Free Prince of Air and Darkness by Jenna Black

the darkness that hid it. She shook her head. “It’s all right.”
    He sighed in apparent exasperation. “Kiera, you’re so tight you feel like a rubber band about to snap. Let me try to help. There’s no telling how long we’ll be trapped in here. And remember, I do this for a living.”
    “Do you have your cell phone with you?” she asked. “Maybe we can call for help.”
    “Sorry, no,” he answered. “I didn’t think I’d be needing it for a ten-minute jaunt to the post office. Now are you going to let me work on those shoulders or not?”
    Arguing would take more energy than she had, so she allowed him to maneuver her into a more advantageous position, her feet against the wall and her back angled toward the center of the elevator. In the darkness behind her, she heard him stirring, his coat making that distinctive leather sound as he removed it. Then, his hands descended on her shoulders, and she concentrated on how good they felt as they worked on the tight muscles.
    After less than a minute, his hands stilled, and Kiera had to stifle a cry of protest.
    “This would be a lot more effective if you took your coat off,” he said.
    His voice was practically in her ear, and she shivered in the heat. Her hands plucked at the buttons of her coat, independent of her desires. When the last button popped free, Hunter dragged the coat from her shoulders. Underneath, she was wearing a simple white button-down shirt. When his hands descended on her once more, the pleasure was ten times more intense.
    Kiera closed her eyes against the darkness, leaning into Hunter’s glorious hands, breathing his scent. Her head felt cloudy and strange, almost as though she were drunk, or hypnotized. He slid one hand up the center of her back until it rested on the bare skin at the nape of her neck. She shivered again, goose bumps rising all over her body. Those strong, agile fingers pressed more lightly now, the pressure something between a massage and a caress.
    Kiera tried in vain to shake off the haze that had settled over her mind. Her pulse was speeding, her breaths coming shallow. Hunter’s fingers dipped lower, slipping under the collar of her blouse. She had to bite her lip to suppress a moan. Her breasts were aching, the nipples hardening. The movement of his fingers took on a steady rhythm that brought to her mind the rhythm of the bed. The ache sank lower, gathering between her legs. She squeezed her thighs tightly together, trying to deny the wildly inappropriate arousal.
    She was aware of Hunter moving closer behind her, felt the heat radiating from his body. Then she felt the warmth of his breath against her cheek. He kept stroking her neck, the rhythm now unmistakably sexual. He touched his lips lightly to her shoulder, his kiss burning her skin through the cotton. A little gasp escaped her despite all her efforts to contain it. His hand finally withdrew from under her collar, moving down her back again, joined by his other hand.
    When his hands moved to her shoulder blades, instinct told her they would continue moving until they cupped her breasts. Her nipples puckered tighter at the thought and the ache between her legs worsened. His hands began their slow assault, slipping around under her arms. She wanted his touch so badly she felt near to screaming for it.
    Kiera’s eyes popped open in the darkness. Something wasn’t right. Her emotions were careening from one extreme to another, and none of it made sense under the circumstances, not the panic attack, and not the desire. Waves of heat still radiating from her core, she grabbed Hunter’s wrists just as his hands brushed the sides of her breasts.
    “Don’t,” she croaked, though she wasn’t even sure her voice was audible.
    Hunter froze, though she knew he could easily break her hold. He fairly radiated masculine strength. For a long moment, he remained still and wire-taut. There was a part of her that still screamed with desire, that wanted to shove her