Forbidden Desire

arousal that still suffused the air. Such an intoxicating combination, wrapping around Atticus senses and challeng

breath-which only intensified the effect of

e remained painfully unfulfilled, his hard cock straining against the fly of his jeans being evidence of that. It had taken an amount of self

d disappeared behind the kitchen door. He had to get a grip on himself. No matter how luscious and tempting she was, no matter how much he wan

rea

as thin, and he could only push her so far toward his ultimate goal before she'd throw him back i

d him to do, he stood and waited, arms crossed and leaning against the

ga walked back in, her face a

he thought, pu

aring her throat, "ho

ith the impressively confident way you stormed out of h

hwatering looks notwithstanding, it was during outbursts of anger or lust-as he'd just witnessed on the stairs-that she became a truly powerful, sensual female who stirred his own passion. Even though it

, looking daggers at h

ncentration if you flaunt those goodies in front of me like that." And with a wave of his hand, he indicated the wet spots on her chest where he'd lavis

e then peered up at him again, her face flushed beet red, much to Atticus enjoyment. She looked yummy when sh

to get there. Her face took on a panicky expression, which only intensified as he gave her a salacious smile and wiggled his brows. S

ascent up the secondary staircase, chu

wide sweatshirt that did a good job of hiding her scrumptious curves.

l business and tense concern. "

"I need a starting point, somewhere he

rew together.

use our powers, similar to a scent trail. But since it fades ove

Do you foll

is eyes at her.

" she muttered. "

he drawled, his brows raised, "you

th some restrained reaction. "Sorry," she ground out. "Di

etter than not ru

us tick of her eye de

ous energy trace behind, only parts of it when we tap our innate magic. But all bluotezzer demons share some form of connection on a psychic level, a

ed, grim a

his chest again, he asked, "So

so much pain, her voice quiet. "Marissa

ething tense inside him, an unpleasant, inexplicable sensation. Sha

his, startling in the

ade him understand. "A vision." He regarded her with newly

." Her gaze found his again, and there was steel in it, forged in pain. "But every one of the visions I have had was corr

ion, the answer came to him. The flicker in her aura gave it away. "You saw him drink from Marissa. I

he showed, the rest of her face a stark mask of motionlessness,

yes. It made him want to stoke that fire inside her again. Not that he cared about how she felt-after all, she was a

It was still dark, probably an hour before sunrise, and the air was crisp, the night at its coldest. Atticus took a deep breath, inhal

nd him was just about to be newly born, fresh, untainted, imbued with innocence so profound nothing could touch it. It always seemed li

river's seat. In some way, he should probably feel grateful toward her. If she hadn't unboun

enefit, and all foolish feelings of gratitude would be misplaced and wasted. After all, she was not only the one who'd

an lust-certainly not gratitude. He was past caring for anyone or anything else. I

d the interior, inhaling the enticing aroma of her that had condensed in the small space, and his eyes locke

t, "they surely have taken the whole notion of m

to the left. "Say what?" Her voice

something to her. "Don't tell me this actually gets y

ame excuse for a sex toy from him and stuffed it back into th

know. For when you get h

don

her flustered exclamation, "now t

TTIC

it rosy this time. Interesting. He filed that information under

l her knuckles flashed white. "Before you get an

and for? Marga's Pr

eath and steadying her hands on the steering wheel again, she said

no vibra

"N

igger and let it vibrate in sync with the rhythm of the mus

sideways glance,

there who could climax to the tunes the

ttic

ngry and embarrassed. Which was still better than the consuming grief she'd been drenched in before, as far as he was concerned. He knew some other ways to make her flu

repit neighborhood in East Portland. They'd crossed the whole city to get here-this place was pro

, knew there were more than enough rooms in it to accommodate the two sisters. It wasn't uncommon for witch families to have several generations living under one roof-th

e graffiti-adorned entrance.

h me anymore." Suppressed emot

ow c

she threw a cold glance at him over he

would drive two witch sisters apart." Mindful not to touch the grimy handrail of the stairs or the wall covered with

nversation. With measured, quiet steps she took the stairs, her movements laced wit

Chrysler." Born of a long line of witches, eac

st not to my knowledge. If she did, my grandmother

Still, a descendant of a witch line-by nature all of them were female-who did not inherit the family's

of defense against h

e only reaction he saw was an almost imperceptible stiffening of her spine. "No." Her voice had t

her wor

locked the door to the apartment on the right. Hesitating for a moment

o wa

t anymore. I put some in place when Marga insisted on staying here, but..." She rubbed he

led because you didn't make them strong enough." It was a statement, not a question, a

locked on his. Unperturbed, with a quiet calm belying his inner agitation, he raised his hand to ca

e glued to the movement of his fingers. "

, inviting. It had quickened as he'd stepped closer, just as her breathing had sped up, and he couldn't help brushing a

d on the graceful curve of her throat that he wanted to trace

ntion to her mouth and those lush lips of hers. "You d

m her tempting mouth and instea

kered in the blu

inger stroking over her pulse in the rhyth

he told her that, t

. "I've known Melinda since long before you were born, and though she was always a powerful witch, her strength grew over ti

assess the strength of her magical abilities. Well, he could do much more if she ever did open up to him like that. The mere thought of connecting that intimate

d he wasn't sure whether she was aware that she slight

p. "Take a guess, l

tty head of hers, as she apparently put together what

widened. "Cl

g a thousand fold in the space separating their bodies. Jerking with sudden awareness

throat, "attacked her in here." And wi

ull her closer again, to feel the vibrancy of her power meshing with his own, her body pressed to his. Once he was

cattered about. An ornate candle here, a delicate figurine there. He picked up one of the numerous colorful picture frames de

membered the fleeting glimpses he'd caught of the designated heir of the Chrysler line, a young witch raised to lead and inherit the ful

a. Silently, slowly, as if afraid to break h

setting the picture frame ba

her voice so soft he barely h

at happened

up the

er you tell me

till not looking a

that mu

t. "It was an accident. A spe

acknowledged. A suspicion crept up on him, and as he looked back at the picture frames, the snapshots of the people that had been l

ture showing Mariana Chrysle

t Marga. "It kille

d of the fragile vulnerability he'd expected to see, there was strength in her eyes, quiet and

nd for the first time, he

There was Marga's power, curling in the air in the finest tendrils, some old, some new, all of them as alluring as her scent. Amidst it all was a much more deli

f a power akin to Atticus-dark, menacing, and consuming in its hunger. He homed in on the particula

to all of his kind, the subtle connection he shared with the collective energy he'd been forged from. He probed, felt, tested the dif

k at the softly changing light outside told him it had been far less. He turn

ething

mpossibly further.

It's like...his sign

Are you sure?" Then, something f

r the right comparison, he paused for a moment. "It's like the lingering body heat that only slowly fades after the onset of death." His gaze flicked to the window. The sky was now a shade of gray, streaked with the finest hues of rose. "There might be another reason I ca

st heaved with a breath that seemed laden with an invisible weight. "We'll have to

e inside, and it had nothing to do with his fading pow

"That doesn't mean he can't hurt he