Page 29 of Cinder's Trial

“Give me the case.” Levi snared my suitcase, leaving me free to scoop my lizard. We then marched down the stairs to his SUV just as flashing lights arrived, spilling the bureau’s forensics team. While crimes involving humans still required police to do their own investigation, cases involving otherworldly creatures, such as the spider, went through a different processing, a magical version conducted by witches. Surprised we employed sorceresses? You shouldn’t be since not all magic wielders turned out bad.

I headed for my car, only to have Levi snap, “Where do you think you’re going?”

“To the hotel. Duh.” It slipped out.

“My car is that way.” He pointed to the large SUV.

“I want to have mine handy.”

“I can’t protect you if we’re in separate vehicles.”

I took a mulish stance. “I am not being left without transportation again.”

He glared at me as if he could bully me into compliance. He’d obviously not met the people in my life who thought they could walk all over me.

Rather than pointlessly argue, I simply got in my car and started it. The mice scampered off to their spots. Orville liked riding on the front dash. Rosy got carsick and usually huddled on the mat in the backseat. The rest liked to cuddle in the cup holder. As for Izzy, he usually took the passenger seat, but this time, he scooted into the back.

I craned and frowned. “Everything all right?”

Tongue flick. Fine.

Creak.

The car sank as Levi sat in the passenger seat.

I blinked. “Um, what are you doing?”

“Riding with you.”

“But what about your car?”

“Gerome can get it in the morning.”

“You can’t seriously think I’m going to be attacked again tonight.”

“You’ve already had two incidents today.”

“We don’t know the pie was intended for me. After all, it was baked for a king.”

“I swear, if you don’t shut up…”

“You’ll what?” I sassed.

To my shock, he suddenly gripped me by the head and dragged me close for a kiss!

9

The kiss lasted only seconds.

Long enough to steal my voice.

Long enough to scramble my thoughts.

Long enough to cream my clean undies.

Short enough that I almost wondered if I imagined it but for the tingling of my lips and the smug look on his face.

Rather than ask why he did it, I drove. Drove and wondered how to ask why he’d kissed me. The most basic answer could be that he found me attractive. No doubt he’d been aroused when I’d fallen atop him in the elevator. Then again, most men would have been hard-pressed to not respond, given how intimately I’d straddled him. However, the way he spoke to me, and acted, didn’t jibe with how a man usually behaved around a woman he liked.

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