Xave ran, carrying the dark-haired vixen in his arms in the opposite direction of the depot.
He knew that the police would be looking for them there and he needed to be far away before anyone saw them.
As the time hold wore off, he placed Danica on her feet, breathing quickly as they waited in an alleyway.
She stared at him, her face not immediately registering there had been a change, her eyes wide with fear. Slowly, she took in her surroundings, a small gasp escaping her lips.
Xave turned to her.
“Are you okay?” he asked, knowing that she was, of course.
“Yes! I – what – I…” she trailed off, uncomprehendingly. “Did we run?”
Xave nodded, shifting his eyes away.
“Yes of course we ran,” he said curtly. “What else could we do?”
Danica fell against the brick wall at her back, trying to make sense of how she had gotten from the cab to the alleyway.
For the first time since he could remember, Xave felt guilty.
What do you feel guilty about? Are you going to tell her that you have the power to stop time?
He scoffed aloud and Danica peered at him.
“We have to find somewhere out of view,” she told him. “How the hell are we going to do that without any money?”
Xave cringed because he knew she was right. They were possibly wanted in more ways than one now.
“We’ll lay low here for a few hours and get out of the state.”
She looked at him as if he was daft.
“You think there is anywhere we can go that Oculus won’t find us?” she demanded, pacing around the seedy area. “We’re basically dead anyway. We may as well go to sleep and wait for the inevitable.”
Xave noticed that they were leaning against the exterior wall of a motel. Doors to the seemingly empty rooms were calling to him on both stories of the structure. “Wait here,” he ordered Danica. “I’ll be back before you know it.” With that, he took off towards the check in office. Almost before he had disappeared around the corner of the building, he was returning. He grabbed her hand and tugged her towards the stairs. “Come with me.”
“Where are we going?” she demanded, starting to dig in her heels as they neared the stairs to the second level of the seedy motel.
“We’re taking a room until we figure out our next move.”
“How are we going to pay for the room?” she demanded. She continued to sputter as he inserted the room key into the lock and tugged her inside, closing the door quickly behind them.
“Are you crazy,” she accused. “We need to either go back and fight Oculus, or run faster and farther than they can ever reach.”
He stared at her, marveling at her fire, despite their increasingly dire circumstance.
Suddenly she spun and peered at him suspiciously.
“How did you manage to get us a room here?” she demanded. “And why can’t I remember leaving the cab?”
Xave shrugged nonchalantly.
“Sometimes in situations of stress – “
“Don’t placate me, Xave. What is going on?”
Xave stared at her, debating whether or not to expose his secret. He wanted to tell her everything. Never had he felt more connected to another person but not once had he shared his most intimate secret with anyone. Ever.
How do I know if I can trust her? He thought. I don’t know her. For all I know, this could be a set up.
But Xave knew in his heart that that wasn’t the case, that somehow, they had been drawn together by an inexplicable force and were trapped in this mess together.
“You should try to call Twila,” he muttered, averting his sea green eyes. “You have no guarantee that she hasn’t run also.”
“She’s dead,” Danica said flatly. “Trust me. After she sent me that text message warning me to run, she may as well have set herself on fire in the house. Anyway, I tossed the cell afterward. We have no money, no clothes, no cell phone, and nowhere to go. We’re royally screwed.”
Xave was painfully aware of how few resources they had at their disposal, but he didn’t want Danica to see his mounting concern.
They had to do something for money first, and then get out of Texas.
“What do they want?” Xave heard himself ask. “I thought you worked for these guys? Why did they turn on you?”
“I can only assume it has something to do with you,” Danica sighed. “What is your connection to Oculus? You were asking a lot of questions about them.”
It was then that Xave realized that she was wary of him also.
Oh, we’re a fine pair, he thought grimly. Each of us suspicious of the other. We have to trust one another or we’re going to wind up dead.
“Shit! Someone’s coming!” Danica gasped, jumping back from the window. “We’re dead, Xave!”
The panic in her voice stabbed Xave in the heart.
They stood, paralyzed as headlights beamed up into the shoddy room and suddenly went dead.
He drew Danica closer to him, tucking her behind his big body. Her took her hand and squeezed it gently.
He knew he could stop time long enough to escape, provided whoever was out there did not enter with guns blazing, but how far could they get in two-minute intervals?
There has to be a way I can increase the time pause…
Danica returned his nervous gesture, her hand shaking slightly in his.
Yet no one materialized after a minute had passed.
“Are they watching to see if we run?” Danica whispered. “Why haven’t they come in?”
“Maybe it isn’t them,” he murmured hopefully, but he could see she didn’t believe it. When another minute went by, Xave gritted his teeth. He knew what he had to do but he was exhausted.
He had never been forced to use his ability so many times in such a short period. The lack of sleep, the stress and the overwhelming strain of using his talent was proving to be devastating on his body.
One more time, he told himself. One more time to look for Danica. We can’t go out there blind if they’re waiting for us.
Sighing, he shut his eyes, forcing time to stop and glanced around.
