Slayer's Kiss: Shadow Slayer, Book 1

by Cassi Carver

  Her love life was worse than a disaster. Gavin was missing in action, and the only man she’d ever allowed to come inside her had mind-fucked her. She couldn’t even conceive of the fact she could be carrying his child. She didn’t know what being a pregnant Demiáre felt like, but she was pretty damn sure this wasn’t it.

  She sucked in a breath and tried not to step back when Julian edged closer. “I’m sorry, Kara. Does this bother you?” He reached down and dragged his fingers across her hips. “I thought you said my touch doesn’t affect you anymore?”

  “Humph,” she snorted, trying not to look into his smoldering eyes or notice the way his black T-shirt clung to his hard abs as he moved. Hell, he could make money as a dancer if being a lord didn’t work out.

  A gyrating couple bumped her from behind and sent her another inch closer to Julian’s broad chest. He steadied her with one hand. “Kara?”

  Damn it. She couldn’t want him. She refused to allow her body to yearn for him like a dog staring into a butcher shop window.

  “I’m fine.” But she wasn’t really fine. After days of getting Julian out of her system under Jaxon’s care, her nipples were as hard as stones, straining toward his touch, and her panties were growing damper by the second. She swallowed and risked a glance at his hand, wondering if she would still have to concede defeat if he used only his fingers to rub out the ache building between her thighs.

  He leaned his big frame down to whisper in her ear, “I can smell your arousal.” His breath was like a warm Santa Ana wind on the sensitive rim of her ear and she tilted her head toward his mouth for more attention. He chuckled and flicked his tongue out, licking the ridges of her ear before pulling the lobe into his mouth and suckling it.

  Kara’s knees almost buckled, but it was the thing she needed to shock her out of her desire-induced stupor. She pushed out at his chest. “Asshole. That’s not fair.”

  His eyes glinted like polished flint. “What’s not fair is how wet you are right now. For me. And yet you deny us both what we need.”

  She had to stand firm against falling for him again, but her body’s call was so strong, it was like trying to resist pure animal instinct. Rationally, it made no sense, but biologically, he was her perfect match. His tall, strong body was made to join with hers. Kara undulated closer to the bulge in his pants, needing beyond all reason to feel his arousal stroking the swollen, achy bud between her legs.

  He gripped her hips and pulled her closer, rubbing his length against the seam of her jeans. “Mmmm,” he growled. A few more lunges and she would have an orgasm right there on the dance floor. “Come with me,” he said, taking her hand.

  She pulled back. “What you did was wrong.” But she really wasn’t sure she cared anymore. She missed Julian so much it felt like her insides had been scraped clean and emptied.

  “I understand you were raised with humans and you think I betrayed you, but you’ve punished me enough with your silence. I’d rather you take your retribution on my flesh.”

  Lust shot through her as images of a bound Julian raged in her mind. Did she want to punish him like that? Her slick skin cried out for his touch. “Where do you want to take me?”

  “Here and now if I have to.”

  She squinted her eyes at his taunt. “No, I meant—” Suddenly, Kara caught sight of a familiar face at the edge of her vision. She glanced back to see Tray standing at the door, dressed in black slacks and a white dress shirt, as if he’d left his tie and jacket in the car and come straight from work.

  He flashed a badge at the man checking IDs and stamping hands, then pushed past the bouncer and scanned the room. Kara’s gaze flew to Abbey and Jaxon, rubbing against each other on the dance floor like they were grinding wheat between their pelvises. “Oh, shit.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  “What?” Julian tensed.

  “You have to go. If Tray sees Abbey with Jaxon, he’s going to kick his ass. I’ll tell him Jaxon’s with me.”

  “A human against a Demiáre? Let him try it. It’ll be fun to watch.”

  “Just go. Please.”

  He cupped her cheeks and kissed her. “I’ll give you one hour to wrap up your business with the officer while I make arrangements for us.”

  “You sure are cocky for a guy who’s on my shit list.”

  “That’s because, my love…” He nipped her lower lip and followed with another kiss. “What I have planned for you, you won’t be able to resist.”

  She snorted, already spinning toward Jaxon and Abbey. “I’m stronger than I look.” When I’m not looking forward to giving in.

