Superlovin' Read Free Page A

reinforced her glare. “You’ll have plenty of time on earth. I hear Area Nine is lovely this time of year.”
    He snorted. “I’d rather you dropped me.”
    “Don’t tempt me.” Darla resisted the urge to give him his wish, concentrating on navigating to the newly built super-containing North Courthouse, using the distinctive egg-shape of Victory Hall below as a landmark.
    She should be ecstatic that she’d caught the bastard. Victory was supposed to be a sweet and heady rush. Champagne corks popping, crowds cheering. She lived for this shit. But tonight she just felt…deflated.
    She’d hoped Big & Bad would be more of a challenge. Not that she’d fooled herself into thinking he’d given up. She’d be ready for his tricks once they touched down on solid ground. But still…as much as she loved to win, she hadn’t wanted it to be easy.
    He’d been so daunting. She hadn’t been daunted in…ever. But apparently all it took was a few thousand feet of distance from the ground to tame him. What a let down.
    Though the height didn’t appear to scare him. She tried not to notice how warm his arms were, wound around her—not clinging, just holding steady. The lack of panicked hands clutching at her and constant begging not to be dropped was rather refreshing. Pity he was an unabashed crook.
    “Do you think I’d survive it?” he asked in a conversational drawl, eyeing the city streets far below. “I’ve never been dropped from ten thousand feet before. I might just leave a large divot. Anticlimactic, that.”
    “Three thousand. Would you like to test it? I’m happy to oblige.”
    “Maybe next time, princess.”
    She squelched a flicker of disappointment. There’d been some truth in her taunt. Part of her would have been happy to drop him. Not to hurt him, but to see if he could rise without a scratch. It was the same part that wondered what would happen if she lost consciousness and fell. Her strength protected her from so much, but no scientist had ever adequately explained why her body could take so much damage without a mark. And this man, this villain , was in the unique position of being like her. So very like her.
    It was unsettling. She didn’t want to be like the thief, but she was more tempted than she cared to admit to quiz him about his experiences. If he’d ever been injured. Ever managed to break a bone or slice through the diamond-hard surface of his skin.
    Strange that she’d never heard of a villain who shared her abilities.
    “You never did introduce yourself,” she said, mimicking his conversational tone. “Doesn’t that violate some villain etiquette guide? The world must fear your name and all that?”
    “I prefer to fly under the radar. Leave the glory-seeking to you heroic types.”
    “The glory. Of course. That must be why I left my date tonight to come arrest your ass. It has nothing to do with civic duty and an appreciation for justice.” The fib rolled off her tongue, drenched in sarcasm. He didn’t need to know her date had come to an abrupt end when the man she’d thought had boyfriend potential declared she wasn’t feminine enough for him.
    Her. A woman who spent the better part of her life in form-hugging spandex and had been called the Jessica Rabbit of crime fighters by drooling newscasters ever since she first put on the cape. Not feminine enough.
    “Forget your date. He obviously has fucked-up priorities.”
    How could he know that? Their flight path wavered as her concentration slipped, and she scrambled to correct it before he noticed. “What makes you say that?” she asked oh so casually.
    “He let you walk out on a date to go meet another man. You should dump him.”
    Too late. He already dumped me. Darla firmed her chin when it would have wobbled, keeping her eyes locked on the skyline. “No one lets me do anything.”
    “Maybe that’s your problem. You need a firm hand.”
    “Just what every post-feminist woman longs to hear.”
    “Don’t go