Seducing the Hunter (Mills & Boon Nocturne)

by Vivi Anna

  Chapter 22

  As they packed Leanne’s Range Rover with their gear and supplies, Daeva glanced up at the sky and shivered. The gray clouds of earlier had now turned an ominous, swirling slate black.

  Quinn came to stand beside her at the back of the vehicle. “I definitely don’t like the looks of that sky.”

  “Me either.”

  A bolt of lightning pierced the black clouds, making them both flinch. It was followed by a clap of thunder that shook the Range Rover.

  Leanne shut the hatch on the vehicle. “This is not good weather for our journey. We’re going to have to postpone.”

  As if to punctuate her statement, the heavens opened up and spewed rain and hailstones the size of golf balls onto their heads.

  “I’m putting the Rover back into the garage.” Leanne jumped into the front seat.

  As she pulled it forward into the safety of the car port, Daeva and Quinn ran to the safety of the cabin’s covered porch.

  They watched in horror as the ground, the trees and surrounding buildings were assaulted by the substantially sized balls of ice. It was so loud that Daeva couldn’t hear anything above it. Leanne was pelted hard as she ran from the garage to the cabin. Pieces of ice hung off the tips of her braided hair.

  “I haven’t seen a storm like this in decades,” she confessed.

  “Maybe it’s a sign,” Quinn said.

  Although Daeva suspected he was joking, she heard the uncertainty in his voice. Maybe it was a sign. But she had no delusions that it was sent by heaven.

  She searched the neighboring forest. Were they alone? Or did they have company of the sorcerer kind?

  “We should get inside,” Leanne said, as hailstones slammed onto the porch right next to her boot. She opened the door and went in. Daeva and Quinn followed her lead.

  It was almost deafening inside as the hail pounded against the cabin’s wooden and tin exterior. Then the wind picked up, battering the ice against the walls and windows. A sharp crack came from Leanne’s bedroom.

  “Sounds like a window,” Daeva said, pointing to the room.

  All three of them rushed in to see an orange-sized hailstone on the floor. Splinters of glass were spread across the floor.

  Cursing, Leanne gestured to Quinn. “There’s wood, a hammer and some nails just outside on the porch.”

  He turned and rushed out of the room to retrieve them.

  “What can I do?” Daeva asked.

  “There’s a broom in the kitchen.”

  Daeva ran out to get it, easily finding it hanging on a peg near the garbage. She brought the broom and dustpan back to the bedroom. She helped Leanne sweep up the glass as Quinn returned with two planks of wood and the hammer and nails.

  The wind whipped more rain and ice into the room before Quinn could board it up. Just as he finished pounding in the last nail, the lights flickered then went out.

  “Is this normal?” Quinn asked, obviously feeling the same unease Daeva felt.

  “We’ve had storms like this before during the summer.” Leanne stared at Daeva. “Is there something I should know?”

  “We have sorcerers after us. So it’s possible this could be one of their spells.”

  “This is pretty powerful magic, if it is.”

  “I agree,” Daeva said. “I’m not sure if it’s them at all. Could be just Mother Nature doing her damnedest to destroy stuff.”

  “What do you want to do?” Quinn asked.

  He looked nervous. Daeva could see his hands fidgeting at his sides. One of the benefits of night vision was seeing all the things people generally want to keep hidden, especially in the dark.

  “Well, we’re no good just standing here.” Leanne walked out of the bedroom. Daeva and Quinn followed her into the living room. “We’ll need light and heat.”

  She settled some kindling in the fireplace and lit a match, holding it down to the wood. The flame went out without taking. Frustrated, she lit another match.

  “Here, let me.” Daeva nudged her aside, crouching next to the hearth. She rubbed two fingers together. At first, nothing happened. A ball of fear rolled in her stomach. Was she losing her powers?

  Trying not to appear worried, she kept rubbing her fingers together. Harder. Faster. Until finally a spark formed, then more, and she had a small orb of fire that she dropped into the middle of the kindling. The wood sparked and smoked until it flickered with flames.

