Page 10 of Lady Death

He was too close. She pushed against his chest, trying to make him back away, but it was like trying to move a boulder. “Let me go.”

His gaze narrowed, and if possible, moved even closer. Hip to hip. Chest to chest. Touching, feeling, sinking. Thesimmering panic that constantly stayed under the surface rose, and though she tried to push it back down, it was too late. All the anxiety and terror she tried hard to overcome burst forth, but instead of going fucking psycho, she went catatonic.

“Keres?”

Her name echoed through a long tunnel that was slowly collapsing in on itself. The edges of her vision dimmed and her breath grew shallow. The world simply … vanished.

“Keres, look at me.” Fingers tilted her chin up until she stared into his light green eyes. “Can you speak to me?”

Speak to him? She couldn’t even take a breath. He cupped her face, leaned close, and then … he started to hum. The sound completely shocked her, not only because his warm breath tickled her ear and fanned across her cheek, but because the musical cadence in his voice hypnotized the dread pulsing through her soul. Slowly, the numbness melted, and her vision came back into sharp focus.

“That’s it,” he murmured, smiling at her. “Welcome back.”

Keres drew a shuddering breath, letting it out slowly. The stiffness in her muscles unclenched. “Y-you sang to me.”

“Not quite,” he murmured. “Long ago I discovered music helps settle my mind when it goes into the darkness.”

It seemed odd to think this gorgeous man had a condition so mundane like panic attacks. “Y-you have anxiety?”

He grinned. “You thought all us hitmen sat around polishing our knives and eating nails?”

“I didn’t realize there was a club.”

He chuckled. “That’s funny in more ways than you know. My name is Ronin.”

She turned that over in her mind. “A samurai without a master. That explains the tattoo. The name fits you.”

“Because I’m wicked deadly?”

“Are you flirting with me?”

“Yes.”

She wanted so badly to flirt back. To giggle and pretend she was an ordinary woman, but she wasn’t and would never be again. The monsters had ripped out her innocence and blackened her soul.

“You should leave,” she mumbled, then cleared her throat. “You need to forget about me.”

“I tried,” he admitted. “But then I said fuck it, and here I am.”

There he was all right. Every hard plane, every bulging muscle, including the one between his thighs, currently nestled against her abdomen. A fluttery sensation erupted low in her belly and warmth bathed her cheeks. With disbelief, she realized her body was responding to his. That she found him attractive, and that scared her more than anything.

“Please back up,” she whispered.

He studied her for a moment longer, then slowly retreated. Giving her enough space to tamper down all the emotions his nearness had caused. She could breathe freely once more.

“Thank you.”

He inclined his head. “One thing I would never do is force myself on someone.”

She recoiled as if hit. He frowned at her response.

“What did I say?”

“Nothing,” she replied. “I have to go. Actually, youhave to go.”

“Wait,” he said and studied her face intently. “Someone hurt you.”

“I’m not discussing my personal life with you,” she said crisply. “Goodbye, Ronin. I fully never expect to see you again.”

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