Page 23 of A Kiss of Flame

“Charming,” Barith muttered, surveying the room. It was finely appointed—cozy and elegant. “I’m surprised there’s no bed,” he thought aloud.

Levian paused and looked back at him over her shoulder. “Indeed,” she said. “In need of a nap?”

Barith cocked his head with a smirk. “Not quite,” he replied. “I think my ego might be a bit bruised, though. Apparently, they don’t think I can coax ye out of that fine dress.”

The mage laughed, the sound warming his insides. “I believe it’s to encourage us to participate with the other patrons,” she told him. “I’m sure some of the members have been told a male dragon may be present this evening.”

He huffed a depreciating laugh. “It seems all I’m good for is as a good show horse these days,” he told her.

Levian eyed him. “Barith—” she started, seemingly unsure what to say. “If this?—”

Barith scoffed, her discomfort making him feel like an arse. “Dinnae flap,” he told her, his expression stern. “What good is it to look like this if I don’t get paraded around from time to time?” he teased, hoping to lighten the mood again.

She smirked, looking him over. “You do look rather fine in that suit,” she complimented. “I’m quite proud of myself.”

He chuckled, running his hands down the front of his jacket. “I’m ready to be out of it,” he admitted.

Levian rolled her eyes. “How am I not surprised?” she sighed. “Though it is unfortunate no one will see either of our outfits.” She returned to her rummaging, pulling out a few bathing suits to examine.

Barith wasn’t. He rather liked that he’d been the only one to see her in her fine dress. Well, him and Sil, he supposed. The dragon found his gaze drifting over her slender curves as she rustled in the wardrobe before he caught himself. He needed to keep his focus and not get distracted by Levian, which seems more difficult these days.

“This sounds like I’m doing most of the work,” he said, a hint of smugness in his tone.

Levian turned to face him, amused. “Does it?” she purred.

Barith already knew the plan. They’d discussed it many times. They would flirt, tease, and weasel information from whoever they could until they found their Curator. Though Levian had conveniently left out the part about them pretending to be an item, or maybe she’d just assumed that’s the role they would fall into. Either way, their mission felt like a long shot to Barith, but Levian was confident.

He strolled up and brushed some of her long, soft curls behind her shoulder. “I’m going to win that bloody necklace,” he told her, running a finger along her neckline.

She tilted her head at his touch, and he lifted his finger to run it along her jaw. Levian nipped playfully at the inside of his wrist. A jolt shot through him, and his cock twitched. Barith recoiled, and she laughed triumphantly, tossing something at his face.

“You forget, Barith,” Levian said as he pulled the dark swimming shorts from his eyes. “I amme, and I do loathe losing.”

She pulled a few stringed bits of almost sheer fabric from a hanger before turning her back to him and raising her hair from her back with her free hand. “Do you mind?” she asked.

Barith’s gaze fell on the small buttons along the back of her dress. The room suddenly felt warm and tiny. Perhaps it was for the best there was no bed—he’d rather not be tempted. Not that Levian would ever entertain him in the first place. Not that he should be thinking about her like that at all.

The dragon cursed internally.

Levian felt Barith hesitate, and it filled her with triumph. She hadn’t been entirely sure what had compelled her to make the bet with him, but she felt more and more confident about her chances of winning.

She and Barith had been friends for so long that it seemed ridiculous to cross the boundary into lovers, even if they both found each other attractive. They were each terrible when it came to relationships. It had simply been an unspoken understanding between them for ages that flirting and teasing for the sake of a mission was fine, but indulging beyond that wasn’t worth possibly sacrificing their friendship.

Still, she did enjoy making him squirm. And she found it deeply flattering that he found her attractive, even after all this time. His fingers brushed her back as he went about undoing the buttons of her dress, which she could have easily managed herself with a small bit of magick. It’s how she’d gotten into it, after all.

Levian held the bodice to her front, but inch by inch, she felt his small tugs and the air hit her exposed back. One of his fingers traced along her skin as he worked one of the final buttons justabove the ridge of her backside. That touch sent a little skitter of heat cascading around it, and her breath hitched.

“We’ll be here all night at that speed,” she snapped before ducking behind the changing screen. She suddenly felt annoyingly less confident that she would win their bet and blamed it entirely on her lack of recent lovers. The sex deprivation was getting to her, and it seemed satisfying herself wasn’t enough to slake her desire.

Levian felt Barith hovering on the other side of the screen but didn’t look back. “You’re the one that wanted out of the suit,” she reminded him. “I think the shorts will do fine to draw some attention.”

She peeked around the edge when she heard Barith shift. He’d begun unbuttoning his jacket. “I don’t think we’ll need to worry about that,” he replied.

Levian chuckled. “We always could draw attention, couldn’t we?” she mused, twisting a bit of magick around her finger and running it along the last few buttons of her dress to undo them. She dropped the gown to the floor and peeked again around the screen. Barith’s slightly unbuttoned shirt stretched over his muscled chest as he pulled the suit jacket off, and her gaze lingered.

“I meant because you’ll be wearing those scraps of fabric,” he told her, not seeming to notice her peeking. “Though ye’r right about the other, too. We could cause a stir when we needed.” He chuckled, and she dipped back behind the screen with a smirk and threw her dress over the top. The bikini was rather sensual, but it would also be quite effective toward their goal of drawing attention.

Levian took a few steadying breaths as she slid her panties down her legs and reminded herself this was meant to be fun. They were here for an adventure, to catch her thieves, to flirt, to push each other—nothing more.