When she finally eased the implement into the cake, she chuckled. “You appeared worried about me but not about yourself.”
I didn’t validate her dangerous little game at first, doing nothing more than watching as she cut two slices, gingerly placing them on the plates. Her eyes flitted in my direction while rubbing her finger down the edge, gathering icing.
While I was a cold-blooded killer, seeing her toying with a deadly weapon created a knot in the pit of my stomach. For all her insistence she had similar skills to mine, my need to protect her transcended everything else.
“If I die, the world continues without anyone mourning my death. If you’re injured, your family will collapse.”
For some reason, my stark answer surprised her. She placed the knife on the table, grabbing both plates in her fingers and heading closer. Her indigo blue eyes hit mine and in those seconds of her searching my blackened soul, I was pulled into an enlightened vacuum where right and wrong collided. “That’s not true. I would mourn your death for a very long time. You’re very… unforgettable.”
Unforgettable. I’d never had a woman use such a phrase when talking about me.
I accepted the plate, unable to take my eyes off her as she used her fingers, scooping up a small piece of cake.
“Happy birthday to me.” She sang the second line.
There shouldn’t be anything sensual about what she was doing and especially not with how she was chewing her food. But everycell in my goddamn body was alive, on fire and suffocating the hell out of me.
“Happy birthday, dear…” Leaving the end open, she tilted her head, darting her eyes back and forth across mine.
Daring me.
Challenging me.
When she arched an eyebrow from amusement, I realized my hand holding the plate was shaking. She didn’t ask me to join her. She didn’t chastise me for not taking a bite. She simply moved closer, standing directly in front of me and I hadn’t paid but so much attention that she’d moved.
Exhaling, Emmeline took my plate away, placing both on the table. Every action deliberate, she picked up the remainder of the piece she’d been nibbling on.
“Care to explain what you’re doing?” I asked, uncertain I wanted the answer.
“Tempting you.” She gave my body a quick sweep, a woman identifying her prey. “Happy birthday…” she repeated while bringing the chunk of cake toward my face.
“Ambrosiadolce.”
Her lower lip quivering, she smiled briefly before finishing the song. “Happy birthday… to… me.”
Was I expecting her to shove the piece into my mouth?
Maybe.
Did I anticipate my body’s reaction to a simple act?
Possibly.
Had I planned on acting on the years of longing to touch and taste her?
Absolutely not, but at this point, I had no other choice. Not one that was acceptable to a man who’d never accepted no as an answer from anyone.
I grabbed her wrist, holding her arm in place as I chomped on the sweet treat.
The fire in her eyes burned brightly, and the slight dart of the tip of her tongue across her bottom lip was a powerful aphrodisiac.
Even her perfume was at the point of driving me crazy.
As soon as I’d swallowed, I had a choice to make.
Either push her away again.
Or…