Playing With Fire (tales of an extra ordinary girl)

by Gena Showalter

  My embarrassment dissolved into absolute pleasure as an invisible cord tugged me forward. I shouldn’t want him this much. I shouldn’t need him this much. I forced my gaze from him and studied the couch. The totally safe, didn’t-take-my-breath-away couch. I didn’t know where to sit. Between Rome and Lexis? Beside Lexis? Beside Rome?

  In the end, Rome took the decision away from me. The moment I was close enough, his arm whipped out, snaking around my waist and dragging me into his lap. I landed with a delighted “Hoomph.”

  Instantly his strength surrounded me, inexorable and comforting and more arousing than an intimate caress. The strong heat of his thighs pressed into the silk of my pants. My mind beckoned me to rise, to fight against his seductive allure, but I allowed myself to sink into his chest, deepening the contact.

  “I will leave you two alone,” Lexis said, rising.

  I didn’t think to utter a token and patently untrue please stay.

  “You have much to discuss,” she added, and there was a tinge of regret in her voice. Hurt. Without another word, she padded from the room.

  Rome and I were suddenly alone.

  Now that the couch was free, the polite thing to do was get off him. But I don’t want to get off him, my body whined. Stay, stay, stay.

  I stayed.

  He didn’t ask me to get up, I noticed, and with a small smile, I burrowed the back of my head into the hollow of his neck. How I yearned to wrap my arms around him, to slide my lips over his jaw and work my way down his chest. To turn and wrap my legs around his waist, then rub myself against his erection.

  “You’re going to open up to me now,” I told him.

  “I am, am I?” He didn’t sound upset with that fact. He sounded amused, relaxed. Happy, even. And aroused. Deliciously aroused.

  “Yes.”

  “Or what?”

  Biting my lip, I plucked at his pants, twisting the material at his knee. It was softer than it looked and actually tore under my ministrations. Oops. Did I somehow have superhuman strength now, too? I let go. “Do you really need me to list ways to torture you?”

  “Depends on what kind of torturing we’re talking about.”

  “The bad kind.”

  His naughty fingers dipped to the hem of my shirt and rubbed the stripe of skin visible at my belly. “Painful bad or-” his voice dropped huskily “-kinky bad?”

  Instantly my nerve endings jolted to life. “Painful?” I said, though it emerged as a question rather than the statement of fact I’d meant.

  He chuckled softly. However, his amusement didn’t last long. He pushed out a breath, and his fingers stopped their movement. “I figured out what’s been bothering you. You’re jealous of Lexis. Why?”

  I jolted upright, sputtering, unable to form a proper response.

  “Careful, baby, or you’ll torch the place like Lexis predicted.”

  He was right and I knew it, but that didn’t make it any less frustrating. Truly, if I didn’t stay in a constant “happy place” I would unleash a holy terror-or two. How unfair was that? “Everyone deserves a chance to express their emotions, Rome,” I said softly.

  “I know.” Gently he kissed the base of my neck. “I know.”

  Exhaling, tingling, I returned to my reclining position. I would address the jealousy thing when I had a response that sounded believable.

  “Maybe we should get you a stress ball,” he said pensively.

  I snorted. “What kind of ball are we talking? Asbestos? Or did you have something else in mind?”

  Warm breath brushed my skin, and I felt his lips stretch into a grin. “You’re a pervert at heart. I don’t think I want your hands near my balls right now.”

  The tingling inside me intensified, spreading, growing, stretching from one corner of my body to the other. My mouth watered for a taste of him. My nipples beaded, begging for attention. I closed my eyes, only to see a picture of us in my mind. Me, head thrown back, legs open. Him, gliding his fingers down my stomach, through the fine hair at my pubis and into the wet heat of me.

  Don’t forget why you’re here. Questions first. Sex later. Lots of sex. Dirty sex. “Like I said, I, um, have some questions for you, and I want answers.” I traced a fingertip over the bumps and planes of his wrist, wanting so badly to guide him to a more intimate caress. “Let’s start with your last name. What is it?”

  “Masters.”

  “Are you kidding me?”

  “No.”

