He pushed the door open. She entered and saw car keys on the table near the door.
"Are you going to town?"
"Yep."
Bet he's got a girl in town.
"Figures," she muttered.
"Pardon?" he asked, looking up from the wallet he rifled through.
"Nothing."
"You finish your thoughts out loud pretty often."
"Bad habit," she said.
Maybe I do, he said into her mind.
"That is not cool," she told him.
"The girl or the ability to read minds?"
She gritted her teeth and turned to go, trying not to think of how jealous the idea of another woman made her.
"There's no girl," he called after her. "You can stay."
"I wasn't-"
"Yes, you were. Sit down."
He was amused and she fumed, her emotions scattered by his mere presence.
I have no right to be jealous. If he has a woman, he has a woman.
"Sofia, stop thinking and sit down." She obeyed, embarrassed. "There's no woman, though I'm flattered."
He sat beside her on the couch. The sight of the knife in her hand still made her squeamish.
"I keep trying to entice you, but you seem immune to me," he teased. "No other woman has been able to resist me. It's fascinating."
"I appreciate you trying to make me feel less nervous, but you shouldn't lie to me," she snapped.
"I can have any woman I want. I wouldn't bother with you if I didn't want you."
The edge of arrogance surprised her. She looked at him. His look was intent, the gold of his irises swirling.
"Let's get this over with, so you don't miss your hot date," she said coolly.
He lifted her chin with one finger. His lips brushed hers, and she felt something within her melt at the simple touch. Hunger for him-not just his blood-roared through her. He kissed her gently, tasting her, savoring her. At his prodding, she opened her mouth. His mouth was hot, his flavor as addictive as his blood. He nipped at her lips, his tongue darting in and out of her mouth. He pressed her back against the couch, and she yielded, her hands touching his face, his soft hair, his neck. Touching him sent warm energy racing through her blood. Maybe he had a harem of women at his beck and call, but she couldn't see herself with any other man. Ever.
"You believe me now?" he whispered against her lips, pulling away.
She sighed in response.
"The offer's always open," he assured her. "Now drink."
He placed his bloodied wrist to her mouth. She closed her eyes, body on fire as she drank from him while imagining what his mouth could do to the rest of her body. When she was sated, she pushed his arm away. He had turned away again and was chewing his knuckle.