Sleep?
Caine’s fantasy abruptly altered to reality—a reality in which Cassie slept like a baby in one bed while he tossed and turned in another.
Did he really need to add in a skimpy bit of lace to add to his torture?
“For one of us,” he wryly admitted.
Predictably, she didn’t have a clue why he was suddenly questioning his own sanity. “What?”
He headed toward the discreet sales desk at the back of the store, pulling his wallet from his pocket.
“I’m an idiot.”
Chapter 2
Cassie wandered through the casino, watching the humans as they stood mesmerized by the flashing lights and spinning wheels of the slot machines. The air was filled with their tangled emotions—the hope, the greed, the rare jolt of joy, and the far more common desperation.
She was fascinated, even as she was saddened by their frantic attempts to grasp . . . something.
Money? Sex? Happiness?
Without thought, she reached to grab Caine’s hand, needing the steady sense of security he offered. He squeezed her fingers, tugging her closer to his hard body as a group of drunken revelers stumbled past.
“As much as I enjoy civilization, are you going to tell me what we’re doing here?” he murmured, the scent of soap and shampoo from his recent shower doing nothing to disguise the warm, wicked tang of his wolf.
For reasons that Cassie didn’t understand, a rash of excitement prickled over her skin, making her want to strip off her new sundress and rub against the male at her side.
Of course she didn’t give in to the impulse.
She was slowly learning that there were all sorts of stupid rules and regulations that had to be followed when surrounded by mortals. And taking off her clothing seemed to be at the top of the list.
Instead she turned her thoughts to his question, heaving a faint sigh. “I’ll tell you when I know,” she said.
“Brilliantly vague.”
She shrugged. “It is what it is.”
“That doesn’t mean I have to like it,” he muttered with a grimace.
“No.”
She came to an abrupt halt, turning to meet his rueful expression. Despite the chronic distractions that clouded her mind, she knew that she didn’t always appreciate this man as she should.
Who else would have saved her from a fate worse than death, and then stayed at her side as she had led him from one random place to another, compelled by the visions that consumed her to the point of oblivion?
No one, that was who, a voice whispered in the back of her mind. No one but Caine.
With a frown of concern, Caine reached to cup her cheek in his hand, his warm touch her only anchor to this world. “Cassie?” he prompted.
“I’m sorry,” she said abruptly, her gaze skimming over his lean, finely chiseled features. He truly was a beautiful male with his pale hair shimmering like gold beneath the bright lights and his eyes as brilliant as sapphires. It was no wonder she could smell the desire coming from the numerous women staring at him with hungry eyes. “I haven’t been fair to you.”
His thumb pressed against her lips as he gave a shake of his head. “Don’t.”
She grasped his wrist, tugging his hand from her face. She had to speak now. Who knew how long her brief clarity would last?
“I become . . . lost in my visions and I have never truly stopped to consider what you’ve sacrificed to keep me safe.” Her fingers absently caressed the skin of his inner wrist, feeling the leap of his pulse at her soft touch. “Without you . . .”
His eyes darkened with a heat that Cassie felt to the tips of her toes.