Wicked Waves: Solsti Prophecy #2 (6 page)

Silence filled the room for all of two seconds before Brenin shook his head. “Why are you such a dick to her?”

“Why the fuck do you care?” Kai shot back.

“Usually when there’s a hot female around you’re trying to get in her pants, not trying to piss her off every chance you get.”

Kai glowered at his friend, then shifted his gaze back to the door Brooke had just slammed.

“And,” Brenin continued, “She’s not just any cute piece of ass. She’s a fucking Solsti. Not exactly the type of woman you want to piss off.”

“You think she’s hot.”
 
A growl rumbled up from Kai’s chest.

Brenin snorted. “Hell, yeah. And so would any male with blood in his veins. But I’m not the one she’s interested in.”

Kai's head snapped around to glare at Brenin. “Fuck you.”

“I'm serious. I've spent enough time with her over the last few weeks to notice. Whenever you're around, she’s tighter than the trigger on your Sig. One minute, she’s laid-back, and the next, she’s on lockdown.”

Probably because she wants to rip my head off
. “No shit?” he asked.

“No shit, bro.” Brenin winked and nodded at the door.

Intrigued, Kai couldn’t help but wonder if there was more to Brooke's fierce emotion. He grinned at the prospect of thawing his ice princess. He loved a challenge, and Brooke sat smack-dab in the center of his crosshairs.

Brooke stomped up the stairs, hissing out an irritated breath as she shoved the door open. Another day, another insult.
What the hell is his problem?

She stopped short of running into Nicole, who cradled a cup of fresh coffee in her hands. Her sister took one look at her and set her drink down on the island.

“What happened?” Nicole asked.

“Kai happened,” Brooke growled. She grabbed a glass from the cabinet and held it to the water dispenser on the stainless steel fridge door.

Nicole folded her arms across her chest and frowned. “I didn’t realize he was home.”

“Yeah, well, he’s been home long enough to interrupt my session, monopolize my trainer, and insult me.
Again
.”

Nicole shook her head. “I’ve never seen him act like that around the other guys.”

“That’s because they’d beat the shit out of him.”
 
A small part of Brooke wished she was strong enough to do the same.

“Do you want me to talk to him?”
 

“No!” Brooke said, louder than she intended. “I don’t want him to know…that he got to me.”
 
Her voice trailed off.
Why do I care what he thinks?

Nicole tilted her head and raised an eyebrow, studying her.

“Look, I can handle one overgrown demon with a bad attitude,” Brooke said, before her perceptive sister could ask another question. A smile crept across her face. “I soaked him with his own water yesterday.”

“That was you?
 
I noticed him walk through here with wet hair!”
 
Nicole grinned at her and took a sip of her coffee. “Nice work.”

“It felt good.” Brooke gulped her water and nodded, then headed out of the kitchen, feeling better. “I’m gonna take a shower,” she said over her shoulder.

She climbed the stairs to her guest room, which had its own bathroom. Stripping off her sweaty tank top and yoga pants, she turned on the water and climbed in. As the spray pounded down on her back, she recalled something their mother used to say. “Don’t let negative people rent space in your head.”
 
Ellen had been so sweet and positive.

Brooke sighed. She couldn’t believe it had been seven years since they’d passed away. They had so much love to give, taking in four small girls who had lost their birth parents in a fiery car accident. They hadn’t even hesitated, despite the medical problems facing her youngest sister, Alina. Then Alina’s body had failed her.

Brooke pushed aside the old hurts. She, Nicole, and Gin were all the family they had left. Well, and Gunnar, now. The dark-haired demon put a light into Nicole’s eyes that Brooke had never seen before. He was funny and polite, unlike his friend.

Tension ricocheted through her body at Kai’s cocky attitude and she gritted her teeth. No one annoyed her like he did. The nerve of him, waltzing in and starting a fight with Brenin—

Her muscles clenched again, this time with breath-stealing heat, as her mind flooded with images of him wielding that heavy sword. His bare chest and arms rippled with every movement, each sculpted ridge and plane honed and battle-ready.
And so damn hot
. Her fingertips had tingled with the urge to touch him.

