“Alec . . .” The smell of his skin, achingly familiar, drugged her already confused senses.

“I’m here, angel,” he crooned, pulling her into his embrace.

She clutched at his arm and found the raised mark with her fingertips. Turning her head, Eve saw it. The trinity knot and serpents were just like hers, only his brand had another image in the center. An open eye. His looked like an embossed tattoo, while hers was most definitely a blistering burn.

“Dear god,” she gasped, her breathing labored as she felt consciousness slipping from her. “What’s going on?”

He brushed strands of her hair away from her face. Her skin tingled where he touched her, goose bumps rising. Everything about the way he looked at her exacerbated her fever. There was nothing in the world like being wanted with a primitive desire. The one thing she’d never doubted was that Alec was madly in lust with her.

“You were drawn to him because of me, weren’t you?” His lips hovered above hers so that their panting breaths mingled and became one. It was as intimate as sex, that sharing of breaths between them.

She didn’t have to answer. He knew. He always knew.

His thumb brushed across her cheekbone. He moved to kiss her, but Eve jerked her head away.

“Damn you,” she breathed, her nails digging into his skin.

“We’re both damned.” He pulled her into his lap and tucked her flushed face into the crook of his neck, where the scent of his skin was so strong.

Against her will, she nuzzled him, rubbing her sweat into his flesh. She felt the urge to crawl inside him, to see what made him tick. Her tongue darted out and tasted him. He shuddered in response, squeezing her tighter. Her wound was on the arm facing away from him and she felt his fingertips move, feather light, over her bandage.

Her voice came as no more than a whisper. “I haven’t done anything wrong.”

“You’re right, angel. You haven’t.” His lips pressed hard to her damp forehead.

“Then why?”

He exhaled harshly. “Because of me. Because I couldn’t resist you.”

Eve opened her mouth to reply, but weariness pulled hard at her and she sank into darkness.

CHAPTER 5

The deep rumbling growl of a Harley drew Eve’s gaze to the parking lot of the ice-cream shop where she worked after school. It was five in the evening and the day was just starting to end. The horizon was the color of a tangerine tinged with burgundy.

She walked to the end of the counter to catch a glimpse of the Heritage Softail that lounged in front of the Circle K convenience store next door. It was a black and chrome beauty, boasting custom saddlebags and a well-worn seat.

“What I wouldn’t give for a bike like that,” she whispered, “and the freedom of the road.”

Not that she was unhappy with her life, because she wasn’t. It was just . . . ordinary.

Sighing, she looked over her shoulder at the clock and silently begged it to tick a little faster. Her shift was over at six. The final football game of the season started at seven fifteen. While her high school was across the street, the field they played on was a few miles away.

“Hey. Are we going to Chad’s party after the game?”

Eve glanced at her friend Janice and shrugged. “I’m not sure. Depends if Robert’s going or not.”

Shaking her head, Janice went back to work wiping off the counters, her long, blonde ponytail swaying with her exertions. “You can’t avoid him forever.”

“I know. And I know he’ll stop talking shit about me when he hooks up with someone else, but in the meantime, I just want to stay out of his way.”

Crouching down, Eve opened the doors beneath the display case. She pulled out the glass cleaner and a roll of paper towels.

“He’s an asshole,” Janice muttered. “I’m glad you didn’t screw him.”

“Yeah.” Eve stood. “Me, too.”

She tossed one last longing glance at the Harley and froze. The owner was shoving a paper bag into one of the saddlebags. Then he tossed one leg over the bike and settled into the seat.

Wow.

He was tall, dark, and dangerous. His long legs and fine ass were draped in loose, low-slung blue jeans, his powerful biceps bared by the fitted white tank top he wore. His jaw was square and bold, his lips firm but sensual. Wicked. The lines that bracketed them only emphasized how gorgeous he was.

Completely unaware of her fascination, he turned the key and revved the engine, his black leather boots resting firmly on the asphalt, ready to push the bike back. The anticipation of his departure made her shiver.

Then he turned his head and saw her.

Eve knew the exact moment he became aware of her stare because he stilled, his large frame visibly tensing. The hand on his thigh reached for his sunglasses so he could push them up. As they lifted, they caught the overly long lock of glossy black hair that fell over his brow and took it with them.

Their eyes met. Electricity arced through the space between them. She shivered. The bottle of glass cleaner fell from her nerveless fingers and thudded on the linoleum floor.