  I laughed. What a perfect name for him. “Do you expect everyone to obey your every command, Mr. Masters?”

  Slowly he grinned. “Always.”

  Okay, now for the harder questions. “Why did you and Lexis separate?” He gripped my hips and jerked me against his erection. He moaned. I gasped. Good. So good. “And how long have things been over?”

  His fingers spread over my belly again, and my muscles quivered. I bit my lip to keep from crying out in utter bliss. “Why does it matter?” he asked.

  “Why are you so secretive?” I countered. Unable to stop myself, I arched my back, grinding my butt into his erection once more.

  He sucked in a breath. “The less people know about me, the safer it is. For them. For me.”

  “In case you’ve forgotten, I’m a superhero.” Up, down, a slow glide. I clutched his knees and continued my bold dance against him. God, he felt good. Big, hard and thick. “I can protect us both.” Or kill us both, but that didn’t bear mentioning.

  “Superhero, hmm?” Reaching around me, he palmed me exactly where I needed him. I nearly shouted at the intense surge of pleasure. “Should I call you the Amazing Matchstick? Sparkie? The Blazing Saddle?”

  “Do it, and I’ll go four elements on your ass.”

  His thumb stroked me once, twice. Ohmygod. If I didn’t pull away I would come. I would come right then, right there. Just erupt into a thousand satisfied pieces, and that would be the end of our conversation. I’d be too sated to talk, too replete to care what he did afterward.

  “I can’t do this. Not yet.” Stupid girl that I am, I leapt off him and threw myself on the other side of the couch. I was panting. Weak. Empty. Questions first. Dirty playtime second, remember? I didn’t look at him. A long while passed before I caught my breath, and only then did I twist toward him, careful to keep a safe distance between us.

  His expression was harsh and dark and utterly captivating. Taut lines pulled at his eyes and mouth. I squashed the urge to throw myself back into his arms and offer comfort. “How long have you and Lexis been broken up?”

  He watched me for a long while, then he said, “This information is important to you?”

  I nodded.

  “A year.” As he spoke, he crossed his arms over his chest. “We’ve been apart a year.”

  “Why did you break up with her?”

  “I didn’t.” His brow furrowed. “What makes you ask that?”

  All my muscles stiffened, and not in a good way. I gripped the red velvet couch arm until my knuckles turned white. “So she broke up with you?”

  “Yes.”

  Okay, I so did not like that fact. Did he have secret feelings for her, as I’d suspected a little while ago-feelings he might not have admitted to himself? She obviously had feelings for him. Why had she dumped him? Did he want her back? They’d shared their lives, had planned to share their futures. At one time he’d loved her enough to contemplate eternity with her.

  “Is that all you wanted to know?” he asked.

  About Lexis-yes. The woman had once possessed everything I suddenly wanted. Rome ’s adoration. Exclusivity. A future with him. The torrent of jealousy coursing through me proved too strong to deny this time. “Will you tell me about Sunny?” I asked softly. I was treading in dangerous waters, but I refused to stop myself now.

  He pushed a hand through his hair and several strands tumbled onto his forehead. “I don’t want to talk about her, Belle.”

  “I know, but do it anyway. Please.”

  Several
minutes ticked by in absolute silence.

  “Let’s start with something small,” I said. “How old is she?”

  “Four,” was the reluctant reply. “She’s four.”

  I’d guessed correctly. “She looks like an angel.”

  “She is. Looks like an angel, acts like a devil, though.” A warm chuckle rumbled from his chest as a memory clicked into place.

  “Devil? How?”

  “Hide and go seek is her favorite game. She’ll torment me for hours, misting from one shadow to another, laughing at me all the while.”

  “Misting?” I blinked. “What does that mean?”

  He stiffened, shattering the illusion of relaxation. “Never mind. Forget I said anything.” His voice returned to its earlier gruffness.

  I shook my head. “You are so secretive.”

  “The world I live in is a dangerous place. I told you that. The less you know, the better.”

  “I disagree. I’m part of your world now. The more I know, the safer I’ll be. I have a right to understand what I’m up against, just like I have a right to know who you are, who my enemies are, and how I can get your boss off my case.”

