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UP IN FLAMES 33
She made a sound, a low moan like an animal in pain. Her gaze locked with his and held. Her lips parted and then she reached up and cupped both hands along-side his face. She pulled him to her, crushing her mouth to his. Instead of tenderness, she kissed him with raw need, her hunger for him electrifying.Fire ignited, zinging in his veins, short-circuiting everything but the seductive feel of this woman in his arms.Her mouth warm, her tongue mating with his. She pushed herself into him, moving them backward, until he stumbled and fell back into the overstuffed chair, pulling her down, almost on top of him. This didn’t faze her at all. Instead, her eyes gleaming, she straddled him. She gave a soft, sexy laugh, and his body responded instantly. She kissed him again, her mouth continuing to move over his in deep, drugging kisses full of passion, full of soul. He slipped his hands up her arms, her skin so silky soft, not sure if he meant to hold her in place or bring her closer. She dec
UP IN FLAMES 34
Paul opened his mouth and then his eyes narrowed. Several seconds passed. “Where’s she staying?”“Here.”Silence. It stretched so long that Alaric wondered if the man had lost the ability to speak, but finally Paul spoke. “Are you fucking serious?”The burn on the back of his neck increased. “Are you?”“She’s staying here?” Paul's voice dropped low. “In your home?”“Unless there’s a different meaning for ‘here’ that I’m unaware of, then yes.” Alaric replied. Paul stared at him like he’d whipped out his cock and started swinging it around. “Why not a hotel or somewhere less personal? Like we’d normally do in this situation? Or, I don’t know, have her go to family and we run detail outside?”“She doesn’t have anyone else,” he said, acting on the urge to defend what he was doing and her. But the moment those words left his mouth, he regretted them.“Does she have you?” Paul shot back.Alaric's eyes narrowed dangerously, but his voice remained level. “That’s really none of your business.
UP IN FLAMES 35
She was bare between the thighs, with the exception of a neatly trim thatch of dark curls.His once dry mouth watered. He wanted—no, needed—to touch her, to taste her. Every glorious inch of her. He needed to be on her, inside her. Especially between her thighs. He wanted to dive in with his tongue and then his cock.Surprisingly, there was a small tattoo beside her hip to the right of her navel. It was a red rose, slight bent at the top. Three petals lay at the base of the green stem. He dragged his eyes up, and there was no mistaking the lust in her gaze. The flush racing across her cheeks and down her throat told him that she saw his hunger. Her nipples tightened even more, and he groaned.“You’re the most fucking magnificent thing I’ve ever seen,” he ground out.Then those wonderful seconds came to an end. She reached over, snatched up a towel, and hastily wrapped it around her body. Her mouth opened and he knew she was about to give him an ass-chewing for the ages, but he wasn’t
UP IN FLAMES 36
Alaric kissed her again, and panic clawed at her chest. From everything she knew about him, he wasn’t the type of man to settle down, and from what she knew about his needs, she wasn’t sure she could ever fulfill them. And she was also sure that every moment she allowed this to continue, the further she slipped under Alaric's sensual control. But she was no coward.She wanted to feel this—whatever this was. As long as she kept her head on straight and above water, she could handle him and her own conflicting feelings. Couldn’t she? The flutter moved from her stomach to her chest. Maybe she wasn’t even thinking straight, but who could blame her? This man was walking, breathing sin.“Vanessa,” he murmured, brushing his lips over hers. His breath was enticingly hot. “Tell me.”Blinking her eyes open, she barely contained a sigh when her eyes met his. “You are really impatient.”He grinned, and her chest spasmed at the almost boyish quality to it. “You have no idea.”Her hands smoothed ou
UP IN FLAMES 37
“Oh.” Her thoughts were muddled in a sensual haze. “It was just a dream.”He pulled her closer and then his mouth was on her breast, licking over the peak and then tugging on it with his teeth. The sharp burst of pleasured pain was instantly soothed with a lap of his tongue. He alternated between the quick nips and licks until her head fell back. She cried out, her body shuddering even as it tightened deliciously.Alaric suddenly pulled back, and her eyes flew open. She stared at him in disbelief. “You stopped!”“For now.” He sent her a fleeting grin and then pulled his shirt off over his head.His body…she hadn’t forgotten how perfect it was. The broad, muscled shoulders, hard pecs, and a stomach that was rippled and chiseled like rock. He was 100 percent male, not an inch of flab on his body. Her gaze found a puckered, circular scar on his shoulder, the skin a darker shade than the rest of his body. She wanted to ask how he got it, because to her, it really looked like a bullet woun
UP IN FLAMES 38
His finger moved lower and she tensed. “When did you get it done?”She closed her eyes and clamped her lips together, wishing she could just grab his head and put his mouth to better use. “Alaric.”“Tell me when.” His finger traveled up the inside of her thigh, stopping just below her heat. “How old were you?”The bastard was relentless. Her skin burned and her body pulsed with yearning. “I was eighteen,” she bit out. “Happy?”“Yes.” He cupped her between the thighs, covering her throbbing center. “Happy?”Her back bowed as her hips immediately pushed against his hand. “Getting there…”“Hmm.” He pressed a kiss to the crease of her thigh as he rotated his palm, eliciting a throaty moan from her. “Drunk or sober?”“What?” she gasped.He pressed his palm against her. “Were you drunk or sober when you got the tattoo?”She wanted to refuse him, but then he lifted his hand. Cool air brushed her and she muttered a curse. Alaric laughed. “I was a little drunk,” she admitted, and was rewarded
UP IN FLAMES 39
“You said earlier that you planned on putting my mouth to good use.”He had said that, and fuck if he didn’t want that more than anything he’d ever wanted in his life, but he…Alaric shook his head. Her tongue moved against her lips and whatever tiny level of hesitation that had been brewing in his chest evaporated like smoke. Her eyes were wide and dark with passion, hair a tumbled mess over her shoulders and curling around her breasts. It was the first time he’d seen her look so…so free. And fuck, she was perfect.“Well then…” He rose, unbuttoning his pants. He had them off in less than a second.Her gaze dropped, and she made a sound that his cock really liked. He was hard, jutting up in the air, and so close to losing it that if she kept staring at him like that, he’d come right then. Gripping her shoulders, he positioned her on her knees before him and then bent down, capturing her lips in a searing kiss that ended too soon. Then he straightened before her.With her wrists secure
UP IN FLAMES 40
She was folding and refolding her newly acquired stash of clothing for the hundredth time when Alaric appeared in the doorway. The moment her gaze connected with his, heat zinged across her cheeks and she felt silly for blushing so easily.“Hungry?” he asked, expression impassive.Her stomach rumbled in response. All she had eaten earlier was a bagel with cream cheese. “What do you have in mind?”“Thought we could go out and grab something to eat.”For some reason, her heart flopped over in her chest. “Go out and eat?”Obviously mistaking her high-pitched response for fear, he softened his features. “I know this place. My partner and I go there all the time. It’ll be safe.”It was better if he thought she was afraid instead of knowing the truth. Which was what? The sudden increase in her heart rate was due to excitement? But that was silly. This wasn’t a date. Calmly, she placed the folded shirt on the dresser. “I don’t have anything nice to wear.”“What you’re wearing is fine,” he re
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