Skin Deep (7 page)

Kiera regretted ever agreeing to go out on a date with Luke, though not for obvious reasons. Once she told Maryline about it, the woman all but went nutso over wanting to know every detail about exactly what he’d said, how he asked her, and where they were going. Kiera couldn’t really remember. All she knew was that she’d agreed to it. Cain’s presence had made it hard to focus on anything but him.

Of course, she didn’t tell Maryline or Darla that Cain had come by. They’d both seen her face the night before when she’d ran into the bar in a desperate scramble to get the fuck out of there. They were both sure he had something to do with it. She was so overwhelmed by what had happened and angry about Cain having a girlfriend that she didn’t correct them. She only assured them he hadn’t hurt her.

Darla decided to close the shop early so they could help Kiera prepare for her big date. Both women knew Luke. They had always commented on his good looks and flirty behavior and were overjoyed that he’d finally popped the question.

Good lord. I feel like I’m getting married.

At seven forty-five she was dressed and ready to go, with Maryline flitting around her like an anxious mother about to send her daughter to the prom. Darla leaned against the counter. She was smiling like a proud mother herself. Kiera had to suppress the urge to laugh. Both women had told her on numerous occasions that neither of them were cut out to be parents.

“I think it’s why God made me gay. He knew it would be a lot more trouble for me to become a momma,” is what Maryline would always say. She was wrong, though; she had a mother’s instinct. They both did.

Luke arrived five minutes early looking attractive in a pair of dark jeans and a white button-up shirt. His brown eyes warmed as he admired her. Heat rose in her cheeks. Kiera didn’t think she would ever get used to men looking at her like that.

“Wow, you’re just … wow. You look amazing.”

Kiera smiled and glanced at herself in the mirror on the wall. She wore black skinny jeans—never in her life had she been able to pull off anything that had the word
skinny
in it—tucked into tan boots. Her long-sleeve top was a pretty teal blue, low cut, and far more revealing than she was used to. She completed the outfit with the green shawl she had finished earlier in the week.

The diamond tennis bracelet Darla had given her glinted on her wrist. A tiara was the only thing she lacked to look like a princess. Of course, she could be wearing a paper sack and still feel like a princess in this body.

“Now you take good care of our girl, you hear? Or else.” Darla smiled and clapped him on the shoulder. She acted like she was joking, but Kiera knew she wasn’t, and cringed.

“Oh yes, ma’am, I will.” He winked at Kiera. She knew her cheeks had to be the color of her hair. She followed him out to his black Jeep and waved goodbye to her friends.

Dinner was pleasant. There was no denying that. Luke took her to a fancy steakhouse about forty-five minutes away. It was far too expensive, but he refused to let her even touch her wallet. He was charming, funny, and witty. In every aspect he seemed completely perfect, except he wasn’t Cain. Not to mention that she couldn’t stop thinking about the way he smelled. It wasn’t an unpleasant scent, but like Cain had said, he smelled sweet, as if he’d taken a bath in some sort of cherry syrup.

She found her mind drifting to Cain throughout the meal, only to be jolted back to reality when Luke frowned and said her name. Although Cain wasn’t the only thing that kept drifting through her mind. The strange appearance of the white tiger from the night before riddled her thoughts as well.

“So, if you don’t mind me asking … who was that guy in the shop earlier today?” Luke broke the silence on the drive home. Kiera parted her lips, not sure what to say. She didn’t want to talk about Cain, not when her feelings for him were so enraged and keen all at once.

“Just some weird guy I met at a bar. No one important.” She focused her gaze on the cherry air freshener that hung from the rearview mirror.

“He seemed pretty into you.”

“You think so?” Kiera wanted to smack herself for the excitement that was laced in her voice. Luke noticed it too, judging from the dark look in his eyes as he glanced at her.

Shame flooded her cheeks. Here she was on a date with a wonderfully handsome man whom she’d liked for months and she was going to blow it over some asshole. They drove in silence for some time. It wasn’t until he pulled into Dye Hard’s parking lot and opened her door that she finally worked up her nerve to speak.

“I’m so sorry, Luke. I hope I didn’t make tonight horrible for you. I really did have a wonderful time. I’ve just been a little preoccupied here lately. A lot of things have happened and I’m still trying to take everything in.” It was a weak explanation, she knew, but she felt better for saying it.

“I get that. Hell, everyone gets preoccupied with life. And I know a lot has been happening for you, I mean, damn, look at you. The weight you’ve lost is almost crazy, so I know you’ve been busy. I just hate that someone else got to you first.”

“Oh no, it’s not—” Kiera’s words were cut off by Luke’s lips pressing into hers, along with his body roughly mashing her against the side of his Jeep. She was stunned for a moment and stood stiffly, not moving. A shiver of fear pricked as old memories attempted to flood her mind, making her fingers tremble. She clutched her coat, desperate to stop the familiar anxiety before it bubbled over.
This is Luke. Not Roth,
she yelled internally.

After several heartbeats she relaxed and kissed him back. His lips were soft, warm, and moved against her own smoothly. He was a good kisser, but something was different. It failed to heat her in the slightest.

After a moment, she broke away and smiled shyly up at him. She knew she had to be red with embarrassment.

“You sure you don’t want me to take you all the way to your apartment? I don’t mind.” His words came out husky.

“No, but thanks.” She sidestepped him and he gave a curt nod.

“Okay then. I have your number now … so I’ll call you.”

She smiled and hoped to God he would get back in his car and leave. She couldn’t take any more awkward silence tonight. Luckily, he did after a quick goodbye.

Kiera stared at his disappearing taillights with a mixture of emotions. Mortification, disgruntlement, and happiness swirled inside her. She sighed with a sense of relief. Her first date in years was over and she was glad for it.

