A Wicked Desire (Creatures of Darkness 3), page 25
…
“What did Trent say?”
…
“Should look into it.”
…
“Yeah, if I can extract the thing without damaging it.”
…
“We land on the island tomorrow…”
Her tattered mind blocked out the rest. The book trembled in her hands as a fat, salty tear dropped down her cheek and dotted the page. Then another.
She slammed the cover shut and let it slip from her grasp. It tumbled carelessly to the floor. She stumbled into the bathroom, closing the door behind her. As if she were on autopilot, her fingers fumbled for the shower knob. Steaming hot water rushed forth. Not bothering to turn the temperature down, she stepped under the spray, buried her face in her hands…and lost it.
* * *
Knox reached to turn the water temperature down, eyeing the angry red splotches where Cora’s skin was overheated. Though she was covering her face, she knew he was there, had tempered her sobs and turned away from him.
He rubbed the back of his neck. “Look, Bray’s cool with this,” he reassured awkwardly, doing his best to console her, but he was complete shit when it came to women’s emotions. “He’s not angry or anything.”
“I’m not crying because of him,” she snapped, her voice muffled behind her hands.
“Then why…?”
She rounded a watery glared at him.
“Because of me? What the hell did I do?” Only made her scream his name a handful of times. He didn’t see anything wrong with that! In fact, he was still rearing to go, hard as stone and wanting more.
“Just leave me alone.”
“Screw that!” Grabbing her shoulders, he turned her to face him. “Not until you tell me—”
She tore away from him. “Don’t touch me!”
He stumbled back as though he’d been shoved. She used magic like that when she was truly angry. Damn. It didn’t look like he had a date with the blue-ball fairy.
“You knew, didn’t you?” she accused. “The whole time, you knew.”
He frowned, not answering. Up until this moment, he’d partly suspected she had known they could only sleep with her, and was just pretending not to. Now there was no denying her naiveté.
“Is that why you hated me?”
He looked away, feeling weirdly guilty. But why? It wasn’t his fault.
“So instead of trying to talk to me, you just decided to seduce me.” Her tone was pure venom. Then she laughed, hollow and angry. “Why am I surprised? You’re despicable. Have been from the start. Take what you want, when you want. Isn’t that right?”
He ground his teeth together, pissed that she saw him that way. Not that she was wrong. “Never pretended to be anything different, pet. Let’s not forget, I didn’t force anything on you that you didn’t want.”
“No you didn’t. Because I’m the idiot who—you made me think…” Lip quivering, her shoulders slumped. “It doesn’t matter what you made me think. Just go.”
Made her think what? Something in the phrase had him digging his heels in. “If you believe for a second I’m leaving now, then—”
“Get out!” she screeched.
He stumbled back once more, nearly falling to his ass. “Don’t you use that goddamned magic on me again!”
“Or what? You’ll kill me? Find a new threat. That one’s getting stale.”
“You don’t want to push me right now.” Unspent lust was shortening his fuse. He started for her again, intending to drag her back to bed and make her forget the last ten minutes. She’d been so much more docile in bed.
“I said leave me alone!”
Once more her magic hit him. He growled, baring his fangs.
“Oh, stow it, Knox.” She hit him with more magic. “You can just stop with the treats. Stop with the games. I’m done with it. I’m done with you! For all I care, you can just go jump off the damned balcony!” She froze....
Blinked once, twice....
Then her eyes shot wide as she clamped a hand over her mouth.
Her actions confused him at first, until he felt the mystical energy encircle him.
Against his will, his legs pivoted him around and took him out into the hall, down the stairs, heading towards…oh shit.
“Cora!?” he shouted as he pulled open the sliding glass door that led to the balcony. Wind gushed around him.
All of a sudden, Cora was standing in front of him, still naked and dripping wet, trying with all her might to push him back. “Stop! Stop! I didn’t mean it!”
Oh, she had meant it, all right. Otherwise he wouldn’t be shoving her aside and gripping the railing, ready to bound over the edge. The glossy blue ocean beckoned him. He wasn’t surviving this one. He always knew he would regret not getting rid of her when he had the chance. Hindsight’s a bitch.
She threw herself back at him, tugging his arms away from the ledge. If she kept at it, she’d be going over with him.
With the flick of his wrist, he dislodged her as if she were a fly in his way.
She fell back, landing hard on the balcony floor, but quickly jumped up, once more tearing his hands away from the edge one finger at a time. “Don’t jump!” she cried.
Unfortunately, this order did not overrule the first. With more force, his arm swiped her down again. His strength was more than she’d anticipated, and her feet faltered underneath her. She slipped and fell awkwardly into the banister.
Crack.
Her head ricocheted violently off the metal railing before gravity took her to the balcony floor.
As her body went limp, his stilled completely, the spell broken.
After a moment, he tested his limbs. He seemed to have regained full authority.
Marveling at his close call, he let out a rugged sighed of relief, then stared down at the unconscious little witch. She’d been the first person in decades to nearly kill him. Nearly ended his life with a few scant words, and he’d been completely helpless to stop her. If she woke up now, she could just as easily order him to stab his own heart out with a fork, and by the way, do it with a smile!
