Page 121 of Lovely Venom

Raina

Back inside Connor’s apartment, he goes to a few places where he keeps packs of cigarettes. He breaks each one in half and throws them away. When he kisses a silver lighter in his hand, and holds it over the trash, I cry out.

“Why did you kiss the lighter?”

His eyes are glassy when he shows it to me. “It was my da’s.”

AQis engraved in block script on the front. The entire lighter is scratched and dinged. My God, what this thing has been through.

My heart breaks at how much that little token means to Connor. I close it around his hand. “I’m not a monster. You don’t have to throw away your father’s lighter.”

“You sure?” He tightens my hand with his fist.

“I’m very sure.” I even take it from him and put it on his desk next to a framed photo of his dad.

Connor storms up to me, possession in his eyes, and I want to be his new addiction.

Kissing me with fresh breath and no trace of smoke, he picks me up and brings me into his bedroom.

My legs wrap around his waist. “You never tasted like cigarettes.”

“I worked hard at that.” He lays me down on the bed.

Moments later, enough clothes are pushed out of the way, and he’s inside me. After he climaxes, he strips completely and then buries his face between my legs. I lose count of how many times he makes me come.

All I remember is passing out with Connor holding me from behind, whispering how important I am to him.

Hours later, I wake up, startled that it’s dark outside.Wondering if it’s the middle of the night, I check the time.

Eight-thirty p.m.

The apartment is quiet beyond the bedroom, which wasn’t very quiet a few hours ago. The bags from the clothing store sit in front of the closet I hid in the night of the gala. Naked, I pad over and slip into one of the velour tracksuits Connor bought me.

I loosen the wrecked braid and give my hair a good brushing with the hair tools I packed up from my apartment. I frown at the hopeless mess of tangles and bent waves. I just sweep it up and secure it with a jaw clip I keep in my purse.

Looking around the bathroom, I twitch, seeing that Connor has put away my makeup, shampoos, and lotions. They’re each tucked somewhere in a drawer and not just sitting on the counter, like I’m temporary.

I’m falling for the man, but I have to set some boundaries and claim my own space. All thoughts of keeping our shampoo separate empty out of my head when the smell of something savory lingers in the air and finds my hungry stomach.

I shuffle into the kitchen with cautious steps and stop in my tracks, seeing Connor standing at the stove.

Cooking.

He’s stirring something in a skillet like he’s not a murderer with more killers on speed dial. He’s changed into his sweats, but wisely put on a T-shirt.

The warm floorboards beneath my bare feet now make me feel at home here. When they creak behind Connor, the sound turns him around.

Seeing it’s me, he smiles. “Good timing, sleepy slut, who can’t get enough of my cock. Dinner’s almost ready.”

“Sleepy slut?” I laugh. I guess that’s an accurate depiction of me right now. I did sleep for hours, thanks to all the orgasms. I plop down onto what I now considermystool at the kitchen island. “Didyousleep?”

“No, I did some work.” He spoons whatever the hell is in that pot into two bowls.

“By work, do you mean kill someone in your tunnel?” I’ll have to reconcile that he can make gentle love to me, and then murder a human being ten minutes later.

Bringing the steaming bowls to the countertop, he says, “No. Ending lives and figuring out how to keep you safe from Noel Tahiri isn’t my only job. Griffin and his wife’s brothers are partners in a land deal for the UN. I get reports of people I have to pay visits to.”

“Ah.” I stare down into the bowl and want to cry. It looks so good. “Where did you learn how to make chili?”