Denise Tompkins - Elemental Desire

“I’ll handle it. Gods above, you two are worse than a couple of mother hens.” Seth pushed off the bar. His legs threatened to collapse. Strength of will alone kept him standing. No way was he going down in front of all these people, but particularly not in front of the one who’d thought to threaten his freedom. He was a lot of things—dominant, slightly sadistic, controlled, passionate—but he was never, ever anyone’s genie in a bottle. Whoever thought to control him or, worse, extinguish his element and thus him, had another thing coming.

He squinted, picking out different bodies in the crowd. One stood out from the others. From the nipped waist, swell and sway of hips and length of legs, the voluptuous form belonged to a woman. She moved toward him with purpose. He bristled. The closer she came, the brighter her aura burned. Not dark blue like a witch, but a blinding red that eventually blocked everything else, smothering her chakras and dimming the people around her. He’d seen such a vibrant aura a time or two before, and each time the result was a night of wild sex. She might be just what he needed tonight—to get out of the club and away from the practitioner, the chance to get lost in sexual play, to come back clearheaded and focused so he could eliminate the threat.

This woman’s aura spoke of a wild side, a willingness to try anything once and a need to live a little dangerously. Add the three things together and she was unquestionably his type. Lust flooded his groin and his shaft thickened.

Seth looked over at Griff. His unique aura burned blue around a gold center. “I’m going to ask you for a favor.”

“Name it.”

“Get lost.”

“Excuse me?”

“I’ve suddenly got plans that don’t involve you.” Seth tilted his head toward the woman who stood a few feet away. The heat of her aura stroked his skin like a lover’s caress, calling his flame to the surface. He burned for her, the feeling far from innocent. If he had his way, he’d be buried inside her within the hour.

And he always got his way.

* * *

Eden knew without asking that the guy behind the counter was the one she sought. His reputation as being hot-as-hell was trumped by the reality. It was his reputation for other things, however, that brought her to the club tonight. She needed to get lost in some harmless, no-strings-attached fun before she was forced to take up the mantle of responsibility Fate had bestowed upon her at conception. She’d even abided by the club’s unwritten rule and bound her magic. Pretty much. Okay, she’d sort of dropped the ball. But one minor slip in the spell couldn’t be considered breaking the rules. Probably. For the most part. Goddess, she hoped, because she wasn’t leaving here without experiencing that man.

She knew she wasn’t exactly tall or classically beautiful, but she was determined. She also had a sense of unstoppable adventure that got her into trouble more often than not, both outside the bedroom and in. If rumors were true, that latter would be enough. Talk around town said the bronze-skinned god who ran the club had specific tastes, and that suited Eden perfectly. She had specific curiosities.

Leaning across the bar, she sized up the man. He was well over six feet tall. Thick, straight black hair brushed broad shoulders. A nose just a touch long, sharp cheekbones and sensual, nearly cruel lips made his face both aristocratic and painfully beautiful. And if his facial features were considered sculpted, his body was unarguably chiseled. No doubt the parts she couldn’t see would be equally as impressive. Everything about him—from tapered fingers to narrow waist to the slightly square shape of his chin—made her want to roll around on him naked.

Her breath caught in her throat when he took an unsteady step toward her. His gaze seemed to look through her, his eyes slightly unfocused as they roamed her face.

“What color would you call your hair?” His rich voice slid around her, tantalizing and showing no sign of apology.

“Hmm.” She grabbed a few strands of her hair, considering his remark. “Not brown, not red, not blond, but all of the above.”

“Natural?”

“Everything about me is natural, except my preferences.”

“Good to know. Anything you need to confess before this goes any further? Any club rules you might have broken, laws you might have bent, behaviors that would get you evicted?”

Adrenaline shot through her like an electric charge. “Afraid not. My confession would shock a priest out of his cassock.”

“Good thing I’m not a priest.” He stepped closer, leaning across the bar and into her personal space. “You here to break any house rules?”

“Nope. I’m a model citizen.”

“Good. Now tell me, what color would you call your eyes?”

Dry heat that spoke of desert sands and faraway lands rolled around her, and she basked in the imaginary warmth. Whatever his cologne was, it was worth what he’d paid for it and then some. “My eyes? Stormy, I guess.”

“My new favorite color.”

She couldn’t help it. She snorted. “Please tell me you’ve got better lines than that, or I’m going to think your reputation is nothing but a steaming pile of horse apples.”

He grinned, straight teeth white against dark skin. A single dimple marked one cheek. “You’re clearly aware of who I am. That leaves me at a distinct disadvantage, though I’m about to rectify that.”

“Wow me.”

His smile widened revealing a second dimple. Something dark and dangerous peeked through the depths of pale green eyes. “Oh, I save the wowing for behind closed doors.”

Arousal flooded her core. Every erotic pulse point pounded in time with her heartbeat. Leaning into him so their lips brushed when she spoke, it disconcerted her to realize his eyes didn’t focus on her face before he closed them. “Like I said—wow me,” she whispered, the husky timbre of her voice a mix of seducer and seduced.

“You sure about this, Red? Because once you agree, you’re stuck with me until one of two things happens.”

“Name them.”

“You either safe-word out and leave, or the sun comes up in the morning and we say goodbye. Those are the terms.”

“The word’s fate . Now, where’s the nearest closed door?”

Chapter Two

Seth held out his hand. When she took it, he casually turned it over and brushed his lips along her knuckles. His teeth grazed a high point and she shivered, tightening her hold on him at the same time she sucked in a breath. The little minx might think she was a bedroom badass, but if a tiny public nip set her heart stuttering, actual play was likely going to make her stroke out. If he were a better man, he’d swat her ass and send her on her way. Too bad he wasn’t and he wouldn’t. She’d come out to play on his jungle gym, so play they would. It would teach her a valuable lesson about knowing a lover’s bents before tossing down the proverbial gauntlet.

Letting go of her hand, he curled a finger under her chin. “Nearest closed door is through there,” he murmured, jerking his chin toward the employee-only rooms at the back. “Meet me at the end of the bar.”

“I thought we’d go—”

“End of the bar, Red, or we end this now.” He drew in the scent of her arousal. “You need to learn a few lessons about how to serve as a proper submissive before we take this any further.”

“Submissive? I never said I was a submissive.”

“No? You clearly know who I am, and I’d be willing to bet you came out tonight looking for me. You readily offered a safe word when I asked for one. Doms don’t need safe words, sweetheart. We collect them.” Her silence said he’d landed square in the middle of the truth. If he were going to bet on which scenario was accurate? His money would be on a third possibility he hadn’t named—that she wanted to know if there were more to sex than the vanilla variety to which she’d been exclusively exposed. “How old are you?”