by Bianca D’Arc
“I’ll see what I can do on the salmon, but I’m sure we have something in the cupboards for him to eat while we’re here.”
He pushed open the door to the bedroom suite, and Chuck prowled in ahead of them. The bed was huge and the attached bath had a Jacuzzi tub, another reason he’d chosen this particular suite.
Cade closed the door and turned to her. She looked like a forlorn waif standing there, her eyes filled with tears she refused to let fall and her shoulders slumped with fatigue. She’d been through hell tonight, but Cade was just the man to help her feel better.
He approached slowly, helping her slide the knapsack down over her shoulders. He let it drop gently onto the floor. Next, he brushed her hair back from her face with his fingers. He could smell the smoke clinging to her skin and the scent of the werewolf she’d fought, which was strongest on her badly bruised arms.
“Why don’t I run you a bath? You need to relax, El, before we go to bed.”
“We?” That woke her up. Her big eyes blinked up at him in surprise.
Cade placed his palms over her shoulders. “I’m going to hold you all night, Ellie. Nothing and no one will get near you while I’m here.” Her lips trembled, and her eyes filled, shining bright with tears until they finally spilled over. “Come here, baby.” Cade tugged her closer.
She clung to him, weeping into his chest. Her façade of calm had finally crumbled. He didn’t blame her in the least. She’d been strong when she’d needed to be and gotten herself out of a mess few people could have handled. Now reaction was setting in, and she needed comfort. Cade was thankful he was there to offer it—and doubly glad she was alive to accept it.
From what he could tell, it had been a very close thing. The thought scared the hell out of him. He’d almost lost her.
“It’s all right, Ellie. I’ve got you. You made it. You got yourself clear.”
“I almost didn’t.” She hiccupped. “That fireman was stronger than anyone I’ve ever sparred with. He kept coming and coming, and I had no way to stop him. He had me backed against a wall.”
“How did you get free?” Cade could see the desperate situation clearly in his mind.
“I used a leg sweep. He went down hard and hit his head on a brick that was lying in the alley. I don’t know how bad he was hurt, and I didn’t stick around to find out. I ran away and called you.”
“You did the right thing, baby.” He held her close, stroking her hair as she gathered herself. “Now, how about we get you cleaned up a bit, and then you can try for some sleep. Things usually look brighter in the morning.”
He coaxed her toward the bathroom and turned on the hot water tap. While the tub was filling, he reached into the floor to ceiling cupboard next to the door and pulled out three big, fluffy towels. Two, he left on the warming rack for her to use after her bath and the third he unfolded and rolled up into a little nest for Chuck, who’d followed them into the bathroom.
Elaine was busy petting the cat who twined around her ankles, and Cade had to smile at the scene they made. It was so obvious they loved each other.
“Will you be all right?” he asked on his way to the door.
“I can handle a bath. In fact, it sounds like heaven right about now. Thanks.” She gave him a weak smile as he stepped through the doorway.
“I’ll be right outside. Call if you need anything. Promise me.”
She nodded solemnly, though her eyes held laughter. “I promise.”
He tugged the door almost shut behind him, leaving it the tiniest bit ajar so he’d hear if she needed him.
Cat's Cradle: String of Fate, Book 1
Chapter Six
“Silly man,” Elaine talked to her cat as she undressed. “But I’m glad he answered his phone, Chuck. I don’t know where we would have gone otherwise.”
She was still in her pajamas—a loose T-shirt and lounge pants that had seen better days. Suddenly it hit her—those were the only clothes she had left. Everything else had gone up in smoke earlier that evening.
Elaine refused to give in to tears. Once had been enough. She wasn’t normally a weepy sort of person, but she figured she was allowed a little human weakness considering she’d not only lost her home and had to fight for her life to get away. If not for dirty alleyways with discarded bricks strewn around, she’d probably be dead. So she cut herself some slack.
