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26 | A Beguiling Opportunity

Don't let this pretty face fool you, darling. I've got sharp claws and knives to match.

She was speaking to me. Her mouth opened again, exposing two ultra-white rows of perfect teeth. I watched as she spoke, my eyes noting the gradual furrowing of her eyebrows and then the slowing of her lips.

The mystery woman was saying something... trying to tell me something, but I couldn't hear her. A dull ping bounced in my ears, drowning the sounds of all else. My eyes glanced downwards, watching as my blood soaked, shaking hands touched my naked skin. All the jewels were gone and I was completely exposed, excepting the coating of warm blood that covered me from head-to-toe.

Her hand clasped one of mine, bringing my attention back to her attractive face. She wore another femme power suit. The rich vermillion color brought color to her cheeks and matched her lipstick. The pants were wide-legged and featured a slit artfully cut up each side from ankle to thigh and she wore the jacket without a blouse, opting to let her breasts peek out. A new earring dangled from her ear, the star-shaped single diamond sung back and forth like a pendulum as she tipped her head to the side.

I struggled to focus on her face, tracing the outlines of her lips, voluminous lashes, and manicured eyebrows. My mouth opened, but no sound came out. Her hand reached towards my face, but I turned away and instinctively curled into myself. Roughly I clapped my hands onto my aching eardrums and let my tears fall.

It was only when her lips touched mine did I realize that I was screaming. Her next move was slow and deliberate, calculated even. Quickly her mouth slanted against mine, gently coaxing my lips apart to let her tongue invade my mouth. The speed increased, shooting from beguiling to starved in a split second.

She wrapped her willowy arms around my body to close the gap between us. I kissed her back greedily, letting the distraction take me away from the scene a block away. Abruptly she ended the kiss, pulling herself away to spear me with lusty eyes.

Her thumb pressed against my bottom lip and dragged, wiping away her lipstick. A smirk danced across her face as her eyes lit up in triumph. I sat on the floor, between her split legs, more attracted to Euphrates than I had ever been.

The mystery woman was beautiful and her kiss had been pleasant, but it was nothing compared to the desire a single look from Euphrates wrought. I missed him. I missed his dark looks, his possessiveness and his ability to bring me back to reality while making me utterly insane.

My heart clenched, thinking of all the time that had passed since our last meeting. He had been so rough, so unforgiving. And Carter had been there to witness it all. Vaguely I wondered if Carter had anything to do with Euphrates' disappearance.

But what would it matter? Once I was done with MPD, I was done for good. And nothing and no one could tell me that being with Euphrates wouldn't cause grief. He hadn't been shy with his intentions involving me, and I think that's what scared me the most.

"Devani?" I glanced up, straining my ears to hear. "Devani? Can you hear me?"

My eyes met hers again, blinking rapidly. I nodded once and cleared my throat, "yes."

"Good." She winced, "do you know what happened to you?"

Again, my hands were touching my exposed skin. Lightly I fingered the wet blood that adorned my flesh, fighting to remember the incident at the hotel.