“Dancing.” His tone was light and peppered with amusement — as if every fae in this room wasn’t regarding him as if he were some sort of pariah.
My skin heated where he touched me, and my heart gave an erratic jolt as he began to move around the polished dance floor — maneuvering my hips this way and that as easily as if I were an extension of his own body.
“I don’t . . .dance,” I rasped, leveling him with a glare that I struggled to hold as I focused on my feet — and not treading on his.
“Ah, but you are a splendid fighter. And what is a dance but two bodies fighting to be joined?”
A scorching flush whipped up my cheeks, but I only glowered at Kaden.
A rough, dark chuckle rumbled up his chest, and his strong fingers dug into my side as he drew me closer. My breathing hitched as my hips brushed his, and, just like that, the music shifted from a frantic gallop to a slow, sensuous waltz.
Hands sweating, I gripped Kaden’s shoulder to slow my momentum and forced myself to meet his gaze. His gray eyes swirled like the ocean before a storm, darkening in a way that sent my pulse racing.
Then I trod on his foot.
Kaden didn’t so much as wince. He just slid his hand along the small of my back and splayed his fingers against my bare skin. “You dance as lethally as you fight,” he murmured.
I opened my mouth to retort, but the sudden change in position had brought our bodies even closer together. I could feel the hard planes of his chest where he was pressed against me, and that crisp scent of leather and night had become impossible to ignore. I shivered as his thumb began to move in slow, languid circles along my back, raising goosebumps everywhere he touched.
Gradually, something settled between us, dulling the sharp edges of my soul. My shoulders dropped their defensive posture as my body molded against his.
Lacing my fingers behind his neck, I took the opportunity to study Kaden up close — something I’d never allowed myself to do for more than a few seconds.
Like all the fae here, his face was that of a young man.His golden skin was flawless — not a wrinkle or scar on him. But there was an ancientness behind those swirling gray eyes that made me want to know him.
Slowly, Kaden’s hands drifted lower until the tips of his fingers curled into my hips. My breaths became embarrassingly shallow, and I could have sworn he’d stopped breathing altogether.
I had the sudden inexplicable urge to reach up and caress that perfect chiseled face — to run my fingers through that silky black hair and along the sensuous curve of his mouth. But I forced my hands to remain clasped at his neck as my treacherous body warmed.
Kaden’s lips quirked as if he could read my thoughts, but then his back went stiff. I tore my gaze away from his perfect face, but before I could see what had captured his attention, Kaden’s warm, rough hand came up to cup the side of my jaw.
Instantly, my eyes snapped back to him. He was so beautiful, and my skin prickled everywhere he touched me.
Then his eyes fluttered closed. I only had a split second to register what was happening before he leaned in and brushed his lips against mine.
Every nerve in my body came alive at the unexpected contact. His kiss was soft and tentative at first, but I burned for him in a way I’d never experienced before.
In that moment, it didn’t matter that we were in a stranger’s house surrounded by deadly fae. Everything around me faded away, leaving only Kaden’s burnt cedar scent, the feel of his strong body, and the intoxicating warmth of his lips as they gently parted mine.
My fingers dug into his jacket, and a soft moan slipped from my throat. Every reason why I shouldn’t trust Kadenflew out of my head as I gave in to the sensation of his mouth moving against mine.
As he deepened the kiss, my whole body responded. My one hand tightened on his jacket as the other reached up to cup the back of his neck. My fingers tangled in his soft, silky hair, and my insides swooped as he nipped my bottom lip.
“I’m surprised at you, Kaden.”
The strange voice hit me like a bucket of ice water. I ripped away from Kaden with a smack of lips and wheeled around to face the intruder.
A stooped male stood on my other side, regarding us with a pair of cunning yellow eyes. Greasy black hair swung into his eyes, making his alabaster skin seem even paler than it was.
Heat flooded my cheeks as the realization hit me and I remembered why we were here. Kaden had been aware of this male’s presence. That was why he’d gone so stiff the moment just before he kissed me.
That had all been for show. Of course it had. Creating a diversion had been part of the plan; I just hadn’t known what it would entail.
A sudden charge of dark power seemed to churn around us, and I shuddered as it hummed over my skin.
Kaden looked completely different from the male who’d just been kissing me. His stormy eyes were colder than I’d ever seen them, and his lips were twisted in a murderous expression. I knew the buzz of magic was coming from him, but that didn’t make it any less off-putting.
“Cavorting with a huntress,” the stranger drawled, and the way he said “huntress” made my insides boil. His eyes roved over me without the slightest bit of decency, taking inthe broad expanse of bare flesh along my shoulders and dipping between my breasts.
