“But how do you know this?”
“How could I not know when you are all they talk about? Besides, your scent was all over them, they could only ever mean you.”
“You were with them?” I ask, my cheeks flushing and my heart skipping another beat in my chest as I realize what Eros must have done. Then I take another step back as he moves further into the room. I’m nearly pressed against the wall at this point, unable to place more distance between us.
“Unfortunately. Now, tell me, tiny human, how do you do it?”
Again, he cocks his head to the other side, the motion unnerving in its sharpness … but then the dim light glints off something in his ear.
A sapphire earring.
Why does he seem so familiar?
Blinking, I begin to piece together who this man may be.
Wehavemet before, but not in this form.
“Cerberus,” I breathe.
“So, you have figured it out,” he says with a rakish grin that reveals sharp canines, taking another step toward me.
“Cerberus. Cerberus, stay!” I order as the distance between us becomes uncomfortably close.
I don’t know what comes over me to think I have any authority to order him about, but it does not stop me from trying. Straightening, I point toward his feet and repeat my words, this time more firmly.
Immediately, his steps falter.
His eyes widen slightly as if he’s just as surprised by this as I am. Cerberus looks down at his feet and then back up at me, something in them sparking a fire deep within me …
And apparently, within him as well.
16
Hazel
Cerberus lets out a low growl, his eyes now fixed intently on mine. The fire that lights them is warm, glowing through him as his lips pull into a rakish grin. For a second, I am sure that I must be imagining what I’m seeing, but as he tilts his head, I realize this man has actual fire burning within the very depths of his being.
And it’s growing hotter with each passing second.
The air around us crackles with an electrifying tension, and I can feel my heartbeat quickening.
“Say that again,” he demands, his voice low and reverberating through me as he takes another step toward me.
I try to swallow past the lump that’s taken root in my throat. Goosebumps prickle my skin as I try to find some thread of courage to give him another command. But it’s almost impossible to focus on anything other than the fire burning in his eyes.
My mouth opens, but not a single word manages to find its way past my lips.
Cerberus takes another step forward, his grin growing more devilish by the moment. He’s far too close now, the heat of his body nearly unbearable in its intensity. Just as he moves to close the distance between us, I find my voice again.
“Stay,” I command, the word coming out shaky. “Stay, Cerberus.”
Cerberus lets out a low growl, but to my surprise, he stops in his tracks. He's so close now that I can smell him as waves of heat crash over me. His scent is a heady mix of musk, smoke, and something else I can't quite place.
I half expect to find displeasure in his face as our eyes meet again, but all I find is a strange sense of delight working its way over his features as he stares down at me from his great height.
A shiver works its way across his shoulders and down his spine just before his fingertips burst into fire, golden flames licking their way up his arms. His hair and eyes spark, becoming edged in flames as a soft sound of pleasure escapes Cerberus’ lips.
He leans forward, one massive hand flattening against the stone just beside my head. I hardly know what to do as I press myself flatter against the wall, pinned here by a man literally on fire as scorching heat radiates from him.
