Page 43 of Of Blood and Smoke

I nodded. It seemed impossible, but I’d heard of professional thieves gaining entry into the most secure of homes, and even museums. It seemed there was no end to what a determined person could do.

He’d never answered a question I’d asked him earlier and figured it was worth a shot to try again. “Every time you showed up, I was—or I felt, paralyzed. Like, I couldn’t move anything but my eyes. It scared me at first. That didn’t happen until you.”

I paused, thinking some more. “At least, I don’t remember it happening?” My last sentence ended with a question although I didn’t expect an answer from him.

“Sleep hypnagogia. It is common.”

“Does it happen to you?”

He let out a low laugh like it was unheard of that such an ailment would ever befall him. “No.”

The next weekpassed by surprisingly uneventfully. I’d been expecting to be uncomfortable at work, but nothing much changed. Coffees showed up on my desk, Christina remained a bitch, and Ashley and I would meet up occasionally in the downstairs employee lounge. I didn’t fill her in on whatever was going on between myself and the boss. I couldn’t, seeing as I didn’t understand it completely myself.

Occasionally, I bumped into Josiah in the hall but somehow, it’d become easier not to look him in the eye, and thankfully, I didn’t nearly die of a cardiovascular event each time I was within twenty yards of him anymore.

Micha, on the other hand, seemed to take just a little more notice of me. I felt his eyes on me more than I had in the past. It wasn’t bothersome and I didn’t worry about it due tohis obviously very close relationship with Josiah. It was just different than what I was used to.

While Josiah had declared that I was his in every way, he kept it out of the office. He remembered I’d said I wanted to get to know him, so he took me out of the office one day mid-week. His driver took us to Central Park, a place he said he liked to go.

He’d asked me what I liked to do, and when I told him I liked nature, it was the perfect place.

When he insisted we go feed the swans in the pond, it was easier to mentally move him from scary boss to almost normal boss. He’d had the nerve to be offended when I’d stated it was weird seeing him act like a person, but I was able to make him understand after some convincing.

When one goes around wearing sunglasses twenty-four-seven barking orders and physically intimidating others, well, that’s just not very welcoming. I mean, the guy had undeniably medieval and probably illegal employment conditions. He told me he had very good and very valid reasons for those terms and agreements, and I didn’t feel like arguing. The day had been too beautiful, and the colder months were coming soon. I didn’t want to ruin what had been turning into a nice time together by antagonizing him.

So, I dropped it and tried to pretend we were a regular couple. As we made our way to the water, I could feel him trying to glare at me from behind those ever-present shades when I began to softly sing.

It was just an old song about wearing sunglasses at night but then the corner of his mouth tilted. I could’ve sworn he laughed, but he’d turned away. At that moment, the organ in my chest softened a little bit. He was definitely more than a tyrannical boss and seductive criminal; he just hid it well.

“You do wear your sunglasses at night,” I pointed out, giggling.

I went to him, placed my hands on his sides and pulled him against me. He stiffened in surprise before he relaxed and wrapped a hand around the side of my neck. He hadn’t expected me to show him affection so quickly, I realized. Probably because I’d been giving him such a hard time all day. He’d been wanting to touch me, to hold me, and I hadn’t let him until now.

Josiah leaned down suddenly, crushing his mouth against mine and then tugged my body flush with his own. It felt like he’d burned a hole in my brain when his tongue invaded my mouth, and I lost all coherent thought.

He moved his grip to the back of my head, his other hand holding my hip while he plundered me. I’d never been kissed like this before, never been so devastated by another’s lips. It was mind-blowing and life changing, and Josiah was the only man who’d ever had this effect on me.

He tasted like heaven, or maybe hell, it didn’t matter. Not when I felt so safe and secure in his arms, not when I knew I was precisely where I was supposed to be this very minute, with my own personal ghost.

I probably swooned but he didn’t let me fall.

Another day, he took me to lunch at an adorable little bistro that served the best bread I’d ever tasted in my life. Apparently, they imported the ingredients from Italy and made fresh loaves multiple times a day. I sat there in a wicker chair greedily inhaling yet another slice while Josiah watched me, staring at my mouth.

“You really should try some,” I said, squirming under his focus.

He tilted his head. “I’m saving up my appetite,” he replied, his eyes shuttering. He’d taken off his glasses in an uncharacteristic move and my gaze flitted to the pair, perched on the edge of the table.

“What do you like to eat. Obviously, I enjoy bread,” I said with a laugh.

He smiled at me. “Meat.”

“What kind?”

“A few.”

“Not helpful,” I muttered. “What about sweets?”

“You would know better than most I thoroughly enjoy sweets,” he purred, his eyes trailing my movements with an intensity that almost felt physical. I pressed my thighs together as a shot of desire blossomed.

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