by Zahra Stone
My mouth dropped open. “You’re saying I can join the SIA? But what about Katie? She won’t like that.”
“You’ve done some good work, Paige, even if your methods are somewhat unorthodox. You’d be better suited this side of the law.”
Realization dawned. “You were never going to arrest me.” His grin told me I was right, and I punched him in the shoulder. Hard. “You could have told me,” I grumbled. “I was picturing myself in a cell next to Uncle Frank.”
“You had to learn to trust me first. And there is one thing I’ve learned from the Shelton women…you have to do things your own way.”
“We are a stubborn lot,” I agreed. “So, this”—I waved my arm around, indicating the office space we currently stood in—“this was your plan all along? Recruit me into the SIA?”
“Not at all. I wanted you to stop hunting vampires before you got yourself killed. Then you proved yourself useful.”
“And the rest?”
He knew what I meant, for he backed me up against a wall, crowded over me, and with his lips against my ear whispered, “The rest is strictly off the record.” And just like that, I wanted him. Lust washed over me in a tsunami of emotion, and I curled myself into him, pressing, seeking more.
“Patience.” He chuckled, resting his hands on my shoulder and easing back. “We’ve got some work to do first, then I’m all yours.”
Someone called his name, said they were ready for him. With a brush of his knuckles across my chin, he was gone, leaving me trembling. It took a solid minute to get my rampaging hormones under control. Then I followed Nate into the briefing room, silently sliding onto a seat at the back of the room. Nate was addressing his agents, standing behind a podium at the front of the room. I’d missed the beginning, but I quickly figured out they were discussing the ghouls, the missing girls, and Stillwater Pharmaceuticals.
Nate pointed to two agents. “McConnel and Richards, I want everything you can find on Stillwater Pharmaceuticals—dig deep. Augustine and Darabi look into the ghoul angle, see if you can locate Leroy Byers. Shelton and Niles, you can run with the lead on this. You have twelve hours. I want a plan in place and patrols ready to go.”
The room erupted into noise as Nate dismissed them.
“You missed something,” I told him when he sat down next to me.
“Oh?”
“Who’s looking into the helicopter crash?” It was playing on my mind. What if Nate was wrong? What if it had been the ghouls? What if their reach was wider spread and more powerful than we thought?
“The Secret Service has taken jurisdiction.” His words comforted me somewhat. “Come on, you look dead on your feet. No wonder Katie was pissed at me.”
“What time is it?” Now that he mentioned it, I was tired. Covering my yawn with my sleeve, I looked at him. We’d only gotten a couple of hours of sleep before Raven and Carter had found us.
“Ten a.m. Way past your bedtime.”
Dawn had broken on the drive to Redmeadows, but the tinted windows of the car had protected Nate, and the driver had dropped us off in the underground car park, negating the sun problem.
“Aren’t you stuck here, though? You know, daylight?”
Threading his fingers with mine, he chuckled, pulling me to my feet. “Nope. The Secret Service aren’t the only ones with fancy toys.” And he was right. Riding the lift up to the parking lot, he led me to a silver Porsche Spyder, its windows so dark you couldn’t see inside. At all.
“This is yours?” Running a hand over the car, I smiled. She was a beauty.
“Yeah. You like?” The remote beeped as he deactivated the alarm, then held the passenger door open for me to slide inside.
“It’s gorgeous.” Sinking into the plush leather seat, I closed my eyes and breathed in the smell. Leather and Nate.
“Play your cards right, and I might let you drive.”
“Really?” I couldn’t contain the excitement in my voice. Getting to drive a wickedly fast sports car was a dream of mine.
“One day.”
He sped us through the streets of Redmeadows, up into the garden district. It was a beautiful and ornate neighborhood, with gorgeous historic houses and mansions, along with lush and green gardens. Nate told me the historic homes had been built by wealthy settlers, but now in this prestigious neighborhood, most houses had price tags that ran into the millions.
