Sated (7 page)

“You’re killing me.” He was incapable of stopping the admission from leaving his lips. Words have power. Arbor was using hers to keep him aroused. He knew it and was defenseless against it. She had a way of emphasizing the perfect word in each sentence she spoke, making every conversation a sexual invitation even when it wasn’t. Her smile said volumes. She was unapologetic in her wickedness. Deciding two could play this game, Trey set his elbows on the table and let her have it. He didn’t hold anything back as his gaze slid down her body. Trey let every ounce of desire he felt show in his expression. Arbor’s lashes lowered, hiding her thoughts, but she couldn’t hide her body’s reaction. Unfortunately for him, she didn’t try for long. When Arbor lifted her chin and met his stare once more, Trey bit back a moan. Her heat matched his.

“I don’t see how. I’m not even touching you…yet.” She paused, allowing the final word to hang in the air between them before adding, “And I would never hurt you. In a bad way, that is.”

He groaned. “Since I’m now picturing a hundred good ways, the point goes to you. Now, tell me this idea before I embarrass you.”

Even though Trey hadn’t thought it possible, Arbor’s expression turned naughtier. “How cute. You think you can embarrass me.”

“Of course I can,” Trey responded without hesitation. “You’re beautiful, you know? It’s possible you’re the most gorgeous woman I’ve ever set eyes on.” She blushed. Triumph ran through his veins. He couldn’t stop. If need be, he could go all day. He knew Arbor’s weaknesses and strengths. There wasn’t a single thing he didn’t know about her. She couldn’t abide a compliment in any form. “Every head turns in your direction when you’re not looking. In fact, there’re at least three people…”

“Stop. Please?” she begged. “You win, okay?” Since her face was almost as red as his shirt, he considered relenting for half a second before discarding the notion.

“Is that a real ‘stop’? I think you’re secretly enjoying yourself and it was a plea for more. You know; one of those moments when your mouth says ‘stop,’ but your mind screams ‘more.’ Did you know you’re the only woman in the world who’s ever held my attention for longer than five minutes? It’s your eyes.”

She fanned her face. “They’re green.”

“They’re trusting, even though they’ve seen too much. You’re not jaded in the least. It’s fascinating. Everything you’re feeling is written there and you do nothing to hide it. You couldn’t care less what people think of you, but you’re scared to death no one thinks of you at all.” She wasn’t blushing any longer, but now that he’d started, Trey couldn’t stop. “I do. I haven’t stopped thinking about you since the first moment I set eyes on you.”

“Let’s go shopping.”

Trey swallowed back a laugh. “Nice avoidance.”

“I thought so,” Arbor said without an ounce of shame tinging her words. “Seriously. Let’s go shopping.” She toyed with her napkin. He eyed the low-cut dress that showed too much cleavage, while she stared at her hands. The dress’ pink coloration looked good against her tan skin. She favored the color, he noticed. He thought about saying as much, to see how she’d react, but he’d pushed too much for one day. Luckily, he also knew exactly how to fix it.

“Compliment me.” At his demand, her gaze shot to his. The confused look on her face was almost comical. Laughter filled her gaze.

“What?” He could hear the emotion attempting to work its way into her voice, but she was good at holding back the humor.

“You heard me. I said a lot of nice things about you. It’s your turn. We’re not moving from this spot until you return the favor.” Trey was grinding his back teeth to a pulp to keep from smiling like an idiot. There wasn’t a single person anywhere he simply wanted to be with other than Arbor. Every second in her presence was worth a thousand of being with anyone else. She pressed her lips together. A dimple appeared at the corner of her mouth as she did her best to keep from smiling, but it was in her eyes.

“You have a great ass.”

A bark of laughter left Trey’s lips before he could bite it back. Several people shot annoyed glances their way. He swiped at his eyes, ignoring them. “I’ll take it. Now, did you have a certain place in mind for this shopping expedition, or were you simply doing your best to shut me up?”

“If I wanted to shut you up, I’d gag you.” She bit her bottom lip. A rueful expression crossed her features. “Sorry. It’s like I can’t stop.” She blew out a breath, causing her hair to fly away from her face. “I want to go to Bourbon Street.”

He almost groaned again. She would choose the most touristy place around, but he was all about making her happy. “Then that’s where we shall go. God help us.” Arbor’s musical laughter made everything worthwhile.

