AFTER lunch, Ember’s back thumped against the wall, but Cai’s hand protected her skull from bonking against the plaster.
“Thanks for lunch,” she whispered against his plush lips, her voice throaty as she unbuttoned his shirt.
“Thanks for taking care of the fire elemental,” Cai growled as he pulled her blouse out of the waistband of her slacks. He kicked the front door to his penthouse shut behind them with one of his long, muscular legs.
Ember gave up on his buttons and started yanking his shirt out of his pants. “Thanks for the ridiculous amounts of jewelry that I’m going to give back to you.”
“Don’t. Keep it.” He grabbed her hip and forced her stomach against his strong body. His heavy muscles under his clothes practically glowed from the heat flowing through the fabric under her palms. “Thanks for accepting a job with the Dragon’s Den Casino so that I can see you and your gorgeous body every day.”
She ran her hands up his bulging arms and over his broad shoulders, thinking, Yep, this time. Totally this time. It’s gonna happen this time. “Thanks for not running away from me this time.”
His chuckle vibrated against the side of her throat. “I’ll do my best.”
He slung her up in his strong arms and carried her to his bedroom, grinning and baring his straight and white teeth between his lips.
She asked him, “Hey, are we going to—”
He tossed her on the bed, and the springy mattress bounced her. He clambered onto the bed after her, still laughing. “You bet, we are. I’ve been dying to touch you. I’ve been dreaming about having you ever since we met.”
She leaned back as he kissed her, his mouth opening over hers, and he nudged her back on the bed. She grinned at him. “Didn’t seem like it last time.”
“And I said I would do my best not to do that again. God, Ember. You’re so beautiful. I can’t keep my hands off of you, or my lips, or my—”
“Hey,” she said, winding her arms around his neck, “you might want to put a towel down.”
“Oh, are you okay with this? Some girls aren’t.”
“Are you okay with it?” she asked.
“I don’t care,” he said, lipping down her throat. “It’s never bothered me.”
Ember laughed a breathless gasp. “How many virgins have you had?”
Cai stopped kissing her.
He pushed himself up on his arms. His fiery green eyes were a little wider, and his smile was gone. “Virgins?”
“Um, yeah.”
His amazing green eyes widened. “You’re a virgin?”
“Yeah,” Ember admitted.
Cai climbed off of her and sat on the edge of the bed. “Oh, so that’s why you were so nonchalant about the napkin thing in the ballroom and came right upstairs with me that day. Virgins never know their own power. You didn’t realize that you were playing with fire. Virginal explorations are terrifying.” He started putting his shoes on.
Ember grabbed his shoulders and tried to wrestle him backward onto the bed. “You are not doing this to me again. You get back in this bed.”
“This is not a good idea, Ember.”
“Cai, I mean it.”
His head dropped back, and he stared at the ceiling. “Seriously, oh ye Dragon Lords? You send me a virgin? Me, of all people?”
She shoved his back a little bit. “Look, I just want a nice guy who knows what he’s doing. And after the other week, you seem to have some pretty good skills in the bedroom area. I’m tired of waiting around for Mr. Right and my wedding night and all the clear-magic signs.”
Cai turned toward her, and she could have sworn that his green eyes were glowing even more brightly. “Have you ever wanted to slap the Mistresses of Magic upside their heads? Because the Dragon Lords are bastards, and when I see them, I’m going to punch them in their mouths.”
Ember laughed because the situation was just so ridiculous. “There is a Dark Mistress. If she had an evil sense of humor, that would explain a lot about the world. But you promised you wouldn’t run away again.”
“I’m not. I’m calmly leaving for now, as I should.” He leaned back over and tied his other shoe. His white shirt stretched dangerously tightly over his broad shoulders. “You deserve better than this, Ember, especially for your first time. You deserve something a lot better than a hot and dirty afternoon.”
A hot and dirty afternoon sounded like exactly what she wanted. “Cai—”
“I can’t hang out with you tonight. Prior appointment.” He took his phone out of his pocket and powered it on. A series of chimes, bells, and one alarm buzz whistled out of it. “Several prior engagements. I missed three meetings during lunch, evidently, and another conference room is asking where the hell I am. This casino isn’t going to gala-open itself.” He sighed. “And I do have a lot to finish, and only a short time to do it in.”
She rolled backward on the bed. Her brain was going to frickin’ explode out of her eyeballs and ear holes. She pressed her fists against her temples and squeezed her eyes shut. “I cannot believe you’re doing this to me again.”
“Oh, me either, Ember. I’m as shocked as you are.” His dry tone sounded almost annoyed.
“You’re being ridiculous,” she started, opening her eyes.
He leaned over where she lay, resting on his forearms. “Yeah, I know. But you deserve a great night, not just this.”
Where his forearm touched hers, his skin was scalding hot.
She touched his cheek with the back of her fingers. “You’re burning up. Are you sick?”
He shook his head and pulled away from her. “Dragons run hot.”
“That makes sense. With the fire and stuff.”
“In a couple of days or so, we’ll do it right, okay? Maybe this weekend. We’ll dress up. We’ll go out for dinner. I’ll try to score some tickets to a show or something. We’ll make it a wonderful evening, and if you still want me to, then I’ll show you what you’ve been missing.”
He kissed her with a long, slow, soothing caress on her mouth.
Even his lips felt hot against hers.
When he pulled away, Ember’s head was spinning.
He asked, “All right?”
“Yeah,” she whispered. “All right.”
She might have agreed to anything just then.
He stood up and finished buttoning his shirt. “You’ve already eaten lunch, so no room service this time, okay?”