Chapter Three
“Think you can hide from me out here?” Jamie Angel stepped onto the upstairs balcony, where Sunny had been sitting for a few minutes. She loved the bubbling sounds of the creek and marsh.
For the end of December, it was an unusual y mild evening, and the light breeze from the water was soothing.
And, yes, she had been completely avoiding Jamie for hours, the balcony only her latest effort in that battle. He was too hot, too sexy, and way, way too dangerous. That, and he’d made an obvious point of trying to pursue her ever since brunch. The long afternoon had stretched into early evening, with the holidays clearly making everyone relaxed. Around three p.m., Mason had broken out the margarita machine he’d received as a Christmas present from Shay, and now pretty much everyone was feeling a little bit toasty.
Jamie sprawled into a wicker chair beside her, draining the last of his margarita. “You didn’t answer me, Sunny.” He propped his booted feet up on the balcony railing, tilting his chair back onto two legs in a relaxed, sexy posture. “You’ve been avoiding me,” he observed. “Why?”
“Because you’re a bad boy and I know your kind.” She shifted in her own chair, knowing she should leave, yet finding that she lacked the wil to do so.
“What happened to me being a pussy cat?” He said the last word with a wicked grin.
She rol ed her eyes. “You just proved my point most elegantly.”
He smiled at her, and for once it didn’t seem manufactured or intended to accomplish anything.
And it absolutely melted her heart. To see a glimpse of the real Jamie, for just a moment, affected her more strongly than any of his flirtation or innuendo ever could. There was genuine sweetness there. She sensed that he hid it from almost everyone in his life—and that he guarded his heart just as vigilantly.
After a long moment during which it seemed their gazes were locked, neither able to look away or stop smiling at the other, he faced forward again. Reaching in the pocket of his denim jacket, he retrieved a cigar and slowly began trimming it.
“You mind?” he asked as an obvious afterthought, gesturing with the cigar.
She shook her head and rose to her feet. “I was just about to go inside anyway.”
As she started to walk past him, Jamie blocked her exit with his left leg, trapping her close against him. “Not so fast, Sunny Renfroe.”
There was danger in his tone, but as she looked down into his light green eyes, there was a heap more flirtation.
“I have plans for us,” he said, and before she could blink, he reached out and ran one hand along her upper thigh. Slowly he stroked her there, his touch so lingering and sensual that her eyes watered. “Yep, you’re as good as I thought you’d be,” he whispered throatily. “Better.”
She should’ve shoved him out of the way; she should’ve hightailed it to the other side of the veranda. Instead, she stood mesmerized, feeling her skin practical y burn as he caressed her leg again, a little higher.
“Why you been avoiding me, huh?” He gazed up at her through slightly lowered lashes. “I’m beginning to think you don’t like me very much.”
His fingertips rode up beneath the hem of her short skirt. Her breathing increased and her heart thundered so hard that blood rushed in her ears.
“But you do like that. I can tel .” His beautiful eyes became fil ed with desire. “So do I.”
When his fingertips snaked their way much higher, nearing the edge of her panties, Sunny came back to her senses. Taking hold of his hand, she forced it from underneath her skirt. “Jamie . . .
you need to stop . . . now.”
“Why?”
For Jamie, it undoubtedly was that simple: If you liked someone or were attracted to them, you hooked up. No attachments, no entanglements, just pure, uncomplicated pleasure.
Not in her world.
He continued staring into her eyes, waiting for some kind of answer, and only then did she realize that their fingers had become entwined, neither of them letting go. “Because I don’t even know you.”
“But you could. . . .” He gave her a suggestive glance. “In fact, it’s downright biblical. To ‘know’
me. Very Old Testament, since that was the euphemism they chose.”
She flushed. “That’s disrespectful.”
“God invented sex,” he said matter-of-factly. “I happen to believe in God and in great lovemaking. I don’t see a conflict of interest.”
Oh, for me there’s one, she thought, trying to stil the crazy tempo of her heartbeat and breathing.
“Wel ,” she said on an unsteady exhale, “I don’t believe in having sex with someone I just met.”
He gave her a ravishing smile, his deep dimples popping into view. “Now, that, Sunny Renfroe, is a ful -on crying shame.”
He released her hand and turned to light his cigar. Instantly she missed the warmth of his touch, the heat that he’d been stoking inside of her. Stupidly, she had the urge to cry out, Never mind.
Let’s start over! But the moment had been lost.
Jamie puffed on the cigar, blowing the smoke away from her. It curled into the dim light coming from inside the house. He leaned back in his chair again, and it threw him into the shadows. Sunny hated not being able to see him clearly. He had some of the most beautiful human eyes she’d ever seen, so bright, so vivid, especial y the way they contrasted with his natural y golden skin.
