Iniquity (The Premonition, #5)(55)
Her eyebrow raises as she watches me pull the clothes back out. “This is a dryer,” I nod toward the appliance in question with an easy smile. “You use it after you wash your stuff. This,” I nod toward the front loader, “is a washin’ machine—it cleans ‘em.” I dump our tangled pile into it. “You wanna use the cold cycle so the color doesn’t fade.” I turn her away from me to face the washer. With her back to my chest, I trap her between my arms. Liftin’ her hand to the button, I slide my hand over hers, usin’ her finger to press the settin’ on the washer. The soft heat of her skin against mine is enough to make me ache inside.
My lips brush the top of her ear as I murmur, “You don’t want to mix light clothes with dark—especially anythin’ white with anythin’ red ‘cuz your whites will come out pink—and then people will laugh at you.”
She leans back into me. “You sound as if you speak from experience.” She turns her cheek to brush against mine.
“Let’s just say my sisters inherited a few of my t-shirts when I was learnin’ to do my own laundry.” I release her hand and unscrew the cap from the detergent, placin’ it in her grasp. “You’d usually just want a little detergent for a small load like this, but our clothes are sort of destroyed, so...” I pour out the soap, before slidin’ open the dispenser drawer, allowin’ her to pour the contents of the cap into it.
“Do you have anythin’ else you want to put in there before we start it?” I ask. I close my eyes, breathin’ in the perfume of her hair; it clouds my brain. I open them again as Anya turns ‘round in my arms. Facin’ me once more, her silky skin causes mine to vibrate at her touch. She lifts her hand and grasps the towel ‘round my waist. With a gentle tug, she takes it from me, reachin’ behind her and stuffin’ it into the washer at her back. A smile plays upon her lips.
Standin’ in front of her without a shred of clothing, I don’t feel vulnerable—I’m powerful. I move so that we’re a hair’s breath away. Towerin’ over her, her head only reaches my chin. I’m not fooled though; she’s delicate, but she’s ferocious—a warrior. She has the cunnin’ to turn me inside out. “You forgot this,” I murmur, reachin’ for the hem of her cami. I ease it over her head; her long, hair falls through it, black silk against her flawless skin. I toss her cami behind her into the washer.
My finger traces her shoulder, before windin’ down her. She bites her bottom lip. I run my thumb over it, rescuin’ it from her cruel mouth. I want to feel it pout against mine. She traps my thumb with her mouth, sucking it in, doin’ things to it that makes my knees weak.
My other hand trails leisurely down her to her abdomen; her muscles contract. Desire is a railroad spike through me. Her shallow breathin’ is air for my soul. I catch hold of the edge of her black underwear, hookin’ my thumb through the side of it. The lace is warm liquid against my fingertips. I continue down, tuggin’ the thin scrap of material away from her.
A snap draws my attention upward; her midnight wings spread wide from her back. My heart thunders in my chest as her wings serrate to black arrow points. They shine with iridescent fire in tones of purple, blue, and green.
The crickets inside me remind me every second just what desire is. They’re ready to consume everythin’ in their path. I grasp her ‘round the waist. She leans against me. The impact of her skin against mine fills me with insatiable hunger. The low, passionate sound that breathes from her has the muscles low in my abdomen contractin’. My wings punch from my back, spreadin’ out, responding to hers. When she sees them, she smiles—they must be talkin’ to her—tellin’ her things that I haven’t said.
Extractin’ my thumb from between her lips, I cup her cheek. My neck bends as my mouth hovers near her ear. “What did my wings say to you,” I whisper, before brushin’ my lips to the place just beneath her earlobe.
“Something I didn’t know,” Anya murmurs.
“What?”
Her half-lidded gaze seduces me. Easing closer, her lips flirt with mine, hoverin’ just above. “You missed me.” The vibration of her silky voice drives me crazy with a rough-edged need to possess her.
I nip her bottom lip, suckin’ it into my mouth before lettin’ it go. “I—”
“Shh, your mouth never tells the truth. You should let your body speak for you.”
My heart clenches tight. “I’m not lyin’ when I say I need you.”
“I need you as well.”
“And I’m not lyin’ when I say I love you.”
“Show me.”
REED
I have a gut-wrenching reaction to Evie evaporating into the night. The need to smash something is nearly overwhelming. Clenching my muscles is the only outward sign I allow. In truth, I can’t control that, no matter how much I try. It’s a physical reaction to the loss of her—the loss of butterflies between us. Tau observes me from the other end of the stone corridor. He is the epitome of control. I slip my belt from the loops of my jeans and wind the supple leather around one of my fists. The buckle I hold between my flattened fingers.
“I can’t seem to keep you two apart,” Tau says.
“I know.” I wait for him to make a move.