Blood's Fury (Deadly Beauties 1)

"Just call me if it gets too rough," he says.

"No prob. We'll see you in a bit," Deke chirps, and then he and Zee start jogging away from the house.

Kane starts to walk back in just as Gage releases his hold over my mouth. Like the true klutz I am, I stumble forward, almost flipping over the rail before Gage can pull me back. Unfortunately, I squeal like a fool.

"Alyssa?" Kane asks curiously, the deck creaking under his feet as he starts toward the edge to see me.

"Um, yeah. Hey," I ramble out, and then I start swatting at Gage, trying to make him leave.

He shrugs innocently, and then I shove him with all my strength - and a little magic - to force him over the railing. He vaporizes and reappears in the tree across from me, stifling a grin.

I scowl at him, ready to knock him out of the tree just as Kane comes into view.

"What are you doing?" he asks quizzically while pushing his hands in his pockets and staring up at me.

Trying to ditch a dark user.

"Um… nothing. I just felt like some fresh air. Everything okay with Amy?" I ask, the bitterness clearly in my tone.

He frowns, and then leans against the side of the house.

"It's not like that… at all. I'll be right up to convince you."

I almost want to smile, but I'm sick of Amy and her needy ways. He disappears around the corner, and Gage reappears on the balcony with me the second the front door clicks shut.

"You've got to get out of here."

"I didn't even tell you what I came to say," he retorts innocently.

"What?"

"I wanted to ask you if you knew any of these people."

He hands me a stack of photos, but no one looks familiar.

"No. None." Then something hits me, making my stomach queasy. The earlier conversation with Kane has suddenly rattled around in my brain with an obvious jerk. "Shay."

"Huh?" he says while studying the beastly man in the top picture in my hand. "He looks more like a Hoss or a Goliath to me."

"No, dumbass. Shay Myers. She's a witch from my old coven. She's got a grudge against my mom."

His face turns more serious, and then he evaporates from the balcony. I look through the glass to see the door opening, and the far too sexy man walking toward me with a salacious grin as he opens the door.

"I love a pretty girl under the moonlight," he playfully murmurs, making me blush despite the fact it was meant to be corny funny.

I hate the moonlight.

Then he frowns as he dusts my hair away.

"What's wrong?"

His lips thin as he studies that damn spot.

"I shouldn't have done that. I almost brought blood."

I give him my best vixen's smile, which is very unrehearsed and probably pathetic.

"It's not like it hurts, and it felt damn good at the time. Stop taking away all the sparkle."