Prince of Fire: Black Phoenix, Book 1

by Tawny Taylor

  He shrugged and curled his fingers around the bag’s handles. “Thank you.” Standing, he offered his free hand to Keri. “Let me help you.”

  She accepted his offer, grinning like a total dork as her fingers wove between his. “Such a gentleman.” That smile didn’t fade a bit as they walked through the crowded restaurant bar and lobby. Even outside, he didn’t release her hand, and she was suddenly very appreciative of the simple pleasure of holding hands while walking down the street, the air scented with grass and flowers as a cool drizzle fell from swollen clouds overhead. As they turned the corner, stepping into the hotel’s parking lot, he tightened his fingers and brushed his thumb over the back of her hand, and a buzzing zap sizzled through her body.

  He held the door for her guiding her toward a couch in the lobby. “Would you like to wait here while I register?”

  “Sure.”

  He set the bag of food next to her. “Be back in a minute.”

  She watched him walk away, once more marveling at what an amazing man he was, despite his one (slightly significant) quirk. She counted at least a dozen great qualities about him before he returned. He scooped up the bag of food, slung her overnight bag over his shoulder and they headed up to their new temporary home. The delicious scents of cheese and spiced meat accompanied them into the elevator, down the hall and into their room.

  Two queen beds? She gave Talen a questioning glance when she stepped inside, and he smiled, revealing shallow dimples on either side of his mouth.

  Placing the bag on top of a dresser, he shrugged. “I didn’t want to make any assumptions.”

  “You truly are one of a kind, you know that, don’t you?” She headed into the bathroom to change. The clothes in her bag were dry—thank God. After dressing, she tidied up her hair and makeup and headed back into the room.

  Talen had not only changed into dry clothes, but he also had their food all set up and was lounging on one of the beds, his back resting against the headboard, his foam container balanced on his lap, the television remote in his hand, and some sporting event on the television. He’d made himself right at home.

  He patted the mattress. “Have a seat.”

  She kicked off her shoes and climbed up onto the bed, settling beside him. “Now this is the life.”

  He tucked a couple of pillows behind her back. Such a sweetheart. Then, once he seemed content that she was comfy, he handed her a foam container, fork and napkin. “We don’t have anything to drink, but I saw a vending machine out by the elevators. Do you want something?”

  “Sure. I’ll take a diet cola, whatever brand they have.” She watched him as he headed for the door. “Before you go…how’s your neck?”

  Reacting to her question, he slapped his hand over his nape. “Not even a tingle. Looks like we lost him. At least for a while.”

  “Hey, maybe we’ll get lucky and it’ll take him a few days to find us again. What do you think?”

  “I don’t know. I’ve never tried to outrun death before. We’re both treading new ground here.”

  “Well I’ve gotta admit, if I have to hide from a would-be murderer, I’m glad I’m with you.” She shifted nervously, her heart thumping hard against her breastbone. “I mean, you make me feel safe.”

  His smile was genuine and warm and made her heart thump even harder. “I’m glad I’m with you too.” He fisted the doorknob. “Be right back.”

  “Okay.” The minute he left the room, she snatched up the remote and changed the channel. Sports were so not her thing. He was just going to have to live with it. Nice as he was, there were some things she couldn’t let go.

  She did, however, wait until he returned before starting to eat. And she did give him a beaming welcome-back smile when he handed her a can of diet cola. “Thank you.”

  “You’re very welcome.” He sat on the bed, close enough so his elbow brushed against her arm.

  Finally, she flipped open the container and plucked a nacho chip from the cheese-coated mountain piled in the center. “Has anyone ever told you you’re very polite?”

  Chewing, he shrugged. “No. But I don’t spend enough time with anyone for them to know.”

  After delivering more chips to her mouth, she shook her head, turning to look at him. “I know I said earlier that we are kind of the same—that neither one of us has anyone close to us. That we are somewhat isolated, but I can’t imagine my life is anything like yours.”

  “Why is that? Why are you alone?”

