Amy Blankenship - Blood Rain

“Is it safe to leave them alone,” Vincent whispered, then daringly raised his voice to get their attention. “By the way… I’m pretty sure I’m older than either one of you and you’re both grounded… though I might let Lacey off with a spanking, if she agrees to play nice.” He gave her a suggestive little smile when she swung around to look at him with wide eyes.

Storm quickly reached out and teleported Vincent out of harm’s way, making a point to remember the expression on Ren’s face. Maybe he would make a special trip back with a camera while he was at it.

Unable to ignore the strange flash of light that went off right in his face, Ren blinked. Instead of grabbing the idiot he had been aiming for, he wound up gripping thin air and staring at a piece of paper left fluttering in front of him. He snatched it from the air with a frustrated growl.

“What’s that?” Lacey asked, completely at peace with the fact that Storm had once again disappeared with Vincent. At least she trusted Storm to keep him safe and alive.

“It seems your ex-partner is going to be out of range for the rest of the day,” Ren frowned, when the note suddenly vanished and was replaced with a snapshot of his face distorted with rage. Ha… Ha. Storm was just a barrel of laughs lately. He gave a wicked smile as the snapshot turned to dust and slipped through his fingers.

Ren turned his head to look at Lacey and noticed her eyes flashing with humor. She was still staring at his hand where the picture had just been.

“Liked that did you,” he asked with a cocked eyebrow. She was making it hard for him to hold on to his anger. Her nodding vigorously was just way too cute.

“I need to get out of these clothes,” Lacey said, glancing down at the cocktail dress she was still wearing. The dress had been really pretty when she’d first put it on, but after the frightening night she’d had, it was dirty and actually ripped in a couple of places where she’d been pierced by those demon strands.

A shockwave of intense sexual need hit her hard and Lacey snapped her startled gaze back up to Ren's stone faced expression. Had that come from her… or him? She hadn’t been thinking about sex when she’d mentioned taking her clothes off but damn if it wasn't on her mind now.

“And obviously another ice cold shower is in order,” she added, placing the palm of her hand against the tightening of her stomach muscles. She’d never been shy when it came to talking about sex and she wasn't going to start biting her lip now. “Am I leeching this sexual need from you?”

Ren had practically stopped breathing when he’d imagined removing her dress for her in one fluid movement, then lifting her naked body up on the desk behind her. He blinked as the bluntness of her question sank in. The answer was a resounding YES. She’d known exactly what Nick and Gypsy had been up to in the bomb shelter, but it never dawned on him that she would also be able to tap into his emotions or desires.

Hopefully she had only received a fraction of that ability or she wouldn’t last very long in this castle. He made a mental note to ask Guy if he could create some kind of spell or charm for her to wear that would tone the ability down but, for now, he could at least give her the truth.

“This castle is full of paranormals with heightened emotions,” he informed her, trying to get his own under control. Sensing she was in need right now wasn’t helping and it was causing a boomerang affect between them. “Paranormals have emotions just like humans. The difference is… they feel each emotion much stronger than a normal human ever would… and you’re tapping in to that overload.”

He started towards her feeling much like a predator stalking its prey. Ren felt a satisfied smirk try to tug at his lips when she backed up against the desk right in the same spot he had envisioned lifting her from.

“Their anger could cause a normal human to go on a killing spree… and their brand of love is what we would call a dangerous obsession.” He suddenly leaned forward, placing his hands against the desk on each side of her to trap her beneath him. He then dipped his lips very close to her ear. “And their carnal lust is so hot it burns.”

Lacey closed her eyes as she felt his breath touch her neck. Yeah, he was right about burning because she was on fire. Her lips parted as her breathing sped up. “Their bodies must also be hypersensitive to touch because your breath against my neck feels way too good to be anywhere near normal.”

The growl next to her ear was her only reply but the sound was so seductive that Lacey heard the answer within it. He was so close to her… yet he wasn't touching her anywhere. It was as if he had complete control while she was left swimming in a whirlpool of passion, waiting for the slightest tug to pull her under. She really wanted to experiment with this yummy little side effect… right now, if he was game.

Mentally deleting the seduction at the Witch’s Brew less than an hour ago… since it had happened under duress, Lacey thought about the last time they had touched one another. It had happened right here in this office. She’d believed that she would be dead by dawn and had wanted to spend the last remaining hours lost in sensual pleasure with him. Ren had been the one to put a stop to it because he’d been listening in on her thoughts.

Well, she didn’t have a death threat hanging over her head anymore thanks to him, so he couldn’t hold that against her. If she had her way, he would hold something else against her very soon and, with the mood she was in, she hoped it was big and throbbing.

“Since you’re the one who gave me the power to accidently set myself on fire like this… do you want to be the one to help me extinguish the flame, or do I need to find someone else who is willing to be my firefighter,” she asked, remembering the sting of his last rejection.

Ren tightened his grip on the desk when the rush of heat he’d been feeling quickly morphed into hot as hell anger. Had she really just threatened to go find someone else to quench her desire? The image of her and Vincent making love in the not so distant past seared through his head like a locomotive.

He should have also warned her about extreme jealousy but it was a moot point, since he seemed to be the only one feeling that particular emotion.

“I will teach you not only how to use the powers that have been awakened inside you, but how to control the ones that will put others in danger,” he whispered deceptively, before taking her in his arms.

Lacey blinked when Ren pulled her close and she noticed the office fading into the distance. Within seconds, she found herself in the same bedroom she had woken up in… his. Her gaze strayed to the bed hoping she was finally going to get what she’d been secretly craving since she’d met him. Instead, he gripped her arm and pulled her past the bed, making her frown in confusion.

Being propelled into a connecting bathroom, she couldn’t suppress the shocked scream when she suddenly found herself in the shower with icy cold water cascading down on the top of her head. Shivering, she reached out and turned the water off realizing she was still fully dressed. She was now seeing her sensitive skin statement in a whole new light. That was freakin colder than cold ever thought about being.

“What the hell was that for,” Lacey demanded, glaring over at Ren with murder in her eyes.

“Lesson number one,” Ren growled, leaning toward her for emphasis, “don’t let siphoned sexual heat get to you so bad that you would sleep with just anyone to get a fix.”