Page 24 of Scarlet Mark
My thighs clenched, my nipples hardening to painful points. He’d literally seduced me with a dagger. This man I hardly knew, this assassin sent to retrieve me, had me panting beneath his hands after a few mere strokes of his blade.
And as he leaned down to taste me, sliding the knife back to my throat, I gave in to him.
His tongue traced my lips, setting off a flurry of sensations in my lower belly. A low growl emanated from his chest, vibrating the air between us and causing me to writhe in want. “Fuck, you’re delicious, Amara. So damn delicious.” He deepened the kiss, my arousal heightening the flavors between us as he memorized every inch of my mouth.
It felt like a claiming.
A vow.
A binding between us of a future cemented in blood.
Which was impossible because I knew his intentions for me, and yet my fingers clutched his shoulders, holding him to me. He devoured me in response, the jagged edge at my throat unmoving.
It was the perfect dichotomy of fire and ice. With one touch, he heated me from the inside out while the knife remained cold and threatening against my skin.
I wanted to moan. To scream. To plead with him to dosomething, anything other than continue to torture me in this way.
While a small voice in the back of my head screamed at me to fight.
I was paralyzed, unable to make a choice, my heart, mind, and body completely at odds with one another. The intoxicating blend left me light-headed, sending me to a place of existence where I could no longer care, where I just needed to feel.
He pulled back, his eyes glazed with desire, his mouth curled in amusement. “I’m so damn tempted to keep you.” He brushed his lips over mine. “But I can’t. You’re the job, darling. And as I already told you, I don’t fail.”
His mouth met mine again, the pacing different, more intense, harsh, oddly fulfilling.
My tongue battled his, memorizing our mutual attraction. I’d never been with a man I actually wanted, and while I definitely should not desire this man, I did. Kissing him was not a chore but a luxury.
An excitement I’d never before experienced, one that ended too soon with him pulling away, the knife disappearing with his heat.
I blinked up at him, panting for more.
He ran his hand through his dark hair and then over his face, blowing out a breath and shaking his head as he rolled off the bed. “You need to get dressed. We’re going to be late.”
Killian
Ishouldn’t have done that.
I knew better.
Rule number one: never fall for the mark.
And fuck if I wanted to break rule number one right now. Damn, twenty minutes later and I could still taste her on my tongue.
This savage need to take her was dangerous and overwhelming my ability to think clearly. Part of me wanted to keep her. An insane idea. It would end up being temporary with me eventually returning her to Senator Jenkins, or maybe letting her go, but it completely broke protocol.
I did not break the rules of engagement for anyone. I always delivered my marks, dead or alive, and I never faltered.
So why her? What was different about Amara?
She sat absolutely still beside me in the car, wearing her jeans and boots and a new tank top from her bag—all items I’d hidden from her in the room.
No butter knife. I threw that cheap weapon knockoff in the trash.
Not that she would know how to use it anyway. The way she’d held my blade—a real one that could actually do harm—showcased her rookie skills. Yet, she hadn’t blinked an eye when I asked if she’d killed before. She never explained why she hesitated with me, but something told me it was more than her not knowing how to properly wield a blade. I’d seen the regret in her eyes, battling the strength and will to survive.
Her terror of being returned to Senator Jenkins went far deeper than a con woman fearing punishment for her crimes. Something here wasn’t adding up. She mentioned auctions, suggesting she’d been sold in one. It could all be a clever ruse, but I read people for a living. And Amara didn’t exude any hints of a lie in her words. Her actions also indicated the potential truth of her claim.
I mingled with politicians, billionaires, business tycoons, and celebrities, but I refrained from involving myself in the darker aspects of high society.