“Wow . . .” Janice’s voice breathed the awe Eve felt. “He’s got to be famous.”

Eve didn’t break eye contact. She couldn’t. “Why?”

“No normal guy is that fucking hot.” Janice blew out her breath. “Hey!”

Fingers snapped in front of Eve’s face.

“Huh?”

“Stop staring at him. You’re going to give him ideas.”

“Maybe I want him to have ideas.”

Janice yanked her around and glared at her with narrowed green eyes. “Evie, no. First off, that guy is way out of your league. Second, he’s too old for you. Third, everything about him screams bad news.”

The rumble outside stopped and Eve looked back over her shoulder. He stood beside the bike—watching her.

“Listen, Eve. You have the worst luck with guys, worse than me, and that’s saying something. But this guy—hunky as he is—is serious trouble. Look at him. Men that look like that . . .” Janice snorted. “I see him, and I see teen pregnancy and welfare.”

That’s not what Eve saw when she looked at him. She didn’t know what it was, but something inside her was so drawn to him that she felt an invisible string pulling her, urging her to close the distance between them.

Hi, she mouthed, trying to smile, but failing. There was nothing to smile about.

His jaw tensed, his hand fisting at his side. His dark gaze was hot. Burning. No man had ever looked at her with that level of intensity. As if nothing in the world existed but her.

Biting her lower lip, she willed him to come closer. Talk to me. Come on.

She saw the nearly imperceptible shake of his head. He yanked his shades back down, shielding his eyes. He ignored her as he remounted his bike and restarted the engine. But she knew he still felt her stare.

He rode away without another glance in her direction.

The feeling of inexplicable loss stayed with Eve for days after he left.

A wet cloth swiping over Eve’s skin brought her to a distant awareness. The whirring ceiling fan blew air across the lingering dampness, cooling her fevered skin. Her tongue felt thick in her mouth and her hand lifted to her parched throat. As her forearm crossed her chest, she realized she was naked and groaned, hating the feeling of helplessness.

“Here.” A thickly muscled arm slipped beneath her shoulders and raised her to meet the edge of a drinking glass. Her lips parted gratefully and ice water filled her empty stomach, causing her to shiver. Burning hot outside, freezing cold inside.

Inhaling a spicy exotic scent that was unmistakable, she croaked, “Alec?”

“In the flesh.” He mantled her body, his hip pressed to hers as he sat on the edge of the bed.

“I-I don’t want you to see me . . . l-like this. Go away.”

Pressing a kiss to her brow, Alec followed her down to the pillow. Silken strands of his hair stroked over her hypersensitive skin. Pleasure flowed through her. Familiar pleasure. Longed-for pleasure. Contradicting her order to leave, her hand lifted to his thick hair. Her fingers slid deep into the glossy locks, her palm cupping the back of his head to keep him close.

“I feel like shit,” she muttered.

“I know. I’m sorry, angel. Women always take the Change hardest.”

“What . . . what change?”

“Hush,” he soothed, wiping her forehead with the wet washcloth. “Sleep now. I’ll take care of you.”

Her nipples throbbed as if pinched by clamps, the ache boring deep. Her hands moved to them, covering the puckered tips with her palms. A large, warm hand surrounded hers, then pulled them away. At eighteen, she hadn’t been this curvy, less than a handful. She was much fuller now, a fact he seemed to appreciate if the rhythmic kneading of his hand on her breast was any indication. She whimpered, finding relief in the pressure of his touch.

Her fingers drifted along the length of his side, feeling hot, smooth skin stretched tight over lean, hard muscles. The image of Alec bare-chested flashed behind her closed eyelids, followed by heated remembrances of the last time he’d handled her so intimately.

Sick as she was, her body still hungered for him. How the hell could she be horny at a time like this? “Alec . . . What’s happening to me?”

“You’re becoming like me.”

“Oh god.” As the burn on her arm heated painfully, she whimpered. “Shoot me now.”

“Just a few more days, angel. You’re strong. You’ll be even stronger when you get through this.”

“Few days? How long have I—?”

“Three days.”

Three days?

And he was still here.

She fought to stay awake, but she lost the battle and drifted off.

As soon as Eve exited the ice-cream shop to the back alley, she knew he was there. She closed her eyes and sighed, then straightened her shoulders and locked the door.

“What do you want, Robert?” she asked wearily, loose bits of old asphalt crunching beneath her Vans. “I’ve had a long day and I really want to go home.”