“So how long does it take, then?” he asked casual y.
“For what?”
“Until we’ve known each other long enough to have sex. For me to seduce you properly. A few hours? A couple of days? A week? Because I’m a very determined man. You should know that.”
Sunny leaped to her feet. “I’ve gotta go.”
“Oh, come on, sugar bug. Don’t be like that. I’m not trying to scare you off. Sit down and hang out with me for a while. Tel me why it is you’ve been here most of your life, but I’ve never met you.”
Sunny stood, frozen, trying to decide whether she dared risk staying, because Jamie did scare her—tremendously so, but not because she thought he’d ever harm her. Not that he could overpower her if he tried, not with her otherworldly abilities. It had al been in that one look he’d given her, the hidden sweetness that al his bravado and flirtation masked. Her heart had flipped over inside her chest, her breathing had grown shal ow—and she’d known she could fal in love with him. Quickly, swiftly, tumbling al the way down as she fel .
And caring for any human in that way was strictly forbidden.
“Jamie, I real y need to go back inside right now,” she said, starting toward the porch door.
“Oh, come on and take a load off.” Jamie wrapped one strong arm about her waist and brought her right down onto his lap before she could even react.
She found herself leaning into a chest that was hard and muscular, her own soft breasts pressing far too close against his strength. His breath was warm on her cheek, and although she expected him to try to kiss her, he did something far more surprising. He reached out and caught one of her curls between his fingers, his breath hitching momentarily.
“God, you know what’s amazing about you?” he murmured. “I love your hair. It’s beautiful. Wel , I mean . . . if I had to isolate just one thing, it would be your eyes. I could lose myself in your eyes, Sunny. But I do love these curls.”
Very gently, almost tenderly, he began stroking her hair, as if he meant to soothe away her fears of him, her anxiousness about what he was asking for.
He looked deep into her eyes, and although it was dark, she could see intensity in the depths of his gaze, almost as if he were searching for something. Only then did she realize she’d begun trembling slightly. He frowned. “Hey, now. I won’t hurt you, sweetheart. I’m al meow, remember?”
She splayed an unsteady hand against his chest. “I forgot about the possibility of teeth and claws.”
“Nah, I don’t bite and I don’t scratch. Wel . . .” He laughed low in his throat. “That is, I’l stick to the parts you want nibbled and toyed with.”
Her eyes slid shut. “Jamie, I . . . I’m not used to this.”
“Being held by a man who wants to give you pleasure? A gorgeous thing like you? I find that impossible to believe.”
“Trust me.”
“Now, see, you don’t seem to trust me. Am I coming on too strong? Or is it an issue with me in particular? Because from where I’m sitting, you on my lap and my arms around you, I wouldn’t be anywhere else right now. And what is that perfume? You have the most unusual scent al over your skin. It makes me want to taste you.”
“Jamie!” She pushed at his chest in frustration. “You are coming on too strong. Way too strong.”
“And yet you’re stil sitting squarely in my lap. I don’t see you rushing to escape.” He held his hands up in surrender. “And I’d hate for you to go, but maybe that’s best. So long as you promise I can see you again.”
She shook her head, turning away from him, and stil didn’t move from atop his lap. “I’m not . . .
not experienced. Idon’t...I can’t do this. Okay? Please just let me go.”
He cupped her cheek, slowly urging her to face him. For a long moment, he looked into her eyes. “Sunny, baby, how is that possible?”
“You’re the one who didn’t think I was even human,” she said, distress mounting. His myriad signals were confusing, the way he vacil ated between seduction and teasing and now gentleness.
She found it harder and harder to sort out his intentions.
“Wel , are you?”
“You’ve had your hands al over me. Don’t I feel human?”
He caressed her cheek. “You feel soft and beautiful and warm.” He sighed, his eyes drifting shut. “Good Lord, you feel . . . like everything I need.” Slowly he encircled her in his arms, holding her close, like a treasure.
He made her whole body burn with those words and his touch, but he didn’t confirm that he’d let go of his suspicions. She had to break contact before he used his famed hunting skil s to deduce what she real y was.
“You should let me go,” she insisted.
He took one long puff on his cigar, studying her, but not releasing his hold on her body. “You’re sure?”
“Please.”
Releasing her gently, he helped her back to her feet with polite grace. Straightening her clothes, she took a step toward the French doors that led to the home’s interior. But before she could open them, Jamie was behind her, pressed close to her body.
