“How many years?”
“I don’t know. Ten years. Maybe more.” Her voice was distracted as she snapped the thread tight, the magic humming through her. She was almost there. “My memories are fuzzy.”
“Then why haven’t I sensed the magic before now?”
Was he talking about the magic that was currently ruining her life? It had to be, although it hadn’t just appeared. It’d been plaguing her for over a year. Wynn hesitated. She wanted answers so damned bad. And if this male...
No.
With an effort, she shoved aside temptation. This male had already refused to answer her questions. And more importantly, he was dangerous. She could feel it pulsing in the air. The sooner she could get rid of him, the better.
“That sounds like ayouproblem, not ameproblem,” she taunted. “Maybe you’re not very good at sensing magic.”
“Let me through.” The flames climbed up the barrier, the spell wavering as he attempted to sear a hole through the shield.
“No.”
“If I touch you I can determine the source of your magic.”
“Touch me?” She scrunched her nose, refusing to acknowledge the white-hot excitement that blasted through her. If he tried to touch her she was going to punch him, right? She most certainly wasn’t going to melt into a puddle of breathless need... Wait. No, no, no. She hissed in frustration. “You think you’re the first guy to use that line? You’re just like all the other perverts.”
The air pulsed with a choking heat, a strange shimmer of power floating behind him. What was that? Wynn narrowed her eyes, trying to focus on the iridescent outline. It looked like some sort of transparent silhouette. Then, with a loud curse, the male turned and the shimmer expanded as he raced toward the door, stretching out like...wings?
She was still trying to focus on the bizarre illusion when the magic from the stone abruptly snapped into place, jerking her into the void. A second later she reappeared in yet another alleyway. This time, however, she was smart enough to maintain her grip on the thread.
The stranger had been running out of the building with the confidence of a male who knew exactly where he was going. Or worse, exactly whereshewas going.
Her caution was rewarded when a dark shape appeared at the end of the alley, stalking toward her with blatant impatience.
Shit. Fumbling through her strands of magic, she created a hasty barrier. It wouldn’t withstand a direct assault, but she just needed a second to regain her balance before she skipped back to the abandoned building.
The male halted directly in front of her, no doubt assuming he had her pinned against the back of the alley. The glittering illusion of wings had disappeared, replaced by an aura of anger that heated the air until sweat dripped down her face. It wasn’t the aura of a demon. It was more like he was surrounded by white-hot flames.
“Stop running, damn you,” he growled. “I just want to talk to you.”
“Liar.” She rubbed the stone. “You already admitted you wanted to touch me, you creeper.”
“Was your story true?”
“What story?”
“About the volcano.”
“Right. That one.” She shrugged. “Of course not.”
“Then how did you gain the power?”
The heat curled around her, wrapping her in a tangible cloak of power. Was it a warning? She didn’t think so. She wasn’t sure he realized he’d been able to penetrate her shield.
She trembled, something inside her yearning to be immersed in that luscious warmth. Like a lioness bathing in the sun.
“It was a gift,” she forced herself to retort, squashing her bizarre reaction to the male. Obviously her sleepless nights were starting to take a toll.
“From who?”
“A genie.”
The smoky eyes darkened to a metallic gray. Still annoyingly beautiful. “A genie?”
