Page 34 of TBR: Dead But Well Read

The devilish smile that stretched across his face should’ve been the wake-up call I needed to realize the smartest plan was to abort my mission, stop playing with fire, and run. But my one good trait was that I never gave up. It was also my worst trait because it meant I was stubborn and never backed down from a challenge.

If I was being honest, I’d expected him to make an attempt at seducing me. I thought I would win by not caving into the desire that was building inside me. I just needed to practice self-control and think about chicken butts, anal glands, and garbage dumps.

Come on, how hard could it be to not jump his bones?

It turns out it was harder than finding a heartbeat in a graveyard.

The reaper stood, plopping me down in the seat he’d just vacated. He walked toward the weapon-covered wall, unbuttoning his black dress shirt as he moved. Slipping it off, he revealed a sleek body that was toned to perfection.

He tossed the shirt on a side table and reached for the scythe hanging on the wall. I was ashamed to admit I might have drooled a little as I watched his back muscles flex and ripple as he lifted it from the wall.

The reaper spoke in a language I didn’t recognize, and the lights dimmed. He gave another command and music flowed from hidden speakers in the room—the kind of music with a bass line perfect for doing things that went bump in the night.

Unable to look away, I watched in fascination as his body moved in perfect rhythm, grinding his way down the handle of his scythe as if it were a pole. When he reached the floor, he gripped the handle with one hand and put the other behind himself on the wooden floor to support himself as he continued to move his hips in time with the beat.

I squirmed on the velvet cushion as raw lust tied my insides together and made it impossible to sit still. But the show had just begun.

The music shifted, and he smoothly laid the gleaming scythe on the ground, rolling easily into a position over it. When he began to undulate and rock his hips while executing perfect pushups, my mouth went dry as my body sent a wave of slick heat rushing between my thighs.

If he kept this up, the scythe was going to end up pregnant.

And why am I feeling jealous over an inanimate object?

As if sensing my thoughts—or worse, smelling my lust—the purple-eyed reaper turned his attention to me. Rising to his feet in the type of fluid movement typically associated with felines, he made his way toward me. I jumped at the sharp crack from his belt as he removed it with a single flick of his wrist.

He continued to take his time, his movements unhurried, as though he could do this for hours. Unfortunately, I couldn’t if I wanted to win this bet. My resolve was crumbling faster than a granola bar—and not the chewy kind; the ones that would nearly shatter your teeth when you bit into them and somehow you always end up wearing more of them than you got in your mouth.

In the blink of an eye, he had my wrists wrapped in the soft leather of his belt and was sliding them up his bare chest as he slowly pulled me from the chair. Electrical pulses shot through me as my skin brushed against his, and the lights in the room hummed loudly.

The desire I’d felt for him from the moment we locked eyes in the library had turned into a hungry thing that paced inside me. I needed to admit defeat and stop this madness before I did something stupid. He was a complication my life didn’t need.

Even as the thought crossed my mind, my heart spasmed in pain. Why did it seem like I belonged with him? Belongedtohim?

The reaper lifted me so that I stood on top of his bare feet. Wrapping an arm around my waist, he danced around the room, letting me feel the play of his muscles against me with every move he made. It was sexy and ridiculously romantic… and I loved every minute of it.

When at last he guided me to another chair, I was nearly panting and trying my best to hide it. If this ended now, I still had a chance at winning…

A new song filled the room, this one feeling somehow naughtier than the others. As though he’d known and had timed it, the reaper straddled my chair. Grabbing the back of the chair, his body flowed and undulated to the erotic music. He still wore his black slacks, but there was no hiding the size of the bulge when he was this close to me. Looking up at him, I saw the same hunger I felt reflected back at me in the depths of his eyes.

This was quite possibly the worst decision I’d made in my entire life. So why did it feel so beautifully right? Why did it feel wrong to deny the feelings that continued to grow inside me?

Of all the dirty tactics I thought he might use to win the bet, this hadn’t been on my list.

He’d barely touched me… and he’d won.

I’d gotten a lap dance from Death and lost.

But after seeing the way his hips moved against his scythe, I wasn’t even mad about it. Maybe I was willing to be screwed by death again… I had a suspicion it would be a lot more fun this time.

My eyes crossed as I stared at the abs flexing with each move the reaper made.

Don’t lick them, Axe. You have no idea where they’ve been.

The scent of evergreens, burning wood, and a masculine musk overwhelmed my senses and fanned the flames of desire I was desperately trying to keep from turning into a wildfire. I needed answers.

Yeah, like what does he taste like…?

Deciding I needed a distraction before my intrusive thoughts got any creepier, I cleared my throat. “So, um, what’s your name?”

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