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âIâll answer a question,â he said, âfor a kiss.â
âHow very nefarious,â she muttered dryly.
âIâm a monster, arenât I?â
âYep.â
âYou should slap me and run off into the light.â
âOh, piss off. Slap you and break my bloody wrist, more like.â
âI canât help it if my bones are particularly sturdy.â
âWhy are they so sturdy, again?â
He grinned at her innocent tone. âA kiss, love.â
âFine.â Before he could grasp what was happening, she darted up on her toes and pressed her lips to the corner of his mouth. Every fibre in his body seemed to shatter, to explode on impact, as if the slight, chaste brush of skin against skin were the most erotic thing heâd ever felt.
And then she was gone, pressing herself back against the wall as if she could sink into it, her lashes lowered. âThere. Now answer the question.â
It took him a moment to find the wherewithal to speak, but he tried to sound unaffected. Luke had a feeling that with Chastity, the slightest slip of control might be taken as permission to ride roughshod.
Not that heâd mind her taking advantage of him, once in a while.
âThat wasnât a real kiss,â he said. âYou missed my mouth.â
âItâs dark,â she scowled. âExcept for those bloody eyes of yours.â
âThanks to these eyes,â he said patiently, âI can see you just fine. So weâll do it again, and Iâll kiss you.â
âNope. My kiss counts. You never said it had to be on the mouth.â
He smiled slowly, glad that the shadows hid his satisfaction. Ah, she had no idea what sheâd just walked into. âAlright. Fair enough.â He enjoyed the expression on her face for a moment, all adorably pleased, as if sheâd just won a prize. âLike all healthy, cursed beasts beholden to the moon, I am physically stronger, faster and sturdier than the average human. Higher bone density, more powerful muscles, magic, blah blah blah. And I believe I have a stronger immune system.â
âWhy do you think that?â
âIâve never gotten sick,â he said. âThat was another question, Chasity. You owe me a kiss.â
She rolled her eyes. âYouâre a pervert.â
âYou know,â he said reasonably, âyou could always reject my bargain. Or at least, you could if you werenât determined to prove yourself useful to a family who have, for some reason, denied your skills as a huntress. But since you are determined to do so, and since you also secretly want to kiss me, why donât you be a good girl and let me take what Iâm owed?â
She gaped at him like a particularly pissed-off fish. Then, finally, she spluttered, âDonât psychoanalyse me, you inhuman prick.â
âHow am I supposed to support you in overcoming your insecuritiesââ
âCall me insecure again and I will scoop out your eyeballs with a silver spoon.â
ââif I donât put effort into understanding you? And Chas, we both know youâre never going to attack me again. Iâd be open to play-fighting, though. Youâre very sexy when youâre trying to remove my vital organs.â
âWhat on earth are you blathering on about?â she demanded. But she didnât sound as brashly confident as usual, or as disgusted and dismissive. She sounded, beneath that iron voice of hers⌠unsure.
He didnât like that, because he knew she must be uncomfortable. Chastity appreciated certainty, which meant that he appreciated certainty for her. That was what drove him to say, his words painfully blunt, âI want to mate you.â
There was a heavy pause. Then, finally, she said, âI wish I didnât know what you meant by that, butâŚâ
âContext clues?â he guessed helpfully.
âContext clues,â she agreed.
âHow do you feel about it?â
âHorrified, obviously. I donât think I need to tell you that whatever matingme entails, itâs never going to happen. Unless you force me.â
He ground his teeth together and breathed through his nose for a moment, her scent ironically comforting as he fought down nausea and fury in equal measure. Then, his temper and his roiling stomach under control, he gritted out in his best imitation of calm, âIâm going to pretend you didnât say that.â
âUm⌠are you okay?â
âDo you care?â he snarled, the moonlight-fine thread of his control finally snapping.
âYes,â she clipped out, her voice equally harsh. And then they both faltered, blinking at that unexpected response. There was a heavy pause as she swallowed, the sound loud in the silence. Distantly, he recognised the rumble of passing cars on the nearby street, the open-and-shut of a door somewhere close, a faint conversation across the block. But that evidence of a world beyond the secret space between them wasnât enough to drag Luke out of this moment, this precious breath of time when her eyes met his without aggression, when her pretty lips parted not to attack him, but to drag in air.
When she was just as affected as him, and unable to hide it.
His heart pounding, his beast growling hungrily for more, he leaned closer. âChastity.â
âMm?â she hummed, the sound unsteady.
âMay I have my kiss, now?â
She took a deep breath, then gave a jerky nod.
âSay it,â he murmured.
Her voice was whisper-fine. âYes.â