Danica stared at him imploringly but unmoving and he removed his hand from hers, prying the door open to peer into the night.
A beat-up Chevy pick-up was parked directly below their room, a young man and an even younger woman were half naked and in the process of pawing at each other, frozen in mid-grope.
He exhaled the breath he had not realized he was holding and returned to Danica.
Unable to stop himself, he leaned in and kissed her lips softly, watching as her grey eyes slowly returned to reality.
She blinked, staring at him in surprise.
“What the hell are you doing?” she hissed, pulling back. “We’re about to be ambushed and you want to make out?”
Xave swallowed a smile and shook his head.
“There’s just a couple of horny teens out there,” he assured her. “Come and lie down. You’re exhausted. I’ll stay up and keep watch.”
She stared at him dubiously.
“How do you know that?” she demanded. “Can you see through walls?”
He returned her gaze for a long moment.
“In a way,” he said slowly, wondering why he had changed his mind. He felt like he needed to be honest with Danica. After all, they only had each other now.
She snorted.
“Great, now you’re lying to me, on top of everything else.”
“Watch,” he told her quietly. “When you see me next, I will be in the bathroom.”
She watched him in disbelief as he closed his eyes. Certain that she was paused, he wandered off to the washroom and waited for the inevitable gasp to escape her lips.
“What the hell?” she cried. “How did you do that?”
He poked his head out of the bathroom but suddenly dizziness overwhelmed him.
Xave dropped to his knees, watching as Danica’s fa
ce scrunched up in worry.
“What’s wrong?” she cried, rushing toward him. He opened his mouth to answer but no words came out.
He had pushed himself past his breaking point.
“Xave!” Danica said urgently. “Are you okay?!”
Any attempt to lift his head was deterred by the fatigue seizing his body.
Spots danced before his eyes and he fell forward.
Just as the world went dark, he heard Danica sob.
“No! Xave, don’t! You’re all I have!”
But there was nothing he could do to stop the blackness from falling.
Chapter Eleven
Danica Cortez had endured a lot in her life and stress often rolled off her slender shoulders with ease, but this was something unlike anything she had encountered previously.
As she stared at Xave’s pale face, his breathing shallow, her heart was pounding out of her chest.
Who is this guy? She wondered. Danica had barely managed to pull him onto the uncomfortable mattress, using every ounce of her strength. Nothing could revive Xave from wherever he had fallen.
She lay at his side, stroking his black hair, silently praying for him to wake up.
“Come on, Xave,” she whispered. “You can’t fail me now. We have to keep moving.”
But one hour passed and then a second, Danica’s anxiety growing to epic proportions.
She rose, beginning to pace the room.
I could run, she thought suddenly but she knew the thought was ridiculous. Something had led her to Xavier. Or was it the other way around? Anyway, she was as good as dead without Xave. They needed each other to escape whatever mess they had found themselves in.
What could Oculus possibly want with him? Did the group somehow know that Xave and I would meet one day?
The idea was farfetched but suddenly Danica didn’t know what to believe.
Laying a few feet away from her was a man who could stop time with his mind. And she had helped him bury a body. And now her best friend was dead. Oh my god, what the hell is happening?
Nothing made sense anymore.
It was surreal and for a few moments, Danica entertained the thought that she was in a dream.
It would certainly make more sense if I was in a dream, she reasoned, slipping back into the bed with Xave. If I was in a dream, Twila would still be alive.
She felt a stabbing pierce of pain in her heart.
“Come on, Xave,” she begged him. “Wake up. We’re sitting ducks. I feel like they’ve already found us.”
Still, there was no response and Danica flopped back against the flat pillows, wondering why she had been so drawn to this mysterious man from the first time she had laid eyes on him.
Think, Danica, think. You have to find a way to get him out of here without calling attention to yourselves.
The problem was, she had no idea how serious Xave’s ailment was. She had no sense for how long he would be out or if he would ever recover.
The thought that he would not snap out of whatever state he was in filled her with terror. Swallowing, Danica knew that there was nothing else she could do but wait.
But wait for what, was the question.
The television was on low but the news broadcast was alive with reports about the missing NBA star.
Danica glanced at Xave as if she expected him to bolt awake by the mention of Clark Jameson, but of course he didn’t stir.
“…has been missing from his Austin, Texas home since Tuesday night. His credit cards have not been used according to authorities and his friends and family are assuming the worst. Several women have come forward in the days following his disappearance to accuse the celebrity of sexual misconduct. The police have not confirmed or denied if foul play is suspected in Mr. Jameson’s abrupt disappearance.”
Danica’s brow furrowed.
The guy was a pig, she thought, chewing on the insides of her cheeks. Did Xave know that about him before he agreed to get rid of the body?
Suddenly, she thought she might see an entirely different side of the stranger lying beside her. If Jameson was as much of a monster as the women were accusing him of being, then maybe the world was a better place without him. Had Xave known what kind of person Jameson was? Maybe Xave wasn’t as cold as he seemed. The fact that he hadn’t shown any remorse for what had happened had bothered Danica a bit. She didn’t feel threatened herself, but someone had died, and if it was a tragic thing, then she would expect the people who knew to show at least signs of sadness. Maybe Xave had known what kind of person Jameson was all along.
