Page 10 of Frost
“It’s the one true answer,” Jack answers, following me. “My very existence is magical, wouldn’t you agree?”
“I guess so.” I sit on the couch and sip my coffee, then set it on the side table. “You could be a hallucination and I’m actually sitting here talking to myself.”
“Don’t all writers talk to themselves?”
I snort. “You’re not wrong there.”
Jack sits beside me, bringing up one leg to rest on the cushion. His bare feet look soft and have a deep arch, perfect for jumping and moving swiftly. His nails are perfect too. Just like the rest of him apparently. He brings forward the book I showed him earlier. I didn’t notice him snatch it from the desk.
“The fire beast, huh?” Jack opens the book and runs his hand down the title page. “Who’s L.M. Summers?”
“That’s me. It’s my author name.”
“Lfor Luka.” Jack looks over at me. “What’s theMfor?”
“Michael. It’s my middle name.”
“Luka Michael Summers.” His voice is light as he says my name, and it does something crazy to my heart. It doesn’t beat heavily like it’s done all day. No, it flutters now, like a hummingbird’s wings. “Your name sounds so warm. Like you’re the sun and I’m the icy north wind.”
The moment is interrupted by the ringing of my phone.
“Sorry. Give me a sec.” I go over to the desk and grab it, groaning when I see Colton’s name on the screen. “Hello?”
“Where are you?” Colton asks in a snippy tone. “I left a few things at your house and came to get them, but all the lights are off. I already returned the spare key, so I can’t get in.”
“I’m out of town.” I lean against the desk and look at Jack, who’s absorbed in reading the book. “I won’t be home for another week or so.”
“Out of town? Where the hell did you go?”
“That’s no longer any concern of yours,” I respond, irritated. Jack snaps his head up to me, brow furrowed. “You dumped me, remember? I don’t have to tell you shit.”
“Whatever,” Colton says. “Just tell me when you’re back so I can get my shit.”
He disconnects the call before I can say another word. I sigh and place my phone back on the desk.
“Who was that?” Jack asks, the book open in his lap. “You sounded angry.”
“My ex.” I walk back over and sit beside him.
“Ex?”
“Yeah, my ex-boyfriend.”
“Boyfriend,” Jack says, and another smile touches his lips. “You enjoy the company of men?”
“I do.” I return his smile, though nerves hide behind it. “Does that… bother you?”
“Bother me?” Jack laughs. “I come from a time when men loving men and women loving women was the norm. Bisexuality was common in Ancient Greece, especially among the gods.”
“Um.” The tops of my ears tingle. “So. Is it common foryou?”
That sly grin surfaces again. “Why do you ask, little light?” Jack leans closer to me, bringing with him the smell of winter. “Do you wish to know my taste? My touch?”
My eyes widen at his frankness. “I… I didn’t mean… well, I…” Fuck. I’m a stammering fool. Jack has a way of turning my brain to mush. “What I mean to say is, I don’tnotwish for it.”
Huh?Did that even make sense?
“I’ve been with many women over the years,” he answers. “But men are my preference.” He lifts a hand and lightly touches my jaw. “There’s something undeniably alluring about a beautiful male in the throes of passion. I crave the feel of hard muscle beneath me. The sound of raspy groans.”
