"Enjoying you. And now you owe me three kisses." See. Got it back. "Damn it. Diabolical man."
An endearment, surely. As he arched toward her, he gripped her ass and pumped her forward, grinding their bodies together. She moaned; he hissed and turned his head, lips locking on one of her ni**les. The syn-cotton or whatever material it was that shielded her didn't deter him. He sucked and laved it like the treasure it was, the little pearl teasing him.
"Don't you want to ask me about Nolan?" she rasped. To distract him? Because she didn't have the strength to pull away herself?
"Yes. Four kisses now, and you will pay up." He spread his fingers over her ass, two closing in on a place she probably didn't want him, but one day would if he had his way, the others inching toward her clitoris. If she bowed her back, he could thrum her to release. She'd beg and plead, drip in his hand. And oh, wasn't that a delightful image?
"Take your kisses now, then. Do it!" She yanked at his hair, tugging several strands from his scalp.
Slowly he lifted his head, meeting her heated gaze. Passion had wrought a rosy glow to her cheeks. Her eyes glittered brightly, dangerously; they were seductive. Tempting him. Her lips were damp and swollen from where she'd chewed them. Breath sawed in and out of her mouth, choppy and shallow.
"You want your kisses, pet?”
“Want? No. But I never welsh."
So, she still thought to deny him, did she? His eyelids slitted. If he kissed her now, with her core so close to his cock, he would take her all the way—they both knew it—and if he had her delicious little body now, she would tell herself he'd forced her. She would convince herself it had been for answers, not desire. Afterward, she would avoid him, build a resistance to him. Think of him only in her nightmares.
He would tolerate none of that. Whenever Bride thought of him, he wanted it to be because of sex, passion, and pleasure. Not shame and regret. Never shame. Never regret. He wanted her to remember this time, his words, his touch with a smile on her beautiful face. He didn't want her remembering her duty and frowning. More than that, he wanted her to run to him if he so desired in the future, not away from him.
"I'll collect my kisses, don't worry, but I won't do it here and I won't do it now. I'll let you know when and where. Promise."
Those sharp nails of hers dug into the base of his neck. "This is the last time I'll allow myself to be caught alone with you. Take them here or forfeit."
Just as he'd suspected, she thought to avoid him. Well, too bad. She'd see him again, and she'd kiss him again and then do a whole lot more. Devyn reclaimed his hold on her mind and forced her to straighten and stand, to walk backward, away from him. He didn't have the strength to walk away from her himself. Not this time. Already his body mourned the loss of her.
Mourned? Surely not.
"Let me go, damn it!"
"Listen closely, pet. I forfeit nothing. You'll kiss me when I tell you, or you'll be in breach and I'll be entitled to simply take what I want. And now that that's settled... tomorrow night at midnight, you're going to bring Nolan to the pier. I'll bring Aleaha, and we'll trade."
Immediately she shook her head, but there was hope in her eyes. "I don't trust you."
Smart woman. No way in hell would he be at the pier tomorrow. "Do you want to see Aleaha or not?"
She bit her tongue, probably drawing blood. To keep from biting him? "You know I do. And if you've hurt her, I swear to God I'll cut off your balls and feed them to you."
"Kinky. But like I was saying, if you want to see her, you'll bring Nolan to that pier.”
“Where I'll find all of AIR waiting for me. No thanks."
"You'll come, or you won't see her again. It's as simple as that." He shrugged, as if he didn't care what she decided. "Oh, and a little side note. I'm gonna need your cell number."
She laughed, her smile so bright it was as though the sun had just bathed hen "No way I'll give it to you."
"Then take mine. I bought a new number just for you." Devyn forced her to remain still as he stood and stepped around her. He bent down and grabbed her tights, reaching inside the slim pocket and tugging out her cell.
"If I could move, I'd slap that out of your hand. Stop controlling me, damn it!"
"Learn how to stop me yourself." He'd known she had a phone because he'd felt the energy kicking off it. Quickly he deleted every number in her address book and programmed in his own. "There. You'll have no trouble scrolling and finding me."
"Do you get a new number for all your girls, or am I just special?"
"You're special, sweet." There was a ring of truth to his tone that surprised even him, and he frowned. He released her from stun and handed her the pants, the phone stashed back inside the pocket. "Call me tomorrow at noon. I want to talk to Nolan and make sure he's still alive."
She yanked the pants from him and jerked them on. "I'll expect to talk to Aleaha."
"Sounds fair." If he'd truly planned to call her, that is. As it was, he'd have her at his mercy before lunch. "Any tricks tomorrow, and I'll slice Aleaha's throat like a melon." A lie, but she didn't know that. Her hands fisted at her sides. "You're going to regret the day you met me. I'll make sure of it."
"I look forward to your attempts." So badly he wanted to force her to strip again. So badly he wanted to finally sink inside her, pounding hard into her tight, wet sheath. And she would be wet when he took her. Dripping, as he so desperately wanted. He'd make sure of it.
"Then I'll see you tomorrow night," she said softly. Deadly. "Dream of me."
CHAPTER 8
Everything Devyn had told her about vampires raced through Bride's mind as she snuck home, doubling back, taking wrong turns, careful to avoid any AIR agents that might be following her. Devyn was just the type to tell her he'd meet her for an exchange tomorrow while having someone lying in wait for her today, ready to steal Nolan rather than trade for him.
Plus, it was better to think about the vampires and her possible family link—she was part of a warrior line?— than to think about Devyn's nicknames for her—pet, sweet, darling—and how they melted her heart—so foolishly, since he most likely used them with everyone. The way she'd wanted to trace his skull-and-dagger tattoo with her tongue. The way he had kissed her bra, her skin. The way he'd touched her, and the way she'd wanted to beg for more. Beg! Something she despised and had sworn never to do again. Too many times, she'd had to beg for food for Aleaha, and too many times, people had waved her away as if she were a pesky fly.