by Donna Grant
“Better me than Addison.”
Minka jerked, her eyes going milky as she stared at him unblinking. Her nails dug into his hand, causing blood to well from the half-moon shapes.
Myles surreptitiously looked around before he leaned forward. “Minka? Hey, witch? Talk to me.”
Her lids closed and Minka took in a deep breath. When she opened her eyes, they were once more pale brown. She dropped his hand and began to shake. This time, it was Myles who took her hands in his.
“Talk to me, witch. What just happened?”
“I saw your death.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
Myles released Minka’s hands and sat back. “Death is part of being a hunter. It finds us sooner or later.”
“This is sooner,” Minka whispered fervently. “Why aren’t you freaking out? I would be.”
“You think anyone in my family has lived to a ripe old age? We’ve too many enemies.”
Minka raised a brow. “Such a macho man. Why can’t you say that you don’t want to die?”
“Does anyone want to die, witch?”
All the heat went out of her words. “Some do.”
Myles immediately thought of Solomon. Six years ago, Solomon had begged for death. He sighed and focused on the present. “What can you tell me about your vision?”
“You were injured badly when the vision started,” Minka said.
“I need details, Minka. Where was I? Who was I fighting? What were the injuries?” he pressed.
She slid her hands into her hair near her temples and closed her eyes. “There were trees and grass around you. I couldn’t see the wounds, just blood. So much blood.”
Myles leaned forward and lowered his voice. “Could you see who I fought?”
“No,” she said with a shake of her head. Her eyes flew open as she dropped her hands. “You were in wolf form.”
“Good. That will help. Did you get a look at what killed me?”
“A silver blade.”
Damn. That really would end him for good. Myles stood and fished out two twenties from his pocket. He tossed them on the table to make their exchange look legit. “Thank you. The LaRues owe you. If you ever need anything, you come find us, witch.”
He walked away with the new information rolling around in his mind. If he was going to die soon, it put things into a new perspective. Since Delphine was involved, there was a chance that his life could end that very day.
Myles stopped at the edge of the sidewalk, his gaze searching for Addison. He found her looking through a stack of paintings. If he was going to die, he was going to die knowing the taste of Addison’s kiss.
~ ~ ~
Addison tried to tell herself she’d returned to Jackson Square to fill the time, but the truth was that she hoped Minka had more information. Addison hadn’t worked up the courage to go to Minka herself yet. But she was working on it.
She was flipping through some paintings when one caught her eye and she paused. It was a painting of the Quarter at night, a large, full moon rising. It was a big piece, one that would look amazing over her bed.
Addison knew she shouldn’t spend any of her money on something that wasn’t a necessity, and yet she wanted the painting. She glanced at the price and cringed. It was much more than she wanted to pay, but every time she tried to put it down and walk away, she couldn’t.
“Find something you like?” asked a deep voice behind her.
A shiver went through her as she recognized Myles’s voice. She turned her head to him. “Just browsing.”
His crooked smile told her he knew she was lying. “I know the painter. He’s good. I like his view of the city.”
“Yes.” Addison made herself set the painting down.
“I hear the bar was packed last night. Riley should’ve called one of us in.”
It might have been Addison’s imagination, but she had the feeling Myles knew everything that had happened the night before. “We handled it.”
“So I hear. I also heard there was a dangerous visitor to the bar.”
Addison wasn’t sure if he was talking about the vampire, the wolf, or Delphine. “Uh huh.”
“So, Delphine didn’t frighten you?” he asked with a narrowed gaze.
She shrugged and started walking. Myles fell into step beside her. “She was definitely freaky. The way she looked at me made me feel as if someone had walked over my grave.”
“Delphine isn’t someone you need to mess with. At all.”
“I’d love to take your advice, and I wish I’d have known that before she came into the bar.”
“Yeah,” he said tightly. “She knew we weren’t there and waited until then to pay you a visit.”
Addison glanced sideways at him. “It’s all right. Riley and Marcus got her to leave. I’d still love to know how she knew my name.”
“What do you know of Voodoo?”
“I know it can do very bad things.”
Myles caught her gaze as they walked. “There are many rumors spoken in our city, but the ones about Delphine are true. She cursed Kane not that long ago, and she’s not fond of our cousins.”
“I kinda got that by the way she spoke to Riley.”
He smiled and stopped to put his hand on her lower back to move her out of the way as a group of tourists walked past. “Delphine has killed many people,” Myles leaned down and whispered in her ear.
Addison’s body heated at his touch, and her heart skipped a beat when his warm breath fanned her neck.
“It’s not good if she’s put her focus on you.” He fingered a strand of her hair.
She looked up at him, caught in his mesmerizing blue gaze. “She isn’t the only evil in the city.”
“No, but she’s one of the most dangerous. She’s unpredictable and power-hungry.”
Addison licked her lips. Her stomach flip-flopped when his gaze lowered to her mouth. She held her breath when he leaned forward slightly.
God, yes. Please kiss me.
As if realizing where they were, Myles looked around. “You need to be careful and vigilant. Delphine could be watching now.”
Addison was still trying to bring her body under control, and he expected her to think? And if he could do that to her with a near kiss, what would he do to her if they ever did share a kiss?
Myles’s gaze looked over her head, his face becoming hard. He then took her hand and hastily led her away. “It looks like my words are coming true. You’re being followed.”
Addison looked behind her as Myles pushed his way through the crowd. She spotted two men in all white hurrying after them. She gripped Myles’s hand and had to jog to keep up with his long strides. Not once did he stop or slow. Addison had no idea where they were going, and she didn’t care as long as she got away from the two men.
To her surprise, Myles pulled her beneath the iron arch of one of the city’s famous cemeteries. If she thought he would halt then, she was wrong.
They meandered through the tombs until he suddenly stopped and pushed her against a crypt. He put his fingers to his lips. Addison nodded, gulping in air as she wiped the sweat from her face.
Something felt odd at her feet. She looked down to see her sandal had broken. How it remained on her foot during their flight she had no idea. Her gaze lifted to discover Myles was gone. Addison rolled her eyes and sank down on the stones to try and see if she could repair the shoe enough to get her to a store before her shift.
The crunch of stone made her head jerk up, and she spotted one of the men who had been following her. Sweat ran down his black skin, a smile curving his lips when he saw her. He let out a whistle, and a moment later, the second man joined him.
Addison opened her mouth to scream. Before a sound could escape, Myles came out of nowhere, moving with lethal speed as he punched the men with his fists and elbows. In a matter of seconds, both men lay unconscious at her feet.
Myles held out his hand, barely breathing hard. “I’m thirsty. How about you?”
&nbs
p; She blinked up at him. “How did you do that?”
“Years of training and living in the Quarter.”
Addison took his hand and let him pull her up. She hadn’t taken two steps before her sandal fell off. With a curse, she picked it up and began to walk with one foot bare.
One minute she was standing, and the next she was in Myