Page 11 of Buried Souls
They hold each other’s stare before turning towards me, their features grave, most likely contemplating on what they shoulddo, but then a form shrouded in darkness appears behind them.
The two brothers part—and a man of impossible proportions steps forth into the dim light.
I whimper, every one of my nerve endings snapping to full attention, when the gaze of an apex predator focuses on me, and I shrink even further back under its feral intensity. So far back, that I feel as if I’m about to imprint myself into the piece of furniture.
The man’s eyes go wide and unblinking as he drinks me in. The fire casts gold along the angles of his face, illuminating the sharp cut of his jaw, the glint in his eyes that seem less human now. More like candlelight flickering in a crypt. A primal, menacing aura seems to leak from his entire being, yet I stare back at him with equal determination and force as all self-preservation and fear abandon me.
I feel it then, as we hold each other’s gaze: that fine, electric thread forms between us. Tension thick as velvet, unspoken, but alive. Like being in the presence of a storm that hasn’t broken yet. It stirs something within me I don’t recognize.
Not quite fear.
Not quite desire.
Both.
As if the devil himself is nudging me on, whispering in my ear to do something foolish, I tilt my head, a need to be close to this clearly dangerous man overtaking me, and I stand, my heart pounding as the duvet falls from my hands and lands on the floor at my feet.
Temptation and sin weave a web of seduction around me as I ever so carefully saunter over to him. His dark gaze brushes over my flesh, causing shivers to erupt all over me, whether from fear or arousal, I’ve yet to discover, but my core seems to have a mind of its own. I’m burning up. Feverish. Utterly mad withinexplicable desire. And it’s making me question my current mental state.
This is a stranger.
A man that is clearly more than capable of, and has lived through, a great amount of violence. So why do I feel as if no harm will come to me? Where is my foolish confidence stemming from?
Doubt and fear burrow a hole in my chest when I finally come to a stand in front of him.
Eyes the deepest shade of brown that I have ever seen examine me through a curtain of thick ebony lashes. A proud, slightly crooked nose with a scar across the bridge connects to large, plump lips the color of ripe raspberries, while a strong, square jaw lies hidden underneath a short beard and mustache. Hair the color of burnt mocha frames a masculine face in waves that reach well defined, broad shoulders.
Like some dumb airhead, I shamelessly stare at this spectacular piece of fine art. So impossibly perfect even with all of his flaws, that I’m instantly reminded of some vengeful forest god come to life.
Caught in a daze, I’m unable to shift my focus and regain my missing senses that in any other circumstances, would already have me rolling my eyes at my clear ogling. The only thing missing is drool dripping down my chin.
As if on cue, saliva pools in my mouth, and mortified, I swallow it down, cursing myself for the way my body is reacting.
As if reading my mind, the hint of a smirk plays at the corners of his lips but before it can make an appearance, he dips, his nose coming within a hairsbreadth of my neck. He inhales, long and deep.
I shiver, goosebumps erupting all over my skin in endless waves at his closeness, before notes of cedar and pine assault me.
Without warning, strong arms hoist me up and over a muscular frame, the man’s powerful strides taking us from the gloomy kitchen to a wide staircase at the end of a secluded corridor.
Wait.
This wasn’t here before, was it?
How did I not notice it?
My voice is trapped in my throat as alarm bells go off in the back of my mind, screaming at me that something isn’t right. That I need to do something,anything, and get myself out of this unpredictable situation that will surely escalate with the way it seems to be evolving.
I try to move, but my body is locked in position under strong arms that pin me down.
“Niko,” Rein warns, running after us as we reach the bottom of the stairs. “You’re being reckless. Niko! Think about this for one moment! You can’t just take her upstairs. You know what will happen if she finds out—” My captor ignores him, already climbing the many steps to the top landing. “Nikolas!”
I helplessly hang down his back like a lifeless rag doll, completely at his mercy. Without a word, he flies up the remaining steps at impossible speed, as if he didn’t have another human on him.
CHAPTER 6
“A Deal With the Devil”
We enter a dark room, the shadows swirling around us as Niko drops me onto a massive bed, bigger than I have ever seen in my entire life of thirty two years.
