Jennifer Armentrout: White Hot Kiss

I don’t know what I expected. For him to pop out of nowhere in front of me like he normally did? He didn’t. I glanced down at the necklace. It hadn’t been there.

A warm breeze, more like a soft breath of air, caressed my cheek, causing my heart to jump, and then...then the musky scent faded away, as if it had never been.

Closing my fingers around the chain, I pressed it against my chest and squeezed my eyes shut. The ache increased until I thought it would surely pull me under.

God, as much as I hated to cry, I respected the tears that sneaked out of my tightly closed lids. They meant something. They meant everything. They were the only way I could repay Roth for what he’d sacrificed.

Cayman was still waiting in the hall when I returned. “I’ll take care of the garden.”

I blinked slowly. “Thank you.”

We didn’t speak as we went back downstairs and I started toward the door, my heart and thoughts irrevocably heavy. I didn’t know what the necklace really meant, if I had just not seen it at first or if his scent was simply a product of my hope-fueled imagination. I wasn’t sure, but the hand that held the necklace shook.

“Layla?”

I turned back to Cayman. “Yeah?”

He smiled a little. More of a grimace, but I guess for a demon, it counted. “You know, demons don’t die when they go to the pits. Roth did his job, Layla. He came here to stop the Lilin from rising.” His gaze locked with mine. “The fiery pits are kind of one-way only, but the Boss is old-school, and Roth has been the Boss’s favorite Crown Prince yet.”

I sucked in a breath, too close to everything to let that little spark of hope grow. “What are you saying?” Hand still trembling, I held out the necklace for him to see. “I found this on the roof. It wasn’t there when I first went up, and then it was.”

Cayman’s smile stretched a little and then he shrugged as he slipped his hands into his pockets. He turned, heading across the lobby. Halfway between the couches and chairs, he glanced over his shoulder at me and winked. Then he blinked out of existence.

Hope and disbelief warred inside me. I wanted—needed—to believe that Roth wasn’t in those pits. That he was okay, that it was he who’d left the necklace for me. It made facing tomorrow a little easier, thinking there might be a chance I’d see him again. One day.

I’m not sure how long I stood there, but finally I forced myself to move. Zayne had to be getting itchy out there.

Stepping out of the apartment building, I inhaled the brisk air. Zayne waited where I’d left him, like he had said he would. Sensing me, he lifted his golden head. He didn’t smile. Whether or not he gave voice to what he suspected my feelings for Roth were and whether or not he agreed with them, he still knew how I felt.

On the spur of the moment, I felt for my ring. It came off easily, the cracked surface catching the light. Without Lilith’s blood, the ring looked more like a normal stone. There really wasn’t any need for me to keep it, but I couldn’t get rid of it. Not yet.

When I handed the chain and ring to Zayne, he seemed to know what to do with them. The spot where Bambi had tattooed herself on my arm itched like crazy. I resisted the urge to scratch myself raw while Zayne slipped the chain through the ring.

“Did...did you take care of what you needed to?” he asked, brushing at a strand of blond hair that had escaped his ponytail.

I cleared my throat, but the lump was still there. “I think so.”

Zayne wiggled his fingers and I turned around, forcing myself to take another deep breath. While he clasped the chain behind my neck, my gaze traveled up to Roth’s loft. The windows were too dark to see in. Not that anyone would be there, but I’d never be able to tell.

“You ready?” Zayne asked.

The pain in my chest eased a tiny bit when I looked into Zayne’s blue eyes. I tried to smile for him, and I think the little effort relieved him. He knew I wasn’t going to curl up and wither away because I’d lost Roth. However, there were moments when that was the only thing I wanted to do.

I dropped the necklace under my sweater, patting where it rested between my breasts.

He offered me his hand.

And I took it, threading my fingers through his. We started down the street quietly. My heart raced with each step that took me farther away from everything that reminded me of Roth. I couldn’t stop even though I wanted to turn around and race back to his apartment, camp out until...until forever passed. Every so often, I looked over my shoulder, searching for a headful of dark hair and a smile that infuriated and excited me. I strained to hear the humming of “Paradise City.” Out of all the faces crowding the street, I didn’t see the one I was looking for.

But I thought of the necklace and of Cayman’s wink and I wondered if one day I would find it again.

* * * * *

Look for book two of

THE DARK ELEMENTS,

STONE COLD TOUCH,

coming soon from

Jennifer L. Armentrout

and Harlequin TEEN!

And read on for

a special bonus scene from Roth!