Read Online Hunting Human by Amanda E. Alvarez - Free Book Online Page A

throat?
    Everything about her captivated his imagination, but her eyes snared his attention. She’d done something to them, something that brought out the cobalt hue. When he finally recovered enough to smile in greeting, her eyes were the first to respond, crinkling at the edges as a warm welcome bloomed across her face.
    “Hi.” Hardly smooth, but the best he could do until blood rushed back to his brain.
    “Hi.” She said, pulling her wrap over her shoulders.
    “Ready to go?”
    “Sure. You said the restaurant’s close, right?”
    “Two blocks. It’s nice outside, but if you’d rather drive, I can pull the car around.”
    “Walking sounds good.”
    “Goodnight, Marianne.” Braden smiled over his shoulder and slid an arm around Beth’s waist as they moved toward the door. It was a nice evening to walk, the warmth and humidity of the afternoon lingered, but a pleasant breeze blowing in from the west made it a comfortable evening to be out.
    “The weather today was perfect. Did you get a chance to enjoy it?” Braden cringed.
    The weather? Lame. Very lame.
    “Not directly, I had to work for most of it, but the customers brought the atmosphere in with them.” Her amusement was clear in her tone. “What about you?”
    She pressed closer to his side to avoid bumping into another pedestrian. The warmth of her seared straight through him, scattering his thoughts. “What?”
    “Did you enjoy the day?”
    “Oh. No, not really, my brother’s in town.” Braden maneuvered them off to the side and under a rich expanse of maroon awning.
    Glancing around in confusion, Beth asked, “Is everything alright?”
    “I’m sorry.”
    Her shoulders tightened and she opened her mouth to speak, but he slipped an arm around her waist and pressed her against the rough brick of the storefront behind her. His slid a hand carefully along her jaw, letting it rest against the nape of her neck. Her breath hitched, as he pressed his lips to hers in a caress that began as a warm and gentle greeting and accelerated into a promise of things to come.
    Finally, when reason prevailed over greed, Braden forced himself to step back and suck air into his lungs. She’d been beautiful in the moment before he’d kissed her, and beautifully responsive as he had. But neither compared to the picture she presented now. The faintest flush warmed her cheeks and her pupils had expanded to swallow all but the thinnest halo of blue. Her hands must have come up at some point to grasp his arms because she still had a viselike grip on his jacket. He leaned his forehead down to rest against hers, breathing in the scent of her one more time before he stepped back, out of temptation’s grasp.
    “Sorry. I couldn’t seem to think.” He smiled when she blinked twice before focusing on his face.
    “Huh?”
    “I just thought I’d get it out of the way.” He admired the way her blush deepened as awareness returned to her eyes. “This way I won’t be wondering what it feels like to kiss you the rest of the night.”
    “Did it work?” A small smile graced her face.
    “Yeah.” He settled his arm around her shoulders and led her to the door of the restaurant. “But now I’ll be looking forward to doing it again.”
     
    The restaurant was both warm and opulent. Thick carpet ran from wall to wall, an intricate sage design sprawling like vines across the cream surface. Two-story windows glinted gold in the setting sun along the wall facing the street. Rich draperies of dark blue cascaded down the windows, tied back with heavy silk cords. The atmosphere was so rich and elegant that Beth struggled to keep from fidgeting. How was it that she was standing in such a beautiful place, on the arm of such an attractive man?
    And he was attractive. Dressed nicely in a soft, chocolate brown sports coat, neatly pressed slacks, starched white shirt and a forest green tie, he was an ad executive’s dream. The picture of casual sophistication—broad shoulders,