was jarring, like a static charge passing between us, shorting out my senses. The sense of familiarity, of many moving pieces finally clicking into place as the warmth in my chest beat in tandem with my heart, taking over. My grip on his arm loosened, and my fingers seemed to have a mind of their own. They trailed down his granite-like skin to the tips of his claws.
I focused on that, on the feeling of him, as I took short, shallow breaths. I needed to get ahold of myself. Had to gather up those files and shove them back away. And I did just that, picturing myself running through the alley, snatching up files of memories and emotions. I gathered them to my chest and then forced them back into that cabinet in the recesses of my soul.
“Trin?” Concern rasped in his voice.
“I’m okay.” I struggled to catch my breath. “I’m fine. I’m all right.”
“You sure about that?”
“Yes.” I nodded for extra emphasis.
“If I put you down, will you make me a promise?” Zayne turned us away from the Raver, his large wings stirring the air around us. “You won’t run back and start hitting the demon like it’s your own personal punching bag?”
“I promise.” I wriggled against his hold and immediately felt a burn that spiked in my chest, right next to my heart. That burn dropped lower...and simmered below my navel. I stilled as my senses tried to sort out what I was feeling. It was like razor-sharp frustration that tasted of dark chocolate. A mix of desperation and indulgence.
Desire.
Forbidden desire, to be exact.
And I was pretty sure those potent sensations weren’t originating only from me.
Surprise rippled through me as I sucked in a heady breath. I hadn’t picked up on this through the bond before. My fingers pressed into Zayne’s hard skin as my eyes drifted shut. Even though we were pretending the night we’d kissed had never happened, the memory consumed my thoughts at record speed.
The ZAYNE drawer rattled insistently, cracking open the sliver I’d left before into a tiny fissure, and my heart went full throttle with it.
There was no stopping it.
I let myself feel.
8
The tumultuous thunder of emotions sent my heart racing and thoughts scattering. Anticipation and yearning took root, spreading through me like a flower seeking sun, and the feeling of this is right beat back the tiny bursts of fear.
What would Zayne do if I turned in his embrace, stretched up and wrapped my arms around his neck? Would he resist me? Or would he meet me halfway? Lower his mouth to mine and kiss me, no matter that it was forbidden? Right here, right now, with a dying Raver a few feet from us, while we stood in a stinky alley surrounded by piles of garbage.
Super romantic.
But a tremor still curled its way down my spine, causing my breath to hitch. I was hot. So incredibly hot, and suddenly the world around us didn’t matter. Nothing mattered beyond the heat and the pounding of my heart.
Zayne’s arm tightened around my waist, drawing me impossibly close, until there was no space between us. I felt him move behind me, the soft edges of his hair tickling the side of my neck, and then the impossible featherlight graze of his lips just below my ear. Every muscle in my body tightened almost painfully in want.
It was the wake-up call I needed for a multitude of reasons. If this consuming, unspent desire really was coming from him, it was just a by-product of mutual attraction. Obviously, that existed between us, but it wasn’t—it couldn’t—be anything more than skin-deep.
It took more than a moment to calm that stupid organ of mine, to pump the brakes on this train wreck of desires...but I did it.
I did it.
I opened my eyes and tapped on his arm. “Are you going to put me down or do you plan on carrying me around the rest of the night like an overstuffed handbag?”
“Do you promise to not start beating the Raver again?” He cleared his throat, and when he spoke again, the thickness was absent. “Because you haven’t agreed.”
I rolled my eyes. “Just to make sure we’re on the same page—you’re saying I’m not supposed to be chasing after puppy-eating demons?”
“You can chase them, as long as you promise to kill them the moment you catch them.”
“I honestly don’t know what the big deal is.”
“Seriously?” He dipped his head again, and this time, those soft strands of hair glided over