Turned out, Bourbon Street was located in the fiery depths of hell. There was no other way Arbor could think to describe the crowds…or the heat. It was horrible. It was possible the shops were amazing. If she could’ve beaten her way through the people to get to them, she might’ve found out. A sudden onslaught of claustrophobia overcame her and she couldn’t do it. Everyone was closely packed together, breathing up all the good air and leaving her the shit that didn’t have enough oxygen to survive in it. Thankfully, Trey spotted her full-blown panic attack the moment it set in, and began elbowing his way through the crush until he could drag her down a side street. The instant her feet touched the cobblestone path—which seemed odd compared to their surroundings—the air cooled and Arbor was finally able to breathe again.

“Sorry. I…”

“You need to stop apologizing. That’s what you need to do,” Trey said, cutting her off. “Catch your breath.”

She shook her head. “I’m fine now. I’m not sure what happened back there.” It had been happening more and more often—the moments of having the life strangled from her. “For a minute, I couldn’t breathe, as if the air was being squeezed from my lungs.” Trey’s face went blank, effectively distracting her. Arbor more than saw the change overcome him. She
felt
it happen. Shifting, uncomfortable with this version of him, Arbor cleared her throat. “I’m okay now. Maybe I just got overheated.”

Trey nodded. “That makes sense.” He shook his head, making her wonder what image he was attempting to shake off. In an obvious attempt at gaining his bearings, Trey looked both ways down the alleyway before adding, “There’s a refreshment stand about halfway up the street. Do you think you can make it?” Slashing his hand through the air, Trey stopped her from answering. “Never mind. I don’t want you to try. You need a break. I’ll run down there and grab something.” Arbor could see the stand from where they were. It wasn’t that far away, but she could tell that Trey was adamant. His gaze moved over their surroundings once more before meeting her stare. “Don’t move, okay?”

She started to ask where he thought she’d go, but managed to swallow it. He’d been the one to drive them there. Not to mention, she’d gotten so turned around in the crowd, she’d never find the parking garage again, even if she’d been the one with wheels. Thankfully, Trey didn’t wait for her to give her word before taking off. Finding an empty spot between two shop windows, Arbor leaned against the wall. The hot brick seared her skin, making her instantly sorry. As she jumped away, cursing herself for being an idiot, she caught a glimpse of a neon sign shining through one of the windows. It was a red hand with an eye in the center of its palm. Purple gauze blocked out the rest of the interior, keeping Arbor from peering inside.

Her gaze slid toward the cart where Trey stood, waiting his turn. As if he felt her eyes upon him, he met her gaze and smirked. A girlie sigh rose in her throat at the sight of his lips twisting into the knowing grin. Fuck. It was like he was stripping her out of her clothes in his head. Unfortunately, the second he looked away, an image of Lyric’s and Killian’s mouths colliding flashed through her mind, making her nipples harden.

Arbor had spent her entire life finding every man she met lacking in some way. Now, three men had fallen in her lap—equal in their sexiness. The neon sign flashed, capturing her attention once more. She could pop inside and learn her fate. How long could it possibly take? Surely she could be in and out before Trey missed her. With another quick peek in his direction, ensuring he was otherwise engaged, Arbor slipped inside the shop before she could change her mind. As the door slid closed behind her, a shrill voice sliced through the air, making Arbor’s heart jump into her throat.

“Go away. You have nothing to trade.”

Pressing the heel of her hand against her chest, attempting to slow her racing heart, Arbor searched for the source. An old woman who was barely tall enough to see over the counter stared at her through narrowed eyes.

Arbor crossed the room. “I have money.”

Weathered hands swiped away Arbor’s claim. Her white hair vibrated, seeming to mimic her outrage. “Meh! What do I care of money? That’s a greed of the living. Now, go away.”

The shopkeeper’s comment didn’t sound as odd to Arbor as it should have, considering the woman looked very much alive. Of course, if Arbor had learned anything in the past few weeks, her eyes were a pair of liars. Nonetheless, Arbor didn’t back down.

“I need you to tell me my future.”

She eyed Arbor thoughtfully. “Nothing to tell, is there?”

“I’m standing here,” Arbor argued. “Considering that thirty seconds from now it’ll be the future, what will it hurt to try?”

Every deep line in the shopkeeper’s face hardened, matching her tone as she enunciated every word. “As I said before, you have nothing to trade.”

Arbor couldn’t let it go. “Please? I’m sure we can work something out.”

