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Her eyes flare wide, and her chest rises and falls as her breath catches in her chest.
I watch her closely as I continue. “A desire so hot you’re burning from the inside out, and only more heat can quench that longing?”
With my elevated senses, I can hear her heartbeat accelerate.
“No time to find a bed, no time to even fully undress. Just up against a wall, the rough texture chafing your body, but you barely notice because you just need to join with that other person, fully and completely?”
Ven chews on her lower lip. Our hips are lightly brushing against each other, and our torsos are inches apart. She’s wearing a short sundress that would be so easy to hike up around her hips…
“I’ve felt that, yes,” she says, her voice several octaves lower than it usually is, sultry and velvety. “But when I want something, I make sure to do it right. I take my time.”
My adrenaline spikes. Her words in that sexy-as-hell voice are making me hard.
“No cheap fuck in an alleyway with mold and trashcans. Outdoors, sure, but somewhere with trees, or the beach. It’s worth the wait to get the location right, somewhere you can fully worship each other. All. Night. Long.” She ends on a whisper that hangs in the air between us, hot and full of promise.
Sweat breaks out along my skin like it had on the dance floor. How is she doing this? Not only is she immune to my magic and my best lines, but now she’s turning the tables? On me?
The moment is broken as the couple emerges from the alleyway, giggling and stumbling. Those drugs, whatever they are, are hitting them fast. They weren’t that out of sorts before.
They barely notice us as they stagger past, heading, it appears, for another club a block away. I don’t look back at Ven, I just turn abruptly and follow them down the street. I’m not sure I trust myself with her right now. I’m the one who is wanted, not the one who wants. This witch is not going to conquer me. I take a deep breath and force myself to focus.
Sure enough, the couple steps into the club up ahead. They beeline to the bar for drinks, and I get another round for me and Ven, too. This club is even larger than the previous one, and more packed, so it’s harder to keep track of our targets, but easier to blend in. After downing their drinks quickly, the couple hits the dance floor. Ven and I find a table with a good view of them, and then it becomes a waiting game.
“Good goddess, I didn’t know anyone could dance this long without a break,” Ven groans after two hours.
“I’m surprised they aren’t dead yet,” I say with a shrug. “Those drugs must be pretty hard core.”
“Wait, look over there,” Ven says, pointing off to the side, away from the dance floor.
I follow her gaze. The same two tusked dudes from La Ola. They must have followed us over here at some point.
“I want to try something,” Ven says.
She has a determined look on her face, and she strides off before I can respond.
“What are you…” I call, but she’s walking so fast she’s out of range already. I head after her before I lose her in the crowd.
As she walks, a shimmer of magic moves over her. Her red hair turns to blonde, her height increases a few inches, and her skin darkens a bit. She’s just glamoured herself. What on earth is she up to?
She heads straight for the dealers. I have a feeling she’s about to blow our cover big time. I move to grab her wrist from behind, but someone jostles into me, spilling vodka all over my shirt.
“Sorry, man!” the drunk college kid mumbles.
I step around him, but it’s too late. Ven—who no longer looks like Ven at all—has stopped directly in front of the dealers. If I join her now, my cover is blown, too. At least they don’t know what she really looks like. I hang back in the sea of bodies, watching and waiting.
It doesn’t take long. Just the sight of her has both dealers staring like they’ve seen a ghost. Their eyes widen and their mouths fall open. One of them opens and closes his jaw a few times as if trying to form words. Ven just turns and melts back into the crowd.
I push through the throng of people to tail her. She goes around a large pillar with a potted palm next to it, and when she comes out the other side, she’s dropped her glamour and looks like herself again. She pauses and looks around for me.
When I catch up to her, I cross my arms over my chest. “Tell me next time before you try something, okay?”
Her lips take on a slight pout. “I just needed to be sure—one hundred percent—that we were on the right track.”
“This is my job, remember?” I growl. “You have trust issues. Has anyone ever told you that?”
“Yes, and I have my reasons,” she says, glaring back at me. Her expression morphs into a smug expression. “But my glamour paid off. Those men—they’ve seen Luciana. And seeing her again, or so they thought, really freaked them out.”
“Well, loop me in next time before you go off half-cocked. Since you got the confirmation you needed, maybe you can have some faith in me now. Xander paired you with me for a reason.”
