Page 8 of The Firebrand
Rein’s brows drew down to menacing slashes. “What a great idea.”
She tugged harder against his hold.
He sniffed the air.Fear. But a scent floated beneath it.Arousal.His eyes shifted to the female’s neck where her pulse beat in a rapid rhythm as it pushed blood through her veins. With his shaft a painful press against his zipper, his fangs tore from his gums. His muscles coiled, preparing to act.
“I’ve got no choice.” Rein spoke aloud, but really more to himself. He seized her shoulders, body-slammed her into the wall, and braced a knee between her legs. Hungry eyes probed her thin form as he grabbed a fistful of short, spiky hair, jerking her head back.
She stopped screaming, no longer pounding on him with her fist. Instead, she opened her hand. Her warm fingers trailed over his pecs, caressing his chest.
He was about to do something he shouldn’t, and he didn’t care.
Hell, I don’t want to stop.
Rein crushed his mouth against the human’s. His greedy tongue swept across her lips, savoring their intoxicating flavor and soft fullness. He pressed for entry. When she opened, he invaded. Retreated. Attacked. His appetite unleashed.
He tested her scent once again.
Hesitation, fear, fascination, desire. Rare. I like the combo.
She wanted him as he wanted her. Then their tongues met, stroke for stroke, sliding across each other, tangling, entwining.
Fuck. I can’t stop.
She sucked him deep into her mouth, lollipopping him.
Rein pressed closer, depraved cravings racing through his mind, the blood in her veins thundering in his ears. His leg rubbed her sweet spot. Up and down, her heat singeing his pants.
She moaned.
Holy hell.
Rein’s hands circled the human’s hips, molding their bodies together, curving her into him, letting her feel the jut of his erection.
All of Rein’s senses zeroed in on the female. The soft groans. The warm flesh. The demanding tongue.
Damn. What is my problem?
Her palms pushed lightly against his chest. He struggled against his longing but broke the kiss. As he stared at the perplexing human, a crease tightened the skin between his brows.
I’m crazy. My hunger for her is because of Melia. Breathe. Breathe. Control.
****
Whenthe stranger released her, Braelyn drew back a hand to slap him. But she stopped. She didn’t want to hurt him. Despite being caught in the cold headlights of a predator, she wanted his lips on hers again.
Crazy.
Maybe the cancer had eaten the part of her brain that controls common sense, the part that should warn her not to kiss lethal, muscled strangers in an alley. Tamping down any remaining good judgment, Braelyn studied the man from behind the safety of her sunglasses and at arm’s length. Paul Bunyan-size combat boots, black tactical pants with …good God. What an erection!
She flicked her gaze up to his flinty blue eyes, licking her lips as she tried to control rapid breaths. He was a hard man, skin stretched over steel. Blade-sharp, harsh bones shaped his face. Day-old stubble shadowed a chiseled jaw. His hair was only slightly longer than a military cut. One of her hands still clutched his forearm, bulging knots flexing beneath her touch. The thick biceps and solid pecs straining his dark T-shirt were not gym muscles. She knew this. He had been forged in battle. Given his massive shoulders, she figured he could bench press a Hummer. With a Jeep on top. And an elephant in the driver’s seat.
Knives peeked from the harness strapped to his chest.Damn.Every inch of him screamed soldier.
No. Something even more macho. Warrior.
Curious, she slid her hand upward, tracing his upper arm where a tattoo sat below the sleeve of his shirt.Colorful feathers? Talons?
The predator jerked away. A fist scrubbed across his jaw, his teeth clenched. But his piercing stare bore into her, his focus making her brain fuzzy.
