I sat there in shock. My heart in my throat. I couldn't blink. Afraid to even breathe. "Fuck. Kiema, I'm so sorry. Are you okay? Are you in any pain? What can I do? Fuck, fuck, fuck!" He pulled his hand back and had it behind his back before the words tumbled out of his mouth. I did a scan of my body. Nothing. No pain, no dizziness, no narrowing vision. Nothing. I wet my throat with a quick drink of water. "Do..." I had to swallow. "Do that again.""What?" He looked like he hadn't heard me right. A hysterical laugh threatened to close my throat. I lifted my hand, gave him the come ahead gesture. "I'm not touching you." I must be going crazy because it almost sounded like he was sad about that fact. "You didn't hurt me." I shook my head. "Do it again. Please." I edged my face forward the tiniest degree. He was shaking his head. "The last time we touched, you ended up vomiting and passing out. Call me crazy, but I'm not really in the mood to repeat that
I needed to get my head examined. The woman had been stalking me, fucking stalking me around the kitchen, and I had scuttled back like she had the plague. The skin I'd wanted to touch and taste had been within my grasp and I turned into a fucking saint. Banging my fists against the solid wood door, I lowered my head to the surface. "Kiema. Come on. Talk to me."No answer. "Shit." I turned and slid down to my ass, back against the door. All I could see was her convulsing body as she emptied herself into the toilet. The toilet that looked like it held a piece of her internal organs. I squeezed my eyes closed, rubbing my fingers against them. The scene played out in my mind again. The taut body bowed back like a crescent moon. The pale skin that held none of the life I'd come to expect of her honeyed tones. The blank eyes. I won't be the one to cause that again. Not in this lifetime. But what if she was right? What if my touch doesn't hurt her anymore?I knocked my h
"Aaah!" I crashed to the floor as I walked out of my room the next morning. "What the hell, Ki?" Ransom growled near my feet. "What the hell are you doing sleeping across my doorway? There's a perfectly good, oversized bed in your room." Adjusting my sleep tank back around my boobs, I pulled my feet free of his blankets. My boy short panties were riding up my butt now too. Jerk."You didn't come back out yesterday. I fell asleep waiting for you." His palm was on my ankle, rubbing gently over the bone. Warmth broke out under my skin. It felt so good to be touched.I stilled. Not wanting to scare him away. His fingers were just a little rough as they traced my ankle over and over. The heat built where he touched me. Soon it became a bonfire. One that threatened to blaze out of control.No, damn it. I almost cried out as my leg felt like it was being scorched from the inside out. I must have made a noise because Ransom pulled his hand away as if he could feel th
I could've sworn I not only felt, but heard, the fire being extinguished in her as soon as she stood trembling under the cold water.Looking at her soaking wet had me pushing her farther into the shower and stepping in behind her. Might as well cool some of my own flames while we were at it. I'd been with a lot of women. But nothing had turned me on harder or faster than having Kiema kiss my chest. Every hesitant graze of her lips shot fingers of fire to my cock. Every timid lave of her tongue had tightened my balls. I hadn't been lying when I told her that she could come check out if what she'd done was okay with me. I closed my eyes as I imagined showing her, all fucking day and night. "Are you okay?" she asked.I opened my eyes, shot her a wry smile "Except for my balls turning to icicles, yeah, peachy. Why?"She giggled. "You look like you're in pain.""I redirect you to my prior statement." I traced a finger over her mouth. "Your lips are turning blue. How're t
Hair scraped back in a high ponytail, shrouded in layers of clothes, I huddled under three blankets next to the roaring fire Ransom had built while he waited for me to come out of my room. I couldn't stop the shivers and trembles that wracked my body. I should be warm. Hell, I should be roasting. But I felt cold to my bones. Even my soul felt frozen. Ransom brought me a bowl of steaming tomato soup. "Here. Try this. It should help warm you from the inside."He was careful to keep his skin from touching mine. A piece of my heart shriveled. "Th-th-thank you.""Okay, there has to be a reasonable explanation for all this." He sat on the floor across from me, a bed sheet wrapped around his waist. Another sheet covered his top half. As much as I hated it, I was thankful he'd covered up. My face almost inside the bowl of steaming soup, I made a noise that he should keep talking. "All right. What do we know about healing magic?" He looked at me, his dark blue eyes serious
"Daaaamn, man. No wonder you're getting all riled up about her," Asher exclaimed with a low whistle.I hadn't meant to send them the mental image of Kiema's tits. But, Gaia, they looked so damn good, even under the layers of shirts. Just the size to fill my palms with a little left over for my lips and tongue. "Caduceus," Doctor Atlas said, pulling everyone back on point. "The winged staff with two serpents is called the caduceus. Typically seen as the emblem of the medical profession."I slammed my eyes shut. I couldn't afford to get sidetracked right now. Not even for the two things I wanted to touch the most. "Ransom?" Kiema said, pulling my attention back to her for a moment.I held up a finger for her to give me a minute. I told them about the possible acronym, but didn't hold out much hope for anything to come back from that. "I finally found her file, Ransom. Kiema Rosalinda Feuer, aged twenty-eight, height of five-six, weight at time of admission of 157," Xand
I was afraid to look up at him. He'd never let me look inside him now. Never let me touch him again. Damn it. It was my body, my choice. I should get to make the decision on how I lived and died. My resolve hardened. He could take it or leave it, but I was the one in control of my own life. For the first time. Forever. No one else would get to make those decisions for me. Not ever again.I looked up, determination blazing in my eyes. He looked like he wanted to kiss me, vomit, and scream at me. All at once. A giggle escaped me. I slapped a hand over my mouth, eyes wide. His dark blond eyebrows dropped low over his eyes. "What the fuck did you just say?"I repeated it. This time, I said it with strength. I was the master of my own life. I'd heal as many fucking people as I want, and everyone else can just suck it."I'm going to FUCKING kill your parents!" He rocketed to his feet, bed sheets waving in the wind. He stomped around the open space like a lion prowls a zo
Four days later"Fuck, Ki. You've got to stop. I can't handle anymore." I fought not to clench my fists; my head thrown back. My chest was heaving as the muscles in my arms quivered. "Whiner. If you were more flexible, it wouldn't hurt so much now." She pushed my hips down against the floor. "I'll remember that next time. For the love of Gaia, let me up." She sighed heavily. "Fine, but next time we go for at least half an hour." She stepped back, letting me come out of Cobra pose. "You've got to do something. You've gained at least thirty pounds of muscle. You don't keep it stretched out, you're going to be a hunched old man by the age of thirty-five." I collapsed onto the floor. I fucking hurt all over. Turning, I watched her. She slung her towel over her shoulder, using the ends to blot the beginnings of sweat beads from her brow. Her long black hair sat in a mess on top of her head. Her bouncy ass cupped like a lover by her pants. I was fucking jealous of thos