by J. L. Weil
I jumped in before she could slice me with some jibe. “I also know what it is like to be separated from someone you love. It sucks.”
How was that for a heart-to-heart?
And I wasn’t done yet. It must have been sharing time in class today. Who knew I could be such a sentimental sap? It even shocked me. “Seeing Chase so distraught struck a cord in me that I’ve buried deep, deep inside. So Travis and I—”
“Travis and you?” she cut in.
I glared at her for interrupting and spoiling the mood. “So as I was saying, Travis and I devised our own plan, and we knew it had to be done in secret because there was no way Chase was going to agree. That would involve trusting me, which would only happen if hell froze over.” I cranked the wheel, busting a left as we approached Spring Valley. “We knew we had to get to you first. Chase might be a badass, but he is in no shape to fight. Being away from you has taken a toll on him. We figured this was going to be our only chance while the drugs were still in effect. I have no idea how long they last on someone like him, so here we are.”
I left out all the kissing and stuff Travis snuck in every chance he got.
She played with the silver charm bracelet on her wrist, looking millions of miles away. I was startled when she thanked me. My eyes widened as I glanced at her, hardly believing what I had just heard. “See, that wasn’t so hard. The earth is still standing,” I said with a grin.
She answered my grin with one of her own. Angel and I friends? Stranger shit had happened.
She dozed off during the remaining ride home, more tired than I think even she realized. More than once she mumbled Chase’s name, shifting restlessly. I assumed part of her edginess was due to the way her bond strengthened, as we got closer to Chase.
Her eyes fluttered open just a few miles away from her home. “We’re almost home,” she said, breaking the comfortable silence.
“Can you feel him?” I asked more out of curiosity. It was still a mystery to me what exactly the two of them had going in their little freak show connection.
She nodded. “Yeah, but maybe not in the way you think. The pressure in my chest is lessening and it is easier to breathe. My lungs don’t feel like they are going to collapse anymore.”
I sensed that there was a whole shit ton more she wasn’t telling me, but did I really want all the nitty gritty details? I eyed her warily, thinking how much I liked my head on my shoulders. “Which means if you can sense your pending arrival, so can Chase.”
A bright smile crossed her lips. “That’s a given.”
“Great,” I replied sarcastically. “Maybe I should drop you off down the road and get a head start running.”
She rolled her eyes. I noticed she did that a lot. “Don’t worry. I won’t let him kill you,” she said, her voice bursting with excitement and impatience. I could tell she wanted to jump from the car.
I cocked my head, and my hands tightened on the steering wheel. “The funny thing is…I’m counting on it. You just might be the only person who could stop him.” And that was the God’s honest truth.
Chapter 14
I knew that a pissed-off Chase could kick my ass every which way to Sunday, especially when it involved the girl he loved more than anyone, including himself.
Their reunion was nothing short of over-the-top, and I hadn’t expected anything less from the extravagant Chase Winters. He did nothing small or without flare, but was it really necessary to literally rip my car door off the hinges? I mean, my poor SUV had already been through hell and back.
I swore in outrage, but it was overruled by the warmth that bloomed in my chest at seeing the half-demon practically brought to his knees. Who would have thought that a gamer geek like Angel would be the pig-headed Chase’s downfall? Certainly not me. I think that she had even blindsided him and that was the beauty of it. Maybe I shed a small tear for the two lovebirds. They were a striking couple, and the love they felt for each other crackled in the air like static.
It was evident, by the way he held her, that Chase was never going to let her go, never going to let her out of his sight. I could hardly blame him. They were two halves perfectly fit together.
Wow. I was becoming such a sap.
Now I just prayed that he was so consumed with Angel that he would forget I was even present. And my prayer was answered. Chase wasted no time swooping her off her feet and out of my sight. It all happened so fast it was hard to believe it was real. I blinked a second time just to make sure my eyes weren’t playing tricks on me.
