“Did you hurt Kevin Hall?”
The question was meant to put him on the defensive, he knew that. But he would not respond to that, because the answer was too complicated. He supposed they could stay here all night staring at each other, but he decided to break the impasse. “Look, Sofia, I’ll answer any other question you have about me—except about Kevin Hall.”
She hesitated but then spoke, “Where’s your fiancée?”
His—oh right. Damn Zac. “I don’t have one. I’m not engaged and I never was.”
Her lips pursed together. “Then why did Vrost lie?”
“To protect me and the company.” That was mostly true. “I’m about to take over for my father as CEO of a multi-billion-dollar company. He couldn’t let it out that I was, uh, partying in a nightclub in such a state. He didn’t want any official report on the incident. As you’ve probably guessed, my family and I are very private. We hate publicity.”
She seemed to contemplate his answer. “I guess that makes sense.”
Her question made him even more curious. “Now it’s my turn.” He slid closer to her, and her incredible scent filled his nostrils. She went still but didn’t try to move away. A good sign, and so he decided to address the other thing that went unacknowledged between the two of them, before all this business with Thomas Dixon. “Why did you keep coming back to Blood Moon after that night? No, don’t deny it—the bartenders knew who you were and that you didn’t seem like the typical clientele there.” She was human, something he seemed to have forgotten tonight.
Surprise flashed on her face, but she didn’t say anything, so he continued, “And why did you come with me to the roof deck at Blood Moon?”
She inhaled a sharp breath. “I was curious.”
“Curious about what?” Did she suspect anything about the existence of his kind?
“About … you.” Her shoulders tensed, then she turned her face away. “I wanted to see you again. To know if I imagined you or not.”
The confession struck him down like a hammer to the head. She wanted to see him. She came to Blood Moon for him. A primal part of him rose up, and all he could think about was her delicious scent, which was now wrapping around him like an embrace.
“Sofia. Sofia, look at me.” When she didn’t, he reached over to tip her chin towards him, and that familiar sizzle of electricity shot up his arm. “I thought I imagined you too.”
Slate gray eyes peered up at him. She was finally looking at him. “You did?”
“It was driving me crazy. Your perfume. Your eyes. I thought it was a dream.” He’d been half mad the entire time, but the smell of orange blossoms and olives had grounded him. “And when I saw you that next time, I knew I just had to have you.”
“Lucas.”
His name on her lips was like a siren’s call he couldn’t resist. He didn’t wait for her to react or protest as he snaked a hand around her slim waist and pulled her close, his mouth landing on hers. She shivered when their lips touched but yielded to him without hesitation.
When his tongue swiped across the seam of her mouth, she opened to him. Her taste was even better than her scent, and he craved more of her. To devour her. Possess her. Pulling her onto his lap, he made her straddle him. Her skirt rode up her thighs, and he slid his hands down to her pert ass, pushing her hips down so he could feel the heat of her against his growing erection. When she brushed against his hard-on, he moaned, and she pushed her own tongue into his mouth, sweeping inside and tasting him.
Fucking hell, she was magnificent. Her scent bloomed, filling his senses. He moved his hands up her waist to cup her breasts through her shirt. He normally went for curvy girls, but her tits were more than enough for him. He wanted to know what color her nipples were, though he already knew they would taste delicious. His fingers deftly undid the top buttons of her shirt and slid down under her padded bra. Damn, her nipples were already hard, and he rolled a tight bud between his thumb and forefinger making her gasp and pull back. When he tried to capture her mouth again, she evaded him and scrambled off his lap.
“No,” she said, shaking her head when he tried to reach out. “Why?”
“What kind of question was that? You know why.”
Her face was scarlet. “We can’t.”
He took hold of the anger rising in his chest. “What do you mean we can’t?”
“I’m a detective,” she said. “This is unprofessional. I shouldn’t have … gone back to Blood Moon.”
“I’m not a suspect anymore. And we’re two consenting adults.” She more than consented; he could still smell her arousal. “We can do what we want.”
“We just can’t, okay?” she bit out.
“Give me one good reason why not?” He raised his voice, but couldn’t help it. Even his wolf was mad, and he could feel it urging him on to make her theirs. It should have surprised him, since his wolf never cared about his other women before, but he was too frustrated, too angry to care.
“I …” She bit her lip and turned away. “We just shouldn’t.”
Then it dawned on him, the real reason why she pulled away. She still thought he was capable of cold-blooded murder. Maybe not Thomas Dixon, but her question earlier about Kevin Hall pretty much confirmed it. He was a fool for acting on his attraction to her. She was human, he reminded himself. She would never understand.
“Lucas—”
This time, his name from her mouth was like a dagger slicing through him. He leaned forward and rapped his hand on the barrier, signaling to Reyes to disengage the locks.
“It’s unlocked.” He didn’t look at her, only hearing her sharp intake of a breath before the door opened. When it slammed shut, he
