Cynful

Julian pretended to think about it for a moment before shaking his head.

“Jeez. It’s like talking to a three-year-old.”

“A three-year-old wouldn’t be trying to shove his hands down your pants.” Julian stopped dancing long enough to rub his shin. Those pointy red shoes were hard on the anatomy.

“Jules!”

Julian stood and grinned at Jamie and Marie Howard. They’d dressed as a cowboy and a sexy cowgirl. Damn, he’d have to buy Cyn a pair of chaps. He wondered how Jamie felt about his mate wearing them with nothing more than a pair of boy shorts under them. “Nice party!”

“Nice kick.” Marie high-fived Cyn, the fringe of her short, tummy-bearing vest swinging with her movements. Julian was definitely begging Jamie for the name of the shop he got that outfit from.

“What if Julian didn’t deserve the kick?” Jamie patted his wife’s butt.

Marie shrugged. “Does it matter?” She winked at Cyn and accepted her fist bump.

“Ah. He has a penis, therefore he’s the enemy. Gotcha.”

Marie swatted her mate’s arm. “I’m not that bad.”

Julian smiled at the love between them. Marie had a strained relationship with Emma and Becky, and therefore Max and Simon, but he had no idea why. She seemed like a perfectly nice woman to him.

“Be good, you.” She wagged her finger in her mate’s face, but he merely grinned. She turned on Julian and wagged her finger at him as well. “You too.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

The Howards danced away, already greeting other guests.

“Liar,” Cyn whispered in his ear.

He cupped her ass again and braced for impact. “Yes, ma’am.”

Cyn tossed the wig in the backseat of Julian’s car and sighed. She’d agreed to let him take her home, but only that. The man had barely reached first base, and she had every intention of keeping him there for a while, no matter how good his hands felt. After all, they hadn’t been dating long enough for second yet. “God, my feet hurt.”

“So does my shin.”

She grinned. That should teach him to keep his hands where she could see them. Besides, he was adorable when he pouted.

“Going to invite me in?”

That deep, dark tone always sent a shiver down her spine, but Cyn stiffened it. She wasn’t going to give in to him that easily. Julian would have to work to earn the right to bite her. “Nope.”

“Damn.” His hand drifted to her thigh. “Have I mentioned I like your costume?”

“Maybe.” She pushed his hand down to her knee. She wasn’t opposed to him touching her. In fact, she’d love to do more than touch, but Cyn wasn’t easy. It was going to take Julian more than a date or three to get her boy shorts off.

That wicked gleam was back in his eye, and she just knew something outrageous was going to pop out of his mouth. “How do you feel about role-playing?”

Cyn bit her cheek to keep from laughing. Role-playing, huh? “Well, Rolemaster was a bitch to learn because of all the Companion books, plus you needed a physics calculator just to figure out your stats.” The car swerved as Julian jerked, his expression shocked. “Some versions of Dungeons and Dragons weren’t too bad, but Star Wars seriously sucked unless you were a Jedi.” She tapped her fingernail against her lips. “Wait, did you mean pen and paper or online RPGs, because—”

His expression had gone completely blank. “Oh, my god. You’re a geek!”

“Yup.” She waited for the usual explosion she got when she revealed her secret life as a (gasp!) nerd. Most of the guys she dated either laughed their asses off at her, thus ending any chance they had of getting into her boy shorts, or simply stopped calling. What self-respecting man wanted to date a tattooed geek? If anything were capable of scaring Julian off, this would be it.

“That is so fucking hot.” His gaze had turned reverent, those brown eyes sparkling with laughter.

Apparently one freaky Bear did. Cyn’s jaw dropped. “I’m sorry. What did you just say?”

He grinned at her and pulled to the curb before turning in his seat to face her. “What online game do you play?”

She blinked. He couldn’t be serious. Could he? “Which one do you think?”

“I’d say DDO, but I’m betting it’s World of Warcraft. Eve Online would be too boring for you. Not enough action.”

She nodded before she could stop herself. “Wait. You play?”

“Yup.”

“You.”

“Yes.” He was looking confused.

Good, because so was she. “Mr. Shits-in-the-Woods.”

“Hey! I only do that when I’m fuzzy. And I have high speed Internet in my cave, thank you very much. Why, recently, I installed a dorm fridge right next to my sleeping furs.” He crossed his arms and glared at her.

“Fine. Yes, WoW, and I play a paladin.”

He blinked, then grinned. “I play a warlock.”

“Pfft. Of course. It all makes sense now. You’re a spell-caster.” Cyn sneered at him good-naturedly.

“Oh yeah. Because it takes serious brains to beat the bad guys with a huge metal stick.” Julian rolled his eyes in disgust.

Cyn studied her nails. “Oh look, I’m a big, bad warlock. I think I’ll give myself a mani-pedi while my summoned pet does all the work.”

“Yup. I named my pet Paladin.”

They glared at each other across the console. “Hmph.” Cyn relented first. “Maybe we could group sometime.”

“Oh, baby. I am so turned on right now.” Julian leaned forward and tried to steal a kiss.

Cyn added another bruise to his leg. She was really beginning to like these shoes.

“You’re mean.” Julian pouted as he put the car in gear and turned down her street.

“Yes. You have a problem with that?” She was fighting off a laugh. God, the man was such a goof! And he liked the same stuff she did, crazy though it was.

She was in such deep shit.

“Nope.” He pulled into her driveway and cut the engine. “I like it.”

She shivered. His deep voice had turned sultry, sexy as hell. She had goose bumps running down her arms. How the hell was she supposed to resist him when he spoke like that?

He leaned over the console and cupped the back of her head. She had learned to crave his taste in the short time they’d been dating. Cyn wasn’t one to give in to cravings just for the hell of it, but she was learning that Julian’s kiss was more than a craving. It was rapidly becoming an addiction.

Her heart beat faster as his lips drew near. She wanted his kiss more than anything, even more than she’d wanted Living Art. God, what was she supposed to do? Two weeks of dating and the man had her melted into a puddle of mindless goo.

His mouth came down on hers, gentle and patient, his tongue stroking her lips until she parted for him and allowed him inside. His taste hit her, made her shiver. Her nipples beaded beneath her padded bra, a new addition to her wardrobe thanks to a certain sexy Bear. It wouldn’t do to let him know that they went hard whenever he touched her. He kept it slow, languid, seducing her with his kiss, his hands staying exactly where he’d put them.

He was adhering to the rules she’d set down, and she’d never been more sorry in her life.

Julian broke the kiss and smiled down at her. His eyes were pure silver. “Let me walk you to your door tonight.”

Oh hell to the no. If Julian got to her door she’d invite him in, and she wasn’t ready for that. She swallowed