world.
Or maybe just toward him.
Zael didn’t know. At the moment, he didn’t care.
Time slowed. The song blaring over the sound system was loud and relentless, but the cacophony of the music and the hundreds of other people around them faded into the background as Zael held Brynne in his arms.
He hadn’t come to London expecting any of this.
But then, Brynne Kirkland was nothing if not unexpected.
Unpredictable. Unforgettable.
And now he had to add another superlative to the growing list where she was concerned.
Irresistible.
He wanted to kiss her. He wanted to feel her body pressed against him without the barrier of clothing between them. He wanted her so badly, he moaned with the force of his need.
She had to know how she was affecting him. Holy hell, she had to feel it.
She did. He saw the knowledge register in her widened eyes as she lifted her head from his chest. A small crease burrowed between her brows.
But instead of pushing him away or making a break for the nearest door, beautiful, tipsy Brynne did something else he wasn’t expecting.
Reaching up to lace her fingers behind his neck, she pulled him into a shocking, mind-blowingly deep kiss.
CHAPTER 3
She didn’t know what had gotten into her.
With her mouth locked on Zael’s in a kiss that seemed to stagger them both, Brynne wanted to blame her rash—not to mention mortifying—impulse on the whisky.
It was because of the whisky.
Had to be.
How else could she explain the fact that this unwelcome reunion with the Atlantean had been the highlight of her entire day?
What other excuse could she possibly find for the fact that she was currently wrapped within the arms of a man who had done nothing but unsettle and annoy her from the instant they met, and she liked it?
God help her, she more than liked it.
Moaning, she speared her fingers deeper into his thick golden hair as she pulled him closer and her tongue dove deeper into his mouth. Her fangs surged, elongating as her desire intensified. Behind her closed eyelids her vision burned blood-red, and beneath her silk blouse and tailored pants, her skin tingled with the awakening of her dermaglyphs.
She was overcome with need, no doubt because it had been so long since she’d given in to her body’s demands—carnal and otherwise. Surely, that had to be the reason.
Every cell in her body lit up with a sudden and startling current of electricity as she sparred and tangled her tongue with Zael’s. Heat licked through her senses, into her veins, with each brush of his lips over hers.
It wasn’t as if she’d never kissed a man before. She had—although admittedly, infrequently at most. To her chagrin, kissing Zael made the memory of those other encounters dissolve into oblivion now.
And regardless of the fact that an audience of other clubgoers surrounded Zael and her from all sides, Brynne couldn’t get enough of him.
Just how many shots had she drunk tonight?
She couldn’t remember, nor did she care. With Zael’s mouth moving so hotly over hers, the only thing she could answer to now was her desire.
Wasn’t that what she’d wanted? Distraction from her problems. From her failures.
And yes, from her loneliness too. Zael had been right about that. She’d wanted a release from the emptiness of her life.
Just for a little while.
For a night.
With someone who wouldn’t judge her, or be inclined to stick around long enough to see just how fucked up she truly was. With her train wreck of an upbringing, she had no experience with emotional bonds, aside from the half-sister she’d met just several years ago.
And if having spent the first twenty-odd years of her life simply trying to survive wasn’t bad enough, she also had the added bonus of a cellular metabolism flaw that was slowly tearing her apart. She wasn’t wired for relationships. Long-term romantic commitments were not in her DNA—literally.
Which kind of made a player like Zael the perfect sexual outlet she was looking for tonight.
Hell, she was almost halfway there with him already.
Her veins felt like rivers of fire under her skin. The low hum of her need was rising swiftly in her temples, building with each heavy pound of her heart.
Panting as she tore her mouth away from his, Brynne stared up into his heavy-lidded, darkened blue eyes. “Let’s get out of here. My flat is just across the river.” She licked her lips, no easy feat when her fangs were fully extended and filling her mouth. “I want to go. Right now. With you.”
It was