At last her hands fell idle and she gave up all pretense of learning the strings, mesmerized by the movement of his thumb as he rubbed it back and forth across the back of her right hand. He captured her hand in his finally and lifted it for his inspection. Almost against her will, her gaze followed the movement until she was looking up into his golden gaze. “You have been bitten.” The comment sent a shaft of fear through her, dampening the heat surging through her, though even fear did not dispel it completely. She moistened her dried lips. “I … It was a hunting grog when I was a small child,” she lied, knowing it was no such thing, though she could not recall how or when she’d gotten the scar. He touched the tiny, white scars with his lips, brushing them back and forth against her flesh in a way that sent a fresh surge of heat through her. As she watched, he turned her hand palm upwards and placed a kiss on the sensitive flesh there. When their gazes met over her hand, she knew he meant to kiss her. Her mouth went dry at the thought. Her heart lurched painfully. She hovered breathlessly in anticipation, fighting the drive to give in to her body’s urges. With an effort, she withdrew her hand and looked down at the instrument in her lap, knowing if she allowed him to kiss her she was lost. After a moment, Kale rose. “I should go.”