  “Because that’s the way I like it.” She dipped a chip into some cheese then popped it into her mouth.

  “You intentionally cut yourself off from people?”

  She chewed and swallowed before responding. “Sure. Maybe you don’t realize this, but most people are assholes. Out for themselves. Manipulative. Lying. Male, female, doesn’t matter. True and honest friendship is almost impossible to find—”

  “And love?” he interrupted.

  She chuckled. “Love. I know it’s hard for you to believe. Maybe I’m being a bitch for saying this, but honestly, I wonder if you’re better off being cursed.”

  He stiffened beside her, and she instantly regretted her words. Real or not, a curse was nothing to joke about.

  “I’m sorry.”

  Eyes dark, expression a little distant, he nodded. “It’s not your fault. Not being a whiner, but nobody can imagine what it’s like walking in my shoes.”

  “No, you’re right. But would you hate me if I said I kind of wish we could trade places?”

  “No, I don’t hate you. I’m sad for you, though. If you think hell is better than what you have now…”

  “I did say ‘kind of wish’. The dying part has to be beyond awful.”

  There was an awkward stretch of silence while they both ate. Finally, Talen broke it. “Tell me about you, about your work, your friends.”

  A change of topic. Probably a good thing.

  As she nibbled on her nachos, she gave him the basics, about her job, which she loved, her love of naughty romance novels featuring fierce alpha men, her eBay addiction and favorite television shows. As she talked, the tension in the air eased. Their moods lifted. She intentionally avoided mentioning her friend issues, worrying things would get uncomfortable again. Instead, she kept things light and fun. She flirted a little, teasing him, meeting his gaze and then jerking her eyes away. Slanting a coy smile at him every once in a while. Scooting closer and offering to share some of her chips. Wiping away a drop of cheese that had dripped onto his chin.

  She could feel the energy in the room changing. Tension building. But this time, it wasn’t because she was saying stupid things and making him feel bad. It was one hundred percent lust charging the air.

  Talen set his container aside then gently tugged hers out of her hand. “You still haven’t answered my question.” Twisting, he swung a leg over hers, straddling both. He planted his hands on the headboard, on either side of her head, basically caging her in.

  Trapped. Literally and figuratively.

  Had someone cranked on the heat?

  “Which question was that?” she asked, grinding her spine into the headboard.

  “The one about love.”

  “No, I answered.”

  He shook his head. “Nope.”

  Bastard.

  “Love is…love is dangerous. But I do want to find someone to love. Someday.”

  “Dangerous? Why?”

  “Because loving involves trusting. Commitment. Opening yourself up to heartbreak. Like I said, dangerous.”

  “I see.” He leaned closer, brushed his mouth over hers. It wasn’t really a kiss. More of a soft, teasing touch.

  She shivered. Closed her eyes, fully expecting him to kiss her again. Harder.

  He kissed her jaw. “Does that mean you don’t spend time with men? You don’t have lovers?”

  “Oh no. Not at all. I’ve had my share. They’re just never right. Wrong guy. Right time. Right guy. Wrong time. Wrong guy at the wrong
time.” She looped her arms around his neck, tipping her head to the side as he nibbled down her neck. “Do we really need to talk about this right now?”

  “Yes. No. Maybe.” He gave her butterfly kisses back up her neck then nipped her earlobe.

  That was it, she was seriously melting again. “Have I told you how crazy that makes me?”

  “What? This?” He did it again.

  She shivered, and her skin puckered with goose bumps. “Yes, that.” Tingles zapped under her skin, warming it.

  “Then you wouldn’t complain if I did it once more.”

  “Hell no.” Her neck tightened. Expectation charged through her system. And yet, there was no nip. No nibble. No love bite.

  Instead, he leaned back. “Tell me about your last lover.”

  Was he joking? She opened her eyes, checking his expression. Dead serious. “Now?”

  “Sure.”

  “We’re about to… Why do you want to know about that? What’s it matter to you?”

  “It just does. We won’t get a lot of time together. I want to know everything about you.”

