“The same argument is had for Catwoman.”
Roxanna tilted her head in surprise. “I would not have pegged you for a comics guy.”
“Not so much now, but I read the hell out of them when I was a kid. I don’t imagine the argument has changed much in fifteen or twenty years.”
A trio of loud party-goers walking to a nearby vehicle drew their attention. In the silence between them, she was hyper-aware of the man beside her, and marveled at their civil—almost friendly—exchange. She wasn’t quite sure what to make of it considering how they’d parted Monday morning. Recalling the moment she’d shut the door in his face triggered a wave of remorse.
He reached up to pull his mask off and dropped it on the bench. Lifting both hands, he scrubbed his fingers through his flattened hair, then did one casual swipe to smooth it into his regular style. Kind of. After sneaking a sideways peek beneath her lashes, it took everything she had not to reach over to arrange the remaining errant strands just so.
“There is good and bad in all of us,” she said, referring back to whether the characters they’d dressed as were heroes or villains.
“True.”
He shifted slightly while rubbing his palms up and down on his thighs. Almost as if he was nervous—which was a very odd look for the oldest Diamond sibling. One of the things she’d always admired about him—secretly, of course—was his self-assurance. Even if most times he was an ass about it.
She realized how messed up that was, but ignored it anyway as she monitored his movements from the corner of her eye.
When his hands went still and he took a deep breath, she bit back a mystified smile. Definitely nervous—but why?
“I know I’ve been somewhat…ah…cynical of what you do. And I—”
Her snort of disbelief cut him off. “Somewhat?”
“Okay, a lot,” he conceded. “I’ve been a lot cynical of your profession, and—”
“Cynical isn’t the right word, either.”
He frowned. “May I talk?”
“Go for it. Just get it right.”
“I’m trying to apologize here.”
That should’ve shut her up, but the words kept coming. “Mocking is the word you’re looking for. Contemptuous. Disparaging. Hostile. Any of those would do, too.”
“Or, I don’t have to apologize at all.”
“I just want to make sure you understand how you’ve come across the past six years.”
“I do understand.” Exasperation stiffened his tone. “Why the hell do you think I’m apologizing? Or trying to.”
Her neck ached from having her head turned to look at him, so she swiveled her body to face him while drawing her leg up to rest sideways on the bench. With her own mask grasped between her linked fingers, she met his gaze. “Go ahead.”
“I have not been very…” With the hesitation, his gaze lowered as he clearly searched for his words. Then he sighed, and the corner of his mouth quirked in resignation when he shifted his gaze once more. “Yeah, okay, I’ve been hostile to you when I should not have been. I know you didn’t have anything to do with that psychic hotline that blew up my last engagement, but I still blamed you for it.”
Guilt dropped her gaze to her lap. Even if she hadn’t knowingly contributed to the scam, did she carry culpability?
“Are you still in love with her?” Her heart skipped at the question, dreading his answer.
“With Lisa? God no. Truth be told, those thieves probably saved me years of unhappiness and a ton of money in alimony. I was with her for all the wrong reasons, but I had blinders on. I was too focused on the career ladder I was climbing to realize it.”
Her guilt eased, and she arched her brows with a smile. “So, you could say a psychic helped you out.”
“I wouldn’t go that far,” he scoffed. “Those people are still con-artists, and if I found them, I’d do everything I could to make them pay.”
Her stomach pitched. They were having a real conversation for the first time ever. Even though she knew she’d done nothing wrong, what would he say if he knew she’d worked with the scammers? That one of them was her mother? Would it matter to him that she hadn’t seen hide nor hair of the woman since the thief cleaned out her own daughter’s bank account and skipped town, or would he still want to make her pay?
Loyal flipped his mask end over end on the bench a couple times. “Here’s the thing. Nothing personal, but I still don’t believe in what you claim to do. It’s just…” His shoulders lifted beneath his cape. “I won’t be an ass about it anymore. And I’m sorry if what I’ve said in the past has hurt you or…I don’t know…made you feel bad.”
So, he was done being a jerk but still thought she was a fraud?
That apology didn’t make her feel any better.
However, she couldn’t control what he believed, and he was being honest. Honest, not mean. Could she really fault him for that?
Probably not.
Definitely not if she was keeping her mouth shut about the hotline.
She forced a slight smile with her nod. “I appreciate the honesty. In that spirit, I need to apologize as well.”
“For that shot about Grayson, or the one about both my fiancés leaving me?”
“Oh, no.” She covered her mouth as if she could keep in whatever it was she’d said a week ago. “What did I say about your fiancés?”
“That if I wasn’t so…gimmie a sec—let me make sure I get it right…” He glanced skyward, one eye squinted a tad more than the other. “Uptight and judgmental, a woman might actually like me.”
The self-mocking humor in his voice let her relax as she lowered her hand. “Well, that is true, so I guess I’m not all that sorry.”
His slight grin faded. “And the other?”
She winced. “Yeah. I am sorry for that. I’ve felt bad about it all week.”
“For pretending I was him, or for saying it?”
She knew what that question was really asking, and the memory of his voice echoed in her head.
