Power Trip: Double Helix, Book 1 (7 page)

“Because I’m paying attention when I touch you. I keep the current controlled. You do
not
want to surprise me.” She stood in front of him, which put her pussy at eye level. He looked, naturally, then laughed as she dashed across the room for her clothes. “A little late for modesty, don’t you think?”

“Easy for you to say. I haven’t seen you naked yet.”

He watched her dress with the same surgical precision with which she had stripped an hour ago. He took her hand and tugged her toward the stairs.

“You promised to show me the lab,” she protested.

“After dinner. I’m starving. Text your brother while I check out what’s in the fridge.”

She doubled back to grab her purse. “What did you see on the heart monitors?” she asked as she sent the text.

“Normally, the levels stay pretty low for a first session with a new sub. Progressive sessions build electricity in the muscles, almost like stored energy. It’s the basis for my bioelectrical enhancer research, but it’s damn hard on my sex life. I can’t work with a sub more than a half dozen times before it gets dangerous. I always have to find someone new.” Best to get that out there. He didn’t want her to form an attachment to him. “Your levels stayed within normal limits.”

“Normal or normal limits with a new sub?”

“Normal,” he said. “But I don’t know what that means. You haven’t manifested any kind of power?”

She shook her head.

“Have you tried?”

She snorted. “I’ve tried everything I could think of. I jumped off the shed to see if I could fly. I burned my arm playing with fire. I nearly drowned myself in the bathtub trying to breathe underwater, which was bad enough, but then Jake beat the hell out of me for being so stupid. The only thing remotely unusual about me is that Jake can’t make me do things.”

“And Sam can’t mess with your head.”

“Nope.”

“And my electrons don’t hurt you.”

“Definitely not.”

The sly grin on her face made him hard again, but he refused to be distracted. “Do you think you’re a neutral? Maybe other talents don’t affect you?”

“What kind of a lame power is that? That’s like an anti-talent, worse than having no talent at all.” She frowned, picking up her abandoned water glass on the kitchen counter and taking a long sip.

“Oh, I don’t know. It works out well for me.” Cal opened the fridge to hide his own scowl. Of course she was disappointed. She wasn’t in this for the kink. It had been an experiment, a failed experiment from her perspective, a potentially life-changing event from his perspective. He stared into the crisper without focusing on a single vegetable.

“Do you know any other talents? Can I experiment with them?” She was moving on already. Ironically, that was usually his role.

“We can talk to my friend Truman. He knows when people are lying.”

She snorted. “Truman can sense a liar? How did his parents know about his talent in time to give him such an apropos name?”

“He never knew them. In fact, he doesn’t remember much about his childhood. He literally grew up on the streets of Hudson. I’ve never asked him about his name, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he picked it himself.” Since Truman had scoped her out in the bar, that meant he could read her. Cal said nothing—she already seemed disappointed enough. He didn’t want to twist the knife. “Let me know the next time you get a boo-boo. I’ll call the Doc,” he offered. “We’ll see if she can fix you up.”

“Thanks.”

“Eggs okay?” he asked.

She nodded, and he began assembling the ingredients for a breakfast burrito. He had an excellent zucchini and tomato gratin and a couple of baked potatoes left over from last night. He shook off his disappointment. It was hypocritical to warn her that he didn’t form relationships and then get all heartbroken when she left him in the dust.

“Can I do anything to help?” she asked.

“No, I’ve got it. I’m just going to scramble some eggs and wrap them up with the zucchini. Fry some potatoes. Sound good?”

She nodded, still looking glum.

“It didn’t hurt at all?” he asked, brushing a hand down her back.

“Nope.”

“I’ll have to try harder next time. Like I said, the effects are cumulative. I think we should continue our study of your response.” Electrons leapt inside him, as if they were as eager to play with her again as he was.

“Tonight?” Audrey tried to look cool. He had made her think there wouldn’t be a next time. No matter what he said about being a science geek, the man was hot and a sex god to boot. She had too much pride to chase after him if he was giving her the brush-off, but if he still wanted to experiment, she certainly wouldn’t turn him down. Maybe further experiments would produce more data, because this one had been a total bust. Why did that make her want to cry? She’d lived without talent her whole life. She should be used to it.

Cal scraped scrambled eggs onto tortillas. “Any time you are willing. Although I think you should get some rest first. I find I have endless energy for you.” He gave her that stunning smile again before he turned his attention back to their midnight snack.

She realized she was still staring at him a few minutes later when he presented her with a burrito, crunchy fried potatoes and fruit salad.

“Wow,” she said, pretending she was talking about the food. “This looks wonderful.”

“Are you free tomorrow?” he asked.

She nodded. “Except for a lunch date.”

“Would you like to get together after lunch, then?”

“Possibly. Can I call you? I don’t know how long I’ll be.” She speared a strawberry, hoping he wouldn’t think she was blowing him off.

“Of course. I’ll give you my card.” His self-deprecating smile told her he also thought it was a funny thing to say after what they had just done together. “It will be interesting to see how you respond to higher voltages, other metals, maybe a few probes.” His eyes danced with sparks and desire stirred inside her, making her wonder exactly how much of his energy she could handle. If she heard music when he was in control, what would she feel if he let go? A full-body orchestra?

She swallowed. “Do not turn me on and kill my appetite for this beautiful meal.”

He chuckled. “I’m glad it’s not just me.”

“Definitely not.”

They finished the meal in charged silence. Afterward, he waved away her offer to help with the dishes and walked her to the door, dimming the lights as they reached the hall.

“Are you up for a quick experiment?” he asked.

“Always.”

He had shed the leather coat while he was cooking. Now he reached into the hall closet and pulled a long-sleeved turtleneck over his head. “I want to kiss you goodnight, but you have to promise not to touch me.”

