Page 40 of Vas

A line appeared between his eyes and she could guess what he was thinking. Red’s was definitely a huge step down. “Why’d you quit?”

“I didn’t. I was fired.”

His frown deepened to the point he looked angry. “What the hell for?”

Yep, definitely angry. A lightness filled her chest. It was a nice feeling having someone on her side for a change. “It’s a long story.”

“I’ve got nowhere pressing to be.”

She smiled because at twelve-thirty at night that was more than likely true—other than wanting to be in bed sleeping, of course.

They’d meandered to her car by that time and she was distracted from the conversation when she noticed an SUV that looked suspiciously like Vas’s parked next to her. “You brought your car?”

He seemed a bit thrown by the change of topic, absentmindedly glancing at his car before distractedly saying, “Yeah.”

“Why didn’t you walk over?”

“I needed my car to follow you home.”

Wait, she was confused. “Why do you need to follow me home?”

“I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but you don’t live in the best neighborhood.”

Rolling her eyes at his sarcasm, she stated the obvious, “You’ve never followed me home before.”

“That you know of.”

Her eyes widened at his admission.

He took the step that separated them and placed his hands on her hips, pulling her into him. She tipped her head back to keep focus on his face. His eyes searched her features, coming to land on her mouth. Instinctively, she licked her lips.

“You kill me a little each time you do that.”

“Do what?” she whispered breathlessly, but she knew and did it again just to see how far she could push him.

He growled. A deep rumble she felt clear to her bones right before his mouth landed on hers. His tongue swept across her lips, tasting where she’d just tasted, his breath leaving him on a groan.

She felt his pain. Every single one of her nerves felt like they were on fire.

Her hands reached for his arms, hanging on as he deepened the kiss. She felt his fingers tangle into the back of her hair, directing her head just how he wanted it, giving him free access. Which he took and took and took.

After what felt like long minutes but not nearly long enough, he ended the kiss. “Does that answer your question?”

Sluggishly she raised her lids to find him still practically nose to nose with her, his eyes blazing. “What question?” She honestly didn’t recall what the heck they’d been talking about.

“Why I follow you home.” His words whispered across her lips.

“Oh. Yes. At least, I think so.”

His lips quirked. “Glad we’re on the same page.”

She swallowed and tried to shake her head but he still held it firm. “At this moment I’m not even sure if we’re in the same book. I feel like Anita being consumed by the ardeur.”

His smile grew into a chuckle. “Who being consumed by what?”

“Never mind,” she mumbled, mentally slapping herself on the forehead. God, she sounded like an idiot.

Releasing the back of her hair, he stood her upright but didn’t back away, instead, his finger brushed across her lips. “They’re even sweeter than I imagined they’d be.”

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