Circle of Fire (Damask Circle 1)

He stopped inches away, blue eyes unreadable and yet somehow compelling. She swallowed heavily. The heat of his body rolled over her, mixed with the rich scent of his aftershave. Warmth spread through her. He was close—so close that her breasts brushed against his chest and sent flames of desire shooting through her soul.

It was time to retreat, to stop asking questions and just move away from him, but she couldn’t. Something in his eyes made her breath catch in her throat and held her immobile.

“Tell me why,” she repeated almost hoarsely.

And wondered if she’d just made the biggest mistake of her life.

“When I was doing this to Eleanor—” He ran his knuckles down her cheek, his touch branding her skin even though it was butterfly light. “I wanted it to be you.”

He cradled her chin with one hand and moved his head slowly toward hers. “And when I was doing this—” He brushed his lips over hers, then lifted his other hand to frame her face. “I wanted to be doing this to you.”

His lips captured hers; his tongue parted them and gently explored her mouth.

Heat exploded deep in the pit of her stomach, then burned swiftly through her veins. Dear God, it had been so long since she’d been held, been kissed, with any sort of warmth … and never in her life had she craved someone’s touch as much as she now craved his. She moved into his kiss, deepening it, savoring the taste of his mouth as she molded her body against his.

His hand moved down her side and tugged up her shirt, then splayed against her lower back. He held her close, as if he never intended to let her go.

Heat and desire ran through her soul. She wanted this man to caress her, become one with her. Wanted him with such aching fierceness it was almost frightening. She wrapped her arms around his neck, tasting the salty sweetness of his neck, his ear.

“I need you,” he whispered into her hair, his breath warm as it brushed along her neck.

His words jarred through her mind. Need, she thought with sudden clarity. Need was a long, long way from love. Oh God, I think I’m falling for this man, and he just doesn’t care. It was a nightmare she’d sworn never to relive.

She wedged her arms between them and pushed. She couldn’t do this again. She couldn’t.

CAUGHT UP IN THE HEADY KISS, JON’S ARMS TIGHTENED around Maddie—until it registered that she was pushing him away. He hesitated a moment, then reluctantly let her go.

“I can’t do this,” she said softly. She was breathing

just as hard as he was, and she looked just as shocked by the sudden intensity of their kiss. “Though I won’t deny I want to …”

He took a deep breath, then ran a hand through his hair. He’d basically said the same thing to Eleanor less than an hour ago. And he didn’t like having it flung back at him.

The red haze of desire still clung to her. Damn it, if she wanted him as much as he wanted her, what in hell was stopping them?

“This has not been my night,” he muttered, then smiled wryly and stepped back. “But hey, you can’t blame a guy for trying.”

Anger and hurt spun through the swirl of her emotions and made him regret his words. But only for an instant. No matter how attracted he was to her, it could never amount to anything more than a fleeting moment or two of pleasure. It was too dangerous to want anything more.

She tore her gaze away and edged past him before retreating to the small table.

He sat back down on the bed. The farther away from her the better, he thought grimly. He was already aching with desire for her. The last thing he needed was to smell her perfume, the scent of her skin. To feel the close warmth of her body …

She cleared her throat, and he met her wary gaze. Her cheeks were still flushed, her mouth soft and inviting …

He grimaced. One way or another, this was not going to be an easy night to get through. Particularly if the truth drug continued to linger in his system.

“You might not have had much luck finding Evan, but I did,” she said quietly.

There was an endearing mix of wariness and pride in her expression. “Tell me,” he said. He knew she must have used her clairvoyant abilities, which was a big step for someone so afraid of her skills.

“I got tired of waiting,” she said candidly, “so I used my clairvoyance.”

He nodded. She met his gaze for a moment, then ran a trembling hand through the red-gold tangle of her hair. Nerves, he thought, and wondered if it was her father who was responsible for making her so afraid of her gifts.

“He’s in a place called Malkin Cabin. It’s about fifteen miles from Jewell.”

He didn’t ask by which road, simply because she would have told him if she knew. It was a start, and certainly a whole lot more than he’d gotten. “Well done, Maddie.”