“Kristin.” His deep rumble never failed to send a jolt of sensation between my legs.
“Roy.” My polite tone matched his. He’d avoided me in the past weeks, barely chatting with me about how awfully cold the weather was when he’d bumped into me in the corridor. But I wasn’t going to show him how much I’d missed him.
“The commander is waiting for us,” he said, patting the folder and tossing another glance at me.
“Now?” I couldn’t completely remove the disappointment from my voice. “Actually, Peggy and I are about to go to seeThe Nutcrackerin Exeter.”
Peggy nodded. “We got the tickets a while ago.”
Roy didn’t look amused. “Peggy, I’m sure you’ll find a partner to replace Kristin. Allen has important commitments before Christmas and afterwards. He can see us now, otherwise we’ll have to postpone the meeting to the end of January, and I’d rather talk to him as soon as possible.” Despite his composure, that muscle in his jaw kept ticking.
Peggy’s shoulders slumped, but she knew better than to argue with a condottiero, the top high-ranking beast. As the only condottiero at Raven Park, he was the most prized fighter; the only one who didn’t need a partner to turn into a full beast.
I opened and closed my hands. I didn’t have much choice, and talking with Allen was more important than going out with my friend. I cast an apologetic look at Peggy, who shrugged. “Fine. Let’s go.” I adjusted my curls, wondering if my dress, which I’d so boldly chosen, would be all right for a meeting with the commander.
With a quick nod at Peggy, Roy turned towards the door and left.
“Good luck.” Peggy gave me a thumbs-up.
The sound of my heels clicking on the marble floor echoed in the corridor as Roy and I headed towards the commander’s office. He walked in front of me, glancing at me now and then. When we reached the fourth floor, the thick red carpet muffled our steps. Roy didn’t say a word. His reputation for being a ruthless and unfeeling condottiero was widespread. He’d killed his own brother, Lukas, when he’d tried to escape from Raven Park. That was one of the reasons why he didn’t believe we should see each other or understand there might be something more serious between us than a simple infatuation. He was a cold-hearted condottiero, not a lovestruck young man. I wasn’t deluded. Still, I was sure the pull to be together wasn’t one-sided, and I couldn’t deny the attraction I always felt towards him whenever he was close. If a new war was coming, I wanted to know how close we could be.
“Are you all right?” He threw a quizzical glance at me. “We’ve been alone for two minutes, but you haven’t fired any questions at me. Should I be worried?”
“What am I supposed to ask? Why have you avoided me in the past weeks? Why are you so cold to me? Why do you hardly talk to me? I know the answers to these questions.” I stepped aside to let two cadets in their white uniforms pass.
His lips thinned, as if he were tired of me. “I haven’t avoided you.”
I huffed. “Please.”
He stopped in the middle of the long hallway, head tilted to the side. The dark strands of his hair fell over his sharp cheeks. “I have been busy.”
“You speed up when you see me in a corridor to avoid me.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. As I said, I’m very busy.”
“I’m not entirely clueless.” I balled my fists as my claws threatened to come out. “You’ve been very clear about what you think of me. Of us.”
His lips pressed together in a hard slash. He had proper lips. Some men had thin, pale lips, not particularly noteworthy. But he had full lips that could give so much pleasure and make me moan or cut me deeper than a red-hot blade.
He edged closer. “It’s not you—”
I stepped back. The bottled-up anger was shuddering through me in an explosion I could barely control. “Oh, please, spare me.”
“Kristin—”
“Shall we?” I resumed walking, basking in the strange, wicked pleasure of having cut him off. The last thing I needed was another session of ‘Kristin, be reasonable. I’m a bad choice for you. I’m not capable of loving anyone. I’ll only hurt you. I have too many secrets I can’t share with you.’ Blah, blah, blah.
I’d heard it all before. He kept me at arm’s length, worried I might become some clingy, needy girlfriend. As if I were in love with him. Which I wasn’t. But denying the attraction was pointless.
He cleared his throat. “That dress—”
Oops. I skidded to a halt. “Should I change before seeing Allen?” I put my hands on my rising chest to cover the décolletage. I wasn’t cutting him off to be mean this time. How could Allen take me seriously if I was dressed in an indecent fashion? Did I look ridiculous? What had I said about my confidence?
He gave me another slow once-over, pupils dilating as his stare went low. “No, you don’t need to change. The dress is a tad provocative, but you look very dashing in it.”
“Do you think it’s provocative?” Useless question, but I loved putting him in uncomfortable positions. A husky note crept into my voice. “Do you like it on me?”
With a predatory step, he stalked closer. He was close enough to make me feel the delicious heat coming off his body. Instant desire lit the depths of his eyes as he tilted his head towards the crook of my neck. My chest heaved when his warm breath stroked my skin. The sharp tips of his fangs descended, only a hint, as if to remind me of the beast inside him. My own beast answered to his closeness, purring and howling in my chest.