Luke’s car had just disappeared over the hill when a rough hand grasped her arm and jerked her from the dim streetlights into the shadows of darkness.

Cain’s body shook as he snatched Kiera from the sidewalk and pushed her against a tree. He was rougher than he’d intended to be, but there was no helping that. He panted like a motherfucking dog. He’d tried to stay away—truly, he did. He followed Kiera and the human to an expensive steakhouse and watched them like fucking Seedy McGee through the window, as she shared the human’s wine and even touched his hand.

She should have been enjoying Cain’s wine, his company. She should have been laughing at his jokes. He knew he was a hell of a lot wittier than that fucking tool bag. The sad ass part about the whole deal was that dinner wasn’t even the worst bit.

Cain had hidden himself in the trees around the hair salon, out of sight, for their return home. Hidden himself for the grand finale. He got to stand there, nut-hugging a goddamned tree, while watching the human push her luscious body against the car while he fucked her with his mouth.

It was almost more than he could take. The beast in him clawed to get free and scratched at the inside of his skin, ready to destroy. The human was a very lucky man. Lucky because Kiera ended the kiss when she did. That was the only reason he got to keep his extremities.

Now he looked down into her golden, teardrop-shaped eyes and had the strange feeling of coming home, a feeling he hadn’t had in centuries. His mind rushed back to that time, long ago, when his life had been good, when he had loved with all of his being. The faces of the ones he’d lost flashed before his mind, each as beautiful as the last. His breath caught in his throat, choking him with emotion.

What the hell?

The impression was fleeting, quickly replaced with a sharp pain in his groin where her knee made forceful contact.

“Fuck!” He groaned as he stepped back and released her. She took off running as soon as his hands were off her, shouting for help as she sprinted away.

Kiera ran for her life. There was no other way to describe it. Her date was over and suddenly Cain, her beautiful stranger, had appeared and pulled her into the shadows. It was the look in his eyes that scared her more than anything. She had seen that mien many times before, in Roth’s eyes. A look that meant only one thing to her—that she was in for a world of hurt. It was a look of possessiveness and anger.

“Help! Someone please!” She ran. There was no way in hell she was going to let herself get filleted by some psycho asshole like she had before.

Thundering footsteps echoed behind her. She panicked, her legs and chest burned, but she pushed herself harder. It was no use. A hard-as-steel arm encircled her midsection, while another clamped over her mouth. She flailed against his hold. Again, she was pulled from the lamplit sidewalk into a thick, wooded area.

Just wonderful. She’d all but led him straight to a more secluded place. Surrounded by darkness, he spun her and pressed her back into another tree. His hand stayed firmly clamped over her mouth.

He leaned his perfect blond head in and inhaled deeply at her throat. He groaned on the exhale and loosened his hold on her mouth.

“Don’t understand this … pull to you.” Cain nuzzled his lips against her throat. It shamed her how her body warmed from this contact. It was like lighting a sparkler and swallowing it. He burned her to the core. A sweltering heat more intoxicating than a pint of absinthe. “I can smell his sickening scent. All. Over. You.” His whispering words became an angry growl against her skin.

Instead of scaring her, her heart rate accelerated out of desire. She suddenly became aware of every inch of contact his body had with her own. The soft fabric of his shirt made goose bumps rise on her arms and chest. His jean-clad thigh pressed in between her own, a pressure that made her go utterly wet for him.

“Gods, I can smell your need … for me. I can tell it’s for me. That prick did nothing for you but leave a bad taste in your mouth,” he murmured in her ear.

As much as she wanted to deny it, he was right. Luke’s kiss hadn’t even warmed her, while Cain’s mere presence set her on fire.

“You make me burn
.
” The words were hot and thick from his throat.

His roaming lips found her own, leaving a searing trail in their wake. She shouldn’t give in to him. Shouldn’t kiss him. Shouldn’t let him touch her.

His tongue lapped against the seam of her lips, like a cat would lap milk.

Should. Let. Him.

She did. Her lips parted, opening to him. His expert tongue entered her mouth in a rush. A hungry moan rent the air and Kiera was startled to realize it was her. Her hands, which had been stiff at her sides, found their way into his smooth white-blond hair. The strands tickled her fingers, caressing them. The feel of him made every nerve in her body fire like a loose cannon.

He pressed her hard against the tree until she could feel the sharp sting of bark biting into her back. She didn’t care. She was beyond any sort of cognitive thinking. His thickly muscled thigh pressed hard against her feminine core, while he ground his erection into her hip. Even through their clothing, she could feel him pulsing, throbbing with need. She ached to touch his raw flesh, to free it from its denim prison. She let one of her hands slide from the silk strands of his hair to reach lower …

“Put your hands where I can see them!” Cain froze as the human voice assaulted his senses. The presence overwhelmed him. He hadn’t sensed the human male’s approach. His mind and body pounded with need. Need for the redheaded seductress before him. Kiera’s hand, which had been making its way down Cain’s body, froze. His form shadowed hers from the bright lights that now illuminated them.

“I said put your hands where I can see them!” Cain saw everything in slow motion. He saw himself turning from Kiera, attacking the human cop, ripping him apart like any predator would do. Then he would stalk his prey, for she would be running from him again. He would like it, though. The hunt thrilled him, especially for her. He would capture her, corner her, make sure she couldn’t escape him. Then he would begin his slow seduction of her body that would only end in one way: her orgasming around the thickness of his cock.

Sanity found him in the nick of time.

Fuck. Sanity.

The urge to attack was still there as he lifted his hands above his head. Kiera rapidly breathed in and out. Her breasts heaved with each intake of breath. Her pink lips were swollen from the kiss they’d shared. And yet he still managed to turn away.

“On your knees and put your hands on top of your head!”