Read Online The Guild of Assassins by Anna Kashina - Free Book Online Page B

moment she dared a look.
    He hadn’t changed his position, but his eyes were now open, looking at her with a mocking expression – alert, as if he had never even been asleep.
    “Sorry,” he said. “I was trying not to disturb you, but I just couldn’t help it. It was too much for a man to bear.”
    There was laughter in his eyes as he slowly and deliberately ran his gaze down her crouched shape, making her painfully aware of the awkward position she was in. She knew he was purposely trying to get her off balance, but she still couldn’t help blushing.
    She tried to ignore it and kept very still, watching him. She knew she couldn’t move. With the twisted position she had gotten herself into, she was completely in his power. He could break her wrist inside the shirt before she had time to get it out of his reach. To withdraw her hand, she had to be sure he was going to let her do it.
    He seemed to be in no hurry as he continued to watch her with a disconcerting look. His eyes became dreamy, but they also held mischief that kept her in check.
    “When I agreed to travel together,” he said, “I had no idea we were going to have such a good time.”
    She held still. Their faces were so close that she could smell his skin, a faint fresh scent of mountain pine. He moved his eyes down her body with a slow, appraising look as if he were actually able to see through her clothes. She struggled to stay calm and keep the blush away, but it was just too hard.
    He made sure she was fully aware of the way he looked at her, before he finally relaxed back into his sleeping cot.
    “You can take your hand out,” he said. “I’m not going to touch you. I have to say, though, that I’d much rather you continued with what you were doing. It feels so good.”
    She forced the blush away as she slowly pulled out her hand and sat back on her heels, looking down at him. Her shoulder was stiff, but she wasn’t about to show it. His mocking gaze continued to scrutinize her, making her feel too exposed. She knew he was doing it on purpose, and she was not going to give in to it.
    “Where is the letter?” she asked slowly.
    He shifted to a more comfortable position.
    “Now, Aghat,” he said, “you don’t expect I would keep it where you saw me put it? That would be almost as foolish as thinking you could sneak up on me like this.”
    “Where is it?” she insisted.
    He ran a slow, deliberate glance down his own outstretched body, and looked back to her face, his intense gaze holding an unsettling mixture of seriousness and mischief. She knew what he was doing, but it was difficult to resist. She felt the annoying blush creep back into her cheeks as she forced herself to keep his gaze.
    “Why don’t you search me?” he suggested. “There’re a lot of places you could check which are even better than the inside of my shirt. Just make sure you don’t miss any.”
    She didn’t want to look, but her eyes moved on their own accord down his body, sprawled in front of her with a lazy grace that she knew could turn into action in the blink of an eye. She fought a blush, hating herself for allowing him to get her disconcerted so easily, just by looking at her. But, if he was playing these games with her, she was going to pay him back with the same coin. She forced her eyes back to his face, giving him her best innocent look.
    “I’m sorry,” she said. “It was indeed foolish, to think that I could sneak up on you, Aghat. I just… I really wanted to see the letter.”
    She put sincerity into her voice as she said these words, letting her gaze drop down to the ground and slowly rise back to his face in a look that she knew made her seem childish and vulnerable.
    He seemed to have bought it. His gaze softened and his face slowly lost its mocking expression.
    “Why don’t we just forget it?” he suggested. “It’s late. I’m sure you can hold your curiosity until morning, can’t you?”
    She nodded and turned to get up to her