Page 54 of Storm of Desire
The heat flickered. And died. "And just like that, the pain goes away, doesit?"
One stepforward.
One stepback.
"What did I promise you on thedocks?"
"That you were my guard," she said, "and nothingelse."
She thought he was going to finish the conversation there, but he merely circled the fire, watching her the entire time. She'd seendrekistalk their prey like that before, and her sex suddenly clenched inresponse.
How odd. She'd never thought of herself as preybefore.
And she certainly hadn't expected to likeit.
"So you're pushing at me to get aresponse?"
"I don't know," she cried, curling her fingers into fists. "We fight. We argue.We—"
"Fuck?"
The word slammed through her, leaving her breathless. "That's the way it's always been with you. I keep waiting for you to explode. I hurt you, but you're not angry enough. I don't know...."How to respond to this.She shruggedhelplessly.
"Maybe I'm not the same man I used to be. And maybe our lack of communication was the problem,hmm?"
It unsettledher.
"Or not?" He cocked his head on anangle.
Árdís stared down at her lap, knowing he sought answers she couldn't give. "I liked arguing with you. And theaftermath."
"Aftermath?" His voice softened with a hint of a laugh. "That's one way to put it. Carnal warfare isanother."
Her nipples pressed roughly against the linen of her chemise. The rough edge of his laugh held a hint of anger, and that always stirred her blood. She felt at ease now, for she knew how to deal withthis.
"I wouldn't call it anything as civilized as that," she whispered, remembering times when he'd pinned her to their bed, their mouths clashing in a heated mix of teeth and tongues even as he jerked her skirts up. She'd leave little imprints of her teeth across his shoulder and throat, relieved to unleash thedrekiwithin her, even if she couldn't tell him. Carnal warfare implied that at least one of them—if not both—had held any control over what happened in theirbed.
He knelt in front of her, setting both hands on the log on either side of her hips as he leaned tauntingly close to her. "What do you think is going to happenhere?"
"If I'm being perfectlyhonest—"
"Please doso."
"Then I'm not entirely certain I'm thinking right now, at all." She searched his eyes, holding perfectly still. His mouth was so close to hers, that a simple push forward would meld their lips together.One inch. But she couldn't read his intentions at all. Frustration churned through her. She wanted those hands on her skin, not beside her. "I know we said there would be nothing more between us until I got this bracelet off.But...."
"You want me," he whispered, his eyelids growing heavy as his gaze dropped to hermouth.
Árdís's heart pounded even as she watched the slow flush of red creep up his throat. She didn't dare move in case she broke the spell. But her fingernails were curling into her palms again.Touch me.Please.
She closed her eyes, unable to bear the look in his. "I thought we'd already established that in Reykjavik. I want you. I most likely always will. Nothing haschanged."
If anything, the pain of unfulfilled lust only twisted the knot tighter insideher.
His breath stirred the sensitive skin of her throat. Árdís sucked in a sharp breath, her lashes fluttering. She wanted to take his hand and cup it between her legs, where it ached the fiercest. To push against him, and take what sheneeded.
Soft lips ghosted over her jaw. Árdís tipped her head back to grant him full access, her breasts feeling heavy and flushed. She sank her teeth into her lowerlip.
"Does it ache,Árja?"
