Master of Smoke

because they don’t know how ready I was to kill them.” Belle lifted one shoulder in a half shrug. “Trouble is, I’ve stopped caring. The next time one of them goes blood-mad, I may not bother to conjure a knife.”
    Morgana’s head rocked back as if she’d been slapped. She stared at Belle a frozen moment before she turned toward the two men and lifted her voice. “Belle goes with you, Tristan. Or no one does.”
    The knight jerked around, and he stared at her, disbelief on his handsome face. “What? I’ll not ...”
    “You will if you want magical assistance.”
    Tristan turned toward his friend. “Arthur ...”
    The immortal lifted both big hands in a warding gesture. “Morgana is the liege of the Majae, Tristan. I don’t tell her how to assign her women, and she doesn’t tell me how to assign my men. You know that.”
    “But ...”
    Arthur shot Morgana and Belle a look, then turned deliberately back to Tristan and squared his massive shoulders. “You also know that I am your liege. And I’m ordering you to work with La Belle Coeur.”
    The knight snapped his mouth closed on whatever argument he’d been about to make. He gave Belle a glower, then swept a courtier’s bow. “As you will, Sire.”
    Before Belle could decide whether she’d just won or gotten herself in a great deal of trouble, Tristan stalked off the field to catch her by one arm. “Come on, partner. We’re going to have a little talk.”
    And he hauled her after him.

    It was two in the morning before David and Eva returned to her apartment. Shelly’s mother had arrived just before the ambulance crew, announcing she was going to take the pair to her house after they got checked out at the emergency room.
    But it was Ronnie who had David’s undivided attention when the police arrived. Under his ice-blue glare, the man had confessed to beating Shelly and hitting his son.
    Eva kept a close eye on the cops the entire time, afraid they’d notice the way David’s pupils contracted into vertical slits when he was pissed. She figured if anybody commented, she’d just claim he was wearing special contacts.
    Hopefully the cops wouldn’t realize nobody made contacts that reacted to light.
    Luckily, the police were far more interested in Ronnie’s confession than in the two neighbors who’d called the cops. They asked Eva and David a few questions, then let them go.
    Too wired to sleep, Eva decided a trip to Wal-Mart was in order. The store was open all night, which gave her a good opportunity to replace David’s pants before they gelded him—a fate he insisted was imminent.
    She and David left the store half an hour later with three pairs of jeans, four knit shirts in different colors, socks, underwear, and running shoes, along with a toothbrush, razor, and male deodorant.
    “I’ve got to get some sleep,” Eva told him as they walked into her apartment carrying their purchases. “I’m supposed to open the shop in a few hours.”
    “What shop?” David asked, following her back toward the guest bedroom.
    “My father and I own a comic book store,” she explained. “We share the chores of operating it. It’s my turn to open tomorrow.” Eva frowned. “I’m just not sure what to do about you while I’m working.”
    His eyes narrowed as his pupils contracted into slits. She really should have bought him a pair of sunglasses. “What do you mean, you are not sure what to do about me?”
    “Uh—” Oh, shit. Might as well brazen it out. “I don’t know if I should leave you here while I go to work. What if your enemy tracks you down?”
    David stepped in so close to her, she became instantly aware of his size, his heat, his scent. “What if my enemy tracks you down?”
    “Ah ... yeah.” She stared up at him, half-hypnotized. “Maybe we should stick together.”
    “Yes,” he purred. “It’s best if we are together.”
    David lowered his head and kissed her. She froze, stunned by the feeling of his lips moving on hers. Slow. Hot. Exquisitely seductive. His tongue stroked across her lower lip until she opened for him with a helpless moan. His fingers found her chin, cupped gently. His hand felt warm, just slightly rough with calluses.
    The burning heat within her had been waiting for just this chance. It blazed up, hot and savage, searing her self-control to a black cinder.
    And she was lost.

    Eva’s mouth tasted rich, female, intoxicating. The gentle power of it maddened him, made David want to roll in her