by Cynthia Eden
She pushed a beer toward him. “I am wearing a costume.” She glanced to the left, then to the right, and Amber leaned a bit over the bar, lowering her voice conspiratorially as she whispered, “The human skin? That’s my costume. Underneath it, I’m the most terrifying monster you can imagine.”
The mummy—probably a college guy from the looks of him—blinked a bit, as if he were trying to decide if she was joking.
She wasn’t, but Amber gave him a wide smile.
Then he laughed. “Good one!” He saluted her with his beer bottle before he turned around and headed for the witches.
Good one. He had no idea.
Her short nails drummed on the bar top. Ten to one odds said the next person who walked into the bar would be wearing a vamp costume. Vamps were big this year. Ten to one—
The man who stalked through the doorway wasn’t wearing a costume.
He had on jeans, a dark t-shirt and a dark hoodie. The hoodie was pulled up over his head, but she could see the hard angles of his face. The square jaw, the long, strong blade of his nose.
He was built with powerful shoulders and a tall, muscled frame. As she stared at him, Amber felt little alarm bells start to go off in her body.
Something is wrong. Something is—
He looked up at her, and Amber was immediately pinned by the bluest eyes she’d ever seen. Those eyes seemed to see right through her.
Breathe. Breathe. Be normal. But it was hard to be normal when fear was snaking through her insides. The stranger began walking toward her, and the crowd seemed to magically move right out of his path. He didn’t touch anyone, not so much as a little brush of his shoulder against another person. He moved with a dark grace, and she should look away from him.
She didn’t.
She also thought she should probably run.
She didn’t.
She straightened her shoulders, lifted her chin, and let the music fade into the background as she faced the man who was coming right to her.
When he was about three feet from the bar, all of the vamps—and even the werewolf—suddenly got up and walked away. Coincidence? She didn’t think so.
Who is he?
Her hand inched beneath the bar, searching for the weapon she liked to keep at the ready.
And then he was there, standing right in front of her. That too bright blue gaze of his swept over her face, seeming to absorb every detail of her expression. Then slowly, that gaze drifted down her body…or at least, it drifted over as much of her body as was visible before the bar hid her from his view.
“What do you want?” Amber wasn’t just talking about drinks. This guy wasn’t like the others in the bar. Goosebumps had risen on her arms. That tended to happen—when she was in the presence of another paranormal. It was part of her body’s alarm system. She got cold when danger was near.
This guy—he was definitely dangerous.
The hood still covered his head, but she could see a hint of his dark hair. His skin was golden, his lips firm but oddly sensual, and up close, the guy seemed even bigger than he’d first appeared.
His hands lifted. He wore gloves—gloves that were black but didn’t look to be made of leather. She wasn’t sure what that material was. His right hand flattened on the bar, but his left hand was fisted.
“I have something of yours.”
Oh, wow. His voice. His voice! She’d never heard a voice so deep and dark. Even Vin Diesel couldn’t compete with this guy. It wasn’t just a voice that was heard. She swore she could feel that deep rumble in her body.
She was so distracted by his voice that it actually took a moment for his words to register, and when they did, Amber gave a sharp shake of her head. “I don’t think so. You don’t have anything that belongs to me—”
His fisted hand opened. She saw the gleam of gold. A bracelet. Her bracelet. A bracelet that she had not seen in a very, very long time. Because the last time she’d had that bracelet, it had been torn from her wrist. And the guy who’d ripped it off…
Oh, no.
“I can feel you in it,” the stranger told her.
“That’s weird,” she said. “That is a seriously weird thing to say.”
He blinked at her. For a moment, he looked a bit confused, but then his face just went back to that dangerous mask.
She smiled at him. “That is not my bracelet, so I don’t think you should be feeling me anywhere near it.”
“It’s yours.”
It was, yes. But Amber didn’t plan to admit that fact anytime soon. “We have a lost and found here in the bar,” she continued brightly. “Want me to put it in there? Maybe the owner will show up soon and claim it.” Her hand reached out to swipe the bracelet from him. She was fast—so fast that she knew she’d be able to swipe the gold away before he could so much as—
His hand closed around hers, trapping her.
He’s faster. Oh, crap. He is faster than I am.
“It’s yours.” Again, that deep voice of his rolled through her. His hold tightened on her hand. “I can feel you.”
“Yes, well, that’s because you’re crushing my hand.” He wasn’t. He wasn’t hurting her at all. “And I can feel you plenty, too.”
He lifted their hands, staring at them with a look of what could have been wonder on his face. She was having a pretty hard time gauging the guy’s expressions.
“You’re warm and soft,” he muttered. “It’s almost as if…the glove isn’t even there.”
Had a psychotic paranormal just walked into her bar? Talk about bad luck.
“The glove is there.” She glanced pointedly at their hands. “Now let me go.”
He didn’t. “What are you?” He’d leaned toward her and dropped his voice.
I’m a monster wearing human skin. Only if she said those words to him, Amber knew this fellow wouldn’t laugh. “What are you?” she threw back at him.
“My enemies call me the Reaper.”
