Ascension by Sable Grace Read Free Book Online Page A

now. Looks like you’ve had a good tumble.” Geoffrey’s rich, Irish lilt washed over Kyana’s shoulder. “Did it at least include a lot of sweating and panting?”
    She twisted in her seat, letting her gaze linger over the well-sculpted chest straining against his black T-shirt a moment before raising her eyes to his face. “Have you always been this nosy?”
    “Best way to find out stuff.” Geoff lifted her hair from her shoulder to get a better look at the marks on her throat. “Hmm,” he mumbled, running his fingers lightly over the still-throbbing scabs. “What attacked you?”
    Kyana shoved his hand away. “Nothing.”
    “You weren’t marked when I saw you tonight.” Geoff sat across from her, took her drink, and downed half the glass. “Those punctures are too large to be Vampyre. Too small for demon. So that leaves . . .”
    She shrugged. She wouldn’t tell Geoff whom she had a tumble with. No way would she spend eternity with him teasing her over Surfer Boy getting the best of her. “I told you. It was nothing.”
    His dark blue eyes held hers. “All right, then. Why are we talking about Cronos?”
    “You really are a nosy ass.”
    Kyana caught Marcus as he moved to tend a pair of Witches at the bar. “Bring a whole bottle instead. Otherwise Geoff will leave me with nada.”
    A moment later, he brought a full bottle of raki and an extra glass of ice, sliding it in front of Geoffrey before slipping away again.
    Geoffrey leaned forward. “I hear you’ve been assigned something big.” He ignored his glass, opened the bottle, and drank deeply.
    She eyed him, wondering how much he knew or if he was full of shit. Neither would surprise her. Geoff had ways of knowing things that left Kyana feeling more than slightly uneasy.
    “Don’t know what you’re talking about.”
    His eyes lit up with humor as he reached behind his head to pull loose the black queue of hair at his nape. It fell about his face like a lion’s silky mane, and Kyana’s girl parts purred. Anyone looking at Geoff could see the danger there. It was blatantly sexy, but the quiet danger lurking within Ryker made Geoff’s blatant sexuality a bit of a letdown.
    But after her run-in with Ryker, she was still hot and bothered. There was no doubt that if she offered it, Geoff would make her howl at the moon.
    Sometimes she really hated the laws of the Order.
    Damn Ryker. She should be furious that he’d gotten the best of her. Instead, she was just confused by his lack of interest. Between her Vampyric allure and Lychen pheromones, how did he remain immune to her charms? Okay, so shoving him into the River Styx hadn’t been her most charming moment, but she’d been on her best behavior when she’d met him and had still failed miserably at seducing him.
    “So you’re really going to play dumb about the key, lass?” Geoff refilled Kyana’s tumbler and slid it closer to her.
    Kyana froze. How did he know? It wasn’t likely that the gods would want this tidbit of lore to get out.
    The door opened, pulling everyone’s attention. Everyone’s except Kyana’s. She knew by the slack-jawed stares who had entered. The sound of wet footsteps smacked against the marble floor, growing louder with each angry stride.
    “Looks like someone else had an altercation tonight too. And, love, he looks like he’s going to wring your pretty little neck for it.”
    Kyana took her drink and sipped, trying to appear unfazed. Ryker leaned over the table toward her so their noses were only inches apart. For the first time since she’d met him, he didn’t smell like sunshine and vanilla.
    With a grimace, she sat back and stared up at him. She smiled. “I’d offer you a drink, but maybe you should skip this round and go grab a shower.”
    Without much effort, he shoved her down her narrow booth and slid in beside her. “So, what’re we talking about?”
    That was it? No scene?
    Of course not. Never a scene for cool, calm, collected Ryker.
    Kyana