And then… it hit her.
CHAPTER 13
He exhaled.
A thin stream of warm air slipped through the hidden vents of his mask, barely more than a whisper against her mouth—yet it struck her like a force she had no defenses against.
Heat unfurled inside her with shocking speed.
It rushed outward, flooding her veins, her chest, her skin, her very breath.
The world shifted, brightened, sharpened—and then spun.
The scent hit her next.
Sweet.
Fragrant.
Musky.
Intoxicating.
A blend she had never encountered, something too primal to belong to Earth and too refined to come from any natural source. It surrounded her, wrapped around her, sank into her—an invisible storm crashing through everything she thought she understood about her own body.
Her fingers curled helplessly at her sides.
Warmth spread through her muscles, down her spine, pooling low in her abdomen. Her heartbeat skittered wildly, frantic and uneven, pounding against her ribs like it was desperate to escape.
Oh god.
A tremor rippled through her legs.
This was his venom.
She knew it as surely as she knew her own name.
Because nothing else could make her feel this way.
Her entire body vibrated on a raw edge between panic and something she refused to name.
Something that was warm and excited and…
Desperate.
Desperate—forhim.
The realization crashed into her with humiliating clarity. She wanted to reach for him, to touch him, to feel that powerful body and the heat rolling off the golden armor. She wanted to lean into him, bury herself in the strength that terrified her.
She wanted him.
The thought alone nearly buckled her knees.
No.
She clawed at that single word like a lifeline.
No. You cannot give in to this. Fight it. Morgan, fight it.
