Wickedly Dangerous (Baba Yaga, #1)(24)
Koshei made a sound like a boulder crashing down a hillside. “Gods, that’s good.” He leaned his head back, pale cheeks flushed with the aftermath of drinking an elixir that both extended life and aroused it. When he looked at Baba again, myriad gold flecks were mirrored in his eyes. A playful smile tugged at sensual lips in a way that made Baba remember all over again why she had been so glad to see him walking through the wardrobe door.
“So, do you want to tell me what is going on that required you to call in the Riders?” he asked, flicking an empty cardboard box with one long finger. “Is there anything I can help with?” He moved his hand to slide up over her thigh, playing with the edge of the silk that lay there. “Things have been way too quiet lately. I’m bored.”
Baba touched her tongue to her lower lip, trying to catch one last hint of sublime sweetness before returning to harsh reality. The eternal energy of the Water pulsed hotly in her veins, distracting her from the current crisis and making her think of dark caves and passionate lovemaking in the long nights of the Otherworld.
She took a deep breath to try to focus and explained the situation with the missing children to Koshei as succinctly as she could while still listening to infinity echoing at the back of her mind.
“If you want to help,” she said finally, gazing up at him and finding the expression she expected—patient, listening, and a little bit amused at her concern for the mayfly lives of humans, “you could have a look around the Otherworld when you go back. See if you can find out who my mysterious woman might be. I’m guessing she’s a local witch with unusual power, but she had a touch of the Otherworld about her, so maybe someone from the other side has had some dealings with her.”
One broad shoulder lifted in a shrug as calloused fingers moved to cup her bottom and lift her onto his lap. “I’m happy to do it,” he said, scorching her with his glance. “But it is going to be a little difficult to track her down if you’ve never seen her without her glamour. For all you know, she isn’t even a she.” He muffled a short laugh into the skin over her collarbone, licking a line of fire across her body.
Baba’s breath caught on a sigh. From under closed lids, she teased him by saying, “So, you don’t think you can find out who she is? Pity. I should have asked one of the Riders to find out.”
Koshei snorted, lifting his mouth from her tender skin just in time to keep the flames from singeing her. “Foolish girl. Of course I will find her. In the morning. For now, I have better things to do.” He smiled his devilish smile and caught her mouth in a deep, passionate kiss that made her want to dance naked under the moonlight on a distant shore, while drums beat and torches flared.
And then, for some inexplicable reason, Liam’s face rose up in her mind, like water thrown on a bonfire; cool and dousing, reminding her that she was supposed to be doing a job. She pulled back from the kiss abruptly, blinking as if drawn back from a dim cavern into bright daylight.
Koshei roared with laughter at the confusion on her face. “You’ve met someone,” he said, an unholy glee lighting up his already bright eyes. “Someone who has taken root in that impenetrable heart of yours. It’s about time.”
Baba shook her head, trying to settle her thoughts back into their comfortable patterns. “No. Well, maybe. He’s a Human.”
The dragon tilted her chin with one gentle hand. “You’re Human too, darling Baba, for all that you try to deny it. If you like him, have a fling. That’s what the Humans call it, right?” His lips curved in an almost-wistful smile. “Spend a little time with him. Enjoy him while you can. That’s what Babas do, when they find a man who attracts them. There is no need to make it so complicated. “
Baba sighed. “He’s not the type to have a fling, Koshei. And I’m everything he can’t stand; chaos to his lawfulness, lies instead of truth. I don’t stay in one place, and he never leaves this one. And I’m not sure his heart isn’t already given elsewhere.” She snuggled against Koshei’s reassuring warmth, enjoying the familiar feeling of his rock-hard chest beneath her cheek. “Besides, he knows I’m hiding something. He’s the sheriff investigating the children’s disappearances, and I’m pretty sure he thinks I’m involved.”
A puff of sulfur-scented breath moved her hair restlessly. “Well, that’s inconvenient, isn’t it?” She could feel his lips move in a sympathetic smile on the top of her head before he tipped her face back so she could see the affection in his deep, pale eyes.
“I do not know this man,” Koshei said, his voice a quiet rumble in her ears. “But if he cannot see your value, then he does not deserve to have you.” He pulled her into a hug and slid his lips gently across hers. “I, on the other hand, appreciate you very, very much. I shall miss our nights together.” He laughed as he released her and headed back toward the closet door.
Baba opened her mouth to protest and then closed it again with a snap. Damn that sheriff. Even when he wasn’t around, he was causing her trouble.
*
BABA LURKED IN the gnarled shadow of an old oak outside the stately blue-and-gray Victorian that housed the East Shoreham Oil and Gas Company’s regional office. She’d seen Peter Callahan leave half an hour ago, dapper and well pressed even at the end of a hot summer’s day. He’d gotten into a buttercup-yellow Jaguar and driven away, leaving behind him the lingering taint of exhaust fumes and dirty money.