She shook her head, shoving away the memories of his chiseled torso.
He’s an ass. Not letting him rent space in my head
. Brooke shut off the water and toweled herself dry. Her stomach let out a growl. The banana she had eaten before her session with Brenin hadn’t been enough. She didn’t plan to make another fancy breakfast, but Nicole made sure Demon Central was stocked with fresh food.

She pulled on jeans and a light blue T-shirt, and walked downstairs to find the kitchen empty. Grabbing a red apple from a fruit bowl on the island, she took a bite, pausing to savor the sweet taste. She walked over to the window above the sink and leaned a hip on the counter, crunching contentedly as she gazed into the back yard.
Where should the koi pond go?

The basement door opened, pulling her from her thoughts, and Kai strode into the room.

“Hey,” he said casually, as if he hadn’t insulted her just thirty minutes ago.

Thank God he’d put his shirt back on so she’d have an easier time ignoring him. She turned her back, staring out the window.

“I think I’ll join you,” he said, and she heard a loud crunch as he bit into his own apple.

“Go away, Kai.”

“Is that what you really want?”

She froze, mid-crunch, aware that his voice came from right behind her, not over by the fruit bowl where he had been two seconds ago.

Clutching her apple to her chest, she peeked down in time to see his powerful hands settle on the counter on either side of her hips. Caging her in. She gulped and took a shallow breath.
Right behind me
.

But she didn’t feel any fear. Despite his grumpy demeanor, she had never once thought he would physically harm her. And right now, he wasn’t even touching her. At five foot eight, she wasn’t tiny, but Kai was well over six feet tall. Big enough to stand over her like this. She couldn’t feel his touch, but the heat rolling off his body made her skin feel too tight.

The air in the room crackled, charged with tiny sparks. They danced across her bare arms, reminding her of the
zing
she felt when she’d brushed against him yesterday. His scent swirled around her, enticing her nose with leather and soap.

“You know what I think, Sprite?”
 
The deep timbre of his voice made her stomach flip. He leaned in so close that his breath tickled her ear. She glanced down again at his hands, her senses on overload. She couldn’t speak.
So close
.

“I think you don’t want me to go away.”

Yes
.
No. Don’t stop talking
!
 
His voice lulled her. Heat flooded her veins, and she felt her eyelids dropping.
 
Everything in the room distilled down to the two of them, her senses incapable of registering anything else. She swallowed her last tiny mouthful of apple, wondering how he would taste. He had bitten into an apple, too. She would be able to taste the sweetness on his tongue…

“Is that it?”
 
A flicker of movement was the only warning she had before he lifted a lock of hair near her ear. He drew it gently between his fingers, letting the strands fall back down. She wanted to lean into him, wanted him to do it again. She tilted her head toward him, her muscles acting on their own accord.

“Yes,” she whispered.

She felt movement in the air behind her as he switched sides to murmur into her other ear.

“Yes, you want me to stay?”
 
His voice melted away the last of her tension. “Or yes, you want me to go?”
 
Her neck tingled where her hair had fallen back. His mouth was inches away. Her body felt heavy, like she couldn’t stand up anymore. Her back burned with heat, and she ached to push up against him, to feel his hardness against her softness.

“That’s okay, you don’t have to answer.”
 
She thought she felt him shift behind her. Would he touch her?
 
God help her, but she would let him. She took another shallow breath, feeling his warm breath on her neck.

He spoke again, his voice rough. “I’m sorry for what I said downstairs. You win, Sprite. I’ll leave you alone.”
 
Before she understood what was happening, the air at her back turned cold, and his footsteps left a hollow echo on the stairs.

She exhaled sharply, her shoulders sagging. She dropped the apple into the sink and clutched the counter for dear life.
What the hell?
 
Her pulse raced, her heart thundered in her chest, and her breath came ragged and choppy. She blinked at the loss of his presence.

She rubbed her temples.
What is wrong with me?
 
The rudest man she had ever met whispered in her ear, and she turned to mush?
 
