Turn around. Look at him. Her mind ordered her to do it but her feet may as well have been stuck in concrete. She just couldn’t do it. Why had he even followed her to the street?

“I’ve waited three months to talk to you yet you couldn’t wait two minutes to talk to me? I was excusing myself from the game.” His voice was still deep but the rough edges had gone out of it.

She swallowed hard and moved, facing him slowly. He was just feet away, bigger than life. The changes in his face were more evident up close as she studied every inch of it. His cheeks were fuller, the scars either faded or just hidden by the slightly longer hair along his temples. The sun had darkened his skin slightly from the hours he must have spent outside.

The memory of his powerful stare paled in comparison to the real thing. His eyes seemed a softer brown than she remembered, more beautiful, and his black eyelashes longer. He blinked but didn’t move otherwise while they watched each other.

“Is everything okay?” the New Species officer asked but she ignored him.

“Go away, Flame,” Obsidian rasped. “Now.”

“I’m assigned to Dr. Allison while she visits Homeland.” Flame didn’t take orders well. “I can’t.”

Obsidian’s gaze shifted away from her, breaking contact with hers. “Go away, Flame.” He frowned. “I’ll take responsibility for her well-being. We need to talk in private.”

“Oh. Um. Okay. I’ll take a walk. Maybe grab a sandwich inside.” He skirted around them with a wide berth, striding to the front doors of the dorm quickly.

“Hi,” she managed to whisper, cleared her throat, and spoke louder. “You have gained weight. It looks good.”

He stared at her again and his frown deepened. The uncomfortable moment was painful. All her daydreams of seeing him again were a bitter pill to swallow. He didn’t respond at all.

She decided to try again. “I saw you playing soccer. I’m glad you seem to have made so many friends.”

Silence. He blinked, the frown still firmly marring the skin shadowing the sides of his lips.

Maybe she should ask him a question, something to respond to. It was worth a try. “How have you been?”

Eyebrows lifted, widening his eyes slightly. He didn’t reply.

Slow-burning anger and sadness combined inside her. “You followed me out here to order Flame not to touch me because you wanted to have a staring contest? Is that it?”

“I waited for three months to see you and you couldn’t wait one minute for me to excuse myself from the game?”

He took one step, paused, then another. He crouched in front of her and she had no idea why he did it. She glanced at the ground between them to see if maybe she’d dropped something but he suddenly plowed into her as if he were performing a tackle. He hit her h*ps with enough force to knock her off her feet but she never slammed into the ground. He straightened as he continued to sweep his body forward and slung her over his shoulder as though she were a sack of potatoes. One hand gripped her ass firmly to hold her in place while his other arm hooked behind her knees to pin them against his chest.

“We’re not doing this here,” he grumbled, spinning fast enough to make her dizzy before storming in the direction of the dorm.

Alli was astonished that she was draped over Obsidian’s shoulder while he carried her inside the door. The sound of men talking ceased instantaneously as soon as the doors closed.

“Is there a problem, Obsidian?”

She twisted around, trying to identify the speaker but her hair and his blinded her.

“No. I’m going to my room. This is Alli.” He kept moving, not slowing his pace. “She’s visiting me.”

“Um, okay.”

“Have fun?” The hesitant, unsure tone of some guy’s voice was clear.

“It seems he might not be immune to females after all,” another one laughed. “Don’t break her.”

“Thank you for the advice!” Obsidian yelled. “I appreciate it.”

He didn’t take the elevator, instead he jogged up the stairs, jarring her with every tread. Her h*ps bounced on his broad shoulder and she was grateful she’d been too nervous after getting the call from Homeland to eat lunch. He turned on the second-floor landing and strode quickly down a carpeted hallway, which she caught glimpses of as their hair swayed in and out of her face. He paused, opened a door and stepped inside.

They were alone in his room. The locks clicked into place, the distinctive sound loud. He spun away from the door, took four long steps and halted. She grunted when he dumped her onto the couch, not really gentle about it. It was a soft landing but hard enough to knock a hard breath from her lungs.

Obsidian stood over her looking anything but calm or reserved when she focused on his face. His lips were parted, fangs showed and his eyes were narrowed on her. “Alli.”

He said her name in a way that made her uncertain if she should be afraid or happy. The husky tenor was certainly filled with emotion. She just wasn’t sure which one. Anger or passion?

“Stand up.”

She shifted a little to sit upright and used the couch arm to push to a standing position. Her knees managed to hold her when she put weight on her legs. He was close enough to touch if she reached out a few inches but she just tilted her chin up to peer at his face.

“Strip.”

Her mind blanked, refused to work, then his demand sank in. “What?”

He dipped his head a little closer. “Take off your clothes.”