Blushing, I scooped up my borrowed shirt and held it awkwardly against my chest. “You already tried to heal me once, in Forks. It fixed everything but this.”
An almost uncontrollable desire welled up in me. Lying in bed alone at night, I’d relived that moment over and over—the heat of his magic surging through every inch of my body. I’d practically throw myself in front of a bus to feel that way again. Clearly, leaping out of a van hadn’t done enough damage to warrant it.
“Not that,” he whispered, his eyes twinkling as if he could read my mind. To my disappointment, Jaxson stepped back and dug a little jar out of a drawer. I stayed put, leaning against the wall, as he grabbed a cloth from the bathroom and dampened the corner.
My breath caught as he reached out and hooked his finger under my bra strap, where it crossed the bloody scar. “May I?”
Chest heaving with anticipation, I nodded.
Gently, he pulled the strap to the side and down around my shoulder. Goose bumps rippled over my skin. I didn’t want him to be gentle like this. It was absolute torture.
I’d just survived throwing myself from a van at sixty miles an hour. I wanted him to rip my bra off then and there. To grab both breasts with his hands and ram his lips against mine.
But he didn’t. He made me wait.
Without a word, he lightly dabbed the blood away from the open gash.
“Ow.” I protested flatly, but the truth was, each touch sent shivers of ecstasy down my spine. With each press, my anticipation heightened.
Jaxson discarded the cloth, then opened the small jar, releasing a strong scent of ginger and spices that I couldn’t place. “I use this for stubborn wounds. We should probably visit a curse diviner, but maybe this will help.”
He scooped a little out with his fingers and traced them over the laceration. Electricity and heat and pain followed his touch, and I gritted my teeth even as I savored the moment.
“There.”
The sudden absence of his touch was more painful than the wound itself.
I realized my eyes were closed, and I opened them to meet his. They glistened in the dim room with a golden light of their own.
Pushing myself off the wall, I stepped up so that we were mere inches apart, letting sparks of magic dance in the space between us.
His hands brushed my skin, his touch agonizingly soft. Inviting. I relaxed into it, savoring every motion. He was a savage beast, and yet his touch could be so tender.
Suddenly, it wasn’t.
With a swift motion, he grabbed my waist and jerked my body against his. My gasp was cut short as his other hand gripped the back of my head, and his mouth devoured mine.
His kisses were violent and hungry, and I met each one with the same savage intensity.
I moaned with delight, needing more.
He pressed me hard against the wall as desire wrapped around us like waves in the sea.
“Ow, fuck!” I gasped as pain shot through my shoulder.
Jaxson stepped back instantly, his eyes clear and alert. I looked down to find that blood was pouring from my wound.
He reached to touch it. “Shit, I’m sorry.”
I winced. The damn thing—a goodbye present from Dragan. But had it really been goodbye?
I snatched the cloth from the floor and pressed it to my shoulder as a chill worked over my skin.
The ghost of the she-wolf had taunted me that Dragan was still out there. You think you’re free? Dragan is coming for you. You won’t escape.
A shiver ran through me as I recalled Dragan’s twisted face after I’d severed his soul in the Dreamlands. His final words echoed through my mind: I will have my vengeance!
Was that what all this was really about?
I trembled.
“What’s the matter?” Jaxson asked. “Are you okay?
I shook my head as I checked on my still-bleeding wound. “I think the bikers aren’t acting on their own. I’m almost certain Dragan is behind this.”
Jaxson tensed. “How? I thought you cut out his soul with the Soul Knife before you killed Kahanov.”
Another shudder rocked my body as I recalled the gruesome moment and Dragan’s howling, ethereal face. “He possessed Kahanov. Maybe I didn’t kill him—maybe I just set him free. Could he possess someone else?”
“I don’t know. How certain of this are you? Why do you think it’s him and not just bikers working on their own to get your blood?”
I bit my lip. “Something someone said during the abduction. That he was coming for me.”