Death Is My Friend with Benefits (Book Four - WA Winner 2013)

Chapter 3: Nicotine

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            I had to work around the thick blinds that drooped down the glass door to cut a hole in David Star's office door.

            Before I even attempted to push out the handle, I received the odd sensation that what I had done was way too easy. It could have very well been the fact that my stomach had begun to uncomfortably cramp. Cautiously, I peeked through the blinds into the short hallway into the waiting room.

            I was too shocked to shriek.

"Ciao, bella," a deep voice purred in Italian from the other side of the door. In one fluid motion, a leather glove punched through the circle I had created, knocking the weighted handle onto my toe, got a firm grip on the center of my shirt, and yanked me against the glass, my warm cheek slamming against the cool glass. The impact had shook my whole jaw. I was almost positive it should have dislocated. "Did you honestly think I would leave you alone longer than thirty minutes after the way you screwed me over?" He let out a low, slow laugh that flipped my stomach over with a spatula. "That would be a gift."

           

            In the corner of my eye I could see Death's tall, muscular frame. My gums lit on fire and my toes curled in rage. I bit down on my inner mouth and stayed silent, trying to pull my cheek from the cool glass. Game over.  

            "Hungry?" Death swung open the door a little and shook a paper bag in his hand, his other hand still gripping my shirt, pinning me to the opposite side of the door. I inhaled the air and the intoxicating smell of his cologne, mixed with everything bagels and vegetable cream cheese made my mouth water. "I went to get a pack of cigarettes and ended up getting thirty-five bagels. I would have gotten forty, but if that annoying hag behind the counter asked me one more time if I wanted a bag of  free chips with every five bagels, I would have blew a hole in her AAARP card and run her over with a car. I'm a little bit edgy. Can't have any more 'accidents' these days, you know."

            "I hate bagels," I lied, trying to free one of my hands from whatever force he had against them, nailing them to the glass. "I'm full. That double-decker soul really hit the spot."

            Death snorted. "None of them were for you, anyways."

            He then let go of my shirt. I stumbled backwards, but instead of tumbling over myself  and falling in between the coffee table and sofa like I normally would have, I regained my balance almost immediately and prepared to attack the hell out of the bastard.           

            "Jerk," I muttered bitterly.

           
            "Sweetie," Death growled gutturally, walking fully into the room. The width of his shoulders filling the door frame, and I could have sworn my heart stopped beating. The first thing my eyes skirted to was the cross-shaped, horrendous burn on his face, then slightly dropped to a pair of the most haunting, terrifying looking iridescent green eyes.

            Those eyes...

            Eyes trained on me, Death casually tossed the bag behind him and it landed right in the middle of the large mahogany desk. "Don't look so shocked, cupcake. This isn't the first time we've met." His gaze fell on my outfit, and if I was seeing things clearly, they lit with green fire. "Nor the first time I've wanted to grate you on my pasta and put it on my blog," he added throatily, then, "Nice jacket."