The bath felt like heaven, even more so when she discovered the switch that turned on the Jacuzzi jets. She stayed in there longer than she probably should have, but it felt glorious after the night she’d had. Without meaning to, she drifted off, fatigue claiming her.
A soft touch on her arm roused her minutes later. She was in the big tub, her head thrown back to lean comfortably against the rim. Cade was inspecting one of her arms and the dark bruises that were beginning to form. She looked downward, glad the bubbles from the water jets obscured most of her body. Still, she was naked in the bath and Cade’s presence disturbed her on many levels.
“There should be some liniment in the medicine cabinet.” Cade stood fluidly from his crouch and walked the short distance to the vanity area. He rummaged around in the big medicine cabinet hidden behind the mirror, pulling out a few supplies that he placed on the countertop.
“We keep these places stocked for just this kind of situation, but I don’t think we have any kitty litter in the house for Chuck.” He turned back to her with a smile and a tall bottle in one hand, cotton balls in the other. “I gave him a box for tonight. I’ve already left a note for Bonnie and Ray to get some supplies for him when they go to the store in the morning. They’ll need to buy more groceries to feed all of us.” He glanced at Chuck, fast asleep on the towel near the radiator. “Make that five of us.” Cade had placed a box with some torn up newspaper near the toilet as a makeshift litter box, and she was touched he would go to such lengths.
She loved his thoughtfulness about Chuck, but was increasingly aware that he was fully clothed while she was naked except for some very half-assed bubbles from the Jacuzzi jets. She shifted around in the tub, trying to hide from his probing gaze.
“Come out of there, Ellie.” His tone was one of command that when combined with the smoldering look in his eyes made her breath catch.
“Um…”
“Come on, baby. You know I’ll take care of you. You have bruises all over your arms. It’s killing me to see them forming right before my eyes. Where else are you hurt? Come out of there and let me see.”
She would have laughed, but she suspected it wasn’t a line. He really did seem worried about the extent of her injuries. That didn’t make her comfortable parading around in the nude in front of him, but a combination of factors made her want to comply with his request.
First, she was just too damned tired to fight anymore. She knew Cade wouldn’t try to hurt her physically. No, the battle with him was completely emotional. It was a battle to protect her heart. Second, she’d been attracted to him from the moment they met. His gaze heated her blood and his kisses fired her senses. She wanted more of him—as much as he’d give her—but fear had held her back.
Facing death last night had brought a lot of things into sharper focus. Life was short, and her life in particular had gotten increasingly dangerous since she’d stumbled on to the secret about shifters. She wanted to enjoy what she could because she didn’t know what would come tomorrow. Being with Cade was one of those forbidden things she wanted to experience now that her life had so drastically changed.
Breathing deep for courage, she stood from the water. Cade stood there, watching her for a long moment, but he didn’t touch. Not physically, at least, but his eyes burned a path down her body that made her stomach clench. Ripples of awareness shivered over her skin everywhere he looked and when his gaze finally met hers, the current passing between them was downright combustible.
“You’re gorgeous, Elaine. If you weren’t banged up, I’d lay you down and ride you until you couldn’t walk straight.”
Her breath caught at the heat in his voice, the glow in his eyes. He meant every word. Of that she had no doubt. She shivered, and he visibly shook himself, withdrawing some of the heat, though his eyes continued to rake over her body.
Cade scaled back. He tamped down the fire, put away the flames for later. She felt him retreat both physically and emotionally as he reached for one of the big bath towels he’d left on the warming rack. Shaking it out, he held it open for her to step into. The move brought her into his arms at the same time.
He wrapped her in a fluffy terrycloth hug that warmed her to her soul. He took his time, surrounding her in his warmth before setting to the mundane task of drying her skin. But nothing was mundane or commonplace about his hands roaming over her body, covered with a thin layer of terrycloth.