The sharp, phantom pain in his chest made him wonder if he was currently doing just that.
As he rubbed the place over his heart, he stared out at the ocean for a moment, trying to find the joy in his survival, but it was conspicuously missing. Whatever happiness he’d wrongly believed had been within his grasp seemed to have leached from the very surroundings. Everything now held a dull, muted kind of tone.
It made him realize how far he’d fallen under her spell.
But now I see clearly again, he thought as he heaved her over his shoulder.
Chapter 30
Cora awoke with a start and bolted upright. Several things registered at once: she was naked, she’d been tucked into the bed, the sun had seemingly set hours ago, all the lights were out, and she was alone.
She scanned the moonlit room, just to be sure.
On the nightstand there was a pearly white washcloth splotched with a bit of…was that blood? What the hell?
She mentally inventoried herself. In all, she felt fine, but for a slight sore spot on her hip just above her right buttock. Perhaps she’d struck more than her head when Knox had flung her away on his mission to follow the order she’d inadvertently delivered.
She gasped. “Knox?!” she called out. When he didn’t answer, panic welled like a mini explosion in her chest. She threw off the covers and rushed through the cabin, calling his name with a palpable note of hysteria.
Still no answer.
Terror sloshed in her brain, making her dizzy. She reluctantly dragged her gaze toward the closed balcony doors.
Closed.
Reason drained some of her fear. Knox must have been the one to close them. He also had to have placed her in the bed...therefore he couldn’t possibly have thrown himself into the ocean.
In her frantic search, she’d spotted an open bottle of bourbon perched on the downstairs bar next to an empty glass. Both of which hadn’t been there before. More evidence that he was alive.
She took in a ragged breath, her blood pressure easing somewhat.
So then where was he?
Dammit! How careless of her to let her emotions rule like that. She’d bet her left foot he was absolutely livid with her. How could he not be? She’d nearly killed him! How does one apologize for that? Hey, sorry I almost murdered you. Didn’t mean it. We cool?
After donning a long shirt she absently retrieved off the floor, she poured herself some of his bourbon, noticing how badly her hands were shaking. Then, bringing the glass—and bottle—with her, she sank down on the couch, mulling everything over.
She now realized why Knox had been pursuing her so aggressively—to him, it hadn’t really been a choice. Silly things like desire or attraction probably hadn’t even factored in. It was either get her to sleep with him or become a born-again virgin till their bond faded. She couldn’t see him willingly forgoing sex for that long. He was a self-proclaimed hedonist, after all.
Now it all made sense. He hated her, that was as true as ever, but he would still sleep with her…because that was his only option.
Her face fell to her palm as a sob escaped her. And to think, she had almost started to believe she’d come to mean something to him. That he might actually care for her, in whatever way he was capable. Or at the very minimum that their constant animosity was finished.
How stupid I am?
She shot her drink, gasping at the trailing burn in her esophagus. Pouring a second, she downed it just as quickly. But when she topped off her glass a third time, she relaxed back into the couch and just sipped the mind-numbing elixir, staring at nothing.
For a while there she thought they’d had a chance at a normal relationship—well, normal-ish for their situation, anyway. At least he had stopped threatening her. That was progress. And even though he’d been trying to coerce her into sex, she’d been feeling pretty positive that they could at least, on some level, be friends—possibly even be able to ignore the unspoken, intense, sexual tension between them that she’d been almost one hundred percent sure would have dissipated over time.
Sadly, now she knew that had never been a possibility. Knox hadn’t changed. He was still the same overbearing brute as always. Only now she wished it otherwise so badly that the truth depressed her. She’d seen a glimpse of something marvelous within him, and mourned the loss as she might a death.
She thought back to how pleasant he had been during their taste-testing dinner, teasing her and feeding her morsels from his own fork. How he had taught her to play some of the casino games, showing a great deal of patience with her. How he hadn’t batted an eye when she’d spitefully tossed all those jewels overboard—not a murderous eye, anyway. In retrospect, she discovered she had really started to like the facade he’d been putting on.
Her eyes watered.
The moment she’d realized it had all been a charade solely for the purpose of seducing her, her emotions had whirled dramatically. As a result, the wild magic that lived within her broke free like she had never before felt—nearly resulting in disaster.
In hindsight, she should have locked the bathroom door, but it hadn’t even crossed her mind at the time. Not that it would have provided much of a barrier had he’d really wanted to get in.
Why had he followed her in there anyway? She recalled him trying to reassure her about Bray. Which, now that she thought about it, was a bit odd. Especially since only moments before he’d been needling the other vampire, all cat-who-caught-the-canary.
Had he really been trying make her feel better?
And if so, did that mean he actually felt bad about something?
She wondered if she should go look for him. Try to talk to him. Apologize.
Would he accept?
She bit her lip. Or now that she’d been enlightened to his façade, would he shrug off the pretense and truly revert to his old self?
Would it destroy her if he did?
* * *
Knox slammed his empty glass on the bar and called for another one. The skittish male bartender who had been warily eyeing him all evening turned and retrieved the once full, now half-empty bottle of private label bourbon, and refilled his glass.
