping at their clothes as he ate his way past those soft, strawberry-flavored lips, his tongue rubbing against hers, urging her to kiss him back. Her taste melted through his body until he could feel it all the way down in his bones, and he growled from the heady sweetness, deepening the kiss.
“Aiden,” she cried breathlessly, her tender lips moving against his, creating a slick, delicious friction, her nails digging into his biceps. “We’re outside. In broad daylight. We could be seen.”
“I’ll hear anyone who comes back here. I promise I won’t let anyone see us,” he choked out, the clipped, rough sound of his voice proof that the predator in him was gaining the upper hand. Again he was caught by how strange it was…the fact that he was actually getting off on kissing her. In the grand scheme of things, it was such an innocent act compared to what he usually did with women, and yet he couldn’t get enough of it.
Then again, there wasn’t anything all that innocent about the way their mouths were sealed together, the kiss turning hotter, slicker…hungrier, more devastating with each second that ticked by.
“Gotta touch you,” he growled, no longer sounding human as he pushed his hand between her legs. He cupped her sex in a hard, possessive hold, and even through her jeans he could feel her heat, the scent of her need growing stronger, rich and warm and sweetly spiced. It made him want to release his fangs and sink them into her shoulder, marking her…holding her in his grip as he tore off her clothes, lifted her against the truck and shoved himself into her with a hard, hammering, throw-your-head-back-and-scream kind of drive.
“I can’t think,” she whispered, arching against him, and Aiden could feel the rise of pleasure twisting through her, rushing for release. “Aiden, I’m not sure I—”
“Just let me,” he groaned, shaking, his body tight…slick with sweat. Warnings roared through his brain like shots from a cannon, but he beat them back, shutting them out.
It’s okay. You can handle it. Just take what you need.
In the rational part of his mind, Aiden knew he was only telling himself what he wanted to hear so that he could get her against him. Get more of her taste in his mouth. He’d convince himself that she was as harmless as any other woman, if it meant he could have more of this. He needed it too badly. Needed her softness under his hands, that enticing scent filling his head, sinking into his skin. Needed to take in the sumptuous, delicate details and know firsthand just how she felt. How she tasted in all those secret, intimate places.
And really, wasn’t he worrying for nothing? Keep his emotions under control, and there wouldn’t be any danger. Just a physical, carnal exchange of pleasure.
Except that his heart was pounding like a damn jackhammer.
If you let her, she’ll betray you. You know how fickle humans can be. How quickly they can turn on you. The words were whispered in his mind, but they weren’t his beast’s. No, the animal wanted her just as badly as Aiden did. This was his fear speaking, its chilling voice scratchy and thin, like a hiss. She’ll cut you deeper than any blade ever could. Bleed you out until there’s nothing left but meat and bones.
He didn’t need the internal lecture. He knew the kind of threat she posed. But he didn’t give a damn. Before she could tell him no, he flicked the top button on her jeans and shoved his hand inside the top of her panties, not even bothering with the zipper. He swallowed her hoarse cry of surprise with his mouth, thrusting deep with his tongue as he pushed his hand deeper, past the soft hair on her mound, not stopping until he’d found the smooth, moist flesh buried there between her quivering thighs. Until he’d delved into that hot, humid paradise.
He gasped her name, forcing her legs farther apart with his knee so that he could reach more of her, the tender folds of her sex like warm, drenched silk as he spread her open, circling one blunt fingertip around the delicate opening. “You’re melting for me,” he whispered against her mouth, her breath panting and sweet as it pelted against his lips. “Like honey, Liv. I bet you taste incredible.”
She shivered in response, arching against him, her nipples deliciously thick and tight against his chest. Her hips moved the barest fraction, rubbing those velvety folds against his hand. His body reacted with a thick surge of lust, and he locked his jaw, wondering if he could actually get so hard that he caused himself bodily harm.
Just go easy, he cautioned himself, since he didn’t know how small she was built—but it seemed he was too jacked up for tenderness or finesse. With a low growl tearing up from the deepest reaches of his chest, Aiden plunged two long fingers inside her, thrusting them deep. Hard.
