“Supposedly Kaidan’s having a difficult time ’cause he can’t say swear words in every sentence,” Marna said with a smile. “He’s determined to find signs for cursing or make some up himself.”

“Wow, you got a car!" she said, surveying the toy box. "it's so cute!"Cute. He was starting to hate that word."I think the word you're looking for is manly," he said.”

“I'm not really heaven material anyway, chickie babe. Sign me up for your team.”

“What are you doing?”“I...” He appeared to have no idea himself. “I wanted to see your freckle.”A vulnerable tenderness flashed across his face, more painful to see than the coldness. It took every ounce of strength I had not tobeg for one last kiss. As fast as his expression had softened, it was back to stone again.“What do you want from me, Kai?”“For starters?” His voice lowered to sexy, dangerous depths. “I want to introduce myself to every freckle on your body.”

“Kope!” the other guy yeled. “What the frick?! You got some cheetah blood in you or what?”“Seriously!” insisted Blake. “How did you run so fast?”“I am African.” Without taking his eyes from mine, Kopano eased himself off me, and I sat up.”

“Well,” I said, needing to lighten the mood for him, “next time Kai tries to, um, bust your balls, you can give it right back to him, because he's got a girlfriend now, too.”

“How's your orange juice, Anna? Does it have a touch of lime?”The glass paused at my lips as I processed his innuendo, and I took a second to make sure my embarrassment stayed hidden inside. I let the drink swish over my tongue a moment before swallowing and answering.“Actually it's a little sour,” I said, and he laughed.“That's a shame.” He picked up a green pear from his plate and bit into it, licking juice that dripped down his thumb. My cheeks warmed as I set down my glass.“Okay, now you're just being crude,” I said.He grinned with lazy satisfaction.”