  “If we won’t get a lot of time together, wouldn’t it be better to spend what precious time we have doing other things, rather than talking?”

  He frowned.

  “I’m not trying to be mean or insensitive.”

  “Honest-to-God intimacy is precious to me.” Looking annoyed, he shoved his fingers through his hair. “I sound like a girl, don’t I?”

  “No, of course not.”

  “I realize it’s kind of illogical, what I’m asking. But I’ve waited so long, and been so lonely. I crave something. A feeling. No, it’s not a feeling at all. It’s an experience. I want you to be mine until our time is up. I want to know your secrets. Every single one.”

  What a terrifying thing to hear, and yet at the same time it was wonderful. Here was a man who could never be hers—at least if what he said was true. And yet, if he was truly cursed and unable to get close to anyone, was there a safer person on the planet to tell all her darkest secrets?

  “You’ve been avoiding this, haven’t you?” He tugged at a loose thread on the bottom of her tank top.

  “What?”

  He jerked his hand and the string snapped. He smoothed the bunched hem against her stomach. “It’s not that you’ve met the wrong men or met them at the wrong time. You’re not opening yourself up to the right ones.”

  She felt herself stiffening. I didn’t come to you for therapy. She clamped her lips shut before a sarcastic comeback slipped past them.

  Once again, he leaned forward, this time pressing his entire upper body against hers. “I’m not asking. I don’t think you want me to. I’m telling you, you are mine until our time is up. Your body. Your mind. Your heart.”

  Confused, and needing some air, she shoved at his chest, but he caught her wrists and slammed them back against the headboard, holding her hostage. Then he kissed her hard, his mouth possessing her with all the fire she’d heard in his words.

  Panic raced through her body, sending chills up her spine. And lust coursed through her veins, pumping heat out from her center.

  Hot and cold.

  Angry. Confused.

  Resisting.

  Can’t surrender. Won’t.

  Chapter Six

  How had things suddenly gone so wrong? One minute, they had been sharing a nice moment. Flirting. Teasing. Driving each other crazy in a good way. And the next, Talen had changed, acting possessive, domineering. Dammit, she didn’t need this.

  And she didn’t want to think about why she was getting so fricking turned on.

  “Stop!” Twisting away, she broke the kiss to drag in a deep breath. And while Talen sucked and bit her neck, she clamped her eyes closed and shoved his chest as hard as she could.

  He didn’t stop. Sadly, her push didn’t budge him either. Instead, he clapped a hand over her breast, squeezing the soft flesh, kneading it. “Have you ever had a man treat you like this? A little rough. Dominating.”

  “Hell no. I don’t like it.” As she writhed beneath him, her heart whapping against her ribcage and her blood simmering, her words were beginning to look like lies. But she wasn’t about to tell him the truth. It would encourage him to continue. She pushed at him again. “What the hell just happened?”

  “I touched your breast.” He squeezed, no doubt to illustrate.

  Annoyed but also bordering on overcome by lust, she growled. Literally. “No, before that.”

  “I bit your neck.” Again, he repeated the action.

  “Before that.” Flinching, and trying to convince her body that it didn’t need to produce goose bumps and lustful quivers, she pushed him a third time. “I mean, why’d you change from polite but protective bodyguard to domineering caveman?”

  “When I realized I could do something more for you than simply take a fucking bullet or knife in the gut.”

  What?

  He jerked away, rolling off the bed and charged to the bathroom, shutting the door. Finally, she could catch her breath and sort through the horde of emotions blazing through her system. Shaky still, she scooped up her nachos, clicked through the channels and tried to shut off her brain for a few minutes.

  Things were getting too fucking intense. Gauging from the questions he’d asked, he knew she wasn’t looking for intense. And if what he said was true, that he was going to die at any moment, what was the point in all this?

  Nobody acted this way, staking a claim to a woman they’d never see again. Not if they were going to die tomorrow. Hell, plenty of men avoided committing to a woman under normal circumstances.

  Men liked to fuck. And fucking was what they’d done up until now. Hot sex. No strings. Fucking.

