Yeah. He chuckled. Now I put things back together. I figured out how it all works. Now Im all about restoration and creation. No destruction.
Destruction. The word felt comfortable to Jetts senses. It had been so easy to destroy that which annoyed her. But just as she noticed herself smiling about such memories, she chased away the thought. She would not slip around Savin. She must not.
She sniffed her glass, then took a sip. It burned down her throat, but it was actually tasty. As she drank more, the burn lessened. Another sip and the dark liquid smoothened on her tongue. I like this.
Much as I hate to be the one to corrupt you, I cant argue an appreciation for a good aged whiskey.
I am beyond corruption, Savin. So dont worry about that.
Everyone is corruptible.
Yes, well, theres nothing about me that can get any more corrupted. So trust, you wont harm me. No matter what vices or sinful challenges with which you should tempt me. She held out her glass toward him. Her voice thickened into a husky tone. More.
Glass clinked as he poured her another portion. Then he topped off his drink. The lingering look he gave her was in reaction to her sensual tease. Good boy. He understood her. She could work with that.
Can I ask you one thing? Its personal.
I dont have any boyfriends, if thats what youre wondering. Jett chuckled softly and pressed the cool glass against her lower lip. The man was so sexy. And she understood the meaning of that word now. How quickly she relaxed around him. And desired. She was feeling...sensual. Must be the whiskey. Yes, she did like this drink.
No, thats Savin looked over the rim of his glass. Could you have boyfriends...you know...there?
He wanted to know about her love life in Daemonia? Ugh. Is that the question you wanted to ask?
Do I only get the one?
Jett sighed and allowed her shoulders to relax against the comfy cushions. She crossed her legs, and with a slip off of the heel, she dangled her shoe on her toes. Fine. Ask me anything. But Im allowed to refuse any answer.
I dont want to grill you, Jett. But I am curious. In turn, you can ask me anything.
Youve been open with me so far. I owe you that much.
He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, the whiskey glass dangling from one hand before a leg. How did you survive in that place? Was there shelter? Buildings? Towns? A place of safety?
Theres never safety in Daemonia, she said curtly. The whiskey slid quickly down her throat and she slammed the glass on the chair arm. But there are dwellings. And cities and citadels. Castles, hovels and all means of residence. I...had a place to live. She couldnt tell him everything. Shed never get out of this flat in one piece if she did that. And I was generally free from the treacherous elements that Im sure you remember.
So someone took you in? Thats good. I couldnt imagine you wandering that horrible place for so long and on your own.
There is no alone there. Jett cast her glance up toward the windows fitted in the ceiling. The sky was darkening. Thankfully. Nor was there a sun. But you know, the many moons were pretty. Save for the fire moon. That one hurt if I forgot myself and walked out beneath it.
Like a sunburn?
He might never understand that in Daemonia everything was multiplied, magnified, extremely enlarged, enhanced and so, so dangerous. Hed had but a taste as a child.
A bit, she offered quickly. Now she stood and grabbed the half-empty whiskey bottle and refilled her glass. Growing more confident, she sat on the couch, snuggling up about two feet from where Savin sat and facing him. The whiskey warmed her, and the exhaustion shed been feeling earlier cooled to a comfortable relaxation. Any more questions?
So many. But I wont inundate you. I genuinely thought you were dead after that fall, Jett. Were you angry with me? For not coming after you?
He lifted his chin just as their eyes met. Alpha in his command, and unwilling to show any weakness. Shed dealt with men like him. And yet she could feel his heart beating rapidly. He was frightened at his own emotions.
And she, well, she had long ago abandoned the sillier emotions such as fear, shame and empathy.
I was never angry with you, she said truthfully. And I hoped for so long that you had made it back home. My wish came true. Im glad for that.
I should have leaped over that cliff and tried to save you.
It would have been a suicide leap, Savin. You were wise to stay put. Trust me on that one.
How she had survived the lava falls was a question shed never gotten an answer to. And really, shed decided long ago she didnt want that answer. There had been a reason she was whisked into Daemonia. A wicked, selfish reason for which she could never forgive the perpetrator.
Savin considered her words. Surely his next question would be, how had she survived? So she would redirect his thoughts. What about you? Do you have any girlfriends?
His brow quirked; then his lips dallied with a smile before he shook his head. Im not so talented with the suave and smooth. All that dating stuff feels awkward.
A man so handsome and kind as you has trouble with women? Surely, youve dated.
I have. I do. Eh. It never lasts. Im human, Jett, but this demon inside me makes it difficult to relate to human women. Im different than most. I know things I shouldnt know about things that shouldnt exist. And I have to protect that side of me from discovery. You know? I did date a vampiress once. I dont like the idea of getting bitten, though, and that did seem to be a requirement to a happy relationship.
Did she bite you?
I wouldnt let her. It was tempting. I understand the bite is orgasmic. Oh, uh, sorry. I shouldnt talk like that around you.
Why not? Were both adults. I am a grown woman. And she was feeling more of herself with every moment she sat near Savin. Hed toyed with getting bitten by a vampire? Jett traced the bottom tip of her canine tooth. It was sharp, but not as pointed as usual without her sheen. I know things, she said. Trust me, Im not an innocent.
All right, then. He considered his glass, and Jett sensed his sudden discomfort.
Vampires! So many creatures walking this realm, she tossed out to break the tension. All the things we once thought were only make-believe. All of them predators and prey.
Ive never been prey and dont intend to start. Trust me on that one. He chuckled and shook his head. Hand me the bottle. Lets finish it off.