The soft, damp cloth paused over her breasts, his hands shaping the points of her nipples through the terrycloth. She stifled a moan that wanted to come out, but his wicked grin told her he knew damned well what he was doing to her. His hands roamed downward, over her hips. One hand roamed over the curves of her ass while the other delved between her legs from the front, the towel draping below one of her hips as he stood at her side.
His head lowered, his lips nuzzling her ear as his hands met in the middle, between her legs. Only a thin layer of damp towel kept his fingers from moving where she most wanted them. The hand in front rubbed light circles over her clit while the hand that attacked from behind pushed upward, between the swollen lips of her pussy.
A cloth-wrapped finger pushed slightly inward, into her wet core. This time, she couldn’t hold back the little moan of desire that broke from her lips. Cade’s purr at her side warmed her.
“You like that?” His voice teased her, and she was unable to answer except with a little whimper as he rubbed her clit faster. “Oh, yeah. I can tell you like that a lot.”
He pressed her harder until she came against his hand, the thin towel the only thing keeping her skin from his. He nipped her earlobe and held while she shuddered through her climax in his arms.
As she drifted down from a lovely orgasm, he removed his hands from between her rubbery legs and wrapped the towel around her. He pulled her into his arms, looking deep into her eyes.
“You’re beautiful when you come for me, El. Next time you come, I’ll be inside you.”
She didn’t know how to respond, but her body wholeheartedly endorsed his ideas. Her tummy clenched in renewing desire. She wanted to feel him inside her. Desperately.
“First,” he drew back, “we need to see to your bruises.” He sat on the commode lid so he could make a more detailed inspection of her arms and legs. Opening the liniment bottle released its pungent odor.
“This stuff smells like hell, but it’s the best thing for bruises.”
He was right on both counts, she knew from past experience with the stuff. It was a favorite remedy of martial arts students who habitually returned from class bruised and hurting.
Now that he’d made her focus on it, she started feeling the ache of her bruises. They were worse than anything she’d ever received in class but she supposed that was to be expected, considering this fight hadn’t been for practice.
“Do you have any Tiger Balm in that medicine chest?”
Cade gave her a sly grin. “Where do you think it got its name? One of the tigre d’or invented it, so of course we have some.” He reached up and snagged the little bottle of red goo and tossed it to her.
She rubbed some into her overtaxed thigh muscle while Cade soaked a few cotton balls with liniment. Surprisingly, the strong scents complimented each other. She finished with the Tiger Balm and recapped the small jar, placing it on the countertop with Cade following her every move.
He took each of her arms in his hands, one by one, stroking the cotton ball over every little bump and forming bruise, leaving a streak of brownish red behind. The scent was overpowering to her human nose. She could only imagine how the stink of it assaulted his more acute shifter senses.
When he finished with her arms, he dropped to the floor to inspect her feet and legs. She’d only been wearing a pair of old sneakers when she made her escape, so not only did she have a bruised instep from taking down her opponent, but also a nice set of raw blisters from running without socks. Cade used the liniment on top of her abused foot, but switched to ointment and bandages for the blisters.
Her shins got a light stroke of liniment too. She’d blocked the werewolf’s punches and kicks with everything she had. Luckily, he hadn’t been much of a kicker, so the bruising on her legs wasn’t as bad as her arms.
To her credit, her opponent hadn’t managed to land any punches to her midsection. Being a small target, combined with her blocking ability and speed, had saved her from any worse injury. Cade dropped the wet cotton into the trash and sat back on the commode lid, wrapping his arms around her waist. He pulled her close in a move that stole her breath, resting his cheek against her abdomen, his hands wrapped tight around her.
It was a silent show of the concern she’d felt in every stroke of cotton against her skin. If this man didn’t care about her in some small way at least, she’d be surprised. She rested one hand on his shoulder and stroked his soft black hair with the other, offering him comfort even as he comforted her.
He pulled back after a long moment and rose to his feet. He scooped her into his arms and carried her as if she weighed nothing at all, impressing her with his incredible strength. He took her straight to the bed, and laid her gently upon it.