  She let out the breath she’d been holding, then set a few larger logs onto the popping fire. When she stood and turned, Quinn was watching her intently, his brow furrowed.

  She gave him a small smile. “No sweat.”

  But she didn’t think he believed her by the way he kept watching her.

  “Well, all we can do now is hunker down and wait it out.” Leanne picked up the gun her son had left her and carried it into the kitchen. “Anyone want a drink? I’m having a drink.” She opened the cupboard and took out a bottle of Scotch.

  “Sounds like a helluva idea.” Daeva joined her in the kitchen and took three short glasses down from the shelf.

  Leanne filled each glass, then set the bottle down on the table in front of the fire. She plucked one glass up and lifted it in salute.

  They all drank. Then Leanne filled up their glasses again.

  “If there was any time to get drunk, I think it’s now.” Leanne chugged back the second drink.

  Daeva cheered her with her own glass. “Hear, hear. I’ve been wanting to get drunk from the moment I arrived topside.”

  “Come, sit, and tell me what it’s like to be a demon.”

  Leanne took a seat in the overstuffed chair near the fireplace. Daeva slid onto the sofa. Quinn sat next to her. He had yet to say anything and just watched her. She wondered if he, too, wanted to know what it was like to be a demon. Was he looking for some insight?

  She gave him a small smile, and he set his hand on her leg and squeezed it reassuringly. She liked that he was near. It made her feel safe. Something she didn’t normally feel on a daily basis.

  “It’s not as fun as you’d think.” She laughed, but without any real humor.

  Leanne frowned at her. “I didn’t think it would be fun at all.”

  “It isn’t. But you can’t choose how you are born or what you are born into.”

  “No, you can’t.” Leanne poured more whiskey into her glass. “But you must learn to accept the things you can’t change.”

  They were all silent for a few minutes, then Daeva started to tell her tale. Leanne had asked the question, but it was for Quinn and for herself that she told the story.

  “For millennia or more, I reveled in my demon-ness, in my powers. I did a lot of bad things. One of them was cursing your family.” She paused to drink. “But after a long while, after being with and dealing with humans, I realized I could be different. That I didn’t have to accept my fate, didn’t have to be like all the rest of my kin. So, I started to find ways to go topside.” She watched Quinn as she spoke. She really needed him to understand this.

  “I started to possess people and live their lives for as long as I could. I picked people who were looking for a way out. For those who were sick or dying. While I possessed them, they would heal. I tried to give them a second chance at life, even if it was with my soul invading their bodies.” She swallowed, hoping Quinn would understand what she was trying to tell him.

  His eyes widened. “Rachel? Rachel was dying? That’s why you possessed her?”

  She set her drink down on the table. “She had ovarian cancer. She would’ve died in a couple of years. I gave her more than ten.”

  He jumped to his feet. “Jesus, Daeva. I didn’t know.”

  “I know you didn’t.”

  He rubbed at his face. “I didn’t even give you a chance to tell me.”

  “It’s okay, Quinn. It’s in the past.”

  “It’s not. I’m such an ass.” He fled the living room and went into the guest room.

  Leanne tipped
her glass. “Looks like the two of you got a lot of stuff to resolve before the end.”

  Daeva looked at the Cree woman for a long moment, her throat constricting. “You see much, Leanne Blackbird.”

  “Yeah, it’s another curse I have. Seeing the truth in all things.”

  Daeva stood, intending to go to Quinn. “And what do you see for Quinn and me?”

  Leanne drained her glass and wiped at her mouth. “I think you already know that answer.”

  Daeva nodded, then walked across the room to the back bedroom. When she went in, Quinn was sitting on the bed, his head in his hands. He looked up at her and she could see the guilt, remorse and pain in his eyes.

  A week ago she would’ve given anything for Quinn to feel this badly for what he’d done to her, but now, now she just wanted to be with him. Time was too short to waste with the past. It was today that mattered.

  She sat beside him.

  “I’m so sorry, Daeva. I’ve misjudged you for so long.”