And damn near died from the feel of her closing in on him.
Burying his damp forehead against hers, he made a feral sound that should have scared the hell out of her, but only had her clenching around him, the soft, tender tissues burning hotter…slicker, drenching his hand. She had the tightest little piece he’d ever known, those lush, cushiony muscles clasping him in a greedy hold as he began to move his fingers in and out, working her with his hand the way he wanted to take her with his cock. Or his…tongue. An odd thought for him, and yet Aiden couldn’t deny that he wanted to drop to his knees, rip her jeans away and bury his face in those melting folds. He’d lick her with long, ravenous strokes, starved for the taste of her. Thrust his tongue inside and eat her from the inside out, taking all of that hot melting sugar into his mouth and swallowing it down.
Touching her like this was heaven, as well as hell. And if he wasn’t careful, Aiden knew he was going to lose a lot more than his sanity to this woman.
“So beautiful,” he grunted, sounding like a friggin’ caveman as he watched the way her eyes grew heavy with pleasure, unfocused and dazed, her fair skin burning with bright splotches of color. He liked the way her breath caught as he pushed the aching, rigid length of his cock against her hip, grinding against her while he withdrew his fingers. He teased them around the small, slick opening, his mind seared by thoughts of how good it was going to feel when he was kneeling between her splayed thighs. She writhed, watching him through the thick fringe of her lashes as she pushed against his hand, silently begging him to fill her up again.
And then not so silently as she groaned, “Aiden…please. More.”
With a low, wicked rumble of laughter, he plunged his fingers back inside, forcing her to take them deeper just as he caught her clit with his thumb. Torturing the swollen, tiny knot with wet, circular strokes, he moved his fingers faster…harder, positive that her shyness would get the better of her and she’d close her eyes when she came. But she didn’t. No, she stared right back at him, every naked emotion and dazzling shock of pleasure burning right there in her wide gaze as it crashed through her, the most breathtaking thing he’d ever seen. Her head tilted back into his hand, her pink face covered with a fine sheen of sweat as she sank her teeth into her lower lip to keep from crying out, and he realized in that moment that making Olivia Harcourt come apart in his arms was something he could easily get addicted to.
Something he could come to need again. And again.
“I mean it, Liv. You’re so damn beautiful.” He fisted his hand in her hair as he covered her mouth with his. He nipped at her bottom lip, una
ble to resist that plump, succulent flesh. Then he went deep, ravaging the sweet, moist well that lay within, all the while fighting for control. But it wasn’t easy. Explicit images were firing through his brain, pushing him…daring him to take what he wanted. What the savage predator prowling within his body demanded.
Want it, the animal snarled. Need it. Now.
Shoving himself against her hip, hard, Aiden struggled to stay in control…while doing his best to calculate how quickly he could get them back to the room, where they could finish what they’d started. As the last tremors of her orgasm slowly fluttered around his fingers, he pulled his other hand from her hair, ready to sweep her up into his arms and run for the room, when an eerie chill swept over his back. Reacting instantly to the possible threat of danger, Aiden quickly pulled his hand from her jeans, a deep, guttural snarl on his lips as he spun around, both the animal and man ready to launch an attack and protect her with his body. With his life.
But there was nothing there.
“What is it?” she whispered from behind him, the rustling sounds telling him that she was buttoning her jeans. “The C-Casus?”
“I don’t think so.” Soft. Savage. The huskily spoken words were almost silent as he took a step toward the woods, his eyes narrowed on the thick line of trees. He couldn’t see what was there, but he could smell the rank stench of its rotting flesh. Knowing something bad was about to happen, Aiden started to order Olivia to run—but he was already too late. Before the first word had even left his mouth, a powerful blow to his chest threw him backward, the heavy weight of his body slamming her against the side of the truck. His assailant was nothing more than a pale blur as it flew through the air, moving with lightning speed, impossible to follow. Within seconds he was hit with a rapid sequence of strikes, the blows slamming into his stomach and chest, and he spun around, leaving his back exposed to the attack so that he could shove Olivia away from him. She stumbled, but quickly righted herself, turning to stare with wide, terrified eyes.
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