Set In Flames (Morningstars Book 1) Read Free Page A

a slight burning on his back, making him rush out of the room instead of lingering. Kaden maybe had a point concerning him and his hungers. He left the house, planning to get to a bar, have some nice little action with a woman or two, getting all the need out that might have piled up in the last months and then he’d go back, checking if Cupcake still looked as edible as she had before. Jaden surely hoped his perception would be altered by then.
    Four hours and three women later Jaden entered his bedroom, looking at the sleeping girl on his bed. Nothing had changed. For some strange reason he still wondered if she’d taste as good as she smelled.

    Maya opened her eyes the next morning, feeling more rested than she had in months. She couldn’t remember when she had last slept in a bed that she considered safe. Usually she didn’t sleep at a stranger’s place, either, but he had felt trustworthy, and that was something she appreciated after being alone and on the run for so long. She knew she was suspicious of everyone now, but with the guy from last night her impulse had been to trust him. And she had, but now, with her need for sleep out of the way, she could afford the luxury of being suspicious of her new surroundings. There was no sun, just the faint light of a candle in the far corner of the room.
    “Rise and shine, sweetheart!”
    The voice startled her, making her look closer into the shadows. Her ‘savior’ sat in another corner, watching her.
    “Not creepy at all, watching me sleep,” she snapped, feeling defensive. She heard his dark chuckle as loud as if he was sitting right next to her. Something was very wrong with her ears in the last months. And not just that. She could see him clear as day even though there was barely any light. His dark blond hair had the out-of-bed-look she usually loved on a guy, especially combined with the chocolate colored eyes. And those kissable lips, that now formed a sneer. To her total dismay, even that was kind of handsome on him. He was such a nice pack to look at, even though she didn’t have the time to stay and enjoy it. She needed to get out of there and back on the run.
    “I was worried you feigned a coma to get out of your end of the bargain,” he said, rising to his feet while fear all but choked Maya. She never had intended to fulfill that end of the bargain. She had hoped to slip out while he was asleep, catching a bus somewhere. She really had wanted to be away before he would have been able to hold her back. Or make her fulfill her promise. The whole six feet one inch of awesomeness came towards the bed now and she went to her knees, deciding to not let her panic show. He was handsome as sin; surely she could get herself to do the deed and then be up and running in no time.
    “I never had any intention of getting out of it,” she whispered, forcing herself to sound husky. She probably sounded as afraid as she felt though.
    “Tell me your name,” he demanded, his voice deep with need. It was obvious in his eyes, too, giving him a dangerous, yet sexy appearance. Against her better knowledge she suddenly wanted him, knowing that maybe she wouldn’t mind that end of the bargain after all. Additionally though it made her decide to never sink that low anymore. Offering up her body for a safe place just wasn’t like her at all.
    He had changed his jeans, but besides that he still wore no shirt under that stupid sexy leather jacket.
    He was close enough so she could reach out to him, but as his smell hit her, she pulled back her hand. A wave of terribly inappropriate jealousy hit her and she wanted to growl at him. She almost shuddered at the intensity of it.
    “You reek of cheap booze and even cheaper women. I don’t think you need me in tonight’s collection and I have no intention of joining it, either,” she said, sounding more controlled than she actually felt. She wanted to hurt him and scratch his chest because he was supposed to be hers, but the