Oh, for the love of…The Reaper! He was the Reaper? She could barely breathe and her goosebumps were back, but about a million times worse than they’d been before. She was touching the Reaper. Amber knew she had to get away from him. Far, far away, as fast as she possibly could.
Behind him, she saw a witch start to approach the bar. Before the woman got within three feet of the Reaper, though, she stiffened. Fear drifted over her face—a fear that Amber knew the woman would never be able to explain—and the witch turned and immediately walked back to her friends.
Even humans could sense when death was close.
“It’s your bracelet.” He still held her hand but he’d started to…stroke her wrist. Her pulse was racing beneath his gloved touch. She wanted to jerk her hand free, but Amber suspected he was stronger than she was. If she tried to jerk away, he’d just hold her tight. And then they’d both know he held all the power.
She had to take that power away.
She had to get away.
“I’ve been sent to find you,” he added.
Yes, she’d figured as much. So she stopped pretending. “If you’re the Reaper that I’ve heard about…” Heard about, been warned about, been told to stay far, far away from if she wanted to remain in the land of the living. “If you’re that guy, then you’re nothing more than a bounty hunter.”
His lips curved the faintest bit. “A very highly paid bounty hunter.”
“Dead or alive?” Her voice had gone husky.
His blue eyes seemed to heat.
“Isn’t that the way it works for you? You bring in your victims dead…or alive?”
He shrugged one powerful shoulder. “Sometimes undead or alive.”
Sweet hell. Her night was not looking good.
“You’re not going to fight me,” he continued. Did he even realize he was stroking her wrist? “You’re not going to attract attention. You’re going to just walk into the night with me, and you won’t look back.”
Oh, that was cute. He was delusional. She’d been right when she peg
ged him as a psychotic paranormal. “Luke sent you.” Just when she’d thought he’d forgotten all about her.
The Reaper inclined his head. “The honor of your presence has been requested by the Lord of the Dark.”
She smiled at him, and, much as she’d done with the human who’d been in that exact same spot just a few moments before, Amber leaned forward as if she were about to share a big secret with him. “Tell the Lord of the Dark…to go screw himself.”
The Reaper blinked.
And Amber brought up the weapon she’d just palmed into her left hand. She yanked up the make-shift taser and shoved it against him as hard as she could. The volts of electricity pumped into him and he gave a jerk. He let her go because he had no choice—the Reaper was falling back and slamming into the floor.
She’d tinkered with that taser a bit. Amber had always been good at tinkering with things. So she’d given the device a paranormal upgrade. The taser wouldn’t kill him. Actually, she wasn’t sure anything could kill the Reaper, but it would give her a few precious moments to escape.
The costumed humans—at least those within a ten-foot radius—had turned to stare at the fallen man in shock. Amber didn’t waste time staring. She leapt over the bar in one very agile jump. She landed on her feet and prepared to race for freedom.
But his gloved hand curled around her foot.
“Not…so fast…”
She smiled at him. “Want more?” Then she gave him another shock. He cursed her as his body shuddered. But even as he jerked and twitched, he yanked the taser from her hand. His strength is going to be a problem.
Amber broke free from him and raced for the doorway. She shoved the humans out of her path and tasted sweet, sweet freedom as she burst out of the bar.
***
“Dude…” A vampire stared down at him. A vampire with crooked fangs. “She totally tased your ass. Twice.”
Cass narrowed his eyes on the vampire. Then he rose, slowly. When Amber had tased him for the second time, Cass had yanked the taser from her. Now, he crushed it in his gloved hands. Crushed it to dust. “Where…is…she?”
The vampire pointed toward the door.
Cass would find her. He’d follow her. He had her bracelet after all, so that meant tracking her wouldn’t be any challenge at all to him and—
No, hell, no. Cass did a quick search.
Amber had taken the bracelet. She’d tased him with one hand and stolen the bracelet with the other. Talk about tricky.
And impressive.
Without the bracelet, he’d just have to do things the old fashioned way. No more magic beacon right to him. But, he would find her. He’d just have to work harder.
Because she was not getting away. He always brought back his bounties. Always.
She would be no different.
Chapter Two
She’d tossed everything she owned into a small, black suitcase. Everything including the bracelet she’d retrieved from the bar. Amber rushed through the alley behind her building, clutching that suitcase as if her life depended on it. She had to get out of New Orleans. She loved the city, but it was time to move on. When the Reaper came calling, it was definitely time to head the hell out. Maybe hanging in New Orleans had been her mistake. She’d lingered too long in the Big Easy. She usually only stayed in a city for around three months, then she shipped out.
She’d been in New Orleans for six. She’d gotten too complacent. Too certain that Luke didn’t give a flying fuck about where she was or what she was doing.
Oh, how very wrong she’d been.
Amber’s footsteps were silent as she dodged a dumpster and slipped around the corner. Her car waited just on the next street, tucked away in the parking garage there and—
“Going somewhere?”
She bit back a startled scream because he was suddenly looming out of the dark. The Reaper. Looking big and pissed and dangerous. He still had his hood covering his head, and he was still making goosebumps rise on her arms.
Amber staggered to a halt before she barreled into him. Touching him again was not on her to-do list. Not if all those tales about him were true. “Stay away from me!” Maybe she should throw her suitcase at him and run.
