My heartbeat surged as I stepped toward it.
Was someone in there?
I moved forward, swaying only slightly now. I still felt drunk, but I at least had control of my limbs. I wasn’t going to faceplant.
Anticipation surged through me as I stepped into the darkened hallway.
I smelled him before I saw him—a spicy, whiskey-and-fireside scent. And the connection…that strange fizzing in my chest, a lightness I’d never felt before. The wire that connected us.
The Devil of Darkvale was here.
I squinted into the dark, barely able to make out the shadow of a man. He was huge, towering over me with a leonine grace that was all threat. My heart leapt into my throat as my hand flashed out and miraculously collided with a light switch. I flipped it on, and a faint golden glow gleamed from the ceiling.
It cast the Devil in a fiery light that only seemed to emphasize his icy hardness. He leaned casually against the wall, every muscle perfectly still but ready to pounce. If I tried to run, he’d be on me in a heartbeat.
Shadows flickered over his eerily perfect features, making his cheekbones look sharp as glass and his lips full and kissable. They didn’t fit with the rest of his hard face, and the contrast made something in my belly flutter.
He was still dressed in an impeccable suit, but it didn’t make him look staid or boring or even like a businessman. No, he looked like a spy. If spies had fangs. I couldn’t see his now, but the memory of them flickered in my mind.
“Why are you here?” I was glad that my voice sounded stable. I could still feel the wooziness that came with the drink I’d had earlier, but the sight of him sobered me up some.
His gaze traveled down my body, and I remembered with a start that I was still dressed in the blue bikini. My hair was wet.
We were a good two meters apart, but it was too close. I stepped back.
“Nervous?” he asked.
“When you look at me like I’m a piece of steak, yeah.”
“Not steak.”
“No?”
?
??Cake.”
I scowled at him. “I am not food.” I pointed to his mouth. “And considering the fact that you do eat people, I’m finding that comparison a bit too close for comfort.”
Something unidentifiable crossed his handsome face. “I don’t eat people.”
“Hmm, I feel like you’re splitting hairs.” I kept my distance. “Why are you here?”
“I followed you.”
“Yeah, that’s what I was worried about. Why?”
“You froze me in my own office.”
“You scared me.”
“I did?” He raised an eyebrow.
“Yeah.” I shifted, wishing I had a weapon on me. It was weird to be attracted to someone I was terrified of.
“Do you scare easily?”
“Only when it’s wise.”