Miranda hesitated for a moment, her eyes searching mine as if looking for something. A reason to believe me?
“Never,” she said, her voice cold. “I suppose Ihaveto tolerate your presence for the sake of completing my mission, but nothing more.”
I couldn't help but grin at her stubbornness. It only made me want her more.
“Don't worry, sweetheart.” I reached up to smooth my thumb over her tense jawline. Her skin was like warm silk. “I can handle a little hostility.”
I knew that I was getting under her skin, but I wanted to get deeper. I wanted to dig into her heart and nest there for all eternity.
The way she now lived inside of me.
Miranda pushed my hand away so violently, I knew I was in danger of losing the appendage. “Touch me again, and I’ll show you hostility.” The way her teeth were bared promised violence.
That’s fine my little badass, as long as I get to be close to you. For now...
I nodded and shoved my hands in my pockets to keep from reaching out and doing it again. Rocking back on my heels, I asked with all the innocence in the world, “So when do we go hunting?”
Chapter 4
The Beast
“What in the hell are you wearing?” The whites of Miranda’s eyes nearly swallowed her dark irises as she stared at me, slack-jawed.
We agreed to meet in the Sinopolis lobby at dusk to go god hunting.
Looking down, I pulled out the edge of my shirt, checking to see if I got anything on my new purchase.
“What?” I asked, not seeing whatever horrified her. “You said to get a shirt and shoes.”
Miranda’s head slowly shook, the horror on her face fixed in place. “Andthatis what you chose?”
I frowned. “The shopkeeper said red was my color.” Plus, I liked the big white tropical flowers on the Hawaiian shirt.
It still felt strange to cover up. My clothes never lasted long when I was locked in my cell. My madness would drive me to claw at my own chest until I pulled out my own heart, deranged with the need for a death I could never reach. After a while, I stopped fighting my near constant state of undress. But Miranda had a point about regular people looking at me like I was crazy or dangerous.
I was, but they didn’t need to know that at first glance.
“He lied,” she said drolly, her face going flat, still scanning me from head to toe with open judgement in her eyes and twisted lips. “And anyone wearing socks with sandals should be shot on sight.”
My frown deepened. On that point I couldn’t entirely disagree. I’d modeled my look after the street vendor, and while I loved the bright cheerful colors and floral shirt design, the socks and sandals immediately proved to be impractical.
Miranda chewed on the inside of her cheek, irritation flashing in her dark eyes. “And could you at least button that thing the rest of the way up?”
Again, I glanced down. I’d only done half the buttons to offset the claustrophobia I felt at being covered so entirely. I settled on telling her a half-truth. “It’s hot.”
That wasn’t a lie. While summer was coming to a close, the days were only heating up carrying over into sweltering nights.
And I didn’t have to guess at why. The sun god’s presence was all around me, even if I didn’t know exactly where yet.
Miranda rolled her eyes at my reluctance to button up, shrugging her shoulders as if she suddenly felt uncomfortable. IfI didn’t know any better, I’d swear I saw a spark of lust in her eye before irritation drowned it out.
I followed her as we made our way through the bustling lobby and out onto the city streets. The sun had dipped below the buildings, casting a golden glow over the strange garish buildings on the Strip. I’d seen them in pictures and on video through the years, but I’d only been on the streets for a short time and the adjustment was… intense.
My teeth automatically gritted as my senses endured the onslaught of color, sound, and smells. A bachelorette group screamed in excitement as they passed by in an overwhelming cloud of different perfumes. An overweight, sweat-soaked family of tourists who stank of irritation and hunger trudged by, one of them clipping my shoulder with theirs without any follow up acknowledgement. Several poorly dressed men lining the street forced little slips of paper depicting barely censored naked women into my hands without so much as a smile. The irrational urge to retreat back to my cell yanked at my guts.
“You good?” Miranda asked. It took a second to pull my fractured senses together so I could focus on her. Eyebrow raised, Miranda looked genuinely concerned.
Keep it together Xander. Stay calm, stay cool, let her see how you’ve changed.
