Page 68 of Queen of Tempests and Sin

And those sea-green eyes were fixed solely on me.

The crowd blurred, sound muffling until there was only the violent pound of my pulse and that look—hungry, unyielding… obsessive.

Fuck. He’d found me.

He rose from his chair, every movement coiled strength and liquid power, oozing into the room until the bar itself seemed to brace around him. With lethal elegance, he carried the same inevitability as the scent of rain before a monsoon—an omen and a promise. My pulse spiked in warning, heat unfurling low in my belly even as my mind snarled run… but Gods help me, my body didn’t want to.

The crowd seemed to thin as he moved, conversations dulling to a background hum. His presence devoured the air, thick and oppressive, pulling every eye in the room towards him without effort. When he finally stopped in front of me, he was too close—his height blotting out the low amber light, the storm in his eyes locking me in place.

‘Little Red,’ he murmured, voice a dark purr meant for me alone. The sound licked over my skin, hot and infuriating.

I lifted my chin, forcing my voice past the knot in my throat. ‘You shouldn’t be here.’

A slow, wolfish smile curved his mouth, as if my defiance only stoked the fire. ‘And yet… here I am.’

He stopped just shy of brushing against me, but his presence pressed in all the same—hot, relentless, and suffocating. His gaze devoured me, roaming my face, lingering on my mouth, before dragging lower in a way that made my skin prickle with fury and want in equal measure.

‘You ran,’ he said softly, like it was a private sin only the two of us knew about.

I clenched my jaw. ‘I needed air. Space… You don’t own me.’

His hand lifted, not quite touching my face, but hovering close enough for the heat of him to ghost along my skin. ‘I never let go of what’s mine.’

The words sliced through me, half a threat, half a promise. My body betrayed me again—heart stuttering, thighs clenching, heat pooling low—while my mind screamed to slap him across that smug, beautiful face.

‘You arrogant—' My retort caught in my throat when his gaze flicked to my mouth again, a squall breaking loose in those sea-green eyes. The world narrowed to him, to me, to the electric crackle between us that was moments away from combusting.

And then— ‘Everything alright here, Cordie?’

Jerry’s gravelly voice cut through the tension like a bucket of cold water. The bouncer loomed beside us, arms crossed, his presence broad and solid as a brick wall. His eyes flicked between us, narrowing on Poseidon with the wary precision of a man who’d thrown more than a few cocky blokes out on their asses.

Poseidon’s head turned slowly, his gaze cutting to Jerry with the weight of an oncoming tempest. The air around us shifted, charged and restless, the tense heartbeat before lightning splits the sky. His jaw flexed once, twice, the muscle ticking with dangerous restraint.

I knew that look. One wrong word from Jerry and the entire bar would be swimming.

‘Si,’ I said quickly, forcing brightness into my tone as I touched his arm, grounding him. Those beautifully dangerous eyes flicked to me, and for a heartbeat, I swore I saw the swell of waves crashing against a shore. ‘Why don’t you buy me a drink?’

Jerry’s brows shot up, but I kept my smile firmly in place as I angled my body towards the bar, sliding in between them like a human shield. ‘It’s been a long day, and I could use something strong. Whisky. Neat.’ I gave Poseidon a look that said play along or else.

His nostrils flared, his gaze still pinned on Jerry like a predator reluctant to leave its prey, but then, slowly, he leaned closer, his lips brushing the shell of my ear. ‘Only because you asked so nicely,’ he murmured, voice dark velvet and full of warning, before striding towards the bar to signal the barman.

I exhaled in relief, my pulse pounding as I threw Jerry a tight smile. ‘It’s fine. Really. He’s… intense, but harmless.’ He was so not harmless.

Jerry grunted, unconvinced. ‘Yeah, well, just holler if Mr. Cheekbones there forgets how to treat a lady.’ I gave him a tight smile.

Poseidon turned with two tumblers of whisky as I reached the bar, the amber liquid catching the dim pub light. He handed me mine with a deliberate slowness, his fingers brushing mine, his eyes locked on me as if he was daring me to look away.

‘Neat. The best they have,’ he murmured, his mouth curving into the kind of smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

I raised the glass to my lips, buying myself a moment, and took a sip. The burn slid down my throat, settling me, but his gaze was more intoxicating than the whisky. I forced a smirk. ‘Trying to charm me with top-shelf liquor, Si? That’s a weak strategy.’

He leaned against the bar, close enough that I could feel the heat rolling off him. ‘Not trying to charm you, Little Red.’ His voice was low, intimate, threaded with steel. ‘I’m reminding you that no matter where you run, I’ll find you.’

My pulse jumped, a traitorous flutter in my chest. I tilted my head, feigning nonchalance, though my grip on the glass was too tight. ‘Sounds a lot like stalking.’

‘Sounds a lot like truth.’ His mouth quirked in a dangerous smirk as he took a slow sip of his drink, eyes never leaving mine. ‘You can drink your whisky, pretend I’m not here, pretend you’re not mine, but we both know the second you walk out that door, I’ll be walking beside you.’

Heat dripped low in my belly, damn him, but I masked it with sarcasm. ‘You’re really bad at this whole “giving a girl space” thing, you know that?’