Playing With Fire (16 page)

He skidded to a stop, looking from me to the fire, the fire to me. “You did it. You put it out.” His lips inched into a slow, proud smile, but I saw the lines of tension pulling at his eyes. “You’re learning, baby. You’re controlling.”

I nodded, letting my gaze remain on the floor. My emotions were so raw, I wasn’t sure I could speak. A lump coagulated in my throat. “I’m—I’m sorry.” There. I’d managed to voice something. I visualized a cold shield around my heart, with a Keep Out sign all of its own, so I would stop wanting Rome. Would stop hurting. It didn’t make the pain stop, but it did cause the rain to cease.

Still not facing Rome, I eased to my feet. The carpet squished. With as much dignity as I could manage, I walked away from him. Neither of us said a word. He didn’t try to stop me, and I never looked back. I padded to the room Lexis had given me, closed the door with a soft click and climbed into bed.

Only then, alone in the darkness, did I allow myself to cry. After a while, my tears blended with a new fall of rain.

Well, shit.

S
TUPID
. I
DIOT
. D
UMMY
.

I wasn’t cursing myself. I was cursing Dr. Roberts over last night’s wee disaster. If not for that formula, I could have spent the night in Rome’s arms, naked and blissful, rather than tossing and turning. Alone. Miserable. I hadn’t set anything on fire the first time Rome kissed me (okay, so my fingers had gotten a little overheated, but that didn’t count) and didn’t understand why I had this time. Unless…were my abilities getting stronger or were my feelings for Rome simply deepening?

Grrr. “I hate that formula!”

If not for that formula, you wouldn’t even have met Rome, remember?

“That’s not the point,” I mumbled.

Men, especially Rome, were off-limits until I learned to control my abilities—or I found Dr. Roberts and he fixed me. Then, and only then, could I kiss Rome like a naughty nymphomaniac. If he still wanted me, that is. After last night, he might never want to touch me again.

“Stupid, idiot, dummy!”

That’s what bothered me most and made me angriest with the doctor. Rome probably wanted nothing to do with me now.

Depressed and disheartened, I dressed in the black T-shirt and form-fitting slacks Lexis had laid out for me—which I’d discovered at the edge of my bed when I’d awoken. She’d left me a pair of black leather boots. In my size.

Why’d she have to go and be nice to me, now of all times?
I thought, brushing my hair and anchoring it in a ponytail. Hating her would have given me a small bit of pleasure on this crap-infested day. I stepped into the hall. If I’d ever needed pleasure—I froze. Rome had just strode out of Lexis’s bedroom. Her bedroom!

As he shut the door behind him, our gazes locked. He moved toward me. I backed away.

“Belle,” he said, clearly surprised.

That bastard! I’d cursed and cried all night. I’d agonized over him all morning. And he…he…damn him!
I
had turned him on, and he’d let Lexis finish the job. Disappointment and fury rocked me, but I quickly extinguished the fury. I would not react. I
couldn’t
react.

This doesn’t matter, Jamison. Don’t let it matter.
I swung away from him and slowly, precisely, as if I hadn’t a care in the world, walked into Tanner’s room. After everything that had happened to him, the kid was probably scared and would need me to explain the situation.

Except Tanner’s room was empty.

I turned, determined to find him and get the hell out of this apartment. Tanner and I would be just fine on our own.

Rome blocked my path.

“Excuse me,” I said stiffly, trying to move around him. I kept my eyes on his collar.

His arms shot out, gripping the door frame and barring my exit.

Remain calm.
“Get out of my way, please.”

“Not until you listen to me.”

“There’s nothing for you to say. Nothing I need to hear. Therefore, there is nothing we need to discuss. Move. Or get a permanent tan from my death ray.”
Deep breath in, deep breath out.

He leaned forward, closing precious space between us. “Why are you acting like this? I did nothing wrong.”

My eyes narrowed to tiny slits. “No, you didn’t do anything wrong. You kissed me last night, but we don’t have a relationship, so we aren’t exclusive. You had every right to visit your ex-wife.”

“That’s not what happened.”

When he offered nothing else, I said, “Obviously, it is. It’s morning, and you’re coming out of her room. I bet you would have liked to hide that from me like everything else so you could screw me at a later date. Or,” I added, facing him at last, “maybe you’d already decided I wasn’t worth the effort.”

“I can’t believe you think I’m capable of that.”

“I want nothing more to do with you,” I snapped. “Now, get out of my way.”

He stiffened; his pale blue irises became even paler. His pupils thinned and pointed at both ends, like a cat’s. “One, I didn’t sleep with her. Two, I didn’t spend the night in her room. I went in there to get something, and had you bothered to check you would have learned that she wasn’t even in there. She’s in the kitchen with Tanner. And three, I think I’ve already proved you’re worth a lot of effort. I didn’t want to want you, but the fact is I did. I do.”

