Shadow Thief - Eva Chase Page 0,18

nipples through my unpadded bra just firmly enough to provoke a jolt of pleasure through my chest.

He drew back for a second to flick the item aside, and despite my best efforts, a whimper of protest at the loss of contact spilled from my throat. Ruse smiled brilliantly as he gazed down at me.

“You’re lovely,” he said.

A giggle tumbled out of me. “I think we’re past the point of you needing to seduce me.”

“I’m simply making an honest observation.”

He tucked his arm around me as he claimed another kiss. My head reeled with it, but I didn’t intend to be the only one naked around here. As I drowned in the dark sweetness of his lips, I found the wherewithal to get to work on the buttons of his shirt. When I reached the collar, he shrugged it the rest of the way off for me without releasing my mouth.

Holy mother of miracles, his chest was as stunning as his face, all lean, sculpted muscle beneath creamy skin I couldn’t resist running my fingers over. It felt as good as it looked, firm and smooth. The flames of desire kindling between us set off another flood of heat through my body.

Ruse kissed me again, this time so hard it left my head spinning. Then he tucked his face close to mine, nipping my earlobe and murmuring, “There is one other power you might appreciate me employing. If you’d like, I can make sure no sound travels out of this room while we’re… occupied.”

Um, yeah, that sounded like a good idea. “Be my guest,” I managed to say over the eager thump of my heart.

He made a small motion with his hand and then brought that hand to the back of my bra. As the cups slipped from my breasts, he lowered his head to kiss my jaw and then my neck with careful attention.

His lips found every perfect point to spark bliss through my nerves. His hands stroked my breasts, his thumbs swiveling over both nipples at once, and a shuddering gasp tumbled out of me that made me abruptly glad he’d offered his soundproofing skill just now.

My hands settled on the incubus’s head of their own accord. As he trailed his mouth down the slope of my chest, my fingers curled into the thick waves of his hair—and brushed against those small horns that protruded on either side. Their curved surface was as hard as bone and faintly textured to the touch, but warm as skin. I grasped them instinctively.

Ruse let out an encouraging growl and swept me off my feet. For a second, I really was soaring—in his arms, from the middle of the room to the middle of my bed.

The incubus bent over me, his gaze intent. His eyes flashed golden. The bright hue only stayed for a second before he blinked as if purposefully willing them back to their mortal-appropriate hazel.

I teased my fingers along his horns and back into his hair. “You don’t have to hide it. I know what you are. Let out your regular form if you want.”

Ruse smiled wryly at me. “Better not to when you aren’t quite as swept up in sensation as I’d usually ensure. It’s pretty… intense.”

I studied him. “Do you normally need to magically sweep women away before they’ll fall into bed with you?”

He dipped his head, teasing his mouth along the crook of my jaw, my earlobe, my cheek. “No,” he murmured between the tantalizing kisses. “I happen to only pursue women who are whole-heartedly interested in the general experience. Shame and regret spoil the meal. But certain aspects are better accepted by the mortal mind when I can bring all my powers to bear.”

I was about to argue that I could handle intense just fine without any voodoo, thank you, when he claimed my mouth again. The press of his lips was plenty intense on its own. Why argue when I could simply enjoy this?

He fondled my breasts as his tongue tangled with mine, alternately gentle and forceful at just the right moments. My skin was all but singing by the time he slid down to suck one nipple into his hot mouth, and then my nerves might as well have been performing a symphony. The only sound I managed to produce was a wordless moan.

His deft fingers made short work of the fastening on my jeans. As his lips and tongue drew every particle of bliss from my chest, the sensations flaring hotter and deeper