Nate’s house was one of those. We stopped at the gates, and he used a remote attached to the visor to gain entry. The gates opened, and we drove up the long driveway, massive weeping willow trees flanking the drive. The house itself was a large Victorian, restored to its original grandeur, with white columns and the scrollwork of cast-iron balconies, definitely in the millions.
We pulled into the garage, the door sealing closed behind us, shutting out the sun.
“Welcome to my home.” He was at my door, hand held out to assist me out of the car. I was slowly getting used to his vampire speed, but it still rattled me that one minute he was behind the steering wheel, and the next, he was standing at my door.
“Thank you.” Placing my hand in his, I let him help me out. He was right about being tired. My eyes were gritty, and a headache was starting to niggle at my temples. He peered intently into my face. “What?” I grumbled, unnerved by the scrutiny.
“When did you last eat?” It sounded more of an accusation than a question. I shrugged, casting my mind back over the last few hours. We’d headed out to the Stillwater facility in Maxxan around eight. I’d had dinner beforehand, around six. Then we’d been busted, got shot down between Maxxan and Redmeadows, rescued, taken to HQ, and it was now…what? Ten thirty, eleven the following morning.
“Dinner last night.”
“Fuck. And you fed me. Christ, woman, why didn’t you say something?”
“Like what? We crashed in the middle of nowhere. Hey, Nate, how about ducking out to get me a burger. I’m a little famished.”
“Okay, okay, good point. But still. When we got to HQ, I should have gotten you something to eat.”
“I didn’t feel hungry,” I protested. “I still don’t.” It was true. My stomach wasn’t growling. I didn’t feel like I needed fuel except for a headache that was probably an indication that starvation was imminent.
“Come on.” Dragging me by the hand, he led me through the house to the most perfect kitchen I’d ever seen. You could fit my entire apartment in it. Opening the fridge, Nate frowned at the contents.
“What?” Peeking over his shoulder, I looked inside. “Oh.” The problem was obvious. The fridge was neatly stacked with blood bags. No human food to be seen.
“Not to worry, I’ve had this problem before. I’ll order in, you like Chinese? Pizza?”
Zeroing in on what he’d just said, I nailed him with a look. “You’ve had this problem before?”
“Yeah, when I first met Raven. She turned up here to question me.”
“She came to question you, and you offered her food?” The snark was back.
Sighing, he shook his head. “I was helping her with her inquiries. She wanted to see the footage from my nightclub. I have a tech lab here. She was here longer than anticipated and got hungry. Nothing happened.”
“You wanted something to happen,” I accused, jealousy flaring again, crackling over my skin, the hairs on my arms standing on end.
“Babe.” He began, but I cut him off.
“Don’t call me babe!”
“All that ever happened between Raven and me is a kiss or two—and before you get all bent out of shape, I can assure you, kissing her— compared to kissing you—is like…like…kissing your sister!”
“Gross.”
“Well, not gross entirely. But wrong. It felt wrong.”
“Would you kiss her now if you got the opportunity?” I couldn’t understand what was driving me down this path, why I felt so damn jealous and protective of him. So, we’d slept together, so he knew just how, where, and when to touch to elicit the mo
st delicious response from me, so for once, I’d felt satisfied. So what?
“I don’t want to kiss her. Two reasons. I’ve got you to kiss, and I like that much better. And two, Carter would kill me if I kissed her, and despite him being a wolf, I quite like the man. Not to mention those two are married with a kid. Not going to happen. Ever.”
Dropping a kiss on my lips, he whispered, “I have every intention of allaying all your fears in that department very soon, but first, you need to eat. You’re a little hangry.” With a grin, he straightened and pulled out his phone. I zoned out, not caring what he ordered.
Was he right? Was all of my weird behavior simply because I was hungry? Just then, my stomach growled, and I chuckled, placing my hand on it. Okay, okay, I was hungry, I admit it.
While we waited for my takeout, he took me on a tour of the house. All of the windows had a unique UV glaze, keeping the harmful rays of the sun out. The house was breathtakingly beautiful and massive. I met his maid, who came in during daylight hours to clean and deal with any callers who saw fit to visit during the day.
