Playing With Fire (13 page)

“Read your mind. Rome can’t do it.”

How had she known—My mouth opened and closed, and I’m sure I looked like a rabid fish. “Can
you?
”

“Yes,” she answered evenly, as if it were a perfectly normal thing to do.

That wasn’t possible, I thought, eyes slitting. I stared over at her.
What am I thinking now, you rotten—

“What am I thinking now, you rotten…what?” She fisted her hands on her hips and pursed her lips. “Please finish that riveting thought.”

“Get out of my head,” I gasped, horror consuming me. “Right now!” If the woman could read minds, she probably
could
predict the future, too. Great. She’d said I’d be nothing but trouble, and Rome had heard her say it. I didn’t want him to think of me as trouble; I wanted him to think of me as sexy. And I’d rather be strangled with my own intestines than allow Lexis access to those most private thoughts.

“One,” she said. “That’s disgusting.” In a perfect imitation of the exasperated look Rome sometimes gave me, she arched her brows. “Two, if you want me out of your head, you’ll have to erect some walls.”

“How?” My muscles bunched, gearing for a fight. This supernatural world I’d entered really sucked the big one. Hard core. Who else had read my mind?

Lexis glanced to Rome. “You want to explain it?”

His attention, I noticed, had never veered from me. “Have you ever hung a Keep Out sign on something, Belle?”

“Yes.”
Keep your mind blank. Keep your mind blank. Show Madam Bitch a blank screen.

“It was a blank screen, anyway,” she muttered.

My nails dugs into my palms, and I took a menacing step toward her.

“Hang a sign in your mind,” Rome said, closing the distance between us and gripping my shoulder to keep me in place. “Visualize it.”

At this point, I’d try anything. I closed my eyes and began to construct an elaborate block of wood, painting “Keep Out, Bitch,” in bold red letters. Then, of their own accord, the words began to smear, dripping up and down, branching left and right, weaving together to form a tightly crafted shield.

I gasped. It had worked. It had actually worked. I blinked open my eyes and watched Lexis shrug as if she didn’t care.

“All done?” Rome asked. The hand on my shoulder caressed a fiery trail down my arm. His fingertips brushed my sensitive palm.

I nodded in satisfaction, trying to ignore the intense surge of pleasure such a simple touch elicited.

“There,” Lexis said. “She’s protected. Shall we adjourn, Rome?”

“I’ll be there in a second.”

With a frustrated
grr,
Lexis sailed down the hall. Rome cupped my chin and captured my attention. His decadent smell enveloped me, as heady as his touch.

“A little warning next time would be nice,” I grumbled, drawing on anger rather than wallowing in desire. “If you had told me she was psychic, I could have worked on that wall sooner.”

To my utter delight, he dragged his thumb over the seam of my lips. A delicious shiver racked me. “What was that all about?” he asked softly. “You’re usually snippy, but I’ve never heard such animosity from you. And don’t tell me it was the mind-reading thing, because you were upset before that.”

I’m usually snippy? Oh, that grated. “I’m happy, damn it, a joy to be with. I bring sunshine to everyone around me.”

He chuckled. “I believe you, but that doesn’t answer my question.”

I tilted my chin, quite aware I looked inexorably stubborn. “You have your secrets and I have mine.” Telling him I craved having him all to myself, telling him I didn’t like the thought of him with another woman, no matter the reason, held a high price. My pride. And I wasn’t ready to pay such a large sum.

A heavy pause, a heavy sigh. “Fair enough. But you need to understand that’s the exact reason I want you to wait out here.
My
secrets.”

“No.” My chin rose yet another notch.

“You can keep an eye on Tanner.”

“He’s fine.”

“Belle.” He uttered another sigh.

“Rome. I’m not staying out here while you have a quickie with your girlfriend, then discuss me to your little hearts’ content. Sorry, but my answer is and will remain no.”

“Girlfriend?” He snorted. “As if I could handle two of you.” Hands slinking to the base of my neck and tightening in my hair, he lowered his lips to mine for a soft, exquisite kiss, a simple but blissful brush of his mouth against mine. “Your thought process fascinates me.”

I gulped. “I usually offend people.”

“Not me,” he whispered, his warm breath fanning my lips, my chin.