Then the tension in my body left as the aftershock of what I’d done came crashing through me. It very well could have not had a happy ending. The risk, the danger, and the recklessness of my actions besieged me.
Travis was at my side as soon as my foot hit the ground, and I was more than willing to lean on him. Exhausted, beyond exhausted really, I slumped onto the couch with Travis following right behind me. He hooked his leg over mine and brushed the loose hair off my face. I was crashing hard from the adrenaline that had been pumping through me during the escape. It was still impossible to believe that it had gone without a hiccup. Either I was just that damn good or the facility had let us go.
Travis hovered over me with worry lines ceasing his forehead. “I’m so glad you’re here, but if you ever pull a ridiculous stunt like that again, I’ll be forced to tie you up.” Affection accompanied the concern in his voice.
I grinned, looping my arms around his waist, and rested my head on his chest. “You’d like that.” All teasing aside, my grin slipped. “I did what had to be done, and I was the logical person for the job.”
If he argued, I couldn’t be held accountable for my actions.
His chest rumbled under my head as he spoke, and my eyes drifted shut, listening to the gentle timber and his evening breathing. “That might be, but I don’t have to like it. What happened to us going together?”
And risk him being caught? The facility would have loved that. I was too tired to get into the whole no-guy-is-going-to-tell-me-what-to-do speech. Another day perhaps. “You’re lucky I can’t keep my eyes open and that my body feels like pudding.”
“I love pudding.”
I tried not to crack a smile. I really did. “Do you take anything seriously?”
He entangled our fingers. “Just how I feel about you.” Lifting my hand, he pressed his lips to the middle of my palm, and my eyes shot open.
This time I didn’t fight the craziness that whipped through me. I welcomed it. Lazily I traced swirls on his chest, trying to pretend that my heart wasn’t jumping out of my chest. We were alone, and all manner of things could happen between now and sunrise. Like his hand spanning my stomach. I sucked in a sharp breath, waiting…
With soft, purposeful fingers, he found the hem of my t-shirt, hesitating for just a tiny moment before pushing up the material. My skin sparked at his touch. He dipped his sandy head, lightly kissing my exposed belly and letting his teeth graze my skin. My tummy shivered, and the warmth of his lingering breath fanned me in places that made my cheeks flush.
“You’re trembling,” he whispered.
Was this really happening?
Did I want this to happen?
Hell yes.
“I’m trembling because of how much I want this.” I could hardly believe that came out of my mouth.
“You’re sure?” His eyes were flecked with amber and held mine in a steady gaze.
Oh yeah, I was more than sure. If had to attack him, I would. “Don’t stop,” I whispered in a voice barely audible. I wasn’t sure he even heard me.
“Wasn’t planning on it,” he half growled, half groaned.
He had barely touched me and already my body felt highly sensitive. If this was just a prelude of things to come, then I was in for a truckload of pleasure. Last year I would have wanted my first time to have been an idyllic experience. A perfect setting with a big, soft bed scattered with red rose petals and the sweet aroma of flickering candles. Now, I d
idn’t need or want to be wined and dined. All I cared about was that it was Travis. The where and when were insignificant.
My head fell back as his mouth lavished my belly with kisses. Slowly he made his way up, pushing my shirt inch by torturous inch until it could go no further. I raised my hands above my head, and before I could second guess myself, the shirt was over my head and discarded on the floor. He nuzzled the sensitive alcove of my neck, and I lost my ability to think. Weaving my fingers in his blond hair, I brought his lips to mine in a searing kiss that left me shaken.
Travis kissed me hard and long, and he completely stole my breath away. His kisses filled me with warm fuzzies. I felt lightheaded and weirdly weak-kneed, even though I was lying down. There was nothing rational about the way he made me feel. Reckless. Empowered. And most of all loved.
The taste of him and his touch drowned out the voices of my past, the haunting memories of the facility, and the evil that lived in this world. We broke away just long enough to shed our clothes, piece by piece. He held his arms open and I surprised us both as I spider-monkeyed him, afraid to let go. “I love you, Em,” he whispered. “So much it hurts.”