  She flung herself at Jaxon at the exact moment Tray came shoving through the crowd. “Who the hell is this?” Tray hissed, the veins in his neck protruding from his skin. Jaxon stiffened and turned toward Tray.

  Kara smiled and threw her arm around Jaxon’s waist. “Thanks for watching him for me, Abbs. The line in the bathroom was out the door.”

  Abbey froze for a beat, as if she wasn’t sure what to do about her ex catching her dry-humping a guy on the dance floor. “You’re early,” she said to Tray.

  “Yeah.” He glared at Abbey like she’d taken out his heart and fed it through a woodchipper. “I didn’t go home to change. Never know what I’ll find when I show up early to your party, Abbey.”

  “Tray…” Kara pulled Jaxon close. “This is Jaxon—my boyfriend.” When the warrior looked down at her, she reached up on her tiptoes and kissed him on the lips.

  Jaxon’s clouded eyes searched hers for a fraction of a second, then he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and offered Tray a close-lipped smile. “It’s a pleasure to meet you. Any friend of Kara’s is a friend of mine.” With one arm practically squeezing the life out of Kara, Jaxon thrust his other hand out to Tray.

  Tray glanced back and forth between Kara and Jaxon, and the tension in his shoulders eased. He reached out and took Jaxon’s hand in a firm grip. “I guess you were the guy who drove Kara to the hospital the other night. Nice to finally meet you.” Then he pinned Kara with a playfully accusing stare. “I didn’t know it was getting serious.”

  Abbey snickered, fighting to keep a straight face. “Yeah, well, when you meet the right one, you just know. Jaxon moved in with Kara last week.”

  Tray’s eye widened. “Wow. Congratulations, you two.”

  “Thanks.” Kara plastered on a fake grin.

  “You’re a lucky man.” Tray smiled at Jaxon. “I never thought our Kare-bear would settle down. You better treat her right.”

  Jaxon leaned down to press a quick kiss to Kara’s temple. “She’s an angel. And I plan to treat her as such.”

  Tray’s eyes narrowed. “Where’s your accent from? I can’t place it.”

  “I…” Jaxon frowned.

  “Oh, honey, let me tell it,” Kara interjected.

  Jaxon gave her shoulder an encouraging squeeze. “By all means, mistre—my sweet.”

  “Jaxon is American, but he grew up in…South Africa. And went to school in…the Cayman Islands. He has the cutest accent, doesn’t he? Faint, but unique.”

  Tray seemed unimpressed. “Yeah. Cute. Well, we should find a table. I have the photo I promised you, Kara, but I can’t show it around in public like this.” He still avoided looking at Abbey.

  Kara took Jaxon’s hand and tugged him toward the table where their drinks waited. “Over here, Tray.” She scooted onto the barstool and sat Jaxon next to her. “Do you want anything to drink?”

  Tray frowned. “No, thanks. I’m still working. And you know—”

  “Oh Lord, here it comes.” Abbey sighed dramatically.

  “If you already know what I’m going to say, then you know better than to leave your drinks unattended while you dance. Anyone could walk by and put something in your drink, Abbey.”

  “That’s what I have Kara for. She has a nose like a bloodhound.” Abbey picked up her drink and held it out to Kara.

  Kara sniffed the strawberry margarita and smiled. “Yo
u’re safe. And they’re skimping on the tequila, by the way. It smells like a watered-down slushy from the local convenience store.”

  Abbey pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes. “I thought so. I need you to check my drinks before we dance next time.”

  “You got it. And Grammy D didn’t think any good would come out of me working the bar at The Hoolecha Inn,” Kara teased. “How could I smell your drinks without all those hours of training?”

  But Abbey wasn’t really listening. She looked peeved. “That ass-hat bartender was probably flirting with me so I wouldn’t notice his sleight of hand.”

  Jaxon shook his head. “He was flirting with you because you are as beautiful as a fresh-cut rose.”

  Tray snorted, glancing away. “Yeah, that and you picked another cheap-ass bar with no cover charge. What do you expect for three-dollar you-call-it drink night?”

  Jaxon was looking at Abbey in a way that set Kara’s warning bells on full jingle. When he opened his mouth again, no doubt to spout off about how Abbey smelled sweeter than honeysuckle or some other crap, Kara grabbed his knee and squeezed.

