Holly shifted her gaze to meet his, stared into his dark eyes and had the feeling that what she wanted to do was something dangerous. Something wicked.

His deep brown eyes warmed, gained a shimmer of gold as he looked at her, his pupils slowly dilating. Firelight flickered across the broad expanse of his bare chest, tempting her to trace his hard muscles with her fingers, to know the feel of a male’s body at last.

Apparently, she wasn’t dysfunctional after all because whenever she looked at Saint, the urges she had thought she didn’t possess roared to life, almost overwhelming her. She pressed the back of her hand to her overheating cheek and stood, struggled to breathe as she muttered, “The fire is a bit hot.”

His gaze tracked her as she moved away from him, towards the far end of the room, fanning herself with her hand as her heart raced.

And her cougar side growled, pacing restlessly, flooding her with a startling urge to turn that snarl on him, to walk right up to him where he knelt on the floor and stand over him, take hold of his jaw and keep his eyes on hers.

Holly recognised that urge for what it was—a display of dominance. Her hands shook, as unsteady as her breathing as that hunger rattled her.

“Holly?” Saint eased onto his feet in a sexy, fluid move that spoke of strength, had his muscles rippling in a symphony that came dangerously close to ripping a feral, possessive growl from her.

She was quick to shake her head, fanned herself more furiously. “I’m fine. Just… stay over there.”

Because she wasn’t sure what she would do if he came any closer to her. Pouncing on him seemed the most likely outcome.