Page 168 of A Sanctuary from Shadow
My breath whooshed out of me as we shared an effortless daze. A daze that weirdly felt like communing at spirit circle. Onlymoreerotic.
“Golly.” Rhoswen fanned herself in the balmy night. “No wonder you got to thecomfortingso quickly.”
Our daze broke like an egg upon that comment, the secrets within mostly contained—but now in danger of seeping out.
Glancing at his cards, Pete became the crooked rogue I’d come to know. “She didn’t take much convincing.”
I smirked once more at my pocket aces. “Because I didn’t need convincing at all.”
My “beloved’s” head tilted in question.
“I’m sorry. Did you still think our first time was your idea?” I tsked him. “Oh, no, sweetums, you gave me exactly what I wanted.”
Profound exhilaration flashed across his face.
“Should I have just let you continue to take credit for it?” My heart thudded at the scent of his body on the breeze. “I hope I’m not tarnishing your manhood.”
“By all means, Shorty, tarnish away.” Ilooovedthe way his mouth hitched in that moment, the way he chewed his lip, languid as fingers grazing rosy skin. “If it makes your eyes look like that.”
I gulped again.What color are my eyes?I wondered.And why do I feel like I’ve been reading smut all night?
Had I drunk the sweet juice too quickly? Surely, I was hallucinating the connection suddenly sizzling between Pete and me. Yeah, a not so hidden (anymore) part of me yearned for him, but he couldn’t possibly reciprocate. I mean, wasn’t he the guy who’d looked at me like I was Medusa when he’d seen me naked? He’d retreated into the woods, his tail between his legs.
Even so, his predatory gleam seemed more than real as he eyed me up and called the bets. And raised them. Doubly.
Rhoswen whistled, folding. Tibbs did likewise.
Me? I bit down on a thumbnail and pretended to ponder my next move. All cards laid before me, it was clear Pete had a straight. If he didn’t have a straight flush, which was doubtful, my four-of-a-kind was golden.
I glanced once more at Pete, at the challenge in his smile, and called him. Raising him double on top of everything.
Our camp guests murmured awed expletives.
“You wouldn’t be bluffing me, would you, Shorty?”
Cool as a cucumber,Amy, I schooled myself. “Guess you’ll have to pay up to find out.”
Wicked—that’s how Pete looked right then, a panther sizing up supper—or something more satisfying than food. Goddess, his dark eyes were molten. But Icouldn’tbe turning him on. Could I?
I mentally noted never to touch sweet juice again.
“Hm.” Pete strummed dirt-lined fingers against his cards. “You’ve learned some new tricks, I see. Can’t rightly judge what that face of yours is telling me.”
Something tightened in my belly.Danu, I hope not.
When Pete finally called me, I released a breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding and almost squealed with glee. Instead, I went, “Hm,” the way Pete had and laid my pocket aces down for him to read and weep.
His mouth curved begrudgingly, his teeth grinding as he revealed his hand—a straight. “I’ll be buggered,” he growled, not even trying to hide his respect. “You beat me, Shorty,”
“I did it!” I giggled, collecting my pot. I didn’t care that my winnings were worthless. They symbolized my first win at bachram—my first win at strategizing.
“Aye, you did,” Pete admitted. “Artfully, too.”
The vixen returned, suggestively batting my lashes. “I learned from the best, didn’t I?”
This time the heat between Pete and I felt more like a coronal storm and had both Blue Caps tossing in their cards.
“I’d say it’s long past bedtime,” Tibbs remarked. She and Rhoswen shared a fiery glance of their own.