The lab in the basement was nothing like I’d imagined. We’d stopped before a thick steel-plated door, and he spoke his name into a box on the wall. The door clicked open, and I followed him inside. The underground bunker, for that’s what it was, was massive and white. I’d been expecting cold concrete, maybe old brick, but what I saw took my breath away. It was divided into four rooms by glass walls. One contained banks of computers, servers, and other electronic equipment. Another held three medical gurneys, trolleys, refrigerators, and cupboards that I assumed stored medical supplies. The third room housed a large island bench with microscopes and other scientific equipment, and the last room held two big square cages. His personal holding cells, he told me. A hum buzzed through the air, and he explained it was the air filtration system.
We’d just finished the tour when the intercom buzzed with the announcement that my food had arrived, and this time I practically bolted up the stairs, my growling stomach dictating speed.
In the dining room sat a china dinner plate piled high with pizza. My smile was broad as I settled into my seat and grabbed a slice, shoving it into my mouth with little regard for good manners. At the end of the table was a black mug and Nate sat in front of it, bringing the cup to his mouth and taking a sip. Was that?
“I’m hungry too.” Yep. Okay. It was blood. “Do you usually drink your blood from a cup?” I was curious. He’d drunk directly from the waitress’s vein, as he had with me.
“I try not to drink from the vein unless I have to. There’s plenty of bagged blood available. A few seconds in the microwave to take off the chill, and it does the job.”
“Do you have a favorite type?”
“No.”
I watched him take another mouthful, then turned my attention back to my pizza. It was delicious. I’d eaten three large slices before I slumped back, full.
“Good?” Nate had finished his beverage and was looking at me with a flush of color in his cheeks.
“It was delicious.”
“Know what else is delicious?” The way he said it, the drawl in his voice, the hint of innuendo had me grinning.
“What?”
“This.” Suddenly I was out of my chair, my butt was lifted onto the table, he was wedged between my thighs and kissing me with a passion that stole my breath. When he finally allowed me a breath, I whispered, “That was corny.”
“But true.”
“You are magnificent,” he said, his voice heavy. He traced a finger down my lower back, and a shiver danced through me. Some tiny part of my brain wondered at what point I’d lost my shirt? Then, as his lips followed the same path, followed by the hot wetness of his tongue, the thought vanished to be replaced by exquisite tingles of pleasure. He kissed his way up my spine and grazed the back of my neck, smoothing my hair aside.
“The first time I saw you,” he said, “I knew I had to make you mine. You were the sexiest, most stubborn, determined, fucking hot woman I’d ever laid eyes on.”
“And I tried to kill you.”
“I would have thought less of you if you hadn’t.” His words had the heady intoxication of a caress, and time lost all meaning.
Chapter Sixteen
We were in the briefing room on level four of SIA HQ, listening to the intel the SIA personnel had dug up on Stillwater Pharmaceuticals when Katie silently sat next to me. I turned to look at her, but she was looking straight ahead, intent on what was being discussed.
“We propose two teams,” one of the agents was telling Nate, “one to monitor the vans entering and leaving, and another team to follow where the vans are going when not at Stillwater.”
“How many vans have you identified?”
“Five.”
“I want a team on each van. They could be legit, and I don’t want to waste all of our resources on finding out which ones are legit and which ones aren’t. Six teams. One here, coordinating. The other five mobile. We stay on those vans until the shift is over.”
“Sir? We don’t have the numbers for six teams.”
“Count me in,” Nate responded, his eyes meeting mine over the heads of his agents.
“Fuck,” Katie muttered under her breath.
“Why are you so against me being here?” I whispered. She wasn’t as angry as yesterday, but she definitely wasn’t happy.
“Not here. Come with me.” I followed her to the elevator, where we rode down to the holding cells on level six. Well and truly out of Nate’s earshot. We stepped out of the elevator into the foyer area.
“Spit it out then.” I waited, hands-on-hips as she paced back and forth in front of me.
“This is a dangerous world, Paige,” she began, clearly agitated. “It’s not safe for you.”