I swear his lips had the power to change lives, well my life at least. “I love you too,” I murmured, feeling unsure of myself but not how I felt.
Wow. It was still so out-of-this-world to say those words to Travis. I knew how much he cared for me, but I still didn’t feel worthy of that magnitude of love. Not even from a half-demon with awesome kissing powers.
He was sweet, and he let me take the lead. I think he knew how much I needed to be in control when so much of my life had been stripped from me. I loved him that much more for it.
“Are you sure?” he whispered, eyes vibrant in the dark and lit brighter than the sun.
Was I sure that I wanted to do this on his couch with a house full of people?
Umm. It actually never crossed my mind. Maybe later I would think about how exposed we were, but sitting on the couch with the flickering glow of the hearth and Travis’s body to keep me warm, I didn’t have a self-conscious thought. There had been another time when the two of us had sat in the exact same room, me wrapped in blankets with teeth chattering—the day he had saved my life. Now here we were, enfolded in each other. Never in my wildest dreams had I thought that I would be back in his arms, surrounded by his love.
I didn’t want this night to end. I needed Travis tonight as much as I needed oxygen to live. He was essential to my life.
Cocooned under a blanket with the sound of firewood crackling from the fireplace, we explored each other in ways I never knew possible. Being this close to someone was exposing in more than just our nakedness. It was a vulnerability I’d never felt, and a kind of trust I hadn’t had in a long time.
Of course, safety first—you gotta wrap it before you tap it.
Travis removed a condom from God knew where, and the crinkling noise sounded like a bomb in the quiet house. I was sure that everyone knew what we were doing, and I felt my cheeks flush.
I giggled, and it sounded strange coming from me. When was the last time I had giggled like a girl?
It didn’t matter because Travis was kissing me again and there was no room for embarrassment. When he fused our bodies together, there was a sting of pressure followed by a burning, but it didn’t last long, especially with Travis’s lips driving me to distraction.
He rocked his hips, and I bit back a moan.
Fireworks exploded behind my eyes, and my body went tight as immeasurable pleasure rocketed through me from my head to the tips of my toes. Nails digging into his back, I clung to him until the sensation faded.
Holy crap.
I was officially a woman.
“How do you feel?” he asked, tucking me against his bare chest and running his fingers through my hair.
I tried to assess all the emotions pinging inside me. Physically I felt the same, maybe a little sore. It was the emotional connection between us that felt different. If Chase and Angel felt half of how I did now, I could say for the first time that I understood the intensity of their relationship. “Like I’ve died and gone to heaven.”
“Me too,” he murmured against my hair and pressed a tender kiss on my head.
With languid limbs I fell asleep plastered to Travis and with a smile on my lips. It was blissful, especially because there were no nightmares.
Chapter 15
This plan was really, truly, 100 percent, certifiably crazy.
These half-breeds were totally out of their frickin’ mind.
And I was totally onboard with crazy.
We all knew that the facility had to be stopped, but it wasn’t exactly the kind of organization you could take down all at once. And more importantly, my dad was going to be sending a team to track down both Angel and me. They weren’t about to let go of such precious cargo. They were going to be coming in hot and heavy, and we needed to be one step ahead of them, if we had any chance of surviving.
Travis and I both knew that Chase was going to go absolutely hit the fan when we suggested Angel be the one to deal with my dad. She was the only one who could, with her freaky acquired abilities from the badass himself.
There was already tension thick enough to visibly see in the room. It made me itchy. A room full of half-demons and the freak-of-the-week hybrid. Not exactly a friendly bunch and I didn’t have a stellar reputation.
Sierra spent most of the time giving Angel the stink eye, and I twirled one of my knives between my fingers, just in case one of them got any funny ideas. I felt naked without a weapon.