She grabbed the bottle and went up on her knees to slide closer to Savin, setting the bottle on his thigh. When he gripped it, she placed her hand over his. He turned his head, and the scent of him invaded her pores on a tease. As a woman, she had needs. And those needs screamed for satisfaction right now. A new turn at satisfaction, actually. One that she might not regret, or that would leave her shivering in revulsion.
My turn to ask the questions, she said. Or rather, Ive a request.
He studied her hand still resting over his, and she released him so he could pour the last inch into his glass. He tucked the bottle on the other side of his thigh, then said, Shoot.
Boldness had been bred into her over the long and unending years of her exile. And she was feeling her mettle now that shed begun to acclimate to this realm. Jett touched the ends of Savins dark hair and swept them over his shoulder. With the back of her forefinger, she traced along his neck up to the bristly beard hairs. He was warm, much more so than shed expected. Fiery, even. But never dangerous, at least, not to her darkness.
Boldness had been bred into her over the long and unending years of her exile. And she was feeling her mettle now that shed begun to acclimate to this realm. Jett touched the ends of Savins dark hair and swept them over his shoulder. With the back of her forefinger, she traced along his neck up to the bristly beard hairs. He was warm, much more so than shed expected. Fiery, even. But never dangerous, at least, not to her darkness.
Do you think Im pretty, Savin?
Now his gaze locked on to hers, and she felt the heat of him scurry over her skin. It danced about her arms and torso and tightened her nipples. Mmm...he was not a man to be ignored.
I do.
Do you remember when we were kids and I asked you to kiss me and you said you couldnt until we were older because wed have to be married and youd probably have to like girls to do so?
He nodded and, with a tilt of his head, chuckled softly. You remember that? Ive always respected women. My mother taught me that.
Yes, you are a kind man. But. Are we old enough to kiss now?
Her finger wandered over his chin and followed the line of hairs below the center of his bottom lip. She traced lightly over his mouth. All the while his gaze was intent on hers. Desire smoldered in his deep dark eyes. And she could smell it on him, even though it was a scent that had usually offended her. Not so from Savin. He was a real man. Not a demon.
Kiss me, she whispered. She moved nearer until their noses were close enough to brush. He smelled like the brisk Paris air and fiery whiskey, with a rich earthy tang of man.
Jett, I
Yes?
A hush of his breath played over her lips. Are you sure?
I never ask for things I dont want. Thats a waste of words.
She ran her fingers along his cheek and back through his hair.
She would not kiss him. He must come to her. Otherwise, she would not know if he was merely doing as she asked or if he genuinely wanted to. But the heat of his body so close to hers was incredible. Tempting. And she felt dizzied, yet also emboldened by the alcohol. If he refused her request, it would crush her.
When his mouth met hers, the connection felt tentative for but a moment. Savins hand slipped along her neck, gentle but guiding, as he tilted her head to better receive the taste of his desire. He invaded her with his presence in a way she had never known. And she wanted to keep it. To know him as only adults could know each other.
His mustache brushed her upper lip, and their noses nudged. Eyes closed, she gripped at his wavy hair. Their intense connection rocketed up the delicious tingle that began at her mouth and coiled rapidly throughout her body. Jett slid a leg over his lap, her knee hitting the whiskey bottle, and straddled him. He slipped a hand along her back, not breaking the kiss, instead keeping her firmly in place upon him.
She wanted to taste him, to drink the whiskey from his tongue. That wish was granted as he dashed his tongue along the seam of her mouth. Such a spectacular sensation giddied up her spine. The mans throaty groan clued her he enjoyed kissing her as much as she did him.
His tongue was hot and slick as he tasted her teeth, tongue and her lips. She copied his movements, daring him into a deep dance that ignited the coil of want in her belly, and lower. It was not a sensation she had knowntoo easy, too comfortableand it alerted her for a few moments, but she would not let him know her caution rose. The width of his hand spanned her back as he gentled that sudden anxiety with the realization that he might only protect her andif she was luckygive her pleasure.
He must. She deserved it.
Bracketing his face with both palms, Jett tilted her head, seeking to devour his whiskey sweetness. When she brushed her hard nipples against his chest, again the man moaned. Yes, she liked his reaction. He was under her command now. And that empowered her.
Yet when he slipped out his tongue and kissed her mouth, then bowed his forehead to hers to end the kiss, she wanted to greedily pull him back for another. So she did. This time the clutch of his hand against her hip was more urgent. And his other hand slid over her derriere and squeezed.
She wanted to feel his body against hers, skin to skin, to know what his muscles felt like flexing with movement, melding against her body, and to own him.
But she was getting carried away.
Jett lashed her tongue along Savins lower lip, then met his gaze.
Whew! he said.
Exactly. And kneeling over him, firmly in his embrace, she could sense...something similar within him. The demoness he claimed had hitched a ride to this realm with his escape? The Other. Her presence was faint, barely a shimmer that traced the mans veins. And yet she wanted Jett to know of her presence.
Oh, she was aware.
Jett thumbed Savins mouth. Ive never been kissed like that.
His eyebrow quirked.
Actually, Ive never been kissed until now.
YoureReally?
She nodded. Finally, that kiss you promised me when we were kids has been granted. And dont think you have to stop giving them to me.
That was an intense kiss. A guy would never know youd not done such before. He looked aside. Were his thoughts going to places she didnt want them to go?
Jett kissed him again. She would claim this man, body and soul. Because that was what she did to survive.