“Ummm. I guess Nate hasn’t filled you in?” I shifted uncomfortably, wondering what she would say when she knew I’d been hunting vampires, on my own, in Maxxan.
“Filled me in on what?” She stopped and zeroed in with laser-like intensity, not blinking.
I decided the best way to do this was fast, like ripping off a band-aid.
“I’ve been hunting vampires. That’s why Nate was in Maxxan. To investigate.”
“First up, bullshit. Nate was in Maxxan to see if he could pick up the trail of the Gunslinger and Red Witch. Both of them are in the wind. We’re tied up investigating the people going missing. Nate took it upon himself to do some fieldwork. Now explain. What do you mean, hunting vampires?”
My mind was whirling. Nate hadn’t been there for me? I knew he’d said he’d never intended to arrest me, but I had sincerely thought he was there because he’d thought they had a rogue in Maxxan. To learn that wasn’t the case at all was a shock. And to learn he’d been there searching for the Gunslinger when he’d told me he wasn’t. He’d lied, and it hurt.
“Paige!” Katie snapped, drawing my attention back to her.
“Fine!” I snapped back. “I couldn’t believe the SIA just up and left after they busted the Rampage drug ring. That they concluded we didn’t have a vampire problem. So, I started hunting the vampires myself since no one else was prepared to clean up the mess.”
“Wait…how were you finding these vampires?”
“I’d dress—alluring—at a bar and hook ‘em that way. Lure them back to an old warehouse I was using and kill them.”
“Jesus, Paige! Were those vampires actually guilty of anything?”
“That’s what Nate said.” I pouted. I’d honestly thought I’d been doing the right thing, but it was becoming glaringly obvious I’d made a colossal mistake.
“Oh, Paige.” Katie heaved a big sigh and ran her hands over her face. “You can’t go vigilante. You just can’t. There are consequences.”
“So I’m learning.”
“What has Nate decided?”
“Well, I’m not going to jail.” I grinned sheepishly.
She shook her head. “That’s something at least. Don�
�t tell me. He wants you to join the SIA too. If you’re out there killing vamps on your own, you’ve got skills. And balls. Two requisites for the SIA.”
“Anyway,” I said, suddenly changing the subject, “what are you doing here? You never told us you worked for the SIA.”
“That’s because it’s safer if you don’t know. Then Jordan goes and ropes in Rae, and Nate has gotten you involved. Fuck it, Paige, I couldn’t bear if anything happened to you. I just couldn’t.” Tears welled in her eyes, and I wrapped my arms around her, hugging tight.
“Nothing is going to happen to me. I’ve got kickass skills. And Nate will protect me.”
“He won’t always be there.” She sniffed, squeezing me tight. We embraced in silence, each of us thinking of the past, of Katie’s pain. It was after that that Katie had shut down and left town. We’d had no idea she’d joined the SIA, had only seen her recently when she’d returned for Grandma’s funeral, and had left just as quickly as she’d arrived.
“I’m sorry about what happened.” I sniffed, my own tears falling at what had happened to her. “But you can’t protect me from every little thing. I’ll do my best to stay safe, but that doesn’t mean wrapping me in cotton wool.”
“If I’d known what you were up to in Maxxan, I would’ve come down myself and locked you in the basement,” she growled.
“Well, you didn’t, and here I am.”
Releasing me, she stepped back and smoothed her palms over her shirt before wiping the tears from her cheeks.
“There’s probably something else I should tell you,” I admitted.
“You don’t have to. I can smell him on you, and if I got close enough, I’m sure I’d smell you on him.”
“Rae says he’s a good person?” I didn’t mean it to be a question, but it came out that way.
“He is. He has history, but who doesn’t? Since he’s been the Director of the SIA, he’s led a pretty upstanding life. Too busy to get into mischief.” She winked, then grabbed my hand. “Come on, better get you back to him. Don’t want him tearing my head off.”
“So…you never bought into Dad’s ‘all vampires are evil’ bullshit?” Was I the only one? The only one who didn’t see prejudice for what it was?