His warm breath brushed against the nape of her neck. “I’l give you an hour to reconsider,” he whispered seductively. “I’m not in the habit of begging, but I want you something fierce, Sunny Renfroe. I promise I won’t hurt you, and I won’t dishonor you . . . but I wil make you feel things you’ve never known before. If you’re wil ing to risk al of that, meet me down by the creek in exactly an hour. Look for the glass gazebo to the right of the dock. I’l be there waiting for you. Don’t disappoint me . . . please.”
She turned to look at him, but he was already moving back into the shadows.
He’d basical y begged her to come to him. What was he thinking? It was like he’d temporarily lost his mind around the woman, become enchanted.
Jamie stared through the glass porch doors and watched Sunny hurry toward the sofa where Shay and Kate sat. She kept neatening her hair, her clothes, and he smiled at how shy she real y was. She hadn’t been lying about her lack of experience; he was sure of it. But as she sat down stiffly between his sister and Kate, he panicked slightly. Was she going to tel them what he’d just done? If she did, there was no way she’d ever show at the gazebo, and that disappointed him fiercely—and not just because he wanted to ferret out her true identity.
He hadn’t expected her innocence to seduce him. Now he wanted to give her everything he’d just promised . . . and much, much more. If he learned her true nature in the process, that would be an extra bonus, but it was no longer his main desire or concern.
Shay turned to Sunny, saying something, and he held his breath, wondering if Sunny would confess al . Wel , it wasn’t like Shay or Kate should be surprised. He was Jamie Angel, after al , and if they expected him to avoid Sunny Renfroe, then his little sis shouldn’t have suggested he might find the woman appealing.
He turned, not wanting to see whether Sunny blabbed about his proposition . . . or his failed seduction attempt. With a heavy groan, he leaned against the side of the porch and closed his eyes. His entire body was on fire, absolutely burning for Sunny. Tonight was supposed to be about subterfuge, about unlocking al her clever mysteries. Instead? He was ful y fucking smitten with the female. Not good.
Beyond that, he was harder than stone inside his jeans, which meant the next hour would be painful y slow—if she even showed at the gazebo. Reaching between his legs, he rubbed scraping denim against his erection, aching for Sunny with downright frenzied intensity. No woman in years had affected him so strongly and instantly.
Wait! That was it. He opened his eyes with a start, hand stil poised against his groin. No other woman had ever brought such heat into his body. Ever. She’d clearly placed some kind of erotic spel over him, proving her supernatural nature; otherwise he wouldn’t be wound so tight.
He would go to the gazebo, wait for her, and seduce her. Then, when he had her beneath him, he would pry the truth out of her.
Sunny hadn’t dared ask Shay or Kate what a glass gazebo was, and sneaking away from the party had taken some clever maneuvering. In the end, she’d said she wanted to walk down to the creek to get away from al the noise, and from the way Shay’s eyes had gleamed, her friend had clearly guessed what was really going on.
Shay had smiled broadly and warned her to be careful, which Sunny took to be more than a passing caution about her brother and his scoundrel’s ways.
Sunny had to be losing her mind to court the kind of danger that Jamie Angel was offering, and yet? She hadn’t found the strength inside herself to stay away. Despite the fact that she was violating every rule of her job description, even knowing that she might be seriously reprimanded, or even possibly lose her position, she couldn’t stop herself from fol owing the gorgeous, seductive man.
He wasn’t wicked; there was no guile in him. Yet he attracted her with his frighteningly powerful magnetism. Al her years and she’d kept herself pure. What would her supervisors say? They answered to God, and none of her kind was supposed to mingle sexual y with humans. Ever.
So here she stood at the end of the dark, tree-lined path, staring at the distant shape of what had to be the glass gazebo. She’d used her own radiance to find the way in the dark, but that wouldn’t do now that Jamie might see, so she lifted her cel phone and used it to il uminate her path. The moon was overhead, too, but it was only a sliver, so while it definitely set the atmosphere, it didn’t provide much brightness.
Stepping careful y, she neared the structure; it appeared almost Japanese in design, which seemed at odds with the antebel um style of the home. She’d seen something like it before, but couldn’t think where. She was about to search for a door, when Jamie opened one for her, peering out at her. In shadowy relief, he seemed much larger, like a massive, solid sculpture, and she hesitated.
He answered by seizing hold of her wrist and tugging her inside the gazebo with him, closing the door tight behind them both. They fel against the glass panes, instantly in each other’s arms.
“You came to me,” he breathed in the darkness.
“Wel , you asked so nicely.” She laughed, and he pul ed her much closer. She could hear his heart’s fast, aroused tempo beneath her ear.
“You make me want to be nice.”
“Which is so much better than naughty.”
