She looked around the neglected landscape as he took her coat from the backseat and draped it over her shoulders.
“Warm enough?” he asked.
She shivered, but not from the freezing cold winter’s day. When he took her hand, she expected him to lead her to the door, but instead he drew her into the forest.
“Where are we going?” she asked, her nerves getting the better of her.
Dusk was already creeping up on them in a deep shade of violet. In another few minutes, it would be dark.
She hung back. “Joss?”
He gave a gentle tug, pulling her behind him. “I want to show you something.”
Leaves and twigs crunched under her boots. Joss had to let go of her hand to move away branches in a dense part for her to pass. Even if she could’ve tried to run, she didn’t want to risk getting lost in the forest. It would be too difficult to find her way out in the dark, and there were plenty of wild boars around. Being ripped apart by a boar wasn’t a quick or merciful death.
Joss’s coat blended into the darkness of the forest. The distance between them stretched as he increased his pace. Only his hair was visible every now and then between the leaves.
She walked faster, following the sound of his footsteps, but she’d lost him from sight. Her breathing picked up. She hurried, going as fast as she could without tripping over the roots of the trees, until even the sound of his steps was quiet.
She stopped. Hugging herself, she turned in a circle. Where had he gone? Fear rippled down her spine. He couldn’t be far. She started walking again with her heart beating in her throat, following what she hoped was a trail. The last swatch of purple vanished from the sky. The forest was basked in complete darkness.
Leaves rustled somewhere above her. She froze, jerking her face toward the sound. A bird sitting on a branch flapped its wings and flew up into the sky. The noise tore through the quietness. A cricket chirped in alarm. She placed a hand over her heart.
“Joss?”
The only answer was the hoot of an owl. What was he doing? Why was he leaving her out here? It couldn’t be time already. Lupien would be close to Lamor, not out here. Wouldn’t he? She made her way forward carefully, feeling for sharp twigs in front of her face.
After another few minutes, a light appeared through the thick foliage. It was small and flickering, like the light of a candle. As she came closer, the silhouette of a small building became visible. The light she’d seen from the distance was a lantern that stood on the steps. More light streamed around the corners from the back, illuminating the Celtic crosses of a graveyard.
When she rounded the building, she stopped for a moment to catch her breath. The light illuminating the graveyard came from inside, shining through the broken plate glass windows of a chapel. It looked as if the woods had swallowed the stone building. Creepers climbed up the walls and over the roof. Once domesticated rose bushes now grew wild at the entrance.
She advanced slowly. Passing a tombstone angel, she almost tripped over the protruding root of a witch tree. She grabbed a branch to steady herself, and gasped when something pricked her finger. It burned with the sting of poison. Too late, she noticed the thorny parasite strangling the tree. A drop of blood pooled on the tip of her finger. As she shoved her other hand into her pocket for a tissue, a pair of strong arms folded around her from behind.
She parted her lips on a startled cry, but fingers threaded through her hair, tugging the strands to pull her head to the side, and before the scream could escape, warm lips caught the sound.
Joss.
A mixture of relief, fright, and anger, but also undeniable desire, made her knees weak as he turned her in his arms to rest snuggly against his chest. She sighed into the kiss. Grabbing her wrist, he held up her bleeding finger and slipped his tongue inside her mouth. It was hard to think or resist when his lips molded hers with such expert skill.
He moved his hand down her back, pressing her body against his and deepening the kiss. Her moan only spurred him on. She was bent backward into an uncomfortable position, but when she tried to free herself, he tightened his fingers around her wrist and threw an arm around her waist. Picking her off her feet, he carried her to a tree and braced her back against the trunk. He allowed her a moment to breathe, raking his teeth down her neck before nipping her shoulder. In a lustful, mindless act, she flexed her hips to find relief for the aching spot between her thighs.
He lifted his head to stare down at her. His silver eyes shimmered in the light that came from the chapel as he inspected her hand. “You’re bleeding.”
“Just a prick from a thorn. Where did you go?” She wouldn’t admit she’d been frightened out of her wits or how relieved she was he’d come back.
“Let me kiss it better,” he said, holding her eyes as he brought her finger closer.
She couldn’t tear her gaze away as he sucked on her finger, his tongue circling the tip.
He was never easy to read, but the startling intensity with which he studied her sparked her concern. However, the desire he ignited was an effective distraction, muddling her thoughts. She was panting when he finally pulled her finger free.
“Better?” he asked, lust thick in his voice.
“A bit,” she lied.
“Do you know what this