Holding her stare, the woman snatched up a deck of Tarot cards. Arbor hadn’t seen them sitting there. It was almost as if they’d magically appeared. She bit back a hysterical bubble of laughter over the irony. Without bothering to shuffle or even as much as look at what she held, the woman pulled three cards from the stack before placing them face down on the counter. “I wonder,” she mused aloud as she flipped the first one over, “if you smiled as you gave away your heart.”

There wasn’t enough air in the room for Arbor’s lungs to work properly. Three hearts circled a picture of a microphone. “Lyric,” Arbor said without thought.

A sword shaped like a guitar came next. “Did you sigh as you traded your body?”

It was Killian’s card. She knew it beyond a single doubt. In all her days, Arbor had never seen a Tarot deck such as this, but these cards were hers. She could feel it. The old woman’s hand hovered over the final card. Arbor held her breath, completely incapable of looking away.

The door flew open, banging against the wall in Trey’s fury. “For fuck’s sake, Arbor. You have no business in a place like this. It’s dangerous. Do you have any idea how many times a week I get called to this street or what happens to women here?”

The shopkeeper snorted, dragging Arbor’s attention away from Trey’s enraged expression. Leaning closer, the psychic dropped her voice to a whisper before quickly flipping over the final card. “Did you moan as you lost your soul?”

Arbor knew. Before she even dropped her gaze to the counter, she knew what she’d see. As Trey reached her side, Arbor swiped her hand over the cards, flipping them over before he caught sight of them. She forced a smile for his benefit.

“I was feeding my paranormal junkie side,” she said, doing her best to calm his temper while her mind raced. It was odd. Arbor half-expected to start hyperventilating any second, but an eerie calm settled over her instead. Trey ran his hands through his hair, leaving it standing on end.

“Damn, Arbor. You scared the shit out of me.” Arbor started to crack a joke, hoping to pull a smile from him, but he did look worried. It caused the words to die on her tongue.

Instead, she chose a different tactic. “I’m fine, Trey. When I saw the shop, I came in without thinking about it. I didn’t realize you weren’t right on my heels.” Reaching over, she linked her fingers through his. The instant their palms touched, he brought her hand to his mouth. His warm breath brushed over her skin as he blew out a sigh of relief. Her gaze slid back to the scattered cards.

Trey gently tugged at her hand, drawing her attention back his way. “Come on. Let’s get out of here.” His face hardened as he turned his head in the shopkeeper’s direction, adding, “Before you end up getting robbed blind.”

Arbor glanced between them, mesmerized by Trey’s deadly expression and the way the elderly woman eyed the opposite wall. In spite of her blatant refusal to look at Trey, the elderly woman’s voice didn’t lose any of its edge. She used the same biting tone with him as she’d used with Arbor.

“Got nothing left, does she?”

For some reason, one that defied all logic, hearing the woman say such a thing to Trey caused Arbor’s temper to snap.

“I have everything.” The over-the-top growl surprised even her as it left her lips. Arbor didn’t back down. When the shopkeeper and Trey focused on her, wearing matching concerned expressions, even that wasn’t enough to shake Arbor from her building rage. “Everything,” Arbor repeated, stressing each syllable.

Perhaps, one day while she hadn’t been looking, Arbor had gone crazy. If so, it didn’t change the way she felt. There was no way the woman should know about Lyric and Killian. It could’ve been that Arbor was harboring some guilt over spending her time with three men, and—in response—she was allowing a shysters’ parlor tricks get the best of her. Either way, she didn’t like the way they were treating her, as if she was too stupid to take care of herself. It seemed to her that she’d done a pretty damn good job of surviving this long without anyone’s help. Shaking off Trey’s hold, she headed for the door, leaving them to whatever they had going on between them. She almost made it to the corner, where she hoped a bus would pick her up, before Trey overcame her.

“I’m an asshole.” Arbor didn’t bother to correct him or to slow her step. Jogging ahead of her, he stepped into her path and left her no choice but to draw up short or slam into him. She started to step around him, but he snagged her around the waist before she could get away. “I’m sorry, okay?” Arbor kept her gaze locked on a lamppost in the distance, refusing to meet his stare, but Trey didn’t back down. “In my line of work, I see a lot of shit, Arbor. These people are capable of the worst sort of…” He growled, sounding frustrated before starting again. “You’re in my head and life seems brighter for it.” Her gaze slid to his while her mind drifted back to the final card—a castle with the arm of the law wrapped around its center. The woman could’ve seen her on the street with Trey. She could’ve absorbed a thousand tiny details about Arbor before setting out those cards. Trey was right. People were capable of anything. She realized she was clutching his shirt. It seemed her hands had already forgiven him.