Cade sank onto the bed at her side, resting on one elbow above her. His gaze held hers, and what she read there gave her pause. In his silver eyes she saw a reflection of the feelings burgeoning in her own heart. It was complicated—deliciously so—but troubling at the same time.
“You’re a dangerous woman, Elaine Spencer.”
The unexpected words startled a laugh out of her. “Dangerous? I don’t think so. I barely managed to escape with my life. You’re right about were strength. That guy could have crushed me like a bug.”
“You were smart enough to evade him and had enough foresight to be ready. You did well against a superior opponent, and you should be proud of the way you handled yourself.”
“I wish I felt that way.” She looked down, unable to hold his gaze, but he was having none of it. He used one finger to tip her chin upwards and forced her to meet his gaze once more.
“Believe it. You did as well as anyone could have expected considering the circumstances tonight. I’m only sorry that I wasn’t there to protect you. I shouldn’t have accepted that they’d give up and go away so easily. I should have known better than that, and I’m sorry for putting you in even greater danger.”
“Cade, this wasn’t your fault.”
“I’m glad you think so, but I know the truth.” He flopped back on the bed, resting beside her, staring up at the ceiling. “It’s my job to prepare for all contingencies. I’m the one who’s trained to keep people safe, and I let you down. I couldn’t be more sorry or ashamed. I let my personal feelings—and inability to control them—interfere with my duty to you. I’ll never forgive myself or forget how close you came to paying for my mistake.”
“Don’t be so hard on yourself, Cade. I was sure I’d convinced those guys I didn’t know anything about shifters. When they didn’t come back, I assumed I was in the clear.”
Cade sat up again, looking down at her, his eyes sharp. “There was more than one? How many came to see you? How many questioned you?”
“Two that I know of. The werewolf fireman—he said his name was Sergeant Bimley—and the detective. He was older and less noticeably were.”
“How so?”
“Well, the fireman was really obvious about sniffing me. He sat next to me on the couch and did all this heavy breathing. The other guy sat across in the armchair. He didn’t do any sniffing until right before he was about to leave. It was kind of freaky, but I tried not to let on that I knew what they were doing.” H
er hands dropped against the towel that was still wrapped around her. “I guess I was wrong. They had to have known, or figured out later, that I was lying to them.”
“What was the detective’s name?”
“Figueroa. At least that’s the name he gave me. I didn’t get a close enough look at his badge to know for certain.”
Cade looked away, his expression pensive. “Did Figueroa do anything else to make you think he was were?”
She thought back. “Just the sniffing thing, really. Otherwise, he was pretty normal. A little creepy, but normal.”
“Creepy in what way?”
“Well, my hand tingled when he shook it, and his eyes were like laser beams. The blue was really intense, almost cutting, if you get my meaning. Why?”
Cade returned his attention to her. “He might not have been were at all. I’ve suspected for a while there was a magic user in the mix of this somewhere. Figueroa might be the one. Too much has gone wrong with this operation for it to just be the result of a couple of rogue weres. I’d suspected bloodletters, but they came to you during the day, right?”
“You don’t mean—” The implication of his words made her gasp, but the possibility was undeniable. “You’re saying that vampires really exist?”
He gave her a small grin and raised one eyebrow. “If I can exist, why can’t they?”
“You’re kidding.”
“Afraid not.” He winked at her. “But for the record, they don’t like the term vampire. We call them bloodletters. We don’t mix with them much, but it’s best not to insult them. They can be…unpredictable.”
“You’re on speaking terms with vampires?” Her voice rose along with her incredulity.
“Not all of them. In fact not many at all. We supernaturals tend to go our own way, but every once in a while, our paths cross. We’ve learned to respect each other, when possible. It’s the only way to share a territory as big as a city. Bloodletters, like shifters, tend to enjoy city life.”
“So they’re good guys?” She was confused.
