Free Rock Steady by Dawn Ryder Page A

landlord before he turned and disappeared, Brenton on his heels.
    “I could have handled that.” It wasn’t the wisest thing she could have said. In fact, keeping her mouth shut would have been a really bright idea, all things considered. She needed the money and position with Toxsin. But her pride refused to let her stay silent.
    Ramsey turned to face her. There was a look on his face that touched off a shiver in her, a reaction to the ruthlessness glittering in his eyes. Sensation rippled along the surface of her skin, his strength feeling like it was coating her and seeping into her very pores.
    Still, she pushed her chin out and stood her ground. Ramsey’s lips curled, his expression menacing.
    “I lied to you,” Ramsey said.
    Her belly did a little flop as he stalked her across the floor.
    “I said I was going to feed you…”
    He stepped up close, lowering his arms around her and trapping her arms beneath his. “But I’m going to kiss you first.”
    His voice was a raspy promise, setting off alarm bells as well as anticipation.
    “Bad idea—” she managed to push past her lips before her brain fried.
    “I’m all bad, Jewel,” he informed her a split second before he claimed her mouth.
    If that was a kiss, then she’d never been kissed before.
    Nope.
    Never.
    Ramsey sealed her lips beneath his, clamping her arms to her sides with a hug as he pressed his lips against hers. It was hard but not brutal, skimming that border and pushing her into a realm of dark desires that lay beyond the controlled, safe dating she’d participated in before. Civilization faded into the distance as he moved his lips over hers with a touch of savagery no one had been bold enough to try on her before. She moved away, pulling back out of a need to maintain some sort of sense of herself.
    He didn’t allow her to keep the distance between them. Ramsey reclaimed her mouth, pressing a kiss against her lips that stole her breath. A soft sound escaped her, betraying how deeply she was affected. He lifted his head, just an inch, watching her as she forced her eyelids up. She felt unmasked, every weakness on display. His eyes shimmered with the promise of so many things, her mind reeled as she tried to take it all in. She tried to squirm free. He held her for a long moment, his eyes narrowing as he made sure she felt his strength. It was more than brawn; it was his will he was trying to press on her.
    That sparked a need to rebel. She snapped her jaw closed, her chin jutting out in defiance. “Back off.”
    His lips twitched, a glow of enjoyment lighting his dark eyes. It was savage, primitive, and completely in tune with his nature.
    She pulled her hand up, found the silver bar piercing his nipple, and twisted.
    He snorted before lifting his hands in mock surrender. But it was only play, because there was nothing even close to submission in him. He was just enjoying her spunk.
    Playing with his food.
    The air felt cool as it rushed between them, frustrating her with just how much she wanted to be back against him. It was wrong, or had to be. Where was the modern woman who wanted to follow her dream quest into a future that involved art and being the captain of her own ship?
    At the moment, she was a quivering mass of nerves, all because of the man standing in front of her.
    “Let’s roll, Ramsey!” Brenton called up the stairs. “Portland awaits.”
    Ramsey curled his lips back and flashed his teeth at her through a grin of victory. “Ready?”
    She looked around the apartment, and it was just as depressing as always. Everything in it was threadbare, just holding on as it struggled to squeeze one more day out of life. She wanted more than that.
    Ramsey was pulsing with life. She could feel it in the air between them. Like heat coming through a front door on a frozen winter day. Getting wrapped up in it was the only thing on her mind once she felt it.
    “Ready,” she replied, turning her back on the apartment.
    It was time to