  Jaxon stifled a surprised yelp and turned quickly toward Kara. “Yes?”

  “Uh…can you go get me another drink, sweetie?”

  He nodded in response. “Of course…my sweet.” His grimace at his new pet name for Kara was obvious enough for the whole bar to see. “I’ll need money.”

  Kara fished through the cash in her pocket and gave him four bucks. “That should do it. Mr. Ass-hat doesn’t need a big tip.” She handed him the money, then leveled an impatient glare at him when he didn’t move.

  Jaxon raised his eyebrows in retaliation. “What type of drink would you prefer?”

  “Oh. Uh…virgin berry daiquiri.” Tray was watching them with interest, so when Jaxon turned, Kara gave him a firm slap on the rump. “Thanks, baby.”

  Jaxon cleared his throat and cast her a look over his shoulder before striding away.

  “You know, you look a little clammy,” Tray said when Jaxon stepped into the crowd milling around the bar. “Are you feeling okay?”

  Kara blotted her forehead with a napkin and cursed her reaction to Julian. “Never been better. So where’s the picture?”

  Tray slid a large color photo from a manila envelope, then held on to it, seemingly unsure if he should hand it over. “I could get fired for this.”

  “Come on, Officer Oaks.” Abbey ran her slim fingers down his arm until her hand came to rest over his. “We know you need our help or you wouldn’t be here. Unless—” she smiled and leaned closer to Tray, “—you came to see me?”

  Tray gripped her hand and placed it on the table. “If you’re still looking for a threesome, it looks like Jaxon might want to include you in what he and Kara have going on.”

  Abbey and Kara gasped in unison. “Ewww. Not with my Kare-bear!” Abbey exclaimed.

  “Hey, Officer Asshole, that’s my boyfriend you’re talking about!” Kara hoped her acting skills were up to par, because she had to agree that Jaxon looked like he wanted something more with Abbey than the toe-to-toe contact he shared in bed with Kara. “Show me the photo, Tray.”

  Tray pushed the glossy paper toward Kara and flipped it over. Kara was careful not to show a visible reaction to what she saw. She liked to think of herself as a professional of sorts and wanted Tray to see her that way, too.

  Abbey had no such aspirations. She whimpered and her head listed to the side. “Oooh. That’s not right.”

  Tray frowned as if he was fighting with himself, then stood and walked over to Abbey’s stool. He took her red head in his hands and leaned her cheek against his broad chest. “Shhh. I’m sorry, babe. I know how you hate the gruesome stuff.” He ran a hand over her hair and tilted his chin down to rest on her head. “Try to block it out.”

  Kara could see Abbey’s grimace slowly turn into a Cheshire cat smile. Abbey buried her head deeper in Tray’s shirt and linked her hands behind his back. “Just hold me for a while, please. I need to give my stomach a minute to calm down.”

  Kara almost rolled her eyes but held off for her best friend’s sake. Abbey was in ecstasy. “The sun is the same carving as last time.” Kara pointed to the curved lines coming off the circle. “But it looks like he added a…dagger down the middle.”

  “Yeah, a knife,” Tray said over Abbey’s head. “That’s what it looks like to me, too. Does it mean anything to you?”

  Jaxon returned with Kara’s drink and set it in front of her. His face was a stiff mask, showing no expression as he glanced over at Abbey’s bowed head and Tray’s hand smoothing back her hair. “Is Abigail ill?”

  “She doesn’t like blood, or even pictures of blood,” Kara explained. “She’s always been that way.”

  Jaxon nodded approvingly. “She’s delicate.”

  “Yeah, like a flower.” Tray pulled Abbey closer still, like he could keep the rest of the world from noticing how beautiful she was.

  Jaxon glanced down at the photo of the dead woman’s lower half, and his brow wrinkled. “What do you have there?”

  Tray jarred Abbey’s head when he quickly reached out for the picture, but Abbey squeaked and clung tight. “You don’t need to worry about it, Jaxon. That’s something between Kara and me.”

  “Jaxon knows everything about me, Tray.” Even more about Kara’s species than Kara herself. “We don’t have to hide things from him.”

  “Fine.” Tray smacked the picture back down on the table. “Does it mean anything to you? Can you like…I don’t know…touch it and tell me something about the guy who did it?”

