Or maybe I was simply too desperate to get even close to the woman whose narrowed eyes could have sliced through me.
The kerchunk of the overhead lights was as abrasive as the sudden blinding light. “No wonder you prefer them off,” she muttered, blinking against the assault. “And here I thought you were just playing at being Batman.” Miranda froze, her eyes widening. “I’m sorry, you probably don’t know who Batman is.”
I frowned. “Of course, I know who Batman is.”
Miranda waved a hand at my cage. “How? You don’t even have a toilet in here.”
Dammit, I had to suppress a smile again. “This is not the entirety of my quarters.”
Her brows furrowed and her luscious lips deepened into a pout.
I pointed at the elevator. “I get notified when someone is coming down to my level and come out to this.” I looked at the barren bars and sighed. “Greeting chamber.”
“So where are your quarters?” she asked, coming closer to me. Then she looked over her shoulder.
“Worried, sweetheart?” She should be. With so many deaths, it was easier to control my power. But that didn’t mean she was entirely safe. I was playing a dangerous game. But to protect the blade, it was worth it.
You won’t hurt her, I assured myself.
Her head snapped back to me. “Don’t call me that.”
“Afraid everyone is going to figure out the badass has a sweet heart?”
Miranda rolled her eyes.
As she did so, I lunged forward and plucked the blade of bane from her hands.
“Hey,” she cried out. “I wasn’t ready.”
Flipping the blade and offering the hilt back to her, I said, “That’s the point, sweetheart. Now why don’t you try to keep your hands on the most important weapon in the world and stab me if I come at you?”
“I don’t want to hurt you,” she said, taking the weapon back.
I blinked. “You kill me every day.”
Miranda shrugged, clearly uncomfortable. “That’s different.”
I stepped closer to her, forcing her to look up several inches to meet my eye. We were so close. I could taste the kiss from yesterday and it sent a hot rush through me. “Maybe I deserve it.”
Gods, was she really as painfully gorgeous as I believed, or had I just been away too long?
“I can be the judge of that, what did you do?” she said, her voice lowering. The moment somehow turned intimate.
Nothing separated us. I could sense her fear. But there was more than that. Excitement.
Was she thinking of that kiss yesterday as well?
My eyes lowered to those impossibly full lips. I regretted that I didn’t get to explore them more yesterday. I didn’t get to nibble on them. I didn’t get to push my tongue past her teeth and taste the depths of her already intoxicating mouth. But then my imagination started to take things further. There were more places on this hot little human I’d like to probe and penetrate.
This close, I heard her heart rate speed up. My mouth quirked, trying to hold back a smile.
“Well? Are you going to tell me why you deserve to be punished?” she asked, before licking her lips. She asked one question, but her energy was nothing but excited, inviting.
I snatched the blade as easy as taking candy from a baby and backed away with a teasing grin.
The seductive energy about her evaporated instantly. I shoved her right back into frustration and mission-mode.
“I’m going to teach you how to use this thing, so you don’t screw things up for both of us.” The words were meant to be menacing, a dire warning, but I couldn’t help my grin. I suddenly felt like I was a cat who’d been given a toy after eating a bunch of catnip.
