Page 84 of The Dragon 1

As if he heard me, he prowled over.

Oh fuck. The date is beginning.

Chapter thirteen

The Fire Beneath the Skin

Nyomi

Kenji came to a stop just a few feet from me.

Towering.

Beautiful.

Dangerous.

The air itself tightened.

Gravity bent to him.

Now that he was closer, I could see that I had been incorrect earlier. I thought that he had been watching me like I was the reason the moon had risen tonight.

But actually. . .he was looking at me more like I was his next breath and he hadn’t decided whether to inhale or devour every inch of me.

I didn’t know what to say.

What did one say to a dragon that wanted to eat you?

A second later, his gaze slid away from my eyes.

First, to the two gifts on the table.

Then down the line of my body—from the supple curve of my breasts down to the hem of my dress and even to the arch of my heel.

When he slipped his gaze up to my legs, he let it linger just long enough to make my skin warm.

Then he lifted his gaze to my face.

“Nyomi,” his voice came out deep yet laced with that velvet-soft Japanese accent. “Last night, you haunted my mind. I couldn’t sleep. I didn’t want to.”

My pulse throbbed in places I didn’t want to name.

“I kept trying to remember youexactly. Your mouth. Your laugh. The way those jeans hugged your ass,” he licked his lips so smoothly and hot that I got a little wet. “Now, I realize memory did me no kindness. It softened you. Made you appear safe in my head.”

I blinked.

His voice dipped lower. “You’re not safe. You’re devastating.”

Heat bloomed across my chest.

“Addictive.” His eyes dropped to my mouth. “Designed to undo men like me.”

My breath caught.

I wanted to say something clever. Something flirtatious, smart, or cool. But my tongue forgot the choreography.

My mind stalled.