Chapter 13

Evie

Garden District, New Orleans, Louisiana

E vie couldn’t breathe. Everything fell away except for the sensation of Cole’s fingers plunging inside her, his palm rubbing along her clit. Cole’s name fell from her lips as she came, her body arching in his lap. Holy Hecate, she couldn’t remember her own name. This man—her visions made flesh—was the only thing she could see, the lone person in her world.

Magic churned around them, tendrils dragging longingly across her skin, leaving raised flesh behind. At the prickling feeling, she screamed her way into another, even more intense orgasm before even coming down from her first one, clenching down on Cole’s fingers hard as he continued to thrust into her. Fucking gods, she felt like she was on fire.

She could hear Cole snarling words beneath her. Not that she was processing a word of it, although she did hear, “What the fuck do you want,” and something that sounded a lot like, “I’ll rip your soul from your body and put it in Tartarus if you don’t walk away right fucking now.” They flowed over her like water, but all she could take in, all she could comprehend, were his brilliant green eyes staring into her own, holding her gaze just as firmly as the arm wrapped around her waist clutched her to his chest.

Slowly, Evie regained her ability to think, just in time to hear Cole whisper into her ear, “God, Angel, you’re so fucking perfect,” as he slid his fingers from her and raised them to his lips, his tongue flicking out to lick her taste from them. “Delicious. Can’t wait to taste you right from the source.”

Shivers raced through her at the sight of this incredible man, taking in the sight of her like he was starving for it, and she melted against him, snuggling her nose into his neck. Inhaling deeply, she caught a deep whiff of his scent: smoke and mint. He smelled like wintergreen burning in a campfire. Absolutely overwhelming and completely world changing. She would give up everything just to smell that scent for the rest of her natural life. He smelled like… home.

Home . That one word shook her, considering that Cole had just abducted her from her home. While she was nestled in his arms, though, feeling like her spinal cord had liquified from his touch, breathing him in, she just couldn’t quite bring herself to care. In the light of morning, she would probably be humiliated, angry even, at how quickly she broke in his arms, how easily he had dismantled her, but right now, she was cozy and half asleep. He felt right.

He nuzzled her head, kissing her hair gently. His chest rumbled beneath her. “Let’s get you to bed.” Her eyes blinked shut then opened slowly as he swung them both out of the car, lifting her easily in his arms and rising to his full height. As he carried her from the car into the small backyard, she caught a glimpse of white stone walls and gleaming windows. Her head dropped back to his chest, her eyes slowly sliding shut. The last thing she saw before she fell into a deep, dream-filled sleep was a tattoo of a snake with floral scales running the length of his collarbone.