Just as expected, Chase took our idea and squashed it immediately. No contemplating. No discussing. No reasoning. Just a flat-out no.
Oh for shit’s sake.
To top it off, he decided to take out his aggression on my car. I stood on the porch with Travis looming over me and watched Chase slam his fist on the hood of my already beaten-up car. “God damn it, Chase,” I snapped. “Can’t you use something else as a punching bag? Not my car?”
He spun his neon yellow eyes at me and snarled. Crap. I took a step back, bumping into Travis’s chest. His hand curled around my waist, dissipating a good dose of annoyance I had been working up for Chase. “Jeesh. Fine,” I said and let Travis pull me back inside, leaving the squawking lovebirds alone.
Travis kept his hand at my hip as he ushered me into the kitchen, slightly away from everyone else. “You really shouldn’t egg him on,” he said.
Maybe I needed to clean my ears because there was no way in h-e-double-hockey-sticks that I heard him right. “What?” My voice rose a few octaves. “He was the one who decided to go all Rambo on my car.”
Travis didn’t seem to understand my outrage as he swept my hair off my neck and pressed his lips between my shoulder blades. “Don’t worry. I’ll take care of the damages,” he murmured against my skin. He played dirty.
I spun around, my eyes blazing. “That is not the point. And I don’t need your money,” I said, shoving a finger into his chest. “The point is…your cousin needs some serious anger management.”
He flashed me his dimples. “Don’t we all?”
I rolled my eyes. “Speak for yourself.”
“I’d rather not talk at all.”
The corners of my mouth curled. “That is the first good idea you’ve had all day.” I promptly wound my hands around his neck and pressed my body to his.
I loved the way his aqua eyes sparked gold. His lips were feather soft as they swept over mine. I was still basking in the afterglow of last night, and even the Grinch Chase couldn’t dilute that feeling.
We were interrupted before things could get steamy and out of hand, but Travis kept his hand glued to mine. I liked the way our fingers interlocked and the feeling of having someone stand by my side. It helped that he had abnormal abilities that made him dangerous—sexy.
Angel must have used her womanly wiles because when she and Chase came back inside, he had gone from “douche o
f the century” to almost compliant. On the bright side, Angel had gotten him to agree to let her try to hone her compulsion skills. Maybe she’d bribed him with sex. Who knew? However, I wasn’t overly thrilled at being her guinea pig, but hey, we all had to play our parts.
~*~*~*~
There was a sense of excitement humming in my blood, and I wasn’t the only one who felt the exhilaration. All of my comrades had the same bubble of anticipation, except one.
Poor Angel.
She looked like she was going to pee herself.
It probably said something about my group, the fact that most of us were looking forward to the fight that was about to ensue. My muscles were tight, and I was ready to rumble. Deception was going to be the name of the game. I had to make my father believe that I was fighting for his team, which meant I got to shoot Chase.
I was looking forward to it.
“Be there or be square,” Travis said in response to our agreement to meet at the clearing in the woods.
“God you are lame,” I mumbled.
His grin lit the shadowy forest.
I didn’t know these woods like Travis and Chase did, so I let Travis take the lead, something that went against my nature. He moved silently beside me as we split off into groups, dodging trees, hanging branches, and bristly underbrush. The forest was never a safe place as far as I was concerned.
I could tell Travis was holding back for my sake, not wanting to leave me alone. As touching as that was, I could handle myself. “You can go all light-speed if you want. Don’t worry about me. I got this,” I told his back.
He stopped and gave me a you’re-whacked-for-suggesting-it glare. “We stick together.” There was a hulk-quality to his voice.
“Jeesh. No need to go all wolverine on me.”
“Don’t make me tie you to a tree.”
I snorted. “I’d like to see you try to tie me up again. You won’t find me so accommodating this time.”
His eyes twinkled in the sun. “Promise.”
I gave into the knee-jerk response and smacked his arm. “Thinking like that is going to get you shot,” I warned.