  “It doesn’t matter anymore.” She ran her hand through his hair, loving the feel of it against her palm. “The only thing that matters is right now. And us together.”

  He brought his hand up to her face and cupped her cheek. He rubbed his thumb over her lips.

  “I’ve missed you,” he murmured.

  Tugging him down to the mattress with her, she wrapped her hand in his hair and covered his mouth with hers, claiming him. At least for now. The kiss was fierce and full of unrequited love and passion. She broke away and looked up at him, wondering if he felt the same way.

  As an answer, he fisted her hair, dragging her up to his mouth. He crushed himself to her. She opened her mouth, letting him savage it with his tongue, groaning as he teasingly bit at her bottom lip. This was a different Quinn. An aggressive Quinn. And she liked it.

  With one hand still wrapped in her hair, he used the other to grab the front of her T-shirt, ripping it away, leaving her bare breasted. Her nipples hardened in the cool air of the room. He pulled her head back, exposing her neck to his hot, hungry mouth. His hand dipped down to mold her breast with his palm, squeezing her just a little.

  Daeva hung on to his shoulders, his arms, anywhere she could gain purchase as he ravished her. She had been taken before, but not with such force, with such need.

  Usually reserved and diplomatic, Quinn couldn’t be pushed. But in the bedroom, he was the one who liked to push and prod. This was where he took over, where he had always commanded her.

  Something animal in her broke, and she clawed at his clothes, desperate to find his flesh, to taste, to feed on every inch of him. She’d been hungry for too long. She ripped open his shirt, her hands finding his smooth skin and hard muscles. Her hands streaked everywhere at once, needing to feel him close, to feel secure.

  *

  Dragging his mouth from her lips down her neck to the fullness of her breasts, Quinn flicked one hard nipple with the tip of his tongue. Her skin was soft and smelled of oranges. Saliva pooled in his mouth just at the thought of her. He wanted to feast on her body for a whole night. And even then he wasn’t sure he’d be sated.

  Restraint broken, he grabbed her around the waist and tossed her backward on the bed. She gasped in shock but her eyes clouded over with desire. He tore off the remainder of his shirt, shucked his jeans and shorts, then crawled onto the bed.

  She let him come, a coy little smile on her lips. His cock hardened at the sight. She was the sexiest woman he’d ever seen. Everything about her pulled at his most primal needs.

  He undid her pants, tugged them down her legs, pulled them off and tossed them to the floor. He gripped a leg in each hand, and spreading them, he pulled her forward, sliding her across the mattress until he was nestled tight between her thighs. Her hot, wet center nuzzled his cock and he had to bite down on his lip to stop from burying himself in her. He wanted to take her slowly, to watch every inch of his hard length sink into her silky, warm core.

  He looked down at her, so open, so vulnerable, and drank every part of her in. “God, woman, you drive me mad.”

  “Then do something about it,” she teased, as she ran her hands over her breasts.

  Gripping his cock in one hand, he guided himself into her. She was so silky wet that he slid in unhindered. He settled a hand on each of her legs and slowly pulled himself out then thrust back in, taking his time, although it killed him to go slow.

  Daeva moaned with every thrust. He teased her with his rhythm, moving with slow deliberation at first, then picking up the pace until he was pounding into her mercilessly. With every movement, he could feel her core tightening around him. Squeezing him.

  “Harder,” she panted.

  He fulfilled her wish and buried himself deep inside her. He let go of her legs and fell over her, settling his face into the crook of her neck. She wrapped her legs around his waist and tilted her pelvis up to meet him.

  He thrust into her again and again until they both had sweat pouring off their bodies. He gripped her shoulders and pulled her down as he pushed up. He groaned as his body started to quiver with need and desire. One more powerful thrust and he drove hard, emptying himself into her. Raking her nails down his back, she cried out and followed him down the orgasmic spiral into pure bliss.

  Chapter 23

  The sun was just starting to rise by the time they got on the road the next day. They drove for a couple of hours to the turnoff marked on the map.