Numbers don’t lie like people do.
She couldn’t lie again. “For saying it. I wasn’t really pretending you were Grayson.”
Relief flashed in his eyes, though it was gone so quickly, she wondered if she’d read it correctly or only imagined it. And then he gave her a cocky grin that made her stomach flip over.
“I knew you wanted me.”
No sense denying it when she’d let the cat out of the bag while she was stupid drunk. “I want plenty of things that aren’t good for me.”
“I might not be good for you, but I could be very good to you.”
Good Lord, her heart was going to beat right out of her chest.
“Stop it.” Her laugh came out high and breathless, and his grin was way too knowing. “We’ve only just called a truce. Don’t push it.”
He lifted his hands, palms up. “You’re right.” He scooted back a good six inches as he scooped up his mask. “It’s not like we could have more than one night anyway.”
I’ll take it!
No. That idea was way too hazardous to her heart. She already knew from Asher that his brother hadn’t been in a single serious relationship since his last fiancé. He didn’t want to be, and he was being completely honest with her again, so she needed to heed the warning.
Moving on, remember?
She forced another smile. “Which is exactly why you’re no good for me.”
His gaze locked with hers, and from one breath to the next, time stood still.
One night.
Just one, and then I can move on.
The heat rising in her body made the cat suit nearly unbearable. Her fingers twitched with the urge to unzip and let the cool night air in.
Approaching voices shattered the moment. As they both looked away, Loyal rose to his feet and stepped over the bench in a fluid motion.
“Come on. I’ll walk you up to the house.”
Roxanna rose as well, and the heels of her boots put her al
most at eye level with his six-foot-two frame. “I think I’m going to go home. If I go up there now, I’ll feel obligated to do readings, and I’m not up for it emotionally.”
She half-expected a snide comment, or even a mocking glance at the very least.
But he made good on his promise by simply nodding. “I’ll walk you to your car then. I’m leaving, too.”
Nice Loyal was dangerous on a whole new level. She couldn’t use defensive anger to keep him at a distance. Physically, or emotionally.
As they walked, she kept circling back to his one night comment. Wanton energy built deep in her core with each step. When the two of them reached her Jeep, she turned around to find him right behind her. Not so close that he invaded her personal space, but enough for her to consider closing the distance to plaster her leather against his spandex.
The thought almost made her laugh. Never in a million years would she have expected to see him in spandex and a cape. He was usually way too buttoned up in his suits and vests.
Lo and behold, he wasn’t uptight or judgmental tonight, and she liked the hell out of him.
That did make her smile.
He smiled back as he said, “I’m glad we ran into each other tonight.”
“Me, too.”
His attention flicked down to her mouth before those dark eyes met hers for a heart-stopping moment. Her smile faded at the same time as his.
A frown creased his brow for a millisecond, and then he backed up a step and cleared his throat. “Drive safely.”
Roxanna swallowed hard when he started to turn away, her heart racing as she impulsively called him back. “Loyal.”
He swung back immediately, but didn’t speak. His heated gaze raked down the length of her cat suit, leaving her breathless all over again.
“I think I remember something else from the other night.”
“What’s that?”
She stared at his full bottom lip. God, she wanted his mouth on hers again. So bad. Bad enough to say something that would probably make her sound like an idiot. “You’re a good kisser.”
One corner of his mouth tugged up with his soft snort. “Hate to tell you, but you would have thought a horse was a good kisser that night.”
At the reminder of how drunk she’d been, she lifted her gaze to quip, “Or a horse’s ass.” His low, rich laugh sent another wave of heat coursing through her while she tilted her head. “Are you saying I only imagined it was good?”
“No, I’m good.” He cut the distance between them in half. “In fact, I’m exceptionally good, but you were so tippy I don’t think your memory of that kiss should be what you base your judgment on.”
There was that self-confidence she found so darn sexy even as she corrected, “You mean tipsy.”
He grinned. “You assured me the word was tippy. I believed you when you almost fell on your face.”
The heat making her so very uncomfortable was no longer strictly from sexual longing. “Oh, God. That’s embarrassing.”
“It was cute. At least, when you weren’t being mean to me, you were cute.”
She bit the corner of her lip and arched her brows in apology. “Sorry.”
“I deserved it.”
As the seconds ticked by, she gathered enough courage to say, “So…if I shouldn’t use that kiss to judge…”
Why aren’t you already kissing me?
As if he’d read her mind, he stayed right where he was and said, “You told me not to push it.”
Roxanna frowned in disbelief. “Yeah, but then I brought up the kiss I apparently begged for when I was drunk.”
“And?”
“Well, I thought I was being pretty obvious, but if you need me to print out a formal invitation…”
She trailed off when his wide-ass smirk told her he was teasing.
“God,” she muttered past a reluctant grin. “You’re still an ass.”
Damn man was as exasperating as his brother. Difference was, she’d never once wanted to kiss Asher more than she wanted her next breath.
Chapter 13
Roxana’s lungs constricted when Loyal reached his arm out from under his cape to slip a hand around her waist and tug her close. Hip to hip, his hard thighs branded hers through the soft, supple leather of her suit.