“Now, that, my darling, depends entirely on what kind of naughty you’re talking about.” He traced the length of her nose with his fingertip, studying it intently. “Anyone ever tel you that you’ve got an adorable nose?”
She burst out laughing. “Okay, I’m thinking you aren’t nearly so smooth as you think you are!
Talking about my nose, Jamie Angel.” She giggled some more, especial y when he looked genuinely offended for a moment.
“Cutting down my moves now, are you?”
“I have a silly nose, so you were real y reaching.” She’d always thought it turned up just a little bit too much.
He bent down and very sweetly kissed her there. “It’s got an attitude. It says, ‘I’ve got pluck and determination.’ ”
“My nose tel s you that?”
“Uh-huh. And it tel s me to do this, too.” Without asking permission, without a word or a sound beyond a low groan, he covered her mouth with his own. It was an un-apologetic kiss, a commanding one, and he pressed her tighter against his chest.
Before she could stop herself, before she could consider the potential reprimands—or trouble with heaven itself—she opened her mouth eagerly to him. He slipped his tongue between her lips, creating a circular, slow pressure, until she dared to reciprocate the motion. Something changed right then, a next level of heat and fire passing between their bodies.
This kiss . . . was more than a kiss—it had to be. It was a kind of claiming, with Jamie moving his hands into her hair, twining his fingers al in it, even as he pressed her up against the glass door. He used his hips to pin her there, and she gasped when she felt his very hard erection push into her bel y.
He broke the kiss, moving his mouth to her neck. “What’s wrong?” he murmured, lowering his head until his lips were against her throat. He began suckling and nibbling there, then, with a laugh, released a husky meow.
She dragged at the air, trying to find her balance. I felt your manhood, and it scared me . . .
made me want you even more.
“I’m afraid,” she admitted quietly, aware that she’d begun shaking slightly.
He kissed the column of her throat, trailing wildfire across her skin. He stil ed, his mouth poised against her col arbone. “Won’t hurt you,” he rumbled. “Trust me.”
“I don’t know what to do.”
“Baby. Baby. You are doing everything I want or need,” he said, then flicked his tongue against her throat, licking her there.
With a trembling hand, she reached up and stroked his hair, leaning against the door to steady herself. He moaned slightly at her gentle gesture, nuzzling her, then turned his cheek until it rested in her palm. In that moment she realized he real y wasn’t a threat, or anywhere near as tough as he wanted the rest of the world to believe. It was just as she’d sensed on the veranda earlier: He possessed a very tender, gentle streak that he did his best to hide from everyone around him.
She’d done her research on him before today, and knew that he’d seen the darkest side of the universe as a result of being a hunter. Maybe that had caused him to put those wal s up, or maybe he spent al his bravery in the field, and protected himself in love. That thought fil ed her chest with painful loneliness, a palpable sadness for the emptiness he lived with. She ran her fingers through his hair even more tenderly, wanting to soothe away al his monsters.
“You feel so right, Sunny Renfroe,” he whispered in reaction. “And nobody ever feels right in my arms.”
She stil ed, instinctively knowing that he’d just made a very deep, intimate admission, maybe without even ful y realizing it. Her eyes teared up suddenly at the idea that this strapping, gorgeous man—this battler of demons and the forces of darkness—clearly felt alone.
She caressed his cheek slowly, the heat between them simmering, briefly changing to something far more tender.
Just as quickly, the moment passed—or he forced it to. He stood upright, bracing both arms about her so that she was framed against the door. With a long, searching gaze into her eyes, he whispered, “I wish you’d become my lover tonight.”
Jamie stretched out on the wicker chaise longue that occupied the center of the glass house. He’d brought the chair out here after his mother’s death, when he’d needed a place away from his family, away from the Shades and the Spartans. Somewhere quiet where he could think. It faced the flowing creek and marsh grass, and late in the day he liked to amble out here and drink a glass of wine.
But he’d never, not once, invited a female to this place of sanctuary. That alone should’ve tipped him off that Sunny was bounding past any of his own protective wards, yet he kept trying to tel himself that it was al about identifying her supernatural nature. She didn’t feel evil and sure as heck didn’t taste it. She was the diametric opposite of al the nasty creatures he fought. But after years with the sight, a decade of hunting, he had to know exactly what she was. If she wouldn’t admit it, then he’d use his sensual skil s to pry the facts out of her.
The only problem with that little plan? He could feel himself fal ing fast and hard, which meant she wasn’t the only one who was scared.
He sprawled out on the chair and gazed up at her. She stood uncertainly beside him, arms folded tight across her breasts. He needed to make her laugh, get her to loosen up a little.