Her heart slammed in her chest. She nodded, stood waiting, dying.

His mouth pressed briefly against hers, as if he were testing their connection. His lips were soft and his breath faintly smoky. She flattened her palms against the door. “Can I kiss you back?” she whispered against his lips.

He nodded and she took the lead, opening her mouth. Her tongue sought his. Pure lust crackled through her, making her head buzz and her ears ring. Blue fire flashed behind her closed lids and she opened her eyes. She held his gaze, so close, transfixed by his brilliant blue eyes.

His hands slammed into the door on either side of her head, holding his body away from her as his mouth moved roughly over hers. Energy swelled between them, a tangible force. She closed her eyes, surrendering to the melody.

Abruptly, the music cut off.

He pushed away from her, taking a few stumbling steps backward, and grabbed the banister for support.

“Um, hmm.” She blinked at him, pressing her fingers to her tingling lips. “That was…something.” She waved a vague hand at the space between them, which still seemed to vibrate with potential energy, hoping he would infer her question from the charged air between them.

He licked his lips and she moved toward him, wanting more. “For a woman who claims to have no interest in kink, you submit beautifully.”

She stopped. Was that what she had been doing? Submitting? She forced the logical part of her brain to start working again. Under normal circumstances, would she allow herself to be so easily overpowered? Would she walk toward fire while the air turned blue and smoke rose in the air? Hell no—she’d run the other way.

He cleared his throat. “It’s only natural that you would feel some residual effects from our session.”

Residual effects? She would have thrown herself at him and let him incinerate her. “Is this what BDSM is like? Is that why people do it?”

“Sometimes,” he said, walking toward her again.

She took a step back toward the door, determined to show some self-preservation, but when his finger traced a tingling line down her cheek, a soft sigh huffed out of her throat and she leaned into his touch.

“But it isn’t always this intense,” he admitted.

He pressed a card into her palm. “Text me when you get home, so I know you’re safe. And don’t forget to let your brother know you made it out of Bluebeard’s cave alive.”

He opened the door and she stepped outside, not surprised when a porch light flickered on above her head. When she reached her car, more lights lit the driveway and fairy lights twinkled in the trees as she drove away. In the darkness of her car, she felt a stupid grin spread across her face. She sighed.

Calvin Davis was dangerous, all right—just not in the way he thought.

Chapter Seven

Cal awoke Sunday morning and stared at the ceiling.

Audrey’s touch, her kiss, had been stunning. Phenomenal. It had been all he could do to keep from taking her against the door, God help him. He hadn’t wanted to let her go.

Like hell she was vanilla. Life couldn’t be that cruel. He’d attributed the intensity between them to BDSM, but what else was he going to say?
I think you might be the only woman I can touch. Are you the love of my life?
No, that wouldn’t be weird at all.

She had to have talent. There was no way a normal human could have withstood the current he’d pumped into her last night. His monitors would have picked up on the slightest degree of physical or mental distress, and the readout had been dead-level normal. He had to find out if she was a neutral, but he wasn’t looking forward to the conversation that would give him more information.

He growled, rolling over, very aware of his morning erection. He closed his eyes, considering his options. Rub one off before he called her brother? Or call Jake while sporting a massive hard-on? Either way, it wasn’t going to be a comfortable conversation, but he had a few questions for Jacob Fallon, a.k.a. The Cobra, a.k.a. the man who knew every talented person in the Western New York area, maybe even the country, possibly the world. There was no way Jake didn’t know there was something special about his own sister. No fucking way.

He reached for his cell, scrolling through his contacts for Jake’s name. He pressed dial, then waited for the call to go through.

“We’re not going to talk about this,” Jake said in lieu of hello.

“I didn’t call to ask for your blessing. What’s her talent, Fallon?”

“You couldn’t figure it out?” Jake’s voice was mocking.

Cagey bastard, answering a question with a question. Cal could play that game too. “You don’t know, do you?”

“Why would I? I’ve never scened with my sister.”

“Reassuring, but not an answer. Seriously, Fallon, what’s your goal here? She thinks she’s a normal.”

“My goal is to keep her safe.”

“Safe from what? Herself? After last night, she knows she’s got some sort of power. You want her to experiment on her own? Ignorance is dangerous.”

“Not necessarily. So what happened?”

Cal wasn’t giving an inch. “You tell me her talent and I’ll tell you what happened last night.”

Finally, Jake sighed. “I think she’s a neutral.”

Yes.
Wait— “What do you mean you think?” Jake practically made it his business to know everything about every talent he could find. Why not his own sister? “Why don’t you know?”

“Look, Audrey doesn’t remember our father…but I do. The less she knows, the better. She can’t protect herself. I don’t want her to get sucked into a world she can’t handle.”

Cal burst out laughing.

“What’s so funny?” Jake snarled

There was no delicate way to phrase it. “I pumped fifty thousand amps into your helpless sister last night. She begged for more.”

“I’m going to break your mind the next time I see you,” Jake growled.

“You can try, snake charmer.” With that out of the way, Cal continued. “I’ve never seen anything like it. She wasn’t affected at all. She said it didn’t hurt. I even kissed her.” There was wonder in his voice.

“Shut up.”

“Sam tried to shift her reality and couldn’t. Can you hypnotize her?”

“No. Hold it—when did she meet Sam?”

Overprotective big brother wasn’t going to like this at all. “I followed Audrey out of the Lair last night and saw some guy trailing her. She was about to get dragged into an alley when I caught up with them. The guy blew my arm in half before he ran. I called the Doc for roadside assistance, and I figured Sam could rearrange Audrey’s perceptions. No dice. You know the rest.”