Without another word, he stalked away from me, leaving me openmouthed. My hand fluttered over my chest.
You’re worth a lot of effort,
he’d said.
I want you,
he’d said. Every feminine instinct I possessed reacted, cheering happily.

He’d meant it, hadn’t just been stroking my ego. He’d looked too brutal, too unbending. The ferocity he’d radiated had nearly slayed me. I gulped. And the ache from last night suddenly returned, or maybe it had never left. Beneath my T-shirt, my nipples were hard, my stomach was clenched, eager for a touch, a taste.

Oh yes, he’d meant it. He’d spoken the truth. He and Lexis hadn’t had sex. A well-satisfied man did not sport lines of tension around his eyes, did not practically hum with raging need. With savagery. As if he could toss me onto the floor, tear away my clothing and fuck me then and there, the rest of the world be damned.

A delicious tremor rolled down my spine.

Straightening my shoulders, I followed the path Rome had taken. I was smiling, the stupid grin stretched over my entire face, but I couldn’t help myself. At least I wasn’t skipping. Okay, maybe I was. The boots I wore click-clicked against the marble floor.

The hall opened into the living room, then branched to the dining room I’d been too tired to pay attention to last night. Now, my gaze drank in each little detail. Beyond the low, sprawling glass table were giant, multihued silk pillows that acted as chairs. A towering archway led into a thoroughly modern kitchen of chrome and silver steel. Silver refrigerator, chrome island counter, silver faucet and sink.

Lexis and Tanner stood at the counter. Lexis, of course, looked exquisitely lovely. She wore a bright red and black pantsuit with Chinese symbols scattered on the hem. Tanner wore the same long T-shirt and baggy jeans he’d sported yesterday. Praise the Lord, he’d taken out the eight ball contacts. His eyes were electric blue, almost the exact shade of Rome’s. I would have melted under his spell in that instant if I’d been a few years younger.

His features were animated, sinfully intent, as he told Lexis how pretty her skin was, how wonderful her hair smelled, how gorgeously her eyes glowed.

I rolled my eyes. The kid wasn’t scared, as I’d feared. He was totally at ease and hitting on the hostess—my would-be nemesis—with moves
I’d
taught him. My gaze strayed farther back, catching sight of Rome. He padded about, gathering glasses and plates. Just looking at him, I felt my chest constrict.
You’re worth a lot of effort, too.

“Did you find the picture of Sunny you were hunting for?” Lexis asked Rome.

“Yeah,” he answered curtly.

A twinge of guilt beaded in my chest. He’d wanted a photo from his ex, not wild monkey sex. I’d have to apologize. “I’m sorry,” I said. He didn’t answer. I’d tell him again when we were alone. Perhaps I’d give him a swift kiss that wouldn’t start a fire.

I looked to Tanner. “You seem to be taking this in stride,” I told him. I walked to the island. “I’m surprised you like your prison so well.”
And the warden,
I added silently.

Blue hair tumbled over his forehead as he quickly faced me. “Viper!” A huge grin broke over his face. He threw his arms around me and squeezed tight. “Dude, this place rocks. What’s not to like?”

“Did Commando over there hurt you when he knocked you out?”

“Nah,” Tanner said, cheeks reddening. “I’m, like, impervious to pain.”

One of my brows arched. “Impervious?”

“Yeah. You know, pain can’t—”

“I know what it means, Crazy B, I just didn’t expect you to use a word like that.”

“Toilet paper word of the day,” he said, his eyes narrowing on Rome. I needed to get me some of that toilet paper. “He didn’t hurt me, but he did steal my car and I want it back.”

“You drive that car now, you die. Bad men will be all over it.” Rome stepped up to my side. No part of us touched, but I felt the heat of him. The strength. The patent stillness of his predator soul. He pushed a glass of apple juice in front of me and leveled me with a curious frown, finally giving me his full attention. “Viper?”

I lifted my shoulders in a shrug. “It was the only name I could think to give him.” To Tanner, I said, “My real name is Belle.”

“I knew it. El stoppo, indeed.” He slapped his hand on his thigh. “You’ll always be Viper to me, though, my sex-starved babe on the run. Hey,” he added with barely a breath. “Lexis told me what’s going on. Is it true? Can you really start fires with your mind?”

I hesitated to answer. Would he fear me? Turn away from me? Want nothing more to do with me? Only one way to find out…I bit my lip and nodded.

“Do it!” he said enthusiastically, surprising me. “Start one right now.”

Relief weakened my limbs. “No.”

“Ah, come on. I’ll give you a dollar.”