My body instantly quickened with arousal, eager, so wonderfully eager, for more of him. It was as if he’d never stopped kissing me the first time, as if stopping had been foreplay for this moment. My nipples were hard, my stomach achy and my legs shaky.

“If I promise not to have a quickie, will you stay here?” His voice was coated with desire, hoarse and rumbling.

A long while passed before I could form a coherent response. “N-no.” I finally managed to work the sound past the hard lump in my throat. The man was turned on. Unleashing him into the wild now would be foolish, especially with the piranha waiting for him in the bedroom. Rome might not have romantic feelings for her, but I suspected she still had plenty for him—another reason for her hatred of me.

Can you say jealous? And no, I was not a pot and she was not a kettle. I hated her because she was a bitch, not because she was a rival for Rome’s affections.

Puh-lease. You’re seething with jealousy, Jamison.

“No,” I repeated, more for my benefit than his.

Rome rolled his eyes. “Fine. Come on.” As he spoke, he intertwined our fingers. “If you learn something shocking, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

A decadent shiver stole through me at first contact. The feel of his palm against mine…divine. He was strong, so warm and capable, with rough calluses that were a testament to his dangerous lifestyle. How had I ever doubted him?

He pivoted on his heel and led me down the wide hallway. The fragrance of jasmine incense drifted in the air. Instead of the fine art I expected, the coffee-colored walls were decorated with pictures of Sunny.

“Slow down,” I told Rome, craning my neck to see a photo of him and Sunny on a swing set.

He ignored me and tugged me into the bedroom.

I stopped, gasped, gawked, drinking in every detail. I’d stepped into a harem. Minus the sexually starved women, of course. Lexis’s bedroom was more decadent than her living room. A ginormous bed decorated the middle, wisps of black netting dancing gently around the posts. Red pillows were scattered across the floor, ruby-colored beads sewn into the seams. From the ceiling hung at least a hundred single-bulb chandeliers, illuminating everything in a crown of brilliance. Gold-etched mirrors. A fireplace.

What the hell did Lexis do to afford this stuff? Or did Rome buy it for her? I didn’t know government agents were so well paid.

Hair floating behind her like a black cloud, she emerged from a walk-in closet carrying a large black duffel bag and several items of clothing. She carefully placed the bag on the bed.

“Going somewhere?” Rome asked her. He let go of my hand, traced his fingers up my arm, lingering, then withdrew all contact.

Without his touch, I experienced a wave of emptiness.

“Your woman is going to burn this place down,” she replied bitterly. She stuffed a green silk dress in the bag. “I figured it was in my best interests to leave before that happened.”

There was no time to bask in the acute sense of joy the words
your woman
elicited. Not with her accusation ringing in my ears. “I’m not going to torch this place. Jeez.”

Rome’s chin dropped to his chest, and he shook his head. “This is great. I’m sorry, Lex. I wouldn’t have come if I’d known.”

“I know,” she said. “Brit will take care of Sunny, so that’s one less worry.”

“I’m not going to start a fire,” I insisted.

“You won’t mean to,” was the airy reply as Lexis returned to her closet to gather more clothing. “But you will.”

“You stay, Lex. We’ll leave,” Rome offered, his voice taut.

“Too late.” She folded a pair of jeans and placed them inside the case. “I can’t throw you out, Rome. It’s too dangerous. Plus, I’m involved now.”

Oh, joy. Just the words I wanted to hear. “You’re both acting like me starting a fire is a done deal. But now that I’ve been warned—”
bitch!
“—I’ll be careful.” I would have placed money on the fact that she was only trying to make me look bad in front of Rome.

She pinned me with a piercing stare, her emerald eyes taking on an unholy glow, otherworldly and ethereal. “You’re still going to cause trouble.”

God, I hated this woman.
Do not get mad. Do not get mad.
Trying to control my breathing, I stretched my fingers behind my back—just in case they emitted plumes of smoke. Already I felt the burning, the intense heat.

“Uh, Belle, sweetie,” Rome said.

“Not now, Rome. Lexis and I are in the middle of a…conversation.”

“Put the conversation on hold. Your fingers are on fire.”

Damn it all to hell and back. I whirled on him, pointing a blazing finger at his chest. I growled, “Watch the temper. Think happy thoughts. Well, guess what? I’m on the run, I can’t go home, I miss my dad, people want to kill me and/or capture me for reasons I still don’t fully understand, your best buddy is a bitch, and I’m starving.” My stomach was in danger of eating itself, I only then realized. I hadn’t had a decent meal all day. Well, there was that amazing breakfast Rome had cooked me that morning, but already that felt like eons ago. “I have every right to feel emotional.”

