He kissed her long and hard until neither one of them could breathe, and then, only then, did he lift his head.
A flush covered her face, and desire danced across her skin, the intensity of it palpable. Slowly, her chest moving as she panted, her legs released him, and she slid down his body. “You’re something, Daire Dunn,” she murmured, her hands going to her jacket.
He breathed in her scent, feeling it seep under his skin. “Take off your clothes.” They might as well get the parameters of the night straight now.
She smiled, a siren’s dare, and reached for her lapels. “I do like how you kiss.”
“Do as I say, and you’ll get kissed again.”
She gave a half nod. Regret twisted her lip.
He stiffened instinctively.
The tiniest flash of silver. She dodged forward, much faster than he would’ve thought, and stuck a needle in his arm, plunging instantly.
He roared and flew back, striking out. His knuckles impacted her chin, and she crashed toward the wall. Sizzling sparks shot through his veins. Gray covered his vision, and as hard as he tried to remain standing, gravity won. The last, bizarre thought he had before his face hit the cold marble floor was a hope that he hadn’t hurt her.
The world fuzzed. He lay on the ground, fighting to move, urging his brain to kick back alive. Sounds morphed in and out as he lay not feeling anything. Sounds, muffled and unclear, echoed back from other rooms.
Finally, spiked heels crossed his vision.
Cee Cee leaned down and brushed his forehead with soft lips. “I’m sorry.”
The touch awoke something in him, and his hand unfisted. He growled low, and she jumped back.
“You’ll be okay by tomorrow,” she whispered, turning on one of those deadly heels and leaving the apartment.
“This . . . isn’t . . . over,” he ground out. Then blackness covered his vision, and he passed out.
Chapter 2
The Seattle wind fought against Cee Cee as she rode along the nearly empty streets, passing silent storefront windows, each a reproachful mirror. Her reflection glimmered back at her, block by block, showing an unthinkable image of a wild and free woman. Something she’d never been.
Stealing the enforcer’s bike was probably a bad idea, but the Harley was a lot faster than the rental car she’d had stashed around the corner. Though she hadn’t lied to Daire about her lack of experience riding motorcycles, she might have left a few things out, such as her ability to figure out quickly how to drive the massive beast.
Daire Dunne. Sure, through the years, she’d heard stories about the deadly witch enforcer. But nobody had warned her about his kiss. Dark and dangerous, and for the smallest of moments, she’d forgotten her purpose.
A man like Daire could make her forget everything.
The green of his eyes hinted at the roaming hills of Ireland, a place she’d never visited. Roped muscles had made up his wide shoulders and masculine torso and had tempted her to play. With his jet black hair and fiercely cut features, a wildness had careened off him, one he apparently tamed daily by keeping a strictly organized environment. What would it take to make him lose such rigid control?
Everything in her, all feminine and real, had wanted to jump into his fire.
Yet she’d drugged him instead. She shivered. There’d be hell to pay, and hopefully she’d be the only one to pay it. But repercussions were for another day.