Thunder and Lightning

She was reminded of her vehement reaction to his touch just days earlier. When he’d stared deep into her eyes, she’d felt a soul-stirring, ethereal connection form. When he’d touched her…

She dragged in a ragged breath at the remembrance.

He’d all but electrocuted her.

Tonight, he stood at the north end of his house, the very front of his Colonial that faced the manicured square before them, which was lined by massive oak trees, Spanish moss adorning their thick limbs. She observed him through the gentle sway of the sheer curtains, remaining partially ensconced in the house as she watched him. His strong profile and the rigid set of his muscles enticed her. Made her want to stand next to him and drown in his masculine scent. Reach a hand out to him and run her fingers over his hard muscles as they bunched beneath her caress.

The slivers of moonlight that penetrated the clouds illuminated his dark hair, picking up a sapphire hue. His white button-down shirt, tucked into black dress pants, billowed softly in the breeze, indicating it was opened at the neck. The sleeves were rolled up to reveal his sinewy forearms.

Bev inhaled the fresh aroma of the flowers edging both houses and the manicured square, the scent mixing with the herbs in her garden. Suddenly, Cane’s gaze shifted from the square. His head lifted as he too sniffed the fragrant air. And then his jaw clenched for the briefest of moments before he slowly peered over one impossibly broad shoulder. His black eyes landed on her, locking with hers. As though he’d sensed her presence. Knew she stood just inside her house, watching him.

The shimmering, silvery rays cast by the moon lit a portion of his sculpted face, making Bev’s pulse race. But it was the carnal, almost hungry, look in his dark eyes that hit her like a physical blow.

Taking a step backward, blending into the shadows created by the candles burning on the mantle of her fireplace, Bev pulled in a shaky breath. Her body vibrated with sexual awareness and the blood seemed to hum in her veins as it flowed a little faster and turned molten. The most intimate parts of her burned with desire. Her nipples tightened and her clit tingled, all sensitive buds in need of his touch.

And damned if another electrical storm didn’t roll in, with the thunder rumbling low and the lightning sizzling and crackling in the not-so-far distance.

Bev could barely breathe as her gaze remained locked with Cane’s. Aside from their first formal meeting on her front lawn, they’d done little more than exchange brief pleasantries in passing since she’d come to Savannah a week ago. But she could not deny the obvious lust that blazed in his onyx eyes.

A soft moan escaped her parted lips at the mere idea of Cane wanting her.

As though he heard her slight whimper—impossible, as it was barely audible to her own ears—his jaw tightened again and then worked rigorously as he continued to stare at her. As though contemplating speaking to her. Stepping closer to her. Taking her in his arms and crushing her body to his hard, powerful one.

No, she thought. Mustn’t think of that…

But it was impossible to think of anything else.

As Cane’s grip on the veranda loosened and his hands fell to his sides—hands she longed to feel on every inch of her—Bev wanted to retrace her step, move back into the glittery light. But her instincts kicked into high gear, warning her of the impending danger. Admittedly, in her six centuries of existence, she had never been this attracted to a man before. Had never wanted one with the sort of fierce veracity that sizzled in her veins, liquefied her body, ignited her very soul with a red-hot passion that would not be sated by fantasies alone.

Yet to give into her desire would be hazardous to them both. Cane was much younger than she was. A mortal. A man who would not understand her existence.

He was a threat to her. Innately, Bev could tell from his raw intensity that he was not the sort of man to let her keep him at bay, as Cam—and all the others before him—had allowed her to do. She’d had complete control over those past situations, those relationships. But it took little more than the acknowledgement of the untamed passion that clearly raged within Cane McAllister for Bev to know the damage they could do to each other.

If she were to give him all of her, it would devastate them both when she left him.

An inevitably she could neither deny nor escape.

And if he were to ever find out her secret…it would ruin her. Destroy her.

Kill her.

Not just emotionally, but physically.

And yet…to know all of this. To have it come to her with such crystal clarity because of the lust that flared in his eyes, the tension that gripped his body, the apparent impossibility of tearing his gaze from hers and vice versa…

Bev’s pulse kicked up another notch or two. Her heart thundered in her chest and he seeme

d to hear it across the courtyard as he narrowed his eyes on her, turned fully and took one long stride forward. Her mouth gaped as her chest rose and fell with her excitement. The anticipation that held her hostage, rooting her bare feet to the polished hardwood floor as she involuntarily willed him to cross his veranda in the predatory way in which she’d become familiar, span the courtyard and her porch to get to her…

To touch her. To kiss her. To make love to her the way no man ever had. Ever would…

Bev became all too aware that Cane was the man she’d waited her entire existence for, even if her time with him could be nothing more than fleeting.

She wanted him. Allowed herself for the first time to acknowledge and accept the danger she’d just invited into her life.

As she watched him through the sheers dancing on the wind, she knew she would have him.

Though there would be hell to pay for it.