Read Rion for Free Online Page B

design flaw set off the transponder.”
    “That’s unlikely.”
    “But if the Tribes jammed all communications, and Phen is on Tor, how does he know what’s happening on your world?”
    “Phen’s resourceful. If anyone can find a way to stay in touch, it’ll be him.” Rion swiped a hand over his face. Clearly his
     vision and the transponder’s emergency signal weren’t enough proof to convince Marisa of the coming disaster.
    Tamping down his sense of urgency, he forced himself to move slowly. He shifted to the side and pulled Marisa into his arms
     until he was close enough to see her eyes sparkle. Ever so delicately, her nostrils flared, encouraging him closer, until
     he was breathing in her crisp strawberry scent.
    She placed a hand on his chest. “You’re thinking about kissing me again.”
    “Oh, yeah.” He allowed a slight smile to play over his mouth.
    “Good.” She grinned saucily. “Because for a minute back there I thought that overloaded circuit must have fried your brain.
     But now I can see you’re back to normal.”
    She lifted her head, and their eyes met and locked. Her pupils dilated, and a rosy flush rose up her neck.
    He slid his hand to her nape, and a soft tendril of her hair tickled his wrist. Tingling with anticipation, he wanted to get
     her naked all over again and finish making love.
    And yet he needn’t go that far. Satisfying his own needs wasn’t really necessary. But there was nothing wrong with satisfying
     his lust, either.
    Angling his head, he looked straight into her eyes. And while his fingers delved into her hair, he brought her closer. Close
     enough to breathe in her sweet exhalation.
    He dropped his head until his lips were within an inch of hers. Catching a dangling tendril of hair between his thumb and
     forefinger, he played with it, grazing her cheek, her neck, her ear with his fingertips.
    “Stop. That tickles.”
    “Whatever you say.” But he swirled the curl around his finger, watched the pulse in her neck leap.
    Her lips softened. “Quit playing around. Are you certain you don’t need a doctor?”
    “Yes.” Nuzzling aside her hair, he whispered in her ear. “And I’m not playing. How about dinner?”
    She blinked, licked her bottom lip, and frowned. “Dinner?”
    “You know, when two people sit down together for a meal, share a bottle of wine, and talk over food,” he teased. “How about
     tomorrow night?” He’d have suggested something sooner, like breakfast, but he couldn’t arrange everything that quickly.
    Her gorgeous eyes sparkled with happy confusion. “You’re asking me out?”
    “We’d have food. Good food. And excellent wine.” He wriggled his eyebrows. “And then for dessert, I’m going to kiss you again.
     Only this time I won’t be rushed.”
    Turning, she placed her hand on his shoulder, slid her palm up his neck, and slipped her fingers into his hair. “I like to
     have my dessert first,” she said with a breathy sigh. “That way, we won’t be losing sleep wondering…”
    He didn’t know about the not-losing-sleep part, but he wasn’t arguing. He’d given being noble a shot. This was her choice.
     She was offering her sweet mouth to him. And she tasted smooth and rich and heady, kissing with a red-hot heat that almost
     succeeded in driving his mission from his mind.
    A pounding on the door broke them apart. “Marisa!” The hard edge in Lucan’s voice shot her scrambling to her feet.
    Rion swore under his breath.
    Lips bee-stung from Rion’s kisses, she flung open the door. “What’s wrong?”
    Lucan, still in a dark suit, black shirt, and white tie, burst into the room. “Marisa, we need you. The dragonshapers are
     going wild.”
    Relief washed over Rion. He didn’t want to have to deal with an angry Lucan.
    “What are you talking about?” she asked Lucan.
    He tugged his sister into the hallway and kept walking. “The females are drawing blood over food. The males have gone berserk.
     They’re