He thought… shewasn’tfighting deep carnal attraction?
“Ragvald’s mud theory?” she echoed blankly.
“It seems wyrms consider it a powerful aphrodisiac.” He cocked his head, returning her stare with genuine bafflement. “But going back to the previous topic, how is my apparently insufficient assholeness a problem?”
He really didn’t know. And he wasn’t about to let it go, either. That was pure Conleth too. He never gave up. If he thought she was hiding some awful secret, he would pursue it beyond the bounds of all reason, unless?—
“Oh, you areimpossible,” she blurted out, and kissed him.
He truly hadn’t had any idea how many guilty thoughts she’d been repressing. He made a startled, wordless sound—Mhhf?—as her mouth found his. And then he was kissing her back, feverishly, with just as much pent-up desire.
All thought vanished. She fisted her hands in his t-shirt, pulling him closer. He growled in response, the sound vibrating through her tongue and teeth. He thrust deeper into her mouth, hard and demanding, one hand tangling in her hair.
Nothing had ever felt so right…and yet it wasn’t enough, either. Never breaking the kiss, she yanked at his shirt, pulling him backward until the back of her thighs hit the desk. As if reading her mind, he grabbed her hips, hoisting her onto the desk with effortless strength.
Oh God, yes.She wrapped her legs around his waist, and another feral sound ripped from his throat. His mouth left hers, trailing fierce, hungry kisses down her neck.
Some tiny inner voice was screaming that this was aterribleidea, but it was drowned out by pure bliss. Desperate to touch him in return, she slid her hands under his t-shirt.
Conleth jerked as her palms flattened against the bare skin of his back. His next kiss was more of a bite, and an unexpected jolt of pleasure rocked through her. She ground shamelessly against him, wet and aching with want, but the sensation was maddeningly muted through their clothes.
Whywerethey still wearing clothes? There was some reason, but she couldn’t remember it right now. It couldn’t be important, anyway. Not as important as the urgent need pounding through her whole body. She squirmed a hand between their bodies, reaching for the button of his jeans?—
Once again, his hand closed over her wrist. Conleth reared up, staring down at her with black, dilated pupils.
“Wait,” he gasped.
He wanted to stopnow?She wriggled, trying to rub against him again. “Why?”
“For one thing, this is Zephyr’s desk.” His breath still came in ragged pants, but he pushed himself off her. “And I’d like to be able to look him in the eye tomorrow morning.”
“Your desk, then,” she said wildly, though she could already feel cold sanity creeping back. “Or the floor. Anywhere, as long as it’s now. I thought you wanted me?”
“More than you can possibly know.” Conleth took a deep breath, closing his eyes. “Paige, you’re about three seconds away from being naked on all fours while I drive into you hard enough to make you see God. So before you strip me of the last of my control, I need to make sure that’s what you want.”
Oh, she wanted that. Wantedhim. But it was too late. The moment of blind desire was gone, leaving her unable to ignore all the reasons she’d been trying to fight it in the first place.
Her body was still taut and trembling for release, but she slid off the desk. “Let’s just forget this happened, okay?”
“I can act like this never happened, if that’s what you truly want. But believe me, I’m never going to forget it.” Conleth raked both hands through his hair. “Paige, I thought you didn’t want me. But unless you have a very odd way of expressing complete disdain, you clearlydo.”
She tugged her shirt down self-consciously. “It doesn’t matter what I want.”
“For God’s sake, itdoes!” Conleth inhaled, visibly resettling himself. “Paige, I know you’ll sacrifice anything for your brother. And I also know you haven’t told me the real reason it’s so important he learns to control his shifting. But this current plan isn’t working. He’s no closer to mastering his bear. Whatever problem you’re facing, we need to find a different solution. But I can’t come up with alternative plans if I don’t know what the problemis. Please. I’m begging you. Tell me what’s going on. Let me help.”
At any other time, with any other person, she would have evaded giving an honest answer. Even now, her first impulse was to deflect him with a half-truth.
But this was Conleth. Conleth, who’d sacrificed years of his life simply because his niece had wanted to go to summer camp. Who kept his own secrets so well, even his best friends didn’tsuspect the truth. If she could trust anyone—if anyone could understand—it was him.
“You can‘t help. Nobody can.” She had to force the words out, throat tightening. “Conleth, I need to tell you about my mother.”
CHAPTER 21
“Your mother?” For the second time in five minutes, Conleth found himself struggling to keep up. It was a novel experience. “What does she have to do with Archie’s issue? You’ve barely mentioned her in the past.”
And that was odd, now that he came to think about it. If there was one thing he knew about Paige, it was that she was completely devoted to her family. Most of the campers chattered incessantly about their parents at every opportunity, yet he’d never heard either Archie or Paige reciprocate with tales about their own home life.
“You never talk about your mother,” he said more slowly, new connections falling into place in his mind. “There’s a reason for that, isn’t there?”