She’d been three seconds away from whirling to face him and hauling his mouth down to hers. His scent lingered in the air and her skin still tingled, craving the touch he didn’t give her. She shook her head to clear it, but her body wouldn’t let go of the sensations.
Of Kai.

C
HAPTER
4

B
ROOKE
WAS
SWAMPED
WITH
PROJECTS
for her clients. Located in the trendy River North neighborhood, the graphic design firm where she worked had grown exponentially in the last five years. When she started there, she’d been one of two designers. Now, the company employed six designers and desperately needed a seventh. Until one got hired, Brooke and her colleagues had to work overtime.

Rhys, ever-talented with technical stuff, had offered to install a computer-aided design program and a large-screen monitor so she could work from Demon Central. Brooke declined his offer as sweetly as she could, knowing she needed some boundaries.

The clock on her computer read eight pm. Her third twelve-hour day in a row was drawing to an end, thank God, because the exposed bricks and duct work of the office were starting to blur together.
 
She yawned and stretched her arms above her head, then swiveled her chair around. Her co-workers were still there, turning off their computers and packing up.

“C’mon, Brooke, time to go,” said Charles. “Boss left half an hour ago.”

Brooke rubbed her tired eyes and smiled at her friend. “Do you and Jay have plans for tonight?”

“We’re gonna check out the new steakhouse on Wells. Then it’ll be time for a long soak in the tub.”
 
Brown eyes twinkled mischievously from his handsome face, and his white teeth gleamed against smooth dark skin. Thick biceps reflected the hours he and his man spent in the gym. If he’d had any interest in women, she definitely would have dated him.

“I want to hear all about it tomorrow. The restaurant, I mean.”
 
She powered down her computer.

“Girl, you planning on a hot date?” he asked.

Brooke slung her bag across her shoulder and sighed. “No. Maybe Nicole and I will go there for drinks.”

Charles linked her arm with his as they walked to the elevator that opened directly into their third floor office. “You’re gonna meet a hottie real soon, sugar. Some tall guy with a big personality. Someone who can keep up with Miss Brooke Bonham!”

“Did your crystal ball tell you that?” she asked as the elevator dinged and they stepped inside.

“Baby girl, my balls ain’t crystal, but they are F-I-N-E.”

Brooke snickered and elbowed him in the ribs.

Charles looked at her seriously. “
You
are overdue for someone to treat you like a queen.”

“You’re sweet. Can you be
my
queen?”
 
She sighed and batted her eyes at him, then dissolved in a fit of giggles. “I’m
so
tired I’m getting slap-happy.”

Charles burst out laughing as they walked through their lobby and into the autumn night. “Honey, you’re too much.”
 
He walked her to the Brown Line and waved as he caught his bus to the Gold Coast. “See you tomorrow.”

Brooke watched his bus merge into the light Wednesday evening traffic. She loved her work, but good co-workers made all the difference.

The last two nights, she had collapsed exhausted into bed when she got home. Tonight, she needed to let off some steam. Instead of going home when her train reached the busy Fullerton Avenue station, she changed to a Purple Line train and texted Nicole.
On my way. Need a workout.

Twenty minutes later, she arrived at the Central stop, surprised to see Nicole waiting for her. Pulling her into a hug, she said, “You didn’t have to come down here to meet me.”

Nicole shrugged. “I wanted to. More sister time. Besides, Rilan has all the guys learning some old demonish stuff.”

“Did they all sit willingly, like good little demons?”

A smirk lit Nicole’s face. “They pretended to grumble about it, but I think their inner geeks were thrilled.”

They made their way to the house, the air crisp with fall’s chill. The scent of burning leaves drifted through the night air, and Brooke inhaled deeply. She loved that smell.
 

“Look, the harvest moon!”
 
Nicole pointed to the huge, orange sphere hanging between the trees. “It’s so beautiful, but as soon as wispy clouds blow in front of it, it turns eerie.”

“All it needs is a witch on a broom,” Brooke added.

“That is a distinctly possible situation.”

Brooke grinned. “Witches and demons and nymphs, oh my!”

Nicole let out a loud guffaw and raised her hand for a high five. “Hell yes!”