Rebel Obsession by Donya Lynne Page A

She closed her eyes against the soothing, rocking motion of his body, and then she felt him lower her to a soft, cushiony surface.
    He didn’t say a word, but she heard him walk more calmly into what sounded like the kitchen. Yes, it was the kitchen. The refrigerator door opened and then the faucet turned on. The rush of water stopped a few seconds later, and then she heard the sound of a light switch being flipped. Next thing she knew, he was back at her side and his fingertips were brushing her face.
    She cracked open her eyes and blinked at him.
    “How do you feel?” he said.
    “Better. Tired.” Her throat was raw, and she coughed.
    “Here.” He handed her a bottle of water, already opened. “Don’t worry. It will stay down,” he said when she hesitated.
    She had regained the use of her limbs, although they felt weak and heavy, and she took the bottle and lifted it to her mouth. Yes, the cold liquid felt good going down.
    Io lifted the damp cloth and wiped her face again, and it felt wonderful. Refreshing.
    “You need to rest now, okay?” he said. “A short rest and you’ll feel better. I promise.”
    How could she say no to those eyes? “Okay.”
    He stayed with her until she finally nodded off.
    * * *
    Io sat on the floor next to Miriam, watching her sleep.
    He hadn’t thought he would see her again after their encounter at AKM, but here she was. Fate had seen fit to thrust her back into his life. And damn if he was going to waste this chance to be with her. All he had wanted was another opportunity to see her, and his prayers had been answered. Someone up there sure liked him. He glanced to the ceiling, placing his hand on his chest. Thank you.
    When had he ever been around a more perfect female? Miriam was everything he had ever been attracted to. Other than her cobalt addiction, she was the definition of perfection. He had captured enough of a glimpse of her mental fortitude at AKM to know she was no soft-footed glamour puss, either. Something about Miriam told him she was intelligent and powerful, which begged the question, why was she doing the big blue monster? What drove her to shoot up cobalt?
    For Io, he had just been plain stupid for taking on cobalt. He had always been more of the daredevil, trying new things just because he could. Io was a risk taker, a rebel. Not a rebel in the way Micah was, but a rebel in that he took dares no one else would take. He liked to gamble and go against the odds. It made him feel alive.
    As he’d told the group earlier, cobalt had been one of those gambles. Turned out to be a stupid one, but one he had taken nonetheless.
    Maybe Io just liked feeling as if he could beat the odds. Playing it safe was for other people. Boring people. Not him. Io wanted to experience life. All of it. That couldn’t truly happen without taking risks and experiencing the bad alongside the good.
    But that still didn’t explain why someone like Miriam, who had it all, and who obviously had the brains and the brawn to go along with all that beauty, flirted with the blue monster. This intrigued him. What made Miriam tick? What pushed her to drug up?
    A vehicle pulled into his driveway.
    Sev.
    He rushed to the door and quietly opened it as Severin and Persephone came up the walk.
    “Just what in the hell are you thinking?” Sev sounded like a snarling pit bull.
    “Ssshhh,” Io motioned for him to keep his voice down. “She just fell asleep.”
    “Is she okay?” Persephone raced past him before he could stop her, but at least she ran tippy-toed.
    Sev glared at him. “What are you thinking?”
    Io ushered him inside and shut the door. “I knew I could take better care of her here than they could at AKM,” he said.
    “Why’s that?” Sev kept his voice down as he entered the living room and saw Miriam passed out on the couch.
    “Didn’t Ari tell you?”
    “Tell me what?”
    “I used to be an addict, Sev.”
    Severin’s head shot around, his gaze lighting with surprise.