Blood Trinity (Belador #1)(77)
He looked away sharply and released a morose laugh that sounded half sigh. “Don’t do that unless you want me to keep kissing you.”
His laughing at her dumped cold water on whatever brain lapse had caused her to stand still like an idiot and allow him to kiss her at will. She’d never let anyone get that close to her face since the night the doctor had hurt her.
Why had she let Storm get away with that?
Because he’d surprised her before she’d been able to think to stop him. Because he hadn’t put his hands on her. And once his mouth had touched hers, she hadn’t wanted him to quit kissing her.
She was treading in dangerous waters with this man.
Hormones might do her in before her remaining lies buried her.
She stepped back, pulling away from the gentle blanket of his heat, which had wound around her senses. “Why’d you kiss me?”
He angled his head thoughtfully. “I could tell you it was because you’re pretty, which you are, or because I want you, which I do. But the truth is I don’t like seeing you upset.”
“I want you”? As in … She wasn’t even going to touch that part. In fact, she was in so far over her head in this conversation she’d need a floatie if she didn’t get out of it. “I was angry, not upset.”
The smile that spread across his face called her on the lie.
She huffed at him. “Whatever you perceived my emotional state to be, that does not give you permission to kiss me whenever you want.”
He took a step, closing the distance between them to an inch.
She stood her ground in spite of her feet itching to back up—a smarter part of her body than her hands, which itched to touch him. Well, hell, she might need a whole armada of floaties to save her at this point.
Storm shoved his hands into his jeans pockets and dropped his head close to hers. “I won’t ever do that again if you can tell me you didn’t enjoy it and make me believe it.”
How did she get herself in trouble like this? Telling him the truth—that she’d never been kissed, not in a sweet way like he’d just done—would get her in as much of a jam as trying to convince him she hadn’t enjoyed it. “I don’t have to tell you anything, and we need to get back to work.”
There was that chuckle again, but this time genuine humor spread across his face and reached his gorgeous eyes for several seconds before he turned all business again. “We’ll get back to work then. You wanted my help, so tell me about Alterants.”
She wished she could read his mind and know what to believe about him. Know if he could be trusted.
When she didn’t answer him, he said, “What if I told you we have more in common than not?”
The adrenaline jamming her body from that kiss began to back off so she could think more clearly. Allowed her to breathe again. “I don’t see how you and I could have anything in common.”
“Let’s make this simple and stop beating around the bush. You have your secrets and so do I. I told you I’m not Sen’s puppet, but that’s all I can tell you about why I’m here. It’s up to you to decide if I’m lying or not. If you want my help, ask for it. If I say I’ll do something, I will, but that’s not a promise I’ll say yes to everything you ask, or that our ideas of what it means to help will always coincide. That’s the best I can do.”
“Did you give Sen the same agreement?”
“Yes, I did.”
If he’d taken his time to answer or tried to convince her otherwise, she wouldn’t have believed him. Agreeing to share her situation with him didn’t mean she trusted Storm completely, but she needed someone who could help other than Tzader and Quinn. She would not put them at risk. “I can work with that.”
“Then tell me what the problem is or what you need from me.”
She gritted her teeth at the idea of giving him all the evidence Sen would need to hand her over to the Tribunal. Would Storm use what she told him against her, or would he really help her? She was running out of time and there was only one way to find out. “Someone sent three demons into Atlanta looking for an Alterant, and I’m the only one here. I need to find out who is behind the Birrn that attacked me and if it’s connected to the Ngak Stone in any way.”
“You’re sure the demons were after an Alterant?”
“No, I don’t have enough real drama. I’m making the demon attacks all about me.” She’d gladly give up the spotlight to someone else.
“What makes you think the demons that have shown up in Atlanta are connected to the Ngak Stone surfacing in the park?” Storm asked.
“Too many coincidences add up to a possible connection. For one thing, I ran into a Kujoo the other night, the one called Vyan that Trey was talking about in the VIPER meeting.”
“Why don’t you tell me about this Vyan while we work our way through the park?” Storm took the lead through the dark.
He moved with the agile grace of a big cat, as if at home in the night. Did he have exceptional vision, too?
Evalle put her sunglasses back over her eyes before he reached one of the paved roads lined with streetlights that dissected the park. She kept an eye out to make sure no one was near them when she continued. “Vyan was trying to grab two teenagers the other night and I intervened.”