No, Eve,me'morae, it’s because you are mine,his whisper coasted through her mind.
Eyes wide, she met his amused gaze. “You spoke to me like that before, too.”
He brushed her hair back with a tender hand. “I did. Try it.”
Where Eve felt the warmth of his presence in her soul, she mind-linked with him then complained.Why are you telling me this now?
His pleasure dimmed. “I couldn’t before. I didn’t want you to experience the pain Inanna inflicted on me, yet somehow you did anyway.”
Not wanting to remember that awful time in Columbus Circle when he’d left her, she pulled his head down and slid her lips against his in a seductive glide.
He kissed her tenderly then murmured against her mouth, “Much as I want to remain in bed and make up for lost time, we can’t. They are all here, waiting for us.”
“They?” She pulled back. “I thought only Aerén would be here.”
“I can hear them.” He gave her a quick kiss and rolled off her, pushing aside the dark gray sheets tangled around their limbs. “They think they should just come up here and have the meeting.”
“What?” Eve grabbed the sheet to her chest then groaned, heat surging into her face. “God, this is so embarrassing. They know why we’re not there yet.”
“Eve, I don’t care if they know. I'm their target because I want to kick them all out but can’t.” Reynner tugged the sheets away, swept her into his arms, and strode to the bathroom. “A shower first. Then we go get this settled and get rid of them.”
Chapter 30
After their shower, Reynner changed into jeans and a t-shirt while Eve, wrapped in a towel, took her spare clothes from the closet. That reminded him that he had to make sure she had more clothes here, too.
He grasped her waist and ran his lips down the damp skin of her nape. Her laughter turned into a moan before she pushed him away. “Nah-uh, I’m not standing here naked with threats of your friends about to walk in on us.”
Sighing, Reynner picked up a suede strip from the drawer and tied his hair. He had to tell her the truth about the accident before they met with the others, and could just imagine how well that would go down. Hell, she still mourned the loss of her parents.
After pulling on her navy yoga pants, she turned to him, her green tee still in her hand, not yet obstructing his view of her breasts and those tempting nipples.
Get your shit together and tell her, or else you can forget getting anywhere near her.
He scrubbed a hand over his face.
“Now, there’s a look I haven’t seen in… oh, the last two hours,” she teased him.
Urias, but she made him smile. Then he sobered. “We need to talk.”
“What is it?” She pulled on her top and covered her lithe body, hiding his view.
“It’s about the Stone.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t find it. Maybe we could try elsewhere?” She glanced around, found his brush on the shelf and tidied the sexy mess of her coffee-colored hair.
“There is no need. The Stone is no longer in its original form.”
She spun to him in surprise. “What? You mean it’s changed appearance now?”
“In a manner of speaking. Eve, the Stone’s magic resides in your blood.”
Slowly, she set the brush down. “I know my blood has some kind of magic that responded to the scroll.”
“That’s not what I mean. It is part of you. It’s why the scroll reacts to you. Our high mage is here, since Lucan’s still a no show—”
“Now you sound like Lucan, trying to scare the hell out of me,” she said, cutting him off.
He didn't want to frighten her. But gods, he couldn’t bear her walking away, leaving him once she learned the truth. “Eve—”
