bedeviled & beyond 01 - bedeviled & beguiled Read Online Free Page B

you know what I mean. I had to force myself to concentrate on keeping the cross up. He just stared at me through almond shaped eyes that looked about ten miles deep. His devastatingly sensual gaze was cloaked in black velvet and ringed with pulsating rings of gold. His burnished black mane of hair fell around his square, golden jaw and touched his shoulders just where the barest, sexiest, little curl started at the ends.
    “Shit.” I shook my head and pinched myself with my free hand. “Get out of my head!”
    He laughed again. “But it’s nice in there.”
    “Get the hell out or I’ll vaporize you. I pulled the holy water out of my pocket and started unscrewing the cap.
    He raised large, square, hands in surrender and the woozy feeling began draining away from my mind. After a minute my body almost stopped tingling.
    He shook his head, causing the glossy, black mane to swing away from his shoulders. No, the tingling wasn’t entirely gone, but I wasn’t going to say anything because I was afraid it was me doing it this time and I didn’t want to embarrass myself.
    “It’s really too bad, I was enjoying our mating.”
    Forcing myself to ignore his effect on my body I shook my head and narrowed my eyes at him. “There was no mating going on, bud, not even a little bit.”
    He simply smiled at me in a way that made me doubt my own reality.
    “Not of the physical kind, of course, that will come later. But you must have noticed how our minds were drawn to each other. I haven’t felt that kind of attraction for quite some time.”
    To avoid thinking about what he was saying, I concentrated hard on the accent. Where had I heard it before? “Get over it, it’s not reciprocal.”
    He shrugged his broad shoulders. “Deny it if you will. It will do you no good.”
    “The Royal Court!”
    He cocked his dark head again. “I beg your pardon?”
    “You’re a member of the Devil Court.”
    “That is correct.”
    “And Deaver ran you out? I thought you royal devils were more powerful than that.”
    His laughter rumbled up and filled the room. “Do not even think that inconsequential little nothing could overpower me. I left on my own and for my own reasons. Which is why I summoned you.”
    “Summoned my ass. You kidnapped me and I can’t believe you let him run you out.” My own laughter wasn’t very rumbly, but it had a powerful effect on my royal devil anyway. For a minute I thought I might need to use my holy water after all.
    He took a step closer to me and his hand was on my arm before I could blink twice. I gasped at the electric jolt of his touch and tried to pull the arm free. His golden face moved closer, until I could smell the warm, smoky scent of his skin and taste the intoxicating heat of his breath. The place where he held me was all tingly and the quivery feeling was quickly spreading up my arm. I realized I was still holding the vial of water. He’d made no move to take it from me.
    Knowing I would never be able to best him in strength, I decided to fall back on my wit and charm, two things which I usually have in abundance. Unfortunately, under the onslaught of his pulsating gaze, I was finding it really hard to conjure up anything but drooling lust.
    I tried a smile that felt more like a grimace.
    His leaned close, whispering into my ear. “Do not be amused by me, pretty halfling, for it will be the end of you.” His hand on my arm tightened briefly. The pain it caused would have brought a lesser woman to her knees, but I was really tough so I just whimpered pitifully and spat into his gorgeous face.
    His head jerked back and his mouth opened, showing large, white, extremely sharp looking teeth. I took a deep breath and prepared to die. As he lowered the teeth toward my face, I closed my eyes, primed to accept the searing pain. I jumped in surprise when, instead of eating my face, the evil looking teeth clasped my lower lip and nibbled gently. I thought it would be more than I could stand,