Dangerous Magic by Stephanie James, Jayne Ann Krentz Page B

bloodstream, Elissa decided. And the fact that he was so intent on raiding her own cool, remote tower made her long to try her power on him in a way she had never been tempted to do with other men.
    “Tell me,” she whispered in a throaty, husky voice as she placed a soft palm on either side of his face and raised his head to look at him, “is it ever lonely being a wolf?”
    “Is it ever lonely being a witch?” he returned, not answering her question.
    “It hasn’t been,” she said honestly, watching his flickering eyes for some sign. She wasn’t altogether certain what sort of sign she expected to find.
    “Perhaps you just haven’t been aware of it,” he suggested deeply, holding himself very still above her.
    “And you?”
    “Perhaps I haven’t been aware of it, either.”
    “It’s there in those paintings, I think,” she told him and saw the passion in the gray gaze thicken.
    “Is it?”
    “I think so. It’s difficult to be sure, because so much else is there, too,”
    she breathed gently.
    “What else?” he invited.
    “Remoteness, isolation, aloofness. All those things certainly,” she began honestly, working through the puzzle of him in her own mind as she spoke.
    “Do you want to find loneliness in me, little witch?” he smiled.
    “It might give me some sort of power over you,” she admitted, searching his face.
    “You already have that,” he mocked feelingly. “I would never have set out to force my way into your life if you didn’t.”
    “But it’s no good as long as you can see it and control it,” she protested wistfully.
    “I won’t let you use your power to play with me,” he agreed steadily.
    “But that doesn’t mean I’m not under its influence.”
    Elissa smiled with charming menace. “And I’m not willing to risk myself completely in a relationship I’m not sure I can control, so we are left at an impasse, aren’t we?” She waited, sea eyes full of the baiting, goading, daring feelings filling her body.
    “I wouldn’t say that,” he murmured with unruffled assurance, eyes gleaming. “We’ve already made great strides. Yesterday you wouldn’t even admit you wanted to control the men in your life. Here you are today, lying in my arms and telling me you’re afraid to risk losing that control.”
    Elissa took a savage grip on her emotions, which seemed to be in chaos, and smiled brilliantly up at him. She would not let her ultimate goal of revenge slip out of sight, not when he held her like this and told her he could dominate her.
    “Thank you,” she told him with utmost demureness, her auburn lashes concealing the mix of emotions in her eyes, “for a wonderful picnic. It’s time you took me home now.”
    She felt him stiffen and knew he had counted on much more than a few kisses and tantalizing caresses in front of the fire. The knowledge that she had managed to surprise him with her cool ending to the day gave her added strength.
    “The meal is over,” he conceded, his words laced with soft resolution,
    “but the evening hasn’t even begun. Stay with me tonight, Elissa, and together we’ll find out whose power is the stronger.”
    “I’m not ready for a contest of that magnitude,” she hedged gracefully.
    “I need the time we agreed to last night. The time to get to know each other. Surely you didn’t expect to win this war so easily?”
    “A man can hope.” He sighed, reading her firm intention in her eyes and giving way to it.
    “Come, now,” she charged on a thread of soft laughter. “What wolf wants an easy victory?” The knowledge that she would be the one controlling the ending to the intimate picnic filled Elissa with a sense of power that made her almost lightheaded.
    “You don’t have an understanding of the species,” he retorted, his fingertips playing with the vulnerable line of her throat. “A wolf is interested only in the spoils of victory, not in how the game is played.”
    Elissa heard and decided to disregard the