“Just leave the bottle,” Knox grunted when the man tried for a swift retreat.
With a curt nod, he set the bottle down before eagerly attending other customers. Good instincts for a human, sniffing out Knox’s dangerous mood.
The cloying scent of perfume indicated a female had just slipped into the seat next to him. Not the one he’d been thinking about all night.
“You look like a man who’s got a lot on his mind.” The woman’s voice was sensuous and inviting. The kind of voice that told a man he wasn’t going to have to work too hard. He didn’t even need to look over to know that she’d be beautiful with sultry eyes and just the right amount of pout to her lips. He could already tell her type. She used to be his type.
She’d probably lost money at the tables, or her sugar daddy had, and she was now on the hunt for a new wallet to leach off.
“The name’s Lexi.” When he didn’t offer his in return, she went on. “Pardon my directness, but you’re much too handsome to be sitting here all alone. I hope you don’t mind company.”
He took a swig from his glass, wondering if she’d get the hint. He sensed her hesitance, but her instincts weren’t as honed as the man behind the bar.
“You look like you’re contemplating something very serious.”
“Murder.”
She laughed, assuming he was joking. Yeah, he was a real funny guy.
“Bad luck at the tables?” she guessed, figuring that was the case since he was in the casino and wasn’t gambling, especially since there were plenty of other amiable places to get a drink.
Why had he come here?
“Me too,” she practically pouted. “But I feel a change of luck coming on.”
Not if she was trying to cuddle up with him. Couldn’t she feel the deadly aura seeping from his pores?
“Perhaps some of my luck will rub off on you, too.”
Subtle. He glanced at her then, giving her a feral smile. “If I wanted some luck, I’d just take it.” His voice was like the crack of a whip. “It’s what I do.”
Her back stiffened, but he could see she was trying to keep her composure, no doubt hoping to salvage the conversation. Women like her were artists when it came to dealing with surly men. She opened her mouth to respond, probably to say something snappy and cute, but behind her, a familiar figure near the entrance stole his attention, and her words got lost on the way to his ears.
Cora stood by the entrance, craning her head around the room.
Her eyes landed on his. She tentatively waved, an apology in her gaze.
He didn’t want an apology, and it wouldn’t save her. He’d been an idiot to let this go on as long as it has. Her earlier show proved that. She was definitely powerful, as Mace always claimed. One day, probably soon, she might be too powerful.
Hell, even in his anger, his body responded to her presence.
She’d donned one of his overcoats. It was black and stretched down to her knees, flaring out subtly, and was fastened at the waist by a line of secure buttons. Her legs were bare, and he got the image of her wearing nothing underneath.
He tore his gaze away, and growled his frustration.
Lexi, who for some ungodly reason was still talking, let out a tiny squeak at the sound, her face paling ever so slightly. “I’m, uh, getting the feeling you’d prefer to be left alone.”
“Let’s gamble,” he ground out. His gaze darted back toward Cora as if she had some sort of fucking magnetic draw. Even from this distance he could see the little crease that was forming between her brows.
Lexi hesitated at his rough command. Did the little lamb finally realize her quarry was a wolf?
He didn’t give her a chance to scamper away. He grabbed her by the waist, dragged her off the stool, and pulled her along to one of the nearby tables. He didn’t even look to see what the game was, too busy watching Cora. The hurt that twisted her features might have softened him before. Now it only stoked his anger. How dare she give him that sullen look after she’d nearly killed him!
“You’re holding me a bit tight,” Lexi complained, yet still trying to sound sweet as punch.
He loosened his grip, but didn’t let her go. She was his prop for the moment.
Sensing the precariousness of her situation, she began to backtrack. “You know? I really should go find my husband. I don’t know where that man could have gotten off to.”
“You haven’t got a husband,” he told her as Cora made her way to the bar. She took a stool at the end, eyeing him as though he were a curious exhibit.
Damn him for wanting to know what was running through that head of hers. Was she wondering how he’d evaded her compulsion? Curious as to why she was still breathing oxygen and not H2O? He could have easily tossed her overboard instead of tucking her in bed.
So then why hadn’t he? One word: The-VEA-would-have-his-balls.
Cora crossed her legs and swiveled his way. The coat rode up to reveal one milky thigh. A thigh he knew to be soft and silky as fuck to the touch.
“What makes you say that?” Lexi interrupted his thoughts.
“Huh?” What were they talking about?
“Why do you think I don’t have a husband?” She sounded mildly irritated that he didn’t believe her.
“No wedding ring,” he grunted.
“Maybe I just took it off.”
“No outline of a ring either.”
“Maybe I’m a newlywed.”
“Here,” he grumbled, absently handing her a stack of chips from his pocket. “Shut up and pretend you’re having fun and I’ll double it.”
“This is nearly a thousand dollars!” she exclaimed.
“Mm.” He was still watching Cora watching him. Her expression was now closed off, and so was the bond. She’d been completely open to him before in the room, when she’d been screaming her passion for him, and funneling that pleasure back into him. Just let her try and deny how thoroughly he’d pleased her.
