He finally lifted his gaze to meet mine.
“I don’t.” He reached out and ran his fingers over my skin. My amusement fled, chased away by the heat of his touch and the intensity in his eyes.
“I don’t like the position the Council has put you in.”
“Your parents and Adira? It’s no worse than the position they put Ashlyn in. What would have happened if I hadn’t jumped in after her?”
“She’d probably be dead.”
“Exactly.” I tugged down my shirt, dislodging his touch. “I need you on my side in this, Oanen. Uttira’s view of humans needs to change.” I pulled back onto the road.
“I am on your side,” Oanen said. “I’ll always be on your side.”
The three torturously boring hours in the library hadn’t been enough to incite any level of excitement for meeting Eliana at the Roost. But, because I hadn’t spent any real time with her all week, I forced myself into the dress she’d given me at school and brushed out my hair.
The dress seemed a step up from the last. The flowing skirt tastefully fell to just above the knee, and the modest neckline scooped to give just a hint of cleavage. The back packed all the wow. The see-through, stretch black lace panel of material started just below the neckline and ran to just above the swell of my butt. It was a dress that demanded no bra. I went with the flow and skipped the garment, knowing Eliana would be happy.
The drive to the Roost didn’t take long. When I got out of the car, the music thumped as usual.
“This town needs some diversity in hang out spots,” I mumbled, staring at the red doors.
I so did not want to go in. Based on the cars lining the street, the Roost was very busy. Busy meant more people. More people meant more of a chance that I’d flip my shit. And, odds were Oanen would show up at some point and probably witness me doing it, too. Seeing him get all upset and protective was cute. Seeing me bloody someone’s face was not. Yet, despite openly acknowledging all of that, I reached out and opened the damn doors. I was obviously messed-up in the head.
Music blasted me as I stepped inside.
Tonight, the Roost seemed especially popular. Bodies clogged the dance area from tables to doors. It looked like the entire student body of Girderon had shown up. The bold ones were on the stage, publicly making out to the sultry voices of the sirens at the microphones.
“Perfect.”
People bumped against me as I attempted to make my way around the crowded dance floor. The bumps I didn’t mind. The grinds got old quickly.
Through the chaos, I spotted Fenris with his her-herd. His gaze met mine, and he grinned. I lifted a hand to wave in return, but my fingers never got higher than my head. Fenris’ grin widened the moment someone’s strong fingers wrapped around mine. Before I could elbow the person, an arm encircled my waist and anchored me to a familiarly hard chest.
I leaned my head back against Oanen’s shoulder and looked up at his beautiful eyes.
His hold on my hand loosened and traced its way down my arm. I shivered at the sensation and closed my eyes. The room felt ten degrees warmer by the time he reached my ribs.
“Dance with me,” he whispered in my ear.
I opened my eyes as he turned me in his arms and held me close. We swayed to the music, and I lost myself to the feel of him. The feel of his hands on my back. The feel of his shirt under my palms. The brush of his hips against mine.
Heat pooled inside of me, twisting and coiling. Oanen watched me closely as I stared at him.
Unable to resist any longer, I tipped my head up to him. The barest hint of a smile touched his mouth before he lowered his head. His breath teased my lips while his fingers traced the lace where my bra should have been. Anticipation boiled me from the inside as he moved his hand upward to cradle the back of my head.
The first touch of his lips to mine made my breath catch. He tasted like hope and home. Like air and freedom. He tasted like he was mine, and I was his.
I gripped his shoulder, pressing against him so not a speck of space remained. He groaned and swept his tongue inside, taking and demanding and billowing the flames of need that roared inside of me even higher.
The faint scent of smoke touched my nose, and I broke the kiss.
“Not yet,” he said before claiming my lips again.
The second kiss stole my will to think or worry. Oanen controlled me with each stroke of his tongue. Like a marionette, I responded to each pull of my strings and continue to sway against him.
When he grunted and finally pulled back, it took several blinks for reality to intrude. The sound of the music. The voices talking and laughing. The smell of something smoldering.
My gaze dropped to my hand where I still touched his shirt. When I lifted my palm, I saw the dark brown patch that outlined the shape of my hand.
Oanen gripped my chin and tilted my head up until I met his gaze.
“I'm fine,” he said, his words almost nonexistent in the beat of the music.
“I'm not.”
When I tried to pull out of his hold, he wouldn't let me escape. He wrapped his arms tightly around my waist and leaned in so his cheek rested against the side of my head. The position brought his lips close to my ear.
“You are fine,” he said. “Just afraid. Don't be. Not when we're together.”
That was exactly the root of my fears. Being together.
I reached up between us and pulled his shirt aside enough to look at the red hand print. This time, I'd blistered his skin right in the center of where my palm had rested. Being with him the way he wanted only seemed to cause him pain. We were both just kidding ourselves if either of us thought this would end in any way that didn't result in him lying on the floor, burnt to a crisp.
Tipping my head back, I looked up at him.
“I think this is a mistake.”
His fingers pressed more firmly into my back.
“I know it's not.”
I wanted to believe him. He seemed so confident, so sure that whatever was growing between us would work. I knew better. Life wouldn't give us what we wanted. Why should it? It hadn't ever cooperated yet.
“I appreciate your optimism, but I think we need to get real. I've burned you twice with just—”
Yelling and shouting broke out behind me. A tingle of annoyance raced up my spine, and I turned toward the back tables. An invisible string tugged me forward. I wedged my way through people, barely noticing when Oanen reached out to stop a few incubi from grabbing me as I passed.
Near the back, a group of bodies crowded around the booth where Ashlyn usually sat. Worried, I pushed forward harder.
“Move, dammit!” I yelled at a huge boy. He turned back to glare at me but stopped short when he glanced over my shoulder.
“Hey, Oanen,” he said, stepping aside.
Ignoring the boy and Oanen, I focused on the cause of the commotion. Two boys held Kelsey back from attacking another boy who was kissing the hell out of her younger sister, Zoe. Zoe's fingers clenched the boy’s hair. At first, I thought her hold was out of passion, then I saw her tears and pale cheeks. Had Zoe looked like she was enjoying herself, I would have turned around. Seeing her being forced into a kiss, though, ignited my temper, not only at the boy but at the Council. Kelsey and Zoe had no business being “on duty” at the Roost already.
I rushed forward, grabbed the incubus's shoulder, and pulled him away from his prize.
He grinned at me.
“You'll get your turn after I'm done with these two,” he said.
I hit him square in his still glistening lips. His head jerked to the side at the contact, and his eyes turned black. Zoe tried to step away, but his hold tightened on her arm.
“I’m not done with you, human. Not until I drink every bit of that passion you’re trying so desperately to hide.”
“Oh, you're done,” I said.
He hissed at me and reached out to caress Zoe's breast. The girl whimpered at the contact, and I snapped.