Having Layla in my place—the only structure with four walls—that I claimed as a home knocked off kilter. Every cell in my body was hyperaware of each little breath she took, each time she shifted, even in the slightest. Her being here had my skin tingling to change forms.
And man, there were probably all kinds of things wrong with that.
Layla sat on the edge of the bed as I shoved the boxes of leftover rice in the fridge. I toed off my boots, watching her from the corner of my eyes. She fidgeted with the sleeves of her shirt and then her hands went to the edges of her hair, toying with the pale blonde strands.
I angled my body toward her without really realizing it, my head cocking to the side. The predator that I was inhaled deeply, tasting the citrusy scent of nervousness. Part of me wanted to pounce, but the other part—the stranger that seemed to have crawled inside me—held back.
Her gaze flickered to me and then away, skittish as a newborn colt. Demons like me thrived off of human emotion, especially the kind derived from one weakness or another. It was in my nature to exploit it—exploit her.
Not a single part of me was human and my true nature wasn't tamed, but being around her, it was... different.
I leaned against the wall, smiling slightly as she stiffened. "You're nervous."
Her little round chin rose. "No, I'm not."
The dragon on my stomach shifted in respond to her denial and I laughed. "I can smell your nervousness, Layla. You can't lie about that."
Her nose wrinkled as she brought her knees up to her chest, looping her arms around them. "Aren't you at all nervous? What if the Key isn't there? What if it is and it's guarded? I doubt we're just going to be able walk in and grab it."
As if I was worried about that.
"I wasn't talking about that." I pushed off the wall, heading toward her. The orangey scent increased and I slow my paced. Sitting beside her, I placed my hands next to her bare feet. Tiny feet and tiny toes. Painted pink. Hell, everything about her was small. All except her personality and her courage. "But to answer your question, no, I'm not nervous. No matter what's thrown at us, I'll be able to handle it."
Her lips twitched. "Well, aren't you special. Cocky much?"
"I'm all kinds of special, but you know that." Getting closer, because I couldn't help myself, and not that I was even trying, I placed my chin on her knees. The citrus flared and then ebbed over. Interesting. "You're nervous because you're here with me."
Faint rosy lips parted, and Hell, I remembered how those lips tasted and felt. I'd spent a disturbing amount of time thinking about those lips.
"You make me nervous," she said.
My mouth curved into smile as I straightened, lining right up with the object of my obsession. "You should be nervous."
"That's reassuring." She held herself in place.
I chuckled and then turned. Heading to the packed shelves, I ran my fingers over the spines until I settled on what I was looking for. Looking over my shoulder, I watched the flush spread further across her cheeks. "Movie?"