“Why? Do you have another taser on you?”
Unfortunately, no. Dammit. And since she didn’t have a weapon handy, she did throw her suitcase at him. It slammed into his chest and bounced before hitting the ground.
He blinked. Then he focused those too-bright-to-be-real blue eyes on her suitcase, before looking back up at her. “Why did you do that?”
“Because you’re pissing me off!”
“And anger is your response?” He shook his head and made a tut-tut-tut sound. “You need to work on that anger management issue.”
How fast could he run? She didn’t have enhanced speed. These days, she barely seemed to have any paranormal bonuses. But if she turned around and ran, would he grab her instantly?
“Come on.” He waved toward her with an impatient flick of his gloved hand. “We need to go. Luke is waiting, and the sooner I finish up this job, then the sooner I get what I want.”
And the sooner she had a swift trip to hell. No, thank you. She retreated one small step, her shoe sliding over the broken cement beneath her. “I can pay you,” Amber blurted, desperate.
His eyes narrowed. That stare raked over her.
“Whatever Luke is offering, I can double it.” A total lie. She barely had any cash.
“I don’t think you can give me what I need.” His hands went to his hips. “But thanks for the offer. It was tempting.”
Sonofa—
She turned and ran. As fast as she could and it just wasn’t fast enough because the Reaper grabbed her with those gloved hands of his and yanked her back. Before she could even get the breath to scream—she’d always been a good screamer—he’d shoved her against the dirty, brick wall of that alley. He pinned her between the bricks and his body, and his hands pressed hers back, holding her captive easily. Too easily.
“I am not in the mood for a chase.” Each word was gritted and his face had turned even harder. “If I have to do it, I will tie you up and gag you and you can travel that way for the entire trip back to Key West.”
“That’s kidnapping,” she whispered.
He shrugged. “That’s collecting a paranormal bounty.”
Play this angle. Do this. “I’m…I’m not a paranormal.”
And there it was—the briefest of hesitations. His grip on her eased a little bit. Not enough for her to escape, but just enough for her to know that the guy wasn’t super comfortable with the idea of abducting a human.
Oh, sure. He’d take a paranormal…Like we don’t matter? But when he thought he might be capturing a human, it became a whole new ball game.
“You…are.” But he didn’t sound convinced.
“I’m not. I’m not a shifter or a vampire.” She opened her mouth wide, showing her normal teeth. “I’m not a witch or a siren or anything like that.” Her heart raced in her chest. “Luke is trying to turn me into something I don’t want to be. Please, please help me. Let me walk away. Tell him that you never found me.”
He—he brought his face down even closer to her. And his mouth hovered right over her neck. What was he doing? Was he—
Smelling her?
“Honey.”
Amber froze.
“You smell like honey…and champagne.”
She licked her lips. “I, um, spilled a little champagne when I opened a bottle for a customer earlier.”
He gave a low growl. Was that rough sound supposed to be some kind of question or something? Or—
He put his mouth on her neck.
“Don’t! Don’t kill me!”
But it was too late. He’d pressed his lips to the curve of her throat. He was…kissing her neck. Lightly licking the skin. And as crazy as it was…heat began to unfurl deep within her.
“You taste like honey…and champagne.”
&
nbsp; Her breath heaved out.
His head lifted. His eyes seemed a little brighter. “And my mouth won’t kill you, sweets. It’s my hands that do that. I could put my mouth over every single inch of you, and I guarantee, you’d only know pleasure. Not death.”
Oh, shit. His words should not be turning her on, but she’d always been wired a little bit wrong. So his words—they made her hot.
Wrong, wrong, wrong.
But…since he was doing this whole sniffing and tasting routine, then maybe he believed her about being human. “I’m not a paranormal. You’ve never smelled anyone like me…you’ve never tasted anyone like me.” Because there was no other like she was. “Luke is tricking you. Using you. It’s what he does. You can’t trust the devil, everyone knows that.”
The Reaper had pulled back so that he could stare down at her. Jeez but the guy was big. Muscled. Those shoulders of his were so wide.
“Let me go.” She injected a plea in her voice. “Just tell Luke that you couldn’t find me.”
And he…
Shook his head.
Dammit.
“You’re coming with me. I’ll deliver you to him—that was my deal. I get what I want when Luke has you.”
Hell. Her lips parted. If there was no other option, then she’d scream—
“But if you’re telling the truth, if you are human, I won’t let him hurt you.”
She bit back her scream. The Reaper definitely has a weak spot for humans. So she’d play that card a little longer. Maybe if she acted as if she were cooperating, it would buy her a chance at freedom.
Maybe…
“We’re leaving the city tonight. I have a plane waiting for us. We’ll be back in Key West in time to see the sunrise.”
No way. She had no intention of going back there.
Then his right hand moved in a fast blur and Amber felt something snap along her right wrist. She felt a hot brand, could have sworn her skin actually sizzled for a moment, and she became aware of the cold weight of metal against her wrist.
Handcuffs. One cuff was around her wrist. The other was around his. Her right wrist. His left.
“You are a serious sonofabitch,” Amber muttered.