  Rome pinned me with a stare, a stare I couldn’t escape. “John’s not a bad guy. Not really. Just cautious.”

  “If he’s such a good person, why don’t you tell him our plan to find Dr. Roberts? Why don’t you let him help you hide Sunny?”

  “I said he wasn’t bad. I didn’t say he was an altruist. He loves Sunny like an uncle and would never hurt her, but if he ever found out about her abilities… He still wouldn’t hurt her, but I don’t want him to draft her. Most of all, I can’t take a chance of Vincent finding out about her and developing an interest in her. That’s where the true danger lies.”

  I began to understand what he was really telling me, and it shocked me how easily I accepted it. “When you said she misted into the shadows, you meant it literally, didn’t you? She can actually become mist and travel to another location.”

  “Yes.” He nodded stiffly. “Sunny can mist through solid objects, and that’s a dangerous ability to have. If she were to accidentally materialize inside a wall, she would be killed.”

  “Was she born with the ability?”

  He nodded again. “We didn’t know Lexis was pregnant when we both volunteered for some… experiments to enhance our DNA. Unfortunately, those experiments affected Sunny more than me and Lexis.”

  Poor kid. I sympathized. “Neither of us asked for our abilities, but we got them anyway,” I said with a sigh, and Rome looked away from me. My nose crinkled as I said, “What drove the two of you to volunteer for testing?”

  “Lexis and I met on the job. We both signed up at PSI at the same time, about eleven years ago. We hit it off from the beginning, dated, got married, and neither of us liked the danger the other was in. When John mentioned that he’d found a way to make us invincible, we decided to go for it so we could stop worrying about each other. It was screwing with our heads, and we were getting sloppy. But in the end, they didn’t make us invincible. Just stronger.”

  Wow. He’d loved Lexis that much. He’d loved her the way women dreamed of being loved. “You’ll have to leave PSI when you hide Sunny,” I pointed out.

  He waved his hand through the air. “I love what I do, love protecting the innocent, but Sunny comes first. I’ll leave and never look back. I want to take my extraordinary little girl and give her the chance at the normal life she deserves.”

  “I hope, when the time comes, I’ll be able to help rather than hinder.”

  “You’ll help,” he said, his voice going flat the way I hated. “You’ll help.”

  I liked that he thought I could help protect his girl, just as I’d protected myself from him and his needle that first night. Actually, I was honored that he would place his greatest treasure in my hands. “So what powers do you have?” I asked. “Lexis has them. Sunny has them. What about you?”

  “I’m just really good at my job.” A slow (forced?) grin played at the corner of his lips. “You will be, too. Together, we’re going to find Dr. Roberts, stop Vincent and hide Sunny.”

  I hoped so.

  “If-when-we find Dr. Roberts, I’ll put the word out that you’ve taken the antidote-even if he doesn’t have one. Hopefully, Vincent will lose interest in you at that point.”

  What if he doesn’t lose interest? I wanted to ask, but didn’t. “What about your boss? John?”

  “I’ll take care of him,” Rome said, once again looking away from me.

  What did that mean, his looking away? He’d done it twice now. “What am I going to do if there’s not an antidote?” I wondered aloud.

  “Most people would embrace their powers.”

  “Not me. You were right when you said these abilities of mine are dangerous. What if I did fall into evil hands?” Into Vincent’s hands? A shudder raked me as images of mass destruction flashed through my mind. “I would give these powers up in a heartbeat.”

  Without any warning, Rome reached out and hooked one of his arms under my knees. The other snaked around my bicep. He tugged me back onto his lap, so we were face-to-face. A startled gasp burst from me, but I didn’t protest. He cupped my ass and kneaded, then glided his naughty fingers forward and upward, over my hip bones, over the curve of my breasts, and caressed the line of my jaw.

  “I think you would give up your powers,” he said with a husky catch of breath.

  Goose bumps beaded my skin. My heartbeat fluttered erratically. Pieces of me that had been asleep for years-perhaps forever-began to stretch and awaken: hope, the first bloom of love. I’d allowed a few men to get close to me, but never close enough for a future, never close enough for love.

