“As much as I hate to interrupt this touching moment…”
She shot him a look. “I’ve lost my uncle, my livelihood for now, and my identity as a normal person living in a normal world. So finally I’ve found a creature who likes me.” She lowered her voice to a growl. “Give me a friggin’ minute.”
Chapter 16
Ruby led the way upstairs to her apartment, digging into her pocket for her keys. Home. The thought of being inside filled her chest. She pushed open the door, but Cyn stepped in front of her before she could go inside.
He flicked on the light. “I don’t feel any magick, but I’m not taking any chances. Demons don’t give off the scent of it either.”
“Tulpas sure do. That must have been where Mon got the dirty-sock smell idea.”
“No doubt.” He took in what she knew was an eclectic décor, then opened her bedroom and bathroom doors. “Looks clear.” He paused by her kitchen table, which was actually a 1950s Coke cooler with a glass top. Inside were some vintage Coca-Cola bottles. “I remember when they looked like that.”
“I keep forgetting how old you are.”
He took in her walls covered in framed posters, pausing at the SANITY IS OVERRATED one featuring a hamster that looked like it just came out of the dryer.
“These are my demotivational posters. They make me laugh. Want to see the one that reminds me of you?”
“Do I?”
“Be brave.” She steered him to the one with Captain James T. Kirk’s smug smile and the caption: I’M SORRY, I CAN’T HEAR YOU OVER THE SOUND OF HOW AWESOME I AM.
He wrinkled his nose. “You’re so very funny.”
“I can donate it to your dojo. I think it would look good in the lobby. We could superimpose your face over Kirk’s.”
He’d thrown on his shirt but hadn’t buttoned it. So when he stepped in front of her, trying to intimidate her with his faux annoyance, all she saw were his perfectly formed pecs, a hint of the Dragon, and the hollow at the base of his throat.
He looked at her with eyes aflame. “Trying to antagonize me, are you? You do realize I could eat you for lunch?”
She cleared her throat, heat stealing up her neck as she met his gaze. “I’m not afraid of the big, bad Dragon.”
Well, she was a tiny bit afraid of its ferocity and hunger beating a pulse within her. And the way she could feel the same emanating from him. The combination of dangerous, deadly, and sexy, those hints of his compassion…intoxicating.
“You should be.” He slid his hands up her shoulders to her neck. “I could break you with a twist of my hands.”
“Impressive.” She mirrored his earlier use of a word for a change. She placed her foot on top of his, bracing her hands on his hips for balance. “And I could crush those tiny, delicate bones on the top of your foot.”
“That could be painful.”
“Work boots. Thick heels.”
It was hard to sound threatening with the tremble moving through her at the feel of his thighs touching hers. His body heat enveloped her, shooting fire through her veins and making her Dragon tingle.
“Dangerous,” he murmured, his thumb stroking her neck.
“Yes, I am, and I was even before I could turn into a beast. I could crush your balls.” She drew her knee up the inside of his thigh but stopped short of contact.
The corner of his mouth twitched. “I’ve heard you can hit the bull’s-eye on a target nine times out of ten, too.”
“I can. But I’m not shaking like this while I’m aiming.” God, she was shaking, too, trembling with need to feel his skin, to taste him. She grabbed the sides of his shirt and yanked him close, trailing her mouth along his collarbone, dipping her tongue into the hollow at his throat. When his fingers slid into her hair, she pulled out the ponytail holder and started loosening the braid. He finished the process and buried his face in her hair, inhaling softly.
He whispered her name, both agony and raw desire in that word, and claimed her mouth. She ground her body against his, wanting to sink into his flesh…wanting him to sink into hers.
“Cyn…” Yes, he was sin. She tunneled her fingers through his silky hair and then drew them down his back. His Dragon stirred, too, shifting against his skin.
She felt his hunger for life, for the fire he’d been missing for so long. Felt it in the way he ravaged her mouth, the way he held her tight against him. Felt it as his hands slid beneath her top and hungrily roamed over her bra. He walked them several steps back until they came up against the wall and ripped off her shirt altogether. She tore away her bra, desperate to feel his touch. He squeezed, kneaded, and then his mouth moved down her neck and covered one nipple. His tongue felt exquisitely gentle and overwhelmingly intense all at once. Her Dragon thrashed in pleasure, filling her with heat. She dug her nails into Cyn’s shoulders, feeling herself spiral away.