“No! I’m not a circus freak who performs for a little cash.” I anchored my hands on my hips. “You have to pay at least a hundred if you want to see actual flames.”

His eyes brightened and the irises appeared to deepen, to swirl, like a crystalline pool of magnetic power. “Do you take checks?”

“That’s enough. No fires,” Rome said. There was a hint of amusement in his tone, as well as exasperation.

He plopped an array of fruits onto the counter, and I plucked a grape. The sweetness filled my mouth, but it wasn’t altogether satisfying. I liked fruit and all, but please. Just please. What was up with this healthy meal crap? Ham and crackers last night. Fruit this morning. Where were the doughnuts? The burgers and fries? Hello, I’d almost died—several times in the last day alone. I had a new appreciation for the finer things in life. Like sugar. And fat grams.

“So what’s the game plan today?” I asked Rome, then grudgingly stuffed a strawberry in my mouth. It was tarter than the grape and actually contrasted nicely.

“We’re going to take the kid—”

“Crazy Bones,” Tanner interjected. “Call me Crazy Bones. Or CB. I’ll answer to CB.”

“We’re going to take Dumbo to a safe house.”

“That shit is whack, yo.” Tanner swallowed a bite of melon and bared his teeth in a scowl. “My name ain’t Dumbo, and I ain’t going to no safe house. Lexis says I’m, like, an empath. And this empath wants to kick some bad guy ass.”

“You’re an empath?” I said with a disbelieving shake of my head. “You know what people are feeling? Like on TV?”

“Empaths, like psychics, are born,” Lexis said, “not created. Tanner was indeed born with such an ability.”

Was I some sort of magnet for the paranormal now? What was next, a vampire? A demon? “I agree with Rome,” I said. The thought of Tanner hurt—or worse—was enough to give me hives. He had yet to really
live,
and I wanted no part in helping him die. “I think you need to be somewhere safe.”

“I’m not a fucking kid,” he snapped.

I frowned over at him. “You don’t know what we’re dealing with.”

“Do you?” he countered, reminding me I hadn’t been able to give him answers the day he asked. Which was yesterday, I realized then. I’d only met him yesterday. Wow. Already it seemed as if an eternity had passed.

My shoulders squared, my chin rose and I pierced him with a stern stare. “I know that you’re an innocent in all of this, and I never should have gotten you involved. I know—”

“You don’t know shit.”

“Children.” Rome clapped his hands twice. “You may be an empath, Tanner, but you don’t have the necessary skills to survive. You’ll just get in our way.”

“Actually,” Lexis said. She flicked her black hair over her dainty shoulder. “He’ll aid you more than he hinders you. One day, with practice, he’s going to be a human lie detector. But more than that, he’s going to be able to sense when Belle needs him. They’re bonded in some way. I’m unable to see how, I just know they are.”

Rome’s focus whipped to Lexis. “Shit,” he said.

“Why do you think he was driving down that particular street at that particular time yesterday?”

“I wanted to buy condoms,” Tanner said.

Expression soft, Lexis patted him on the shoulder. “No. On an unconscious level, you’d already sensed Belle’s desperation and the heroic part of you forced you to be there so that you could help her.”

“Hear that?” Tanner grinned slowly. “The heroic part of me. I’m a hero. A hero, goddamn it, and I want to kick bad guy ass.” He punctuated his words by pointing at his chest. “You need me.”

He was so excited by his newfound abilities. I wished I could feel that enthusiastic about mine.

Rome glared at Tanner. “Kicking ass could mean getting hurt. Or worse, dying. Are you really prepared to do that?”

“Like I’d die.” Tanner snorted.

Kids and their immortality complex, I thought, rolling my eyes. Kids with supernatural abilities were, obviously, even worse. I remained silent while I sucked the juice out of a plump strawberry. The tangy sweetness ran down my throat. If Tanner was connected to me, maybe he could help me regulate my emotions or something. That would be cool, except I would rather Rome had that ability. That way, I wouldn’t need Tanner in the room, there to control my reactions, when I next kissed the man.

Whoa. Wait.
What are you doing, Jamison?
I’d decided not to make out with Rome again until after I was back to my normal self, and I needed to stick with that (horrible) plan so I didn’t accidentally kill him.

One of Rome’s hands suddenly snaked around my wrist. With his free hand, he plucked the strawberry from my fingers and tossed it onto the table. “No more strawberries for you,” he said hoarsely, staring at my undoubtedly red, moist lips.

Oh, oh, oh. What was this? Desire from him? Because of a piece of fruit? Forgetting my plan already, I very deliberately lifted another strawberry, placed it between my lips and bit. Rome’s nostrils flared. My knees weakened. Holy hell. His eyes locked on the half-eaten strawberry. I welcomed it the rest of the way into my mouth and chewed slowly.