With surprising speed he blocked her, so that now Iseult was trapped between him and Devil’s Kiss. She knew that Devil’s Kiss could get antagonistic in small spaces, with too many people around him. He was already moving impatiently, as if he’d had enough of these humans taking up his space.
Stevie backed Iseult into the corner and put an arm on either side of her head, trapping her. Iseult didn’t feel threatened any more, she just felt exasperated. ‘Stevie, stop it. I don’t feel that way about you.’
He just smiled his most seductive smile, and Iseult felt faintly ill. ‘Come on, Iseult, you don’t know what you’re missing. And I’ve missed you around here. It’s not fair you got moved over to Pierre so quickly. There’s a rumour, you know, that Nadim favours you.’
Iseult blushed and put up her hands to try and push Stevie away. ‘That’s ridiculous. Now, please move back.’
‘Not until you kiss me.’
Iseult could feel Devil’s Kiss move more impatiently now, and sensed that a kick could be coming their way any minute. But Stevie was immovable, and his strength sent a dart of panic through her as she blurted out, ‘I’m not going to kiss you. Now, move.’
She leant forward, aiming to push him out of the way, but in a lightning-quick move he pulled her into him, pinioning her arms to her sides, and kissed her furiously, with little finesse.
Iseult couldn’t breathe, and started to panic in earnest while still being very aware of Devil’s Kiss beside them.
Suddenly through the wave of rising panic Iseult heard an arctic, ‘What the hell is going on in here?’
Stevie moved back so abruptly that Iseult stumbled against the back wall. She automatically wiped the back of her hand across her mouth. Nadim stood in the doorway of the stable, holding onto Devil’s Kiss’s head. He filled the doorway with his huge frame, and Iseult saw the rope belt around his waist, an ornately decorated curved dagger thrust into it. In her eyes at that moment he could have been an ancient warrior king.
She couldn’t take her eyes off him.
Stevie blustered, ‘Iseult called me in here. I thought she needed a hand with Devil’s Kiss, but—’
Nadim cut him off ruthlessly. ‘Get out of here now, Bourne. And don’t let me see you at the stables for at least a week.’
Stevie scarpered like the coward he was, and Iseult stood shakily, aware that Devil’s Kiss had calmed right down now that Nadim was here. She walked forward on jelly legs.
Before she could even get a word out Nadim said fatalistically, ‘That’s it. This time you’ve gone too far.’
Iseult’s inner fire rose, even though she felt wobbly all over. ‘I am not going to take the blame for that. Stevie is a pathological flirt and he followed me in here. He wouldn’t leave when I asked him—’
Nadim folded his arms. ‘So you thought you’d persuade him by kissing him? Give me a break. I know what I saw.’
‘No, you don’t. I did not welcome that kiss.’
Nadim arched a brow. Sarcasm dripped from his tone. ‘You didn’t welcome it in the same way that you didn’t welcome my kiss the other day?’
Iseult’s face flamed. She looked down at the ground and mumbled, ‘That was different.’
Nadim had moved into the stable, and the air seemed to contract around them. Iseult looked up warily and was aware that this was totally different from how it had been with Stevie. Devil’s Kiss, the traitor, now stood as still as a placid statue.
‘How different?’
Iseult looked up into Nadim’s dark eyes, in awe of him dressed like this, and said huskily, ‘Because I liked being kissed by you…’
Iseult couldn’t even feel chagrined at her honesty. She simply couldn’t lie when Nadim stood before her like this.
All her good intentions, her very necessary intentions of protecting herself around this man, were dissolving like wispy ineffectual clouds. That deep secret inner part of her was unfurling like a bud in the sun. She tried desperately to cling onto how disposable she’d felt after he’d kissed her the other day, but she was fast losing any grip on reality.
Nadim came even closer and snaked out a hand. His thumb came to her lips and rubbed back and forth, and his eyes got even darker. Iseult pulsed deep inside in response. The air was thick and heavy around them.
Nadim spoke roughly, his eyes fixed on her mouth. ‘I don’t like the thought of another man’s taste on your lips.’
Iseult tried to shake her head but it felt heavy. His thumb still rubbed her lips. ‘Neither do I.’
Obeying some primal urge from deep within her, Iseult stepped right up to Nadim and went on tiptoe, reaching to pull his head down. Her heart kicked and a light sweat broke out all across her skin when with a muffled groan Nadim’s head came down and his mouth covered hers with barely restrained violence.
Mouths opened on a breath, tongues tangling intimately, hotly. It felt as if Nadim was branding her, eradicating any evidence of the other man, and Iseult welcomed it.