She stood and took her plate to the sink, walking faster than she normally did. “I never thought about how hard it was to be you. I mean, having to live up to the Guard’s rep.”
She was going to change the subject, eh? “I thought it’d be easy to live down to a Fringe rep, but I can see how that might be hard. We both suffer from others’ prejudices.”
She made a snorting sound. “Yeah, but you’ve got it easier. People respect you as instantly and mindlessly as they denigrate me.”
He leaned back in his chair, regarding her. “And they assume you’re as uneducated and undisciplined as the rest of the Fringers. For example, I’ll bet most of them don’t use words like denigrate. Then again, Murphy used the word reprehensible right along with ain’t.”
For a moment she looked conflicted. “Society makes assumptions about us, and quite honestly, there are Fringers who perpetuate those prejudices. I simply choose not to. My mother homeschooled me and did a good job. I read a lot, and if I don’t understand a word, I look it up.”
How many people had denigrated Violet in her life? He hated the thought of it. He picked up his plate and joined her at the sink. She rinsed it, then put it in the dishwasher.
“Thanks for dinner. It was incredible.”
She shrugged. “We had to eat.”
They’d decided to stake out the Slade property given the pattern they’d seen in the red tacks: the inciting murders usually occurred near the property line. Unfortunately, they’d have to monitor the line between the Slades and the Stramaglias, the most vicious of the Fringe clans. Getting caught by either, with tensions already running high, would mean an attack first, questions later.
She looked down, then back at him. “What you said to me out there about sacrificing your nature for your career.”
“Never mind that.”
“And every time you did, bits and pieces of your soul were cut away. So how much of your soul, your true nature, is left?”
“I didn’t think there was much left. But I’m here, aren’t I?” The wild part of him tugged at the edges. “And I did tell you my fantasies, after all.”
“Mmm, that you did.”
“I’ve never told anyone my fantasies about being under a woman’s control.”
She looked surprised. “I’m sure you have women at your beck and call. Surely one would indulge you.”
He had to quell his grin. Was she fishing? “Sure, but the thing is, if I tell a woman about it, I’m essentially asking her to indulge me. She’s following my request.”
“I can see your…I guess you’d call it a dilemma. I thought you were making those fantasies up, just to rile me.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Did they?”
She met his look with one of her own. “I would never be riled by a Vega.”
Oh, she wanted to play that game, did she? He stepped closer, giving in to his wild side, brushing his thigh against hers. He drew a hand down the side of her neck to her collarbone. She sucked in a breath, and her lower lip trembled.
“Just like I’d never be riled by a Castanega.” He moved closer yet, his gaze on her mouth. “But here we are.” His other hand rested at her waist. He saw the flames in her brown eyes, and they touched off a fire inside him.
“Indeed.” She breathed deeply, her gaze dipping to his lips.
He touched his mouth to hers. She put her hands on his shoulders, instantly engaging him. Magick crackled over his skin the same way it did when he used it in combat.
Whoa, what was that?
She opened to him, and he plunged his tongue in, hungry for her. She let out a soft sound, snuggling her body into his. He squeezed her waist and then dragged his hands down her hips. He rubbed his knee up her inner thigh, drawing another deep breath from her. She pressed her pelvis against his thigh. She wanted him too, was just as helpless as he when it came to this crazy chemistry between them. The realization electrified his kiss. She clutched at him, ravaging his mouth back.
“Okay,” she said between kisses. “You proved your point.”
“What point?”
“That we can’t seem to resist each other.”
“I don’t care about any point.” He pinned her against the counter with his legs, grinding his pelvis into her stomach. Which created a delicious pressure between their bodies. She rocked back and forth, increasing the sweet agony.
