"As if you could outrun me," he laughed hysterically at the thought, proceeding to run in circles, leaning his body sideways into the circle as he ran.
He reached up with one of his hands and, with a deafening crack, effortlessly ripped a two-foot-thick branch from the trunk of the spruce. He balanced it in that hand for a moment, and then threw it with blinding speed, shattering it against another huge tree, which shook and trembled at the blow... .
And then he was in front of me again, right before my eyes, right there, still as a statue made of stone.
"As if you could fight me off," he said gently, twitching, probably stifling the same laughter that had overcome him just moments earlier. He threw a couple of impressive punches in the air to impress me.
I sat without moving, more frightened of him than I had ever been. My nipples were completely retracted and my eyes completely still, no longer dancing with the possibilities he had introduced to my life. I'd never seen him so completely freed of that carefully cultivated facade. He'd never been less human... or more beautiful. Face ashen,273 eyes wide, I sat like a bird locked in the most beautiful eyes of the hottest snake...
His lovely eyes seemed to glow with rash excitement. Then, as the seconds passed, they dimmed. His expression slowly folded into a mask of ancient grief.
"Don't be afraid," he murmured, his velvet voice unintentionally seductive. "I promise... " He hesitated. "I swear not to hurt you." He seemed more concerned with convincing himself than me. "Do... n't... b... .e af... ... raid... ," he whispered again as he stepped closer, with exaggerated slowness. He sat sinuously, with
273.As though it had been incinerated by its own passion.