“I know,” he said softly. Features lighting with compassion, he blew on my fingertip, dousing the fire, and snaked his arm around my waist. He tugged me in front of him, then slid his fingers up my back and onto my shoulders, where he began a bone-meltingly delicious massage. “I’m sorry.”

Just like that, my anger completely defused. A man who understood—unusual. A man who said he was sorry, and meant it—priceless.

“I’ll watch her tonight, Lex,” Rome said. “I’ll make sure Belle doesn’t start a fire.”

Lexis hesitated, then nodded. “It’s against my better judgment to ignore my instincts, but I’m going to trust you, Rome. We’ll leave in the morning.”

“Good. Now let’s get down to business so Belle and I can eat and get some sleep,” he said. His fingers never stopped kneading my sore muscles.

Lexis, who continued packing her bag, avoided glancing in our direction.

I watched her without reservation. Though her motions were stiff, she carried herself with the grace and fluidity of a dancer.

With a flick of her wrist, she tossed another case on the bed. “I’m filling this one for you,” she told me. “You’ll need some different clothes in the coming days, and we are about the same size.”

How…sweet. And completely unexpected. “Thank you,” I said, a tendril of guilt drifting through me.

“You’re welcome.”

“Here’s what’s going on,” Rome said, cutting through the sudden, pregnant silence. “Belle was given an experimental formula.”

“Against my will,” I added. “A little lower,” I told him, moving my shoulders to show him where I needed him.
Oh, yeah. Right there.
My head lolled forward as ecstasy consumed me. “Mmm…”

He inhaled a sharp breath before finishing his explanation. “This formula has changed the alignment of her DNA.” His voice began to deepen, a husky edge sneaking into the rich timbre. “It’s given her power over the four elements. As you might have figured out when her finger caught fire.”

Lexis paused in her movements, a pair of green silk pants dangling from her fingers. Finally she faced us. “So that’s the hum of electrical output I feel from her?”

“Yes.” Rome dabbled at the top of my butt for a moment, and I bit my lower lip to cut off a moan. “Both Vincent and our boss want her.”

Wait.
Our
boss? That meant Rome and Lexis worked together, too. Just great.

“Stop tensing,” he whispered to me. “You’re the Periodic Table Chick, remember? Keep it calm.”

“Don’t call me that.”

“This is Dr. Roberts’s formula we’re discussing, yes?” Lexis asked, ignoring me.

Rome nodded. “You’ve worked with Roberts in the past. You know him better than I do.”

“You worked with Dr. Roberts?” I asked. Well, more like growled. I didn’t like the man, for obvious reasons.

“Yes,” she said. “He’s not a bad man. He wouldn’t have hurt you on purpose. He’s sweet and he means well. But he does have a wild, sexual side, and I think Vincent used it—most likely by blackmailing him—to keep the doctor working on the formula, even after he learned Vincent wasn’t the altruist he’d thought.”

“Why did you work with him, though?” I asked.

She shrugged. “We heard what the doctor was trying to create, a liquid that could make the weakest of people strong, and we wanted him for PSI. When he chose OASS instead, I was sent in to befriend, monitor, and make sure he failed. But Vincent figured out what I was doing and took the doctor underground.”

“Do you think you can get a lock on him?” Rome said. “I need to find him. I promised Belle I would help her search for an antidote and get Vincent off her back.”

“What about John?” Lexis asked.

He can’t have me,
I mentally answered.

Rome didn’t speak for a moment. “I’ll deal with him later,” he said, and there was an odd inflection in his voice. An inflection I couldn’t decipher. “Tell me about Roberts.”

Lexis closed her eyes, a blanket of extreme relaxation falling over her features. For a moment I wasn’t sure she was breathing. “Roberts is in the city,” she said, completely monotone. “He has not left and will not leave. There’s still something he wants to do here.”

“What?” Rome asked.

“I don’t know,” she answered with disappointment. “That is hidden from me.”

So Pretty Boy Vincent hadn’t captured him yet, I realized. There was still a chance I could find him, talk to him, slap the shit out of him, then force him to reverse what he’d done to me. If that were even possible.