“You sure about this?” he asked.
Be cool. “Yeah. And if you’re not as good as I imagined, we can go back to hating each other.”
His lips quirked at her flippant challenge. “I don’t think I can ever go back to hating you, Roxanna.”
She loved the way he said her name, especially when he got all serious. His tone dropped an octave, turning his voice slightly raspy. It gave her stomach a little flutter every time.
He threaded his other hand through her hair to the nape of her neck, his warm touch sending a cascade of anticipation tingles down her spine. She slid her hands up to his shoulders, her lashes drifting closed as he leaned in.
She had one moment to drink in the pure yummy masculine scent of him before the press of his mouth on hers jolted her already frantic heartbeat. She sucked in a quick breath, her hold tightening on his shoulders while his lips moved over hers. Firm yet gentle. Purposeful yet patient.
So much more patient than she want—
He licked at the seam of her lips, and she opened to him eagerly. The slide of his tongue against hers made her stomach wobble. As he angled his head to deepen the kiss, the dark stubble on his chin scraped against her skin. Her soft moan of approval made his arm band tighter, pressing her against him from thigh to chest.
He took his time with the seductive kiss, his exploring strokes deep and sensual, then shallow and teasing, and back to tummy-tumbling, tingle-inducing, core-clenchingly sexy. He proved her fuzzy memory was not an adequate judge of his skills, and her fully sober self acknowledged his self-confidence was one hundred percent justified.
Loyal Diamond wasn’t merely a good kisser, he was indeed exceptional.
If he’s this talented with his lips, imagine what he could do with the rest of his body.
She did, and another soft moan crawled up her throat as she wound her arms around his neck to thread her fingers into his thick, soft hair.
His mouth moved more urgently, stoking her hunger. He slid both hands down to palm her ass, the strength of his grip pressing her against his very rapidly growing erection. Those Batman pants weren’t going to conceal anything, and she felt the full effect of him through the thin, soft leather of her costume.
When she rubbed her leg against his, hooking her boot along the back of his calf, he grasped behind her knee and dragged her thigh up toward his hip. The move ground his hard length against her pelvis, setting off a deep, primal throb that weakened her knees. His splayed fingers skimmed back along the underside of her thigh, his pinky so close to her core her inner muscles clenched hard.
She was nearly panting when he dragged his mouth from hers at the same time he wound her long hair around his wrist to tug her head back. His breath rasped hot and heavy against her cheek, then under her jaw, and down along her neck. He nipped and licked and sucked at her skin, leaving a damp trail along the collar of her costume that instantly chilled in the October air. The contrast only heightened the fiery desire sweeping through her from head to toe.
We could only have one night.
It wasn’t such a bad idea, was it? She could purge him from her system.
Or more likely, she’d end up with one amazing night to tuck away in her heart for years to come. Something was better than nothing.
His fingers flexed on her thigh as he buried his face in the crook of her neck. A deep inhale scraped his scruff against her skin, followed by a low growl from the back of his throat. “God, you smell so damn good. What is that?”
“Peace and Calming. It’s an essential oil blend to get me through the party.”
With him, though, and her struggling to catch her breath, the oils had zero chance of being effective.
H
is body tensed against hers, and for a second, she feared he was going to pull away. But then he gave a rough sigh and nuzzled his way back to her mouth to claim her lips for another mind-muddling kiss.
Just as her mind fully surrendered to her decision, his roaming hands settled at the small of her back, and slowly, the kiss went from passionate, to sensual, to gentle and almost…apologetic.
Confusion swirled when he eased back and put distance between them. He reached up to gently pull her arms from around his neck and pressed them to her sides. “I shouldn’t have done that.”
“I asked you to,” she reminded. “Both times.”
His grip tightened, holding her back when she tried to move closer. “And both times you were vulnerable. The other night you were drunk. Now you’re still dealing with the emotional aftermath of the fire.”
She frowned at his words. “I’m one hundred percent sober right now, Loyal. I know what I want. Who I want.”
His nostrils flared and his fingers flexed, as if he was fighting hard to keep from pulling her close again. “Damn it, Roxanna, I don’t do relationships. And I’m not stupid enough to have a one night stand with my brother’s best friend.”
No matter how much he wanted to. Even though she couldn’t read him psychically, she could see the hunger in his eyes. She felt it in his grip preventing her from moving close to press against his chest. It was clear he wanted her, but short of getting down on her knees to beg—
She flicked a glance at the bulge below his belt.
No. No begging.
She wasn’t that desperate for love.
Her stomach bottomed out. She wasn’t that desperate for sex. No one was talking love here.
Sex is off the table, too, so…
Feeling like a pathetic idiot, Roxanna held her chin up as she backed away. His hands clung for a moment before he let go.
“You’re right,” she said stiffly. “You’ve barely been civil for five minutes, so clearly, I’m not thinking straight.”
She turned away to open her door and fumbled for the handle as a burning sensation pricked her eyelids.
Love Loyal and True Page 10