Page 18 of Licking Fire

Chapter Six

Alondra steppedout into the hallway and looked around, wondering where Rayer was. When she’d awakened, it was to find her bag and boots near the bed, as well as boxes of varying sizes, all with bows and cards that held her name. She’d opened the gifts to find that Rayer had bought her a wardrobe. He’d even thought of toiletries.

And, oddly enough, he’d gotten her a necklace with one turquoise gem on a long silver chain. The gem instantly made her think of the color of his eyes.

She knew she should refuse the jewelry and all the gifts, but she found she couldn’t stand the idea of parting with the necklace. She’d cried over his kindness for a few moments and then she’d showered in his master bathroom, which was more than likely bigger than all the apartments on her floor. It was then she’d noticed her arm was nearly healed over.

Alondra had stopped questioning the bizarreness that had become her life.

When she’d found herself being attacked, she could have sworn that her body had begun to buzz with cool energy a second before most of the men were thrust far from her. Some didn’t stand back up after the blast. And the ones who did ran.

Everything was so strange in her world now, and she desperately wished her grandfather were still alive so she could talk to him about it all.

“I miss you,” she said softly, glancing in the mirror on the hallway wall to check her reflection.

She wore a pair of leggings and a long sweater. Her feet were adorned in an oversized pair of knee-length socks. The entire outfit was very much her style. It was trendy, yet warm and functional.

She heard Rayer’s voice and followed it until she found herself standing outside of what looked to be a home office. He was wearing a deep blue dress shirt and a pair of dark gray dress pants. He had a phone pressed to his ear and was pacing the room.

“Was her apartment your handiwork?” he demanded, his voice rising.

For a second, Alondra was sure the room shook. She took a deep breath and froze in place, not wanting to draw Rayer’s attention or wrath.

He growled, the sound anything but human. “I sent my people there. Everything in her place is in shreds. And don’t think for a second they didn’t find the present you left behind for her. In case you’re wondering, he will be returning to you in pieces, never to infect another with his toxins. I suggest you clear out of this city before I come for you, Valentine.”

He was talking to the mayor?

She clasped her hands together, fear rushing through her. At the same second she felt she should run, Rayer’s gaze snapped to her, his nostrils flaring. He held the phone to his ear, his preternatural eyes locked on her.

“I’ll tell you why this is my business,” he said harshly. “Because she is mine. Come near her again, and I will be your end. Make another move to discredit her name again, and I will take offense. Send men after her once more, and I will return their heads to you. I have tolerated you in my city. Come near my woman again, and my patience with you will be no more. You do not want me coming for you. I think you know as much.”

My woman?

She yelped, and the urge to flee hit her hard once more.

Unable to stop herself, Alondra turned and ran for the front door. It didn’t matter that she didn’t have her bag, shoes, or a jacket. All that mattered was putting distance between herself and Rayer.

But why?

She didn’t believe for a minute he’d hurt her. So why was she running?

As her body began to tingle in places it shouldn’t, she got a pretty good idea as to why she was running. She was about to be caught by Rayer Drackos, and she had a sneaking suspicious that would lead to his bed once more—though she doubted she’d be alone this time.

The palm of her hand connected with the door just as something strong snaked around her waist, ripping her back against the expanse of a steely chest. Heat continued to pour through her, and she couldn’t help but cry out. It wasn’t from pain, as Rayer wasn’t harming her. The cry was from something else. Something primal that wanted to accept his verbal claim on her. She wanted to be his in every way possible, and that terrified her.

It was all too much, too fast.

“Stop,” he said, his mouth pressed to her ear as he held her suspended off the floor, her back to his front. “I will not harm you.”

Her hands found his forearm. It was nothing but muscle. She stopped struggling and swallowed hard. “You were talking to the mayor about me, weren’t you?”

“Yes.”

“H-how do you know what his men did to my apartment?”

Rayer kept his mouth pressed to her ear. “I have people too, Alondra. I tasked them with finding out all they could about you. They did their job. They also dealt with a threat that was left there for you, should you have returned.”

She let her head fall forward, feeling so defeated. Her long hair covered her face, and she sighed. “He won’t stop. He got me fired from the paper, froze my bank accounts, is getting me evicted, tore my place apart and…” She tensed, not wanting to say more.

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