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Thorn glanced at me with concern— the first time I saw that in his eyes.
“Problem?” he said.
“No. Yes. It’s warm to the touch, almost scalding. I’m afraid the stone would sink into my body without a barrier between us.”
“That really would be something, wouldn’t it? Two artifacts in your chest.”
The thought intrigued and terrified me at once. Already the Hand influenced my desires and behavior, as demonstrated by my near rape of Thorn in the limo. What would a second magical object do? Increase my abilities while turning me into a raving lunatic?
I managed a nervous chuckle. “What abilities do you think I’d gain from this one?”
He moved in and stroked the stone with one finger. “The stones don’tgiveabilities.”
“But my heightened eyesight and sense of smell. I didn’t have those before.”
“You’re a finder whose senses have always been supernatural.”
“But—” I can’t piece together what he’s saying. Was that because Thorn was so close, and his subtle but sexy cologne curled in my nose, enticing me to bury my face in his body? I can’t help but fixate on what it would be like to spend a weekend full-on succubusingThorn.
Stop, Elena. You cannot jump Mr. Sex-On-A-Stick.
I don’t have to jump him. Just licking his delicious all day-sucker—
“Am I interrupting you?” said Thorn dryly.
My cheeks flushed at my salacious thoughts, and I hoped Thorn didn’t catch a stray wisp of my lust through our connection. Lucky for me, he appeared unperturbed.
Bullet dodged.
“No. Sorry.”
“The stone artifacts are keys,” he said. “You are the lock. Each key unlocks part of you, and they are meant to work together. We must secure all the pieces to release the Hand from your chest. But no one’s ever had the courage to try. We don’t know what it would unlock.”
“So what does that make me? I don’t even have enough power to shift.”
He scoffed and shook his head. “Many creatures are more powerful, beautiful, and compelling than shifters. Why are you so dead set on being one?”
His question kicked up my discomfort in his presence.
“They’re all I’ve ever known, all I’ve ever endeavored to be.”
“But why, when they aren’t fit to drag your dinner to you?”
I blinked, looked into this cool, collected, and sophisticated man’s eyes, and saw reflected not a failed shifter but a powerful woman with talents and abilities. I swallowed hard. This was the first time that anyone, aside from Chastity, looked past what I couldn’t do to what I could.
And it was a freeing and terrifying thought. Thorn’s eyes demanded I live up to my potential, not default into a victim’s role.
Holy shit.
“Fine. I see your point. I suppose you’re the first preternatural person I’ve met who doesn’t fit the conventional mold. You’re not in a pack and don’t care to be. It’s new to what I’ve always thought I should aim for.”
He nodded toward the stone in my hand.
Back to business, then.
“Can you crack it open?”
I tried squeezing the stone, but it didn’t shatter. I threw it into the fireplace's masonry, but it bounced out and landed on the floor.
