She dared.

Sera reached out—with her hand and her magic. Golden sparks jumped from her fingertips, trickling down his chest in electrically-charged spirals. His arm locked around her back and tugged her roughly against him. His lips traced her jawline, his teeth nipping at her soft, sensitive flesh. A low groan crested her lips, and she pushed him against the wall.

“Careful, sweetheart,” he growled into her ear. His hand slid beneath her top, teasing the lacy ledge of her bra. “You’re going to bring the elevator down.”

Sera ignored the sparkling tendrils of purple magic dancing across the elevator walls. “I don’t care.” She tugged his shirt loose and slid it over his head. Tossing it onto the floor, she added, “I’m wishing I’d thought to put on a skirt this morning.”

His brows lifted nearly to his hairline. His magic grew so thick that she could hardly breathe. She’d long since lost the ability to think straight. Something rang in her mind, so distant that she hardly heard it.

“The door,” he said, his lips brushing against hers.

She looked past him—right into the horrified face of an elderly lady. No, make that two elderly ladies. And one of them was Bethany Harrower. Her lips were pursed together in disapproval, her hand clenched around the strap of her leather handbag. Her tiny purple poodle poked out of the top. Her friend had a pink poodle in her purse. Sera took an awkward step away from Kai, her cheeks burning.

Kai met the old ladies’ scowls with a cool nod. “Mrs. Harrower. Mrs. Ravenhall.”

“Mr. Drachenburg.” Bethany Harrower’s nose kissed the clouds. “You are not wearing a shirt.”

“Indeed.” Still holding to Sera’s hand, he brushed the other against the floor, scooping up his shirt. “Good evening.”

Then he led Sera out of the elevator. As the doors closed on the old ladies’ grumpy faces, twin streams of high-pitched yaps erupted from the pink and purple poodles.

“This way.”

Sera turned away from the yapping elevator doors and looked at Kai. He stood in front of an open door. She took a deep breath, then followed him inside.

An enormous living room spread out before them—and beyond that, tall glass walls offered a pretty spectacular view of the city. She crossed the room, her boots clunking against the dark wooden floor, and stopped in front of the windows. Now that her magic was crashing, now that she was standing here, she remembered what she’d promised herself she’d do. What she had to do.

She turned slowly. Kai was sitting on a large brown leather sofa. He’d tossed his shirt over a nearby armchair. Much as she enjoyed the view—it was even better than the view of the city—she found herself wishing he’d put it back on. It was distracting her, making this even harder than it already was.

“Hungry?” he asked, watching her closely, as though he could see the inner turmoil in her eyes. He probably could. He’d always been able to read her.

Sera dropped her gaze from his eyes, looking down at the coffee table. Her heart thumped when she saw the pizza box she hadn’t noticed before. Wizard House Pizza. Her favorite. And he’d kept it warm with a slow-burn magic fire. A tear slid down her cheek. Kai was on his feet in an instant, rushing over to her. His arms wrapped around her.

“Are you all right?”

“Yes.” She wiped the tear away. “It’s been a long night. And I wanted to tell…” She glanced at the boxes. “You brought me pizza.”

“Friday is pizza night,” he said matter-of-factly.

“Yes.” She hugged him. “Yes, it is.”

“Shall we eat?”

Her stomach growled in assent.

“I’ll take that as a yes,” he said, leading her toward the sofa.

She sat down beside him and opened the box, inhaling the pleasant aroma of fresh crust, sweet tomatoes, and bubbling cheese. “Mmm.” She grinned at him. “You’re amazing.”

He leaned back, satisfaction sliding across his lips. “Of course I am.”

Sera snorted and extracted her first pizza slice from the box. “So, did the Council get our present?”

“Cloud Silverstride?” Kai grabbed a piece of pizza for himself. “Yes, Cutler called me once he knew your ship was on its way.”

“So he’s your inside source.”

“Yes. He’s still working off his debt to me.”

“For what?”

“For trying to talk you into his bed. Only some of that was faked for the sake of his mission. He likes you, Sera.”

“And that bothers you?”

“No.”

She smiled at him.

“Yes,” he admitted. “But I’ll try not to step on him.”

“How diplomatic of you.”

“Yes.”

Chuckling, she leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. “I’m not interested in Cutler,” she whispered against his hot skin. “Only you.”

He dropped his forehead to hers. “Good. Then I will make an extra effort not to attack him in a jealous rage.”

“Jealous?” She allowed her eyes to wander up his naked chest, following the ridges of taut muscle. “So that’s why you’re walking around without your shirt on. You’re trying to prove you’re the virile male.”

“As I recall, you were the one to relieve me of my shirt.”

“Oh. Right.” She grabbed another slice of pizza. “So, what is the Council going to do about Cloud?”