Page 14 of Dawn to Dusk
Every time he touched me, a shock sparked throughout my body, but his hand felt like a cold compress against a fever, soothing. One might think he would be frozen, since ice magic ran in his veins, but he felt nice against my sun-warmed skin.
“Does my skin burn you?” I wondered out loud.
“No. You just feel really warm.” The foreign gentleness in his voice made my eyes slide up to meet his. Was this the real Edur? A sweet man under a rough bristly exterior.
Gravity sucked us closer together. I glanced at my bare feet, to break the hypnotizing trance he put me in. “I destroyed my shoes.”
It was of no consequence, but it was the first thing I thought of. The world flew around me, and before I could blink, Edur gathered me in his arms, holding me like a dainty princess.I hooked my arm over his neck and grabbed his shoulder as tightly as possible as he ran.
“You are so tiny, like a doll.” He teased me. I guess to him I was small, but I was taller with more breasts and buttocks than most sol witches. I blamed my strength training, but my body always looked like this. Something I learned a long time ago was that perspective was everything. Depending on perspective, you could be a hero and a villain at the same time. So, I guess that meant I could be ‘little’.
“Why are you carrying me?”
“I don’t want you to hurt your feet.”
“My feet are fine.”
“I owe you some gentlemanly behavior.”
“That is stupid.” The words left my mouth without permission before I even thought it in my head. My free hand flew over my mouth, and my eyes felt impossibly wide. I couldn’t believe I said that to a commanding officer.
Edur threw his head back with a deep and hearty laugh. At least I didn’t offend him.
“So, this is the real Sunshine?” His smile grew so wide and beautiful, making my insides jump around. “I like her a lot more than the empty shell you pretend to be.”
How did he do that? I was trained for years. There was no way he got me to let my guard down that fast. “It was an accident.”
“Do it again.” His voice grew thick with suggestive gruff that made my insides clench, reminding me I hadn’t taken a lover in three months. For my kind, that was forever.
“You’re a very strange man.” I forced my voice to stay even, but between the shock and the sudden desire to take a ride on a yeti, I didn’t do a great job.
“Show me who you are. I’m done assuming.” He sat me on the smooth stone at the side entrance to the compound. I knewhe was fast, but his speed was smooth as he carried me. I hadn't realized how far we went.
He casually leaned forward and inhaled. A growl rumbled his chest, and his eyes met mine, silently telling me he scented my desire. He turned, shifting into his yeti form and ran off into the woods to join the hunting party.
Sheesh, Esmerey. A man shows you a little kindness, and you immediately want to seduce him. No wonder the humans call us witches whores.
Chapter 4:
Edur
Pylo seeped himself deep into the soil and escaped out of the valley. Balthazar used the same trick, but Pylo’s three second head start saved his life.
Balthazar growled as he popped out of the ground like an angry daisy. Already shifted back into human form as his body came out of the earth.
“A hunter does not live long without skills.” I admitted with a growl. Pylo was a slimy prick and always managed to slip away before we could get our hands on him.
“Speaking of hunters.” Balthazar smirked, and I could already sense where this would go. I glared at him, not that it slowed him down any. “Did I see you eating lunch with that ‘murderous bitch’?” He regurgitated my words from a couple days before, and it made me sick to my stomach.
“I hate you sometimes.”
He laughed, unaffected. My best friend, my alpha, and the biggest thorn in my ass. “I warned you, and now you have to make it right, you big softy.” He told me my fast judgments would bite me eventually. The old man was always right.
“How did you know?”
“When you have lived as long as I have, you can smell malicious intent. She is a talented liar, but she never had the hate. I knew it was a matter of time before she would join us.” He smirked knowingly. “I just needed to wait like a patient fisherman to scoop her up.”
“Anyways.” I rolled my eyes at the cocky son of a bitch. “I gotta make up for being a prick.”
