How long would she sleep? Part of me wasn’t bothered by the prospect of sitting here for hours. There was something calming about holding her, but it was also the exact opposite, because every inch of my body was aware of how she fit to my side, of where her hand was, the rise and fall of her chest.
This was peaceful and torturous.
Some time later, after what felt like forever and yet not enough time at all, Kat stirred awake. It was a slow process that began with her muscles tensing, relaxing, and then tensing again when she realized what… who she was lying on.
My hand stilled, but I didn’t move it away. Wasn’t like she was going to fall on her face now, but I…I just didn’t, and I wasn’t at all okay with that. I clenched my jaw.
Kat lifted her head. “What…what happened?”
Oh, you know, shot a pure bolt of energy at a bear and you wilted like a delicate flower at my feet. Then I carried you back like a true gentleman and sat here for God knows how long and just stared at you.
Yep, so not going there.
I pulled my arm free. “You passed out.”
“I did?” She scooted back, brushing a mass of hair out of her face. It was then that I realized her hair had come undone at some point. My gaze dropped briefly. As expected, her hair was long and thick, falling over her shoulders.
“I guess the bear scared you,” I told her. “I had to carry you back.”
“All the way?” She looked disappointed, which made me curious. “What…what happened to the bear?”
“The storm scared it. Lightning, I think. Are you feeling okay?”
Lightning lit the porch, startling her. “The bear was scared of a storm?”
“I guess so.”
“We got lucky, then.” She glanced down, brows knitting, and when those lashes lifted, I had to force myself to keep breathing normally. There was a quality to those gray eyes—a glimmer that sucked me right in. “It rains here like it does in Florida.”
I nudged her knee with mine. “I think you may be stuck with me for a few more minutes.” Really, that was a stupid excuse for not leaving. I needed something better—no, what I needed was to leave. Get up and leave. But then she spoke again.
“I’m sure I look like a drowned cat.”
I’d almost prefer the drowned cat. “You look fine. The wet look works for you.”
She scowled. “Now I know you’re lying.”
I was a lot of things, but until recently, a liar wasn’t one of them. And apparently, I was as unpredictable as the weather, so much so that I had no idea what I was doing until I shifted and wrapped my fingers around her chin, tilting her head toward me.
“I wouldn’t lie about what I thought,” I said, and that was the truth.
Kat blinked slowly, and my gaze dropped to her lips again. I really, really needed to stop looking at her lips. Muscles tightened at the thought of tasting them. She’d probably clock me in the face and then lay into me with that razor-sharp tongue of hers. Which made me want to grin.
I leaned forward. “I think I understand now.”
“Understand what?” she whispered.
My unwilling fascination with her—I got it. She didn’t put up with any of my crap. I was surrounded by people who looked to me to have all the answers, to protect them, to never show fear. And so I put on a big front and swaggered around like nothing frightened me. It was exhausting sometimes. But Kat, she saw right through all my bluster and kept me honest. And I liked that…a lot.
A pink flush stained her cheeks. I chased that color with my thumb. “I like to watch you blush.”
She sucked in a tiny breath, and it undid me. Pressing my forehead against hers, I pushed it to the limit. This was insanity, but she smelled of peaches and her skin was soft and her lips looked even softer.
I was caught up in a web there really was no escaping. A web of Kat… One I damn guarantee she had no idea she weaved. A naive beauty, and I’d seen a lot in my eighteen years to know that was a rarity. Something to be cherished.
Lightning struck again, and Kat didn’t jump at the thunder this time. She was focused in a way that pleased me, pulled at my control, and teased me with what I could never have. Shouldn’t even want, but I wanted… God, did I ever want. And if we continued where we were heading, it would get messy. I already knew what happened when Luxen and humans mixed. I had too much responsibility to be fooling around with her. Too much going on…
But I still wanted.
My fingers slipped along the curve of her cheek as my head tilted. I was going to regret this—holy crap was I ever, but I wasn’t stopping. Our lips were only a breath away…
“Hey, guys!” Dee called out.
I jerked back, sliding in one fluid movement and putting distance between us on the swing while Kat turned a fierce shade of red. I’d been so absorbed in her, I hadn’t heard my sister’s car or noticed the storm had passed and the sun was out, shining and all.
Great.
Dee came up the steps, her smile fading as her gaze bounced between us and then narrowed. No doubt she was seeing the faint trace around Kat and wondering how the hell that happened. Then she seemed to focus on what she’d just interrupted.
Her mouth dropped open.
It wasn’t often that I surprised her…like this. I grinned. “Hey, there, sis. What’s up?”
“Nothing,” she said. “What are you doing?”
“Nothing,” I replied, jumping from the swing. I glanced at a silent, dazed-looking Kat. Her gray eyes were still hazy and wide. Freaking beautiful. Damn, I needed to nip this in the bud right now, before something worse than just a trace happened. I met her gaze. “Just earning bonus points.”