A light application of makeup followed, just a dusting of a powder foundation. She spent more time on smoky hues of shadow applied to her eyes and a light application of mascara to lengthen and thicken her lashes. A coating of gloss to her lips, then a light misting of her favorite perfume.
The woman that stared back at her wasn’t the woman who had checked into the hotel the night before. Worn, exhausted and struggling to haul her bags to her room, she had felt as though she would never get enough rest.
This morning, rested, bright-eyed and approaching a clear mind, she drew in a deep breath and gave a brief nod to her image. Her determination to never allow his touch may have been compromised, but so far, she was dealing with the consequences of it.
Her pu**y was wet and heated, longing for his touch.
Her ni**les were tight and hard, aching for his lips, the stroke of his tongue, the sucking heat of his mouth and the rasp of his teeth.
Every cell in her body longed for the warmth of his, but it wasn’t agonizing. It was irritating. Damned irritating. It was close to a compulsion, but she was handling it.
And she would continue to handle it, she promised herself. Staring at the image in the mirror, she decided she was now ready to face the day.
Or Lawe.
A flush raced over her face and down her neck at the memory of the searing pleasure that had shot through her body at the culmination of his touch the night before. A pleasure that had suffused her entire body. It had been so unexpected, so hot, she’d been helpless against it.
It had weakened her, heated her, marked a part of her she couldn’t explain.
And the release . . .
Was that a moan that slipped past her lips?
Gripping the counter tight, she breathed in sharply and fought back the insidious ache that insisted on tormenting the most feminine parts of her body.
She had to stop.
She could feel her pu**y dampening, clenching, preparing for the ultimate possession by the ultimate male animal.
And she had to stop it from happening.
Now.
She could not go into this meeting with Jonas Wyatt smelling of sexual need and the inability to concentrate.
She couldn’t allow Lawe Justice to turn her mind into mush like this.
There was too much at stake for that, not just for the Breeds but for her sister and her niece too.
The serum that the medical research giant Phillip Brandenmore had injected her niece with was so unknown that they had no idea what it would do to the child.
Diane knew there were changes in Amber. She could see them when she spent more than a few weeks away from the baby. And then there had been the night when Rachel called her on a secured sat line while Diane had been out of the country on a mission.
Rachel had been sobbing.
Her daughter was purring, she had cried, and the other children hissed and snapped at the babe whenever she was around, causing Amber to cry.
Amber wasn’t a Breed, but she was acting like a Breed, and she was becoming frightened of the other children because of their reaction to her. She was withdrawn, whimpering whenever Rachel took her around the other children because of their reactions to her. Amber was now frightened of all children, and she was barely eight months old. She was too little, too young, to have to face such an instinctive and primal reaction from others her own age.
Rachel had been nearly hysterical and trying to hold back her pain and fear from her mate, Jonas. Rachel had called her sister instead and spilled out the pain building inside her and the pain tormenting her.
The agony tearing her apart as the changes in her baby became more noticeable was destroying her. Sobbing, she had begged Diane to just make what was happening to Amber stop, when they both knew that if it could be stopped, then Jonas would have already done whatever was necessary to put a halt to it.
The mother inside her sister had splintered and wept for the changes in her baby. Changes that were so uncertain and unknown.
Brave, strong, resilient Rachel had waited until her mate had left for D.C. and then she had broken down. It was then she had finally called her sister and told her what was happening to Amber after Brandenmore had attempted to kidnap her that night.
Diane had rushed back to the States in the middle of a mission despite her men’s anger, and returned to her sister’s side.