Skin (Flesh 2)

“I’m serious.”

“Be warned. If you’re lying to me, I may actually shoot you this time.”

He sighed. “Yeah, I know.”

“Good.”

Slowly, he laid the palm of his hand against the soft skin of her cheek. That she didn’t turn away or try to stop him was humbling. But then, Ros could be far too kind and forgiving for her own good.

“Honestly,” he said, “I only want you available at my convenience. Not a doll. Not anyone else.”

The corner of her mouth curled just a little. “Wildly romantic, Nick.”

“Not everything you accused me of was bad. I kind of liked that idea.”

“Did you?”

“Mm.”

“Great.” She smiled but then her gaze dipped, avoiding his. “Don’t lie to me again, Nick. Please. I don’t think I could take it.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

“You just shot me again,” Nick griped at her. Honestly, the man could be such a big baby.

Roslyn sighed somewhat dramatically. “I did not shoot you.”

“Yeah, you did. You flinched and your finger squeezed the trigger. If it had been loaded, I’d be dead.”

“Oh, please.” She rolled her eyes and slumped against the motel room wall. It had to be close to midnight. They’d been doing the same damn clearing-a-room exercise for hours, with him picking on every little last thing she did. She’d nagged him into starting immediately. “Nag” being his word choice, not hers. But she forgave him for being short-tempered. Amazing how benevolent she could be when she got her way for once. Nick, however, had brought highly strung and crabby to a whole new level.

“It was an accident,” she said, not really bothering to keep the smile off her face.

The eyebrow went up. “That makes me feel a lot better. I mean, I’ll be dead, but still, an accident.”

“You surprised me!”

“I’m meant to surprise you,” the man growled. Nicky had quite the temper once he got going but, fortunately, he didn’t scare her. Not in that way. If anything, his getting all riled up could be rather thrilling in the right circumstances. Blood warmed his face and his eyes were narrowed on her in irritation. Her body heated in response and she bit back a grin. Really, right then, life wasn’t so bad. In fact, it could be pretty nice with the right company, apocalypse or no.

“Zombies will surprise you coming out of hiding,” he said, much in the manner of one handing down a sermon. “But I’m going to be around, too, and you might not always know exactly where I am. It’d be great if you didn’t just react but thought about who you’re aiming at and what you’re doing. You clear your immediate right, then work your way across the rest of the room. You do not shoot until you’re certain of your target. Is that understood?”

“Yes, Nick.” She tried for contrite but he kept right on scowling.

“Why are you smiling?”

He definitely thrilled her. Maybe it was the lecturing. There’d been a professor back in her university days who’d filled her fantasies for months. The “thou shalt do as I say” attitude had a powerful pull on her, apparently. Maybe he was right and she had daddy issues or something. Or maybe it was the way he worked with her for once, instead of against her.

“Why are you smiling, Ros?” he repeated.

“No reason,” she said airily.

He just looked at her. Candlelight didn’t soften the harsh lines of his face, accentuated by his present pissy mood. Nick wasn’t handsome, exactly, but he had presence. Which by no means meant she’d roll over and take his bossiness like a good girl.

“And why are we even using guns?” she asked. “I mean, if they’re so loud and dangerous, then why not replace them with something more suitable for the job?”

“What, you want a sword now?” he asked, voice heavy with disbelief.

“Maybe, or a machete or an axe … a crowbar would work, right?”

“It would.” He strolled toward her. “But, Roslyn, what do you think would happen if you got splattered with infected blood? What if your mouth was open and some got in, hmm?”

“It would be bad. I know that. But to kill them effectively with something other than a gun we’re going to need to get within a reasonable distance.”

“Exactly.”

“And? They move slower than we do. What is your point here, Nick?”

“Close-quarters combat is dangerous. Didn’t you learn that yesterday?”

“Everything is dangerous!” She threw her arms wide and he caught her hands, held onto them. He swung them back and forth by their sides as if they were children. Then he stepped closer. There was a distinct gleam in his eyes, something other than anger but every bit as heated.

“Did I please you?” he asked in a low voice.

“What?” The sudden change in topic threw her, that and his nearness. His scent enveloped her, warm, male, and familiar. It lured her libido right in. And the way he’d phrased the question—his words circled inside her head and held her in thrall. His eyes had also darkened. So … everything. Everything about him threw her. “What do you mean?”

“You wanted to start training immediately, so we started. I kept my promise.”

“Ah. Yes,” she said. “You did. And you pleased me. I am officially pleased.”

Nick slowly nodded. “Okay.”

“Okay,” she repeated, because she was apparently a brain-dead, sex-hungry parrot with damp panties. Lust filled the air with the promise of hot times ahead. She couldn’t be imagining it.

“Alright.” He swallowed and stepped back, dropping her hands. “We’d better get some sleep.”

Then the man turned and walked away from her, snuffing out the extra candles as he went, leaving only the one on the bedside table alight. He didn’t look back.

What the f**k?

Slapping her couldn’t have been more effective. For the second time that day, he’d said no to sex.

“Nick?”

“Yeah?” He sat on the end of the bed and tugged off his boots and the socks beneath, too.

“What’s going on?”

“Hmm?”

“I don’t understand what’s going on here.”

He shoved a hand through his hair. “It’s late. We should get some sleep.”

Clearly, they’d entered a different dimension, one where Nick didn’t want her. Except that couldn’t be right. He’d been plenty hard in the shop earlier, and his jeans sported an impressive bulge now. So, whatever his issues were, her sexual attractiveness to him didn’t seem to be a part of it.