  Kara rolled her eyes, but she felt bad. “Where are you getting these ideas? Too much TV?”

  Tray let out a deep sigh. “Well, what can you do? We’re neck deep in a shitstorm and sinking.”

  Kara glanced over at Jaxon, surprised to see him studying the photo so closely. “What is it? Do you recognize something?” Even Abbey peeked up from her spot on Tray’s chest to see what was going on.

  “No,” Jaxon said with finality—too much finality to put Kara at ease. “I’ve never seen this mark before.”

  “Shit,” Tray ground out. “I can’t believe I’m asking this. Can you walk tonight, Kara? We could start in the area where the women have been attacked, at say…midnight? Abbey and I could follow you in my car. Maybe you’ll pick up on something that way.”

  “No.” Jaxon’s booming voice drew the attention of the surrounding tables even through the haze of loud music. When Kara turned to him with wide eyes, he softened. “Please. Not tonight. It isn’t safe.”

  Kara laughed. Since when had hunting been safe? “It’s part of the job description, Jaxy. Abbey and I know what we’re doing.” Jaxon mumbled something under his breath, but Kara ignored him. It seemed her warrior could mother hen as well as she could. “Of course I’ll help you, Tray. I was going out there tonight anyway.”

  Tray exhaled a breath he’d been holding and nodded. “Thank you. And don’t worry, we’ll keep an eye on you.”

  Jaxon clenched his teeth and he shook his head. “As if you could. You don’t know what you are asking her to do.”

  Tray squared his shoulders, but he didn’t look very fierce with a green-around-the-gills redhead glued to him. “I’ve known Kara a lot longer than you have. Who do you think you are?”

  “I’m the man who will have to protect her when you fail.”

  Kara scooted out of her stool, not liking the feeling of sitting on her ass when two burly men were starting to get pissy. “Hey, guys. Calm down.” She put a hand on Jaxon’s arm. “Two things you both should know. One, I’ve never needed anyone to protect me. I know how to handle myself.” Why was she constantly trying to prove that to the men in her life? “And two, Tray…Jaxon is like me. My kind. He knows what he’s talking about.”

  Tray frowned and leaned in, lowering his voice. “What do you mean your kind? Another witch?”

  Kara gave him a weak, lopsided grin. “Yeah. Somethin
g like that.”

  Tray groaned. “How could this shit get any crazier?”

  Abbey picked her head up and leaned against the wooden backrest of her barstool. “Oh, trust me.” She glanced down at the photo. “If we don’t get this nutcase, I don’t think we’ve seen the tip of the crazy iceberg.”

  Kara nodded. “She’s right. We’ll see you at midnight. You can pick Jaxon and me up at Abbey’s house. We’ll leave from there.”

  “Do you need a ride over there now?” Tray asked. “I can fit all three of you in my car.”

  Kara was still mulling something over in her mind. “Are you ready to leave, Abbs?”

  Abbey nodded. “Yeah. I’m done here.”

  “Good. Tray can give you a ride home—maybe even wait with you there for a couple of hours.”

  “You’re not coming?” Abbey asked.

  “No. Jaxon and I need some time alone together.”

  Jaxon eyed her dubiously, but it was Tray who spoke up, his voice low in warning. “Kara, you aren’t trying to get me and Abbey alone, are you?”

  “Of course not,” Kara protested, but Abbey’s secret smile suggested she thought Kara was doing just that—and she approved. “Jaxon and I have things to do.”

  Tray slipped the photo back in the envelope and dragged his keys from his pocket. “All right. We’ll see you at midnight. Don’t be late.”

  Abbey grabbed her sweater and rose from her barstool perch as though even the most heinous crime scene wouldn’t bother her now. She practically glowed. “I’m ready.”

  Kara smiled as the two walked out of the bar. When Abbey tried to clutch Tray’s hand, he slipped his hands in his pockets. As soon as they were gone, Kara turned to Jaxon and her smile vanished. “What the hell was that?”

  Jaxon rocked back and put a hand to his chest. “I don’t see that I did anything wrong, mistress. Abigail’s a beautiful woman, she’s not committed to a man and your attentions lie elsewhere. Indeed, a witch may be the perfect companion for me. You still have my vow. That will never change.”