  Leanne parked the vehicle on a graveled pad. There was a sign that read Beware of Bears posted, big and bold, before the metal barrier separating the road from the forest. Nothing like an omen to start a journey, Quinn thought.

  Daeva stood beside him as he looked at the sign. “Well, if bears are the only thing we have to deal with, this trip is going to be a piece of cake.” She hefted her pack over her shoulder and followed Leanne into the woods.

  At first, the trail was easy. It was well-trod and marked, through flat, wooded land. Then they broke out into a clearing and it was evident it was going to get a helluva lot more difficult from there on. There was no clearly marked path, and it was all mountains and valleys for the next ten miles.

  Quinn was in shape and healthy, but this was going to kill him, he was sure. He glanced at Daeva and saw the same look on her face.

  Leanne on the other hand, looked as if she could hike for another ten hours and not even be winded. She squinted into the high sky. “We’ll hike for five hours more, then make camp.”

  Quinn wasn’t going to argue. He was sure in five hours he’d be ready to collapse.

  Leanne started the climb up the rise to the next copse of trees. Daeva followed, Quinn beside her.

  “How are you faring?” he asked her.

  “I’m good,” she said, but he could see the sweat dotting her forehead and upper lip.

  “Are you sure? You could transfer some of your gear to my pack.”

  She shook her head. “I can carry my load. I’m fine, Quinn, really.”

  But he could see she wasn’t fine. Ever since the teleportation she’d been weakened. Far more than she was letting on. But he wouldn’t press her on the issue. She was stubborn and she would take his concern for her as being vulnerable. He knew she hated feeling that way. So, he would keep his worries to himself, at least for now.

  After another two hours of walking, they stopped for water and some sustenance. Daeva dropped her pack and found a fallen tree to sit on. He watched her drink from the canteen and noticed that her T-shirt was soaked with sweat.

  He set his pack down next to hers and proceeded to rifle through it, taking out the heavy stuff and setting it down on his pack.

  She jumped to her feet. “What are you doing?”

  “Helping you.”

  “I don’t need any help.” She grabbed at the bedroll he’d taken.

  “Yes, you do, Daeva. Don’t be...”

  “If you call me stupid or dumb I’m going to smack you upside the head.”

  “I was
going to say foolish. I can see how much you are suffering. You’re still too weak to be carrying all this.”

  She stopped making grabs for stuff and just stood by and watched as he loaded his pack with the extra weight. When he was finished, he helped her with her lessened burden.

  He kissed her on the forehead, running a hand over her hair. “You’re welcome.” He caught her half smile before she turned to get back on the trail behind their guide.

  They hiked for another three hours, stopping intermittently for water and rest. Daeva was definitely doing better without the extra weight on her back, but she still looked exhausted. As if time itself was taking its toll on her.

  Leanne found a small clearing in the trees and declared it the best spot to make camp. There was plenty of tree cover and a narrow stream nearby to provide them with fresh drinking water.

  They were all pretty quiet as they pitched tents, one for Leanne and the other for Daeva and Quinn. Once that was done, Leanne went about constructing a fire pit. Daeva announced she was going to fill their canteens at the stream. Quinn watched her go, a feeling of helplessness filling him. He didn’t know how to help her, because he didn’t know exactly what was wrong.

  “She’s dying, you know.”

  Quinn swirled around to gape at Leanne. “Excuse me?”

  “She’s been losing her life force since you brought her to me. Every hour a little more disappears.”

  “Did she tell you that?”

  She shook her head. “She didn’t have to. I can see it.”

  “You’re wrong. She can’t die. She’s a demon. They’re immortal.”

  “She is less demon than you think.” Leanne stood wiping her hands on her pants. “I know you can see it too, Quinn.”

  He shook his head, his gut clenching. “I thought she was healing. I was sure of it.”

  “Ask her. You will know if she’s telling you the truth.”

  After tossing his bedroll into the tent, Quinn went to find Daeva. He found her crouched by the water’s edge, splashing her face. She stood when he approached.