Alterant (Belador #2)(67)

“That’s not what I mean. Tristan might not hand over the Alterants to the Tribunal for any reason. He isn’t going to work with you.” He stopped and cocked his head to listen. “A train’s coming.”

“What do you mean? What exactly did she tell you about Tristan?”

“We’ve only got a minute to hide before the train reaches us.”

She gave up and scouted ahead until she found an indentation in the wall two feet deep. Backing in, she called out to Storm, “Where are you?”

He appeared in front of her. “Looking for another spot.”

The train clatter grew louder, and the engine headlight lit the edges of his clothes.

She could do this. “You can . . . share this spot.”

“You sure? I don’t want to end up drop-kicked into a MARTA train.”

Lifting a sharp gaze at him, she snapped, “Then keep your hands out of trouble. Get in here before you’re spotted.”

He stepped forward and swallowed all the space.

She breathed in and out, in and out. This would work. She would be fine. No reason to go mental on him just because she couldn’t see past his body to freedom.

Storm put his hands on the wall at each side of her head. “My hands promise to behave,” he teased.

She looked up.

His lips curved in a smile as lighthearted as his tone, but his eyes reflected the animal caged inside his body.

Her heart pounded with him this close. The muscles in her chest twisted and tightened, shaking her body harder than the vibration from the approaching train did.

Storm inched his face closer to hers. “You smell like a fresh shower . . . sweet and tempting.”

Why did she feel as though she was still naked from her shower when he said it that way? She watched his mouth say something else but couldn’t hear the words over the train noise. Then he stopped talking and paused. The next look he gave her was one of internal resignation.

She mouthed the word, What?

He kissed her. His mouth settled on hers with a familiar feel, as though his lips had known hers a long time. He possessed her mouth, mated it to his, and turned her body into liquid compliance.

He tasted tempting. Dangerous temptation she should be backing away from at a high speed. Couldn’t. Wouldn’t.

His tongue explored, carefully at first, then with adventure in mind.

The train roared past, vibrating the wall at her back.

The rush of wind pushed Storm’s body into hers, brushing her breasts that felt too full.

She shivered, breathing as hard as a runner at top speed when silence swept in behind the distant train with sharp abruptness. That’s when she realized his hands were still on the wall, but she had stepped up on the balls of her feet and cupped her hands around his shoulders.

When she leaned back and dropped her arms, she licked her lips, tasting him again. If he kept this up she might lose her mind enough to step over that line one time.

She knew better. “We can’t keep doing this.”

He straightened away from her and ran a hand over his face in a frustrated motion. His voice reeked of disgust when he muttered, “I couldn’t agree more.”

On a logical level, she wanted his agreement.

On a female level, that hadn’t been what she’d expected. She clenched her hands and shoved past him. “Not like it was my idea to kiss you.”

“Evalle.”

Ignoring him, she kept stomping down the middle of the tracks.

“Evalle?”

“What?”

“Come here.”

She spun around. “Now what?”

He was smiling, which confused and annoyed her in equal measure. He walked up to her. “I was irritated with myself, not you.”

“I don’t understand.” Understatement. “And honestly, I don’t care.” Lie.

Which he called her on silently when he arched an eyebrow. “When I agreed with you, I meant I can’t keep kissing you without . . . wanting more.”

What kind of more? “So that kiss was”—she shrugged, searching for a word—“okay.”

“I wouldn’t say that.”

She might drop-kick him again after all. She crossed her arms.

Mischief twinkled in his eyes. “‘Okay’ isn’t even close. Kissing you is like a roller-coaster ride to outer space. The farther we go, the more I’m lost and the more I want to explore new territory.”

He had an amazing ability to say things that lit sparklers in her heart and splashed bright colors across the ugly memories in her soul.

Calling the kiss “okay” would have been much easier to accept. He’d stepped all over her boundaries since the minute they’d met, but he always seemed to understand she had barriers he shouldn’t try to breach.

She’d never enjoyed a man’s touch until Storm.

She even missed him when he wasn’t around her, missed the way his hands sneaked past her defenses without raising an alarm.

Isak had kissed her, twice now, but not like Storm kissed her. On the other hand, Isak didn’t have the access to her that Storm had.

The more time she spent around Storm the easier he managed to infiltrate her emotions—and without using his majik, as he’d agreed after the first time.

He made her want that “more” part, made her consider tempting fate and taking a risk.