A Dark Kiss Of Rapture

He released her and thrust the flowers at her. “Here.”

She bit the inside of her cheek to hold back a laugh. He looked so sheepishly embarrassed as he awkwardly held out the bouquet. Hoping to put him at ease, she teased, “Roses! How lovely. You totally earned a blow job for these. Thank you.”

“Seriously?” Raze’s brows shot up. “Well, that explains a lot.”

“Such as why so many men make the gesture?”

“Yeah.” He scowled. “But it doesn’t explain why no one told me the trade-off until now.”

She headed into the kitchen to grab a vase. “Probably because you don’t need any props to get women; they fall all over you without them. Of course, now that you know, you can check out it for yourself and see what happens.”

She jumped as his arms came around her from behind and he nibbled the side of her neck. “You may need to stock up on vases,” he purred.

Laying the bouquet on the countertop, Kim turned in his arms and caught him around the waist. “No bribes necessary. I like getting you off that way. I suspect I’m acquiring an oral fixation on you.”

His hands pushed into her hair, massaging her scalp. He looked down into her face. “What’s wrong with you?”

“Excuse me?”

“There’s got to be something. No one’s this perfect. Throw me a bone, will you.”

The reminder of her conversation with Delia tickled her and her smile deepened.

“I had a nose job.” She touched the bridge. “There was a bump here and I had it shaved down. I can’t dance. I have no rhythm whatsoever. Can’t sing either. Roz says I sound like cats fucking.”

Raze erupted into laughter.

She grinned back at him.

He leaned his cheek against the top of her head. “I’m a guy with issues. You could do so much better.”

“Maybe I will, when you try the flower thing with someone else.”

“Fair enough.” Gripping her ass, he hauled her up against him. “How was your day?”

“I went shopping. And bought you a surprise.”

“Oh? Lemme see.”

“Not yet. And you? Work go all right?”

He nodded and visibly clammed up. “Yeah.”

Running her hand over his head, she smiled. “Don’t worry. I won’t ask.”

“Why not?”

“Both my dad and brother are cops. I know the drill. When you can talk about it-when you want to talk about it-I’m here. And… I knew something about your job was eating at you yesterday. I understand not wanting to talk about it.”

“You peg me for law enforcement?”

“Am I wrong?” she challenged.

Cupping her face, he kissed her. “No. Not really.”

She let him back away and resumed putting the flowers in a vase. “Make yourself at home.”

“That’s easy to do. Your place is as beautiful as you are.” His voice faded as he moved into the living room.

Kim leaned heavily into the counter, breathing carefully in and out. He was such a force of nature and her hunger for him was outside the scope of her experience. She’d never had relationship issues, never had any problem with commitment or affection or sexual attraction. But this… It was like being hit with a Mack truck every time. “Did you forget to bring a movie?”

“No.” He looked across the open floor plan at her and pulled a DVD case out of where he’d tucked it in the waistband of his jeans at the small of his back. “I’ll show you mine, if you show me yours.”

“Umm… sounds fun.” She carried the flower arrangement into the living room and set it on an end table. “Whatcha got?”

“ The Unforgiven .”

“Huh? Who’s in it?”

“Clint Eastwood. Morgan Freeman. Gene Hackman.” He handed her the case.

“Oh.” Her mouth curved ruefully.

“What?”

“There’s something else wrong with me: I’m not a fan of westerns.”

His eyes were warm with amusement. “Give it thirty minutes. If you’re not enjoying it, I’ll entertain you another way.”

“I can go for that.” Yum. She licked her lips.

“And yours?” He crossed his arms and looked sexy as hell. “What are you putting on the table?”

“ Gabriel. Have you seen it?”

Raze’s mouth opened, hung that way for a moment, then closed again. His lips twitched. “Angels?”

She deflated. “You’ve seen it.”

“Probably not the same story,” he said wryly. “What’s it about?”

“Fallen angels who kick some serious- What’s so funny?”

He tried to wipe the smile off his mouth with his hand. “Do they turn into vampires?”

“Who? The angels? No. It’s not a comedy, you know. It’s dark and gritty.”

“Gotcha.” But he was clearly still very amused.

“Then again…” She thought about it. “That might actually be a cool story. Maybe some werewolves, too? Like Underworld with angels? Could be interesting.”

Laughing, he picked her up and spun her around. His delight spurred her own and she found herself laughing with him.

“You’re crazy, Raze. You know that?”

“About you.” He took her mouth in a breathless kiss.

* * *

Kim ended up liking The Unforgiven , as Raze had known she would. He couldn’t explain how he knew, it was just there. It was as if she had a rhythm to her, a unique tempo that resonated perfectly inside him. And he’d liked Gabriel , as she’d suspected he would.

Synergy, he thought, tightening his arms around her. He lay stretched out on her sofa, barefooted and comfortable. She was sprawled between his legs, her back to his chest, her arms crossed over his. Every breath he took smelled of her, that unique fragrance that was partly a soft floral perfume and mostly her natural essence.

He’d never experienced anything even remotely similar to this casual intimacy. Associations for him had always been necessities-he worked with his teams, he fucked the willing, and he relaxed alone. All of the Fallen had lost their souls when they’d lost their wings, one couldn’t exist without the other. But the rest of the Fallen had loved before they fell and he’d wondered if perhaps the ability to know love was something he could’ve only learned when he’d been whole. Perhaps he had missed his chance.

Clearly, he’d been wrong to think that way. He’d never understood the saying My heart’s not in it . Why did your heart need to be in anything? Do what you need to do. But now he knew. He’d enjoyed his work, sex, and his solitude, but his heart had never been in any of it. Until, perhaps, now.

Raze pressed a kiss to her temple, marveling at how drastically his life and outlook had changed in a mere day. “You know,” he murmured, “now we can say we’ve known each other days, as in plural.”