  I traced a fingertip along Rome ’s nose, over the seam of his mouth. With him, in that flash of stolen time, I felt completely safe, which was strange because I’d never had more reason to feel unsafe.

  “You continue to surprise me,” he said. “I’d read your history before I entered your apartment that first time, and I didn’t expect to like you.”

  My hands dropped to my sides. I caught my bottom lip between my teeth and released it bit by bit, trying to mask my sudden hurt. “Why not?” I asked. Okay, pouted.

  “On paper you come across as-and don’t shoot me with fireballs for this. On paper you come across as flaky.”

  “Flaky!” My jaw dropped, and my back went ramrod straight. I punched him in the shoulder. “On paper I bet you look like a murdering assassin, you rotten piece of shit.”

  “Ow.” He frowned, but didn’t release me to rub the tender-really tender, I hoped-area that had collided with my fist. “All I meant was that you’ve jumped from job to job over the last year. Some of them you were fired from on the same day you started.”

  “So?”

  “So, you asked me questions and I answered them. Now I’m going to ask you some, and you know what? You’re going to answer like the good little girl I know you can be. Why were you fired from all those jobs? Your temper?”

  Silently I contemplated his expression. He looked curious and interested, rather than insulting. Color bloomed in my cheeks, and I dipped my gaze to his chest, to where his shirt opened in a V. My fingers followed the direction of my eyes, tracing. “I wasn’t happy,” I said. “On some level I think I sensed that the jobs weren’t what I was meant to do, so I didn’t give them my all.”

  “What were you meant to do?” He hooked his thumb on the waist of my pants and gave a little pull, revealing several inches of skin.

  “I wish I knew,” I said dejectedly.

  “Surely there’s something.” Bare skin to bare skin, he spread his fingers over my lower back. “Did you not want to be a doctor or a lawyer or a candy-maker when you were a kid?”

  My blood heated. “Honestly? No.” I leaned toward him, closing the small distance between us. Kiss me, I silently beseeched. Kiss me hard and rough, as if you can’t get enough of me.

  His breath stro
ked my cheek, and his grip on my back tightened. “Have you ever wanted to be a love slave?” he asked huskily.

  Kiss me, damn it. I traced my tongue over my lips, leaving a glistening sheen of moisture. “No, but I’ve wanted to own one.”

  He chuckled, the sound low and rich. “Maybe I can help you out with that. I have connections.” He brushed his lips over mine once, twice.

  “Yeah?” More. I needed more of him. Any other questions I had for him faded from my mind. I squirmed against him, rubbing myself on the long, thick length of his erection. Total rapture. Exquisite bliss. Our chests strained together, hardened nipples abrading hardened nipples. “What kind of connections?”

  “Maybe connections is the wrong word.” Eyes gleaming with white-hot fire, he cupped my butt again and jerked me against him. Hard. “Maybe I should have said I have the right equipment.”

  Only a puff of air separated us now, a hated whisper. Had I once told myself that giving in to my lust for Rome would be wrong? Probably. But I’d since told him I wanted to sleep with him, and I’d meant it. Then and now.

  I wanted this man.

  I wanted him desperately. Hungrily. Wanted to know what it would be like to feel him all around me, inside me, skin to skin. Sweating and aching. Filled. By him. By Rome. At the moment, I couldn’t even make myself care about his ex.

  Rome must have sensed my total capitulation because his fingers slid up swiftly and tangled in my hair. He tugged my face to his. “I’m going to kiss you,” he growled. “Not soft like before, but hard.”

  “Yes.”

  “And you’re going to like it.”

  “Yes.” His eyes were light and fierce, practically glowing. He reminded me of a predatory animal, target in sight, and the idea thrilled me. He was the hunter, I was the prey. “Yes,” I said again. Yes, yes, yes.

  “One day soon I’m going to fuck you.”

  A shiver of anticipation danced through me. “Yes.”

  “You’ll like that, too. You’ll beg for it.” As he spoke, his hips arched slightly, creating a dizzying friction. Had I been standing, I would have collapsed.

  “No more talk,” I said, as ferociously as he had. “Kiss. Now.”