“You are sixteen going on . . .” he sang, laughing.
She swung her gaze to him, dark eyebrows quirking together in confusion. So he explained.
“Sound of Music .” He gestured about them. “They had one of these glass houses in that movie.
It’s why my mama wanted one. Daddy had it built for her before I was born.”
She smiled, a gorgeous beam of sunlight brightening up the night. Unexpected. Thril ing. He wanted to keep her smiling forever.
“I knew this place looked familiar. I love that movie.”
“Perhaps I should chase you around on the benches and twirl you in my arms, then.” He lifted an eyebrow. “Naked.”
Her smile faded and she wrapped both arms about herself again.
Her smile faded and she wrapped both arms about herself again.
Everything in her demeanor screamed virgin, and it made him feel guilty . . . but not for long. He wasn’t just after her identity. He’d meant what he’d said on the veranda—he wanted to give her more pleasure than she’d ever known. Wanted to see her react to his touch, glimpse the fire in her almond-shaped eyes as she lay beneath him and he stroked her deepest places.
She glanced away, toward the creek, looking uncomfortable, and that wouldn’t do at al . He reached for her hand, pul ing her closer to where he lay. “Sunny.”
She kept her gaze averted, even as their fingers threaded together. He could feel a light sweat on her palm, and he frowned. “Why are you so afraid of me?” he asked softly.
Final y, she met his gaze. Her own eyes fil ed with desire and heat and, yes, fear.
“Tel me,” he urged, sitting upright and taking her other hand.
“I’m not afraid of you.”
“Then what?”
“I’m afraid of me!” she cried impatiently. “I don’t know what to do.... You’re experienced and suave, and I . . . I stil want you, even though I shouldn’t.”
He broke out into a huge grin, his heart beating much faster. “That’s my girl.”
“No,” she insisted, disengaging her hand from his grasp. She looked up, as if searching for some answer from heaven itself. “I’m . . . not supposed to . . .”
He rose to his feet. “Is it a spiritual thing? You don’t think a good girl should have sex or something? I already told you where I stand on that one. God invented the act of making love.”
She shook her head again. “Not for me, He didn’t.”
He thought on that statement for a moment, trying to place it within any context that would explain what or who she truly was. He decided to go straight for broke, as he’d always been a gambling man.
“Sunshine, be honest with me, okay? Are you real y human?”
She pressed both hands to her face. “Please don’t ask me that again. Don’t push me anymore.”
At that precise moment, a flash of lightning rent the sky, throwing them both into staccato relief.
He caught a glimpse of her extreme dismay, a rivulet of dampness on her cheek.
Then al was dark again. It had to be a sudden storm, because the night sky had been clear only a few minutes earlier. Only, no storm, not even in the low country, came up this fast in December.
Again, bright light flashed, a peal of thunder vibrating the glass al around them. Sunny turned from him, head bowed.
Every emotion inside of him was at war—he yearned to comfort her, to make love to her, to interrogate her. Instead, he found himself stepping behind her and very gently wrapping his arms about her waist. Drawing her back against his chest, he simply held her.
“You don’t have to tel me,” he whispered in her ear. “It’s okay. We can take our time, too.
There’s more than tonight.”
He’d not promised a woman more than one night . . . ever.
Sunny stil ed in his arms, then shocked him by starting to laugh. “You can actual y go a little slow, scoundrel?”
He stroked her hair, smiling, and then kissed the top of her head. “Not normal y. But you’re not a normal girl.”
She sighed. He shouldn’t have pushed her again, not even subtly. Turning in his arms, she leaned her cheek against his chest. “I wish I were,” she said wistful y.
He angled his mouth to kiss her again, but lightning speared the darkness, seeming to suspend between them endlessly. That was the moment when he saw the massive, winged figure on the other side of the glass . . . staring at Sunny with eyes as bright as moonbeams.
“Uh, Sunny . . .” He cradled her head against his chest protectively, wanting to shield her.
“There’s something I should tel you.”
She nestled closer, seeming more comfortable in his arms. Now, of al the damned times.
“Mmm-hmm?” she inquired sweetly, eyes closed.
The creature shifted its headlight gaze and fixed it hard on Jamie. It was impossible not to see the intense disapproval, even as blinding as that glance was. Jamie pressed his eyes shut instinctively. That was no demon, and it certainly wasn’t a winged Spartan.
It was, however, a kind of being that Jamie had seen on rare occasions while fighting in the fiercest spiritual battles.
“Sunny, I real y need to know.... It’s important.” He paused, stealing a breath. “Your secret . . .
You wouldn’t happen to be an angel, would you?”