Fire's Ice by Brynna Curry Page A

her cheeks. What would Ryan think of his daughter’s taste in novels? Better not to head down that road. Allie had dreams of being a writer like her aunt and uncle. If what she liked to read was any indication, she’d write hot. Very hot. Speaking of hot, a soft tapping sounded at the door. Her maddening laird had returned.
    “Okay in there?” His voice sounded hesitant. “Breakfast is ready.”
    Time to ruffle the phoenix’s feathers a bit. “There is no need to be shy, Devin. You can come in.”
     

 
    Chapter 9
     
    The sound of splashing water rippled past his ears. Temptress. Knowing Ari was just on the other side of the door, naked and wet, willing to succumb to every fantasy he could imagine, was a torment in itself. All he had to do was accept her sultry invitation and toss aside his plan. But she deserved a sweet slide into love, not the wild, mad rush of pleasure he craved. One palm rested on the door of its own volition, ready to comply. Not yet. Now, if only his traitorous body would listen to his heart. “That depends, sweetheart.”
    “Oh?” she called out from the other side. “On what?”
    Devin chuckled at the line, but he just couldn’t resist teasing her. “What are you wearing?”
    She laughed. “Bubbles. Lots of bubbles. Share them with me.”
    He saw it so clearly. Ari’s creamy skin peeking through the frothy bubbles. Open, welcoming. Need clawed under the skin, screamed at him. Why the hell not? Feeling a quiver of desire vibrate through his body, he called her bluff. “And what would you have me do with those bubbles? Hmm, Ari?”
    “Oh, I am sure you could think of something. Something deliciously wicked. I have shared your dreams. I know your fantasies, lover.”
    Oh, you have no idea . His mind made up, Devin opened the door.
    She lay in his huge garden tub, feet propped up on the rim, eyes closed, waterfall of black hair piled on top of her head. A soft smile graced her face. So she was enjoying their teasing banter. “Have you changed your mind and decided to join me?”
    “Maybe.” No reason he couldn’t push them both to the edge. Pulling the t-shirt over his head, Devin tossed it into the corner. He laid his cellphone on the sink–out of danger–kneeled by the edge of the tub and dipped one hand into cooling water, using his magic to heat it.
    “Mmm. Nice trick.”
    He let his voice drop to a whisper as he leaned close to her ear. “I want to slick my hands over every inch of your skin until you shiver from the heat.” His fingers found the back of her knee in the water and trailed higher along the inside of her thigh until he touched her softness. “Then I’d slip inside you, Ari. Make love to you slowly until you cried out my name. And then…”
    A soft “Devin” slipped from her lips as Arianne’s eyes flew open. “And then…”
    “I’d take more.”
    Wet arms twined around his neck, pulling him down to meet her kiss as he caressed her intimately. She opened for his touch, met his circling fingers, arched toward him. Soft moans echoed off the walls. His breathing became ragged; he ached to be inside her. Not yet. Instead, he pressed one finger just inside her snug channel. So tight, so hot.
    “You make me ache. I need to be inside you.”
    “Then don’t wait.” She plunged her fingers into his hair, brought his mouth back down to claim hers in a desperate kiss. He toppled into the tub with her still half-dressed, his hand trapped between them.
    “Too soon.” Devin sounded like he was trying to convince himself instead of sway her to his way of thinking. “We should wait.”
    “Not soon enough. We’ve been waiting a thousand years,” she whispered. “Your clothes are wet.”
    “So they are.”
    “Why don’t you get rid of them?” His body lay across hers in the sudsy water. “Through running?”
    “Yeah.”
    “Make love to me, Devin.”
    * * * *
    “Not here.” Standing, he pulled her to her feet and lifted her into his arms. Conjuring