Kissing Sin (Riley Jenson Guardian 2)

He rose and offered me a hand. I hesitated, not wanting to risk touching him, yet knowing I'd look foolish if I didn't accept his help. Knowing also that that was the precise reason he was offering his hand. It was a dare, of sorts.

And I was never one to back down from a dare. I placed my hand in his, and something akin to electricity surged between us. His gaze jumped to mine, leaving me drowning in those lusciously dark depths. His fingers were so warm, so gentle yet strong as he pulled me upright. And suddenly I was reliving the moments when those clever, skillful hands were on my body, teasing and caressing and pleasuring. Lust shimmered, burning the air between us, as if, just for a heartbeat, those memories hung between us.

He smiled slowly, intimately. My already erratic pulse tripped into overdrive, and air became a scarce commodity. It was the sort of smile that might be shared by two lovers after a night of incredible sex. And we'd shared that, more than once.

His gaze burned mine for several more wild heartbeats, then rolled languidly down my body, melting where it rested, however briefly. Ice would have liquefied under such a look, and no one could ever accuse me of being ice. Pressure exploded low down, fanning through the rest of me in stormy waves. The air was so thick and hot and needy I could barely even breathe.

One step. That's all it would take to be in his arms, kissing those delicious lips, feeling his lean body on mine. In mine.

I clenched my fists, digging my nails into my palms, using the pain to battle desire. "I won't make love to you just because you've decided you can bear to fuck a werewolf on a regular basis."

Again, something glimmered in his eyes. "Why not? You once told me great sex was a good place to start a relationship."

And it was. Normally. "Things have changed since then. I've had a chance to think."

"The 'then' was only few months ago."

I stepped back and crossed my arms. I'd obviously pissed off fate right-royally, and this was her way of getting back at me.

"Not here, not now, Quinn," I said, and forced my feet past him. "Let's get to the compound."

I switched to infrared, scanning the clearing and the buildings immediately behind the fence line. Still no sign of life. No whisper of movement.

We reached the fence. Quinn held out a hand, running his fingers a hairbreadth away from the wire. "Can't feel electricity running through it." He touched it lightly. "Nothing. It's safe to cut."

I stepped back and drew one of the lasers. "If the power is turned off, then this place is definitely abandoned."

"We still can't afford to relax our guard in there."

"I know." As if I could, anyway.

I cut a hole big enough for the two of us to slip through. Quinn went through first, his gaze scanning the area before coming back to me. "Nothing. Come on."

I followed, even though my heart seemed lodged somewhere in my throat and breathing had suddenly become difficult. We padded along in the shadows of the buildings, listening to the silence as we constantly scanned the area.

Nothing.

Not even insects.

As we moved in deeper, my gaze drifted up the tree-lined hill. Up there waited the place I'd barely escaped.

Quinn touched my arm lightly, making me jump. "Sorry," I whispered.

"You don't have to go up there if you don't want to. We can wait at the fence for the others."

I licked my lips, and shook my head. "I have to do this."

He nodded, and his touch slipped to my back, guiding me forward. Warmth flared where his fingers rested, rolling through the rest of me in waves. Though it was comforting, it did little to erase the knot of fear forming in the pit of my stomach.

We stealthily made our way deeper into the complex, slowly working our way up the hill. The closer we got to the lane, the slower my steps became, until I ground to a halt at the lane's entrance. My gaze came to the place where a dead man had once rested. A dark stain remained as a reminder of what I'd done.

"What's wrong?" Quinn asked.

"This is where I woke." My gaze went to the end of the lane. "And down there is where the two orsini came from."

"Orsini? What are they?"

"Warped bearlike things." Goosebumps fled across my skin. I rubbed my arms, and swept my gaze along the concrete wall. "I don't like the feel of this lane."