She wondered if maybe it was true that he had a generous, protective heart which had been scarred badly somewhere down the line.
We’re all victims of our circumstances, she thought ruefully. Even the toughest of us.
Danica hit the mute button on the television and curled her frame into Xave’s, wanting to be as close to him as she could.
Her lips grazed the soft pulse of this throat and she inhaled his scent deeply, wondering how much longer they had to be with one another.
Tears welled in her eyes and she silently willed him to wake up, her mouth kissing against him lightly, covering his cheeks and neck softly.
She wanted the emotion she felt for him to rouse him from sleep. Her mouth grew warmer as if her caresses would be the kiss of life she needed to revive him.
Come back to me, she called to him. Stay with me. I need you.
He stirred slightly and her heart leapt. It’s working! Her mouth traveled lower, pulling his black t-shirt from his lean but muscular frame.
Gently biting at his nipples, she thought she detected his heartbeat speeding up a bit. Her heart hammering violently in her chest, she swept her hands gently over his rock hard abdomen. His breath hitched as her hand brushed over his cock, and it gave Danica encouragement. He didn’t stir as she pulled his pants down, her movements becoming frantic as she worried that she was losing his emerging consciousness.
In her mind, she knew she could bring him back if she tried hard enough.
Danica’s mouth closed around his shaft, her soft hands gripping it tightly. Her tongue and fingers massaged him in unison, her mind pleading with him to give her another sign as her strokes grew longer and harder.
A low moan filled the room and she looked up in surprise, hope filling her as he swelled in her mouth.
She did not slow her pace, her hands growing firmer.
Again, Xave released a noise, his eyes fluttering open and suddenly Danica could feel his aura returning, coming back from wherever it had gone on hiatus.
Xave’s fingers spread into her mass of chestnut curls, quickly becoming firmer as he guided her lower onto his unit.
She felt a rush of heated moisture between her legs.
Pulling her head back, she climbed atop him, straddling his waist as she stared at him with wide, worried eyes.
“You’re awake,” she murmured.
He smiled slowly.
“Are you sure?” he breathed. “I feel like I’m dreaming.”
Danica pressed her lips to him, biting on his lower lip as she shimmied to remove her pants and then slipped out of her top. She slid his staff inside of her, reveling in the stretch, the sensations shooting through her while a small gasp escaped her. Enjoying the connection, both physical and almost spiritual, she slowly raised herself before slipping sensually back down his cock, trying to not rush the moment.
Instead, she wanted to relish every second, feeling him pulsating in her core.
Their eyes locked as they fell into a steady but slow rhythm.
There was no fear, it was as if they had forgotten about everything affecting them on the outside. They were lost in each other, living in the moment that had brought them together at long last.
“You’re beautiful,” Xave murmured, his eyes hazy and hypnotizing. His words only served to bring her to higher levels of desire.
She was floating, but tangled in his naked devotion to her.
<
br /> Smoothly, Xave grasped her hips, jerking upward and Danica felt a tension building in her. She bit on her lower lip, knowing that she was close to climax.
“Yes! Please…,” she pleaded. “I want us to cum together.”
He growled softly, his jaw clenching, as he angled his hips to connect with that special place deep inside her. Her passion continued to climb, the intensity building inside her.
Danica cried out, gasping as the climax overtook her. The waves kept crashing over her, not surrendering, holding her in a blissful prison that she never wanted to escape from.
Her body shook as the tremors continued and she fell forward, her hands landing on either side of his face, their mouths inches apart.
Xave grunted, his strong arms crushing her to him as his hips continued their driving thrusts into her core, impaling her over and over again. She bit his neck sharply, enjoying the taste of him, man and sex together, and the sharp bite of her teeth pushed him over the edge.
His back arched and a deep groan escaped his chest as he spilled inside her, caught up in the maelstrom of orgasm. He tightened his grip on her briefly, squeezing till she couldn’t draw a breath. Then his mouth found hers and his tongue delved deeply inside, as if he needed to be joined even more permanently with her.
He moaned softly again, thrusting into her gently now as she buried her face in his neck, never wanting to let him go.
What would it take to stay like this forever? She wondered. Can we ever find peace like this again?
She was certain that their happiness was limited.
The lay naked in each other’s arms, talking.
Danica found herself telling Xave things that even Twila didn’t know about her. Yet as they talked, she felt like she could tell him anything. It felt as if the words would not stop flowing.
“Why did you leave home so young?” he asked and Danica chuckled mirthlessly.
“Dad was a drunk. Didn’t think twice about putting his hand on my ass when he wasn’t beating on my mom. I got tired of listening to her excuses. I figured I had a better shot on my own at fourteen than wondering if he was ever going to ‘accidentally’ wander into my room one night and blame the whiskey.”
Xave’s mouth tightened into a fine line of anger.
HARD Series Box Set: Bad boys with powers Page 21