  A thought struck her hard, like a concrete block slamming into her head. She saw stars.

  What kind of asshole would…?

  No, that couldn’t be true…!

  Unless he was an absolute psycho…

  Since he’d told her about his supposed curse and extraordinary lifespan, she’d suspected him of telling some tall tales to impress her. But for whatever reason, she hadn’t considered the worst before now.

  Could he have orchestrated the break-in and the attack, just to get her to spend some time with him?

  She jumped off the bed, suddenly too jittery to sit. She headed back toward the bathroom door. Glared at it for a moment. Then, she turned and headed in the opposite direction, toward the room’s exit.

  Proof. Did she have any?

  She stared at the small gym bag he’d brought from his apartment. Did she dare sneak a peek?

  The break-in would be easy enough to fake. If he was truly a bodyguard, he probably knew how to pick a lock. He could have lied about the whole thing. Who knew, maybe the cufflink he’d claimed to find in her apartment had been there all along, and she simply hadn’t found it yet.

  Completely believable scenario. But again, she had no proof. There was a thump in the bathroom, the squeak of faucets turning. Her gaze snapped to the door.

  Faking a burglary put him in the Most Definitely Sneaky But Not Necessarily Dangerous category. Manipulative, yes. Underhanded, sure.

  The police. He’d promised to call, but had he? He hadn’t mentioned it. She hadn’t been asked to write up a statement. Hadn’t had so much as a phone conversation with a police officer.

  Very suspicious. Perhaps he hadn’t called because he didn’t want to face the consequences.

  What about the attack? That was a totally different thing. If Talen knew the guy with the knife, had paid him to hang around for a few days and stalk her, that was beyond unforgivable. It was sick. Demented. Desperate.

  Her gaze locked on the closed door, she inched toward the bag.

  Why would he do such a thing? First, she was hardly the kind of woman men went to such extreme measures to get. Second, they’d barely spoken since he’d moved in. But they had flirted a bit. Still, it wasn’t like she’d rebuffed him, making him think he h
ad to stoop to such tricks. If anything, he should have recognized the I’m-interested vibe she’d been sending.

  Again, things weren’t adding up.

  The bathroom doorknob rattled.

  Shitshitshit. Halfway between the bag and the exit, she froze in place.

  At this point, she really, really wanted to walk out that door. But whether he was a liar or telling the truth, she had to expect that there was either a pretend stalker-slash-fake-killer or a real stalker-slash-genuine-killer waiting for her. Out there. Somewhere.

  Wow. She’d been an idiot to trust him the way she had. But she blamed her lack of using proper judgment on his chest. And his stomach. And his face. Shoulders. Arms. If he hadn’t been in her kitchen, wearing a towel, she wouldn’t have seen any of those body parts and chances were she wouldn’t have been so willing to trust him without knowing anything about him.

  A curse. What a joke.

  A man who’d lived hundreds of years. How could she be so stupid?

  Dumb. Gullible. Blind. It was her lust that had blinded her.

  Not any longer. She hurried over to the bag and unzipped the front pocket, pulling it open. Until she was absolutely clear what this man was up to, she would have to keep him at a distance. Physically. Emotionally. Mentally. She shoved her hand inside, grabbed a fist full of contents.

  She’d have to be strong. She’d have to…

  The doorknob rattled again, and she yanked her hand out and sprinted toward the opposite side of the room.

  The bathroom door swung open and a cloud of steam billowed into the room, rolling like a fog drifting up a beach on a breeze. The scent of lavender teased her nose as he sauntered out, once again sporting his favorite garment—a towel. His hair was a riot of spiky, wet waves. Little droplets of water glistened over his back, chest, arms and shoulders.

  Strong. She had to stay strong. At this point, it was only a theory, but…this beautiful man could be some kind of deranged stalker, orchestrating bizarre situations to get women into his clutches. He might be devious. A fiend. A killer, even.

  Wow, fiend or not, he had the most perfect body she’d ever laid eyes on.

  Cover up those abs. Please! And the chest. And the shoulders too.