For a moment, she thought he might say more, but he just watched her, frozen.
Eventually, she shrugged. Neither of them knew what they were doing, but she knew how insanely connected to him she felt. How much she wanted to spend more time with him. And she knew that if she left him now, she’d regret it for the rest of her life.
“Alright then, I’ll see you tomorrow. Three o’clock, outside the station.”
“Tomorrow,” he agreed.
She pulled on her helmet and flicked down her visor, enjoying the rumble of the motor and the shiver running down her spine as she drove away; knowing he was watching her the entire time.
ChapterNine
Ethan stoodoutside St Pancras Station wondering what in hell he was doing.
He’d apologized. He’d learned more about the secrets Kay had hinted at. But then he hadn’t left.
All through brunch, he’d reminded himself that he was only there to learn more, and then he’d walk away. They’d eat. He’d hear what she had to say. And then it would be over.
But there was something about Kay, with her dark hair swaying as it touched the top of her shoulders, her quiet strength, and big gray eyes. The way she laughed at him. The way her T-shirt clung to her subtle curves. Her competence, and her kindness. He kept remembering the video of her fight. How she’d moved, so powerful and confident in her abilities.
When she’d put that weird Shadow creature into his hand, he’d been a breath away from getting up and walking. But he hadn’t had it in him to look like a coward in front of Kay. And then she’d started telling him things that seemed ridiculous but made a strange kind of sense. It was as if, buried somewhere inside him, he’d known them all along.
He hadn’t wanted to leave. And then he’d walked beside her, feeling like he’d known her all his life, or maybe wishing that he had. Wishing that he had the right to touch her. To hold her. To feel the soft warmth of her skin on his.
Before he was ready, she was picking up her helmet, about to leave, and he didn’t know if he was ever going to see her again. Something in his soul had rebelled. A compulsion of heat, and something else he couldn’t identify, had risen through his body, needing to wrap around her and hold her close.
He hadn’t planned to kiss her, but at that moment, he’d needed it more than he’d needed anything else, ever, in his life before. More than a climber needed his next handhold or the rope around his waist.
Before he knew it, his mouth was on hers. His hands were on her skin, and it was just as warm and soft as he’d imagined. Her lithe body had climbed his as he’d lost himself in the intoxicating taste of her mouth and the sound of her shuddery little moan.
He’d forgotten that he was supposed to walk away. He’d found himself making plans, the words falling out of his mouth before he could stop them. And then, having done it, he couldn’t—wouldn’t—take it back.
She had asked him what they were doing, and he truly had no idea. But he couldn’t have stopped it if all the Dru-vid in history had turned up to tell him no.
He’d watched her drive away in a daze, and then spent the afternoon walking around London trying to clear his head, trying to forget their kiss. He’d finally admitted defeat and gone home to climb into his shower, take his dick in his hand, and relive it in every primal detail. More than once.
And now, here he was, watching the crowds and waiting for Kay.
He saw her the moment she stepped out of the station. She was wearing skinny jeans and biker boots with a tight green T-shirt under her leather jacket.
Her eyes met his as if she’d known exactly where he would be standing or was somehow as drawn to him as he was to her.
Before his brain caught up, he had her in his arms, pulling her up to meet him in a heated kiss. She arched into him, and he kissed along her jaw and behind her ear, tugging the lobe between his teeth as he lost himself in her softness, in her scent of warm leather and something sweeter, jasmine, maybe. In the rush of awareness flooding his body as he ground himself into her like a teenager.
Someone fake-coughed loudly nearby and she pulled back. Ethan leaned his forehead down on hers, enjoying how out of breath she was, her eyes half-closed, her hands gripping his shirt. Was she feeling anywhere near the same out-of-control magnetism that he was?
He wrapped a hand around the back of his neck and stepped back, trying to give himself some space. He needed to think. To force himself not to throw her over his shoulder and take her back to his cave like a Neanderthal.
Kay grinned up at him, head tilted slightly to one side as if she knew exactly what he was imagining. But she didn’t say anything as they fell into step, walking away from the station together, dodging other pedestrians.
“Where are we going?” he asked, ignoring the urge to wrap his arm around her shoulders. They weren’t a couple. He just had to keep reminding himself.
She gave him another wry smile as she tucked her hands into her pockets and let him keep his distance. “Not far. You’ll see.”
She led him past St Pancras Old Church, through the mossy green gardens, and up to the nearby hospital with its imposing red brick façade broken by rows of small windows. They found a spot where they could lean against a neighboring wall and look back up at the big building.
Ethan looked from Kay to the hospital, his eyebrow raised. “So… do you bring all the boys here?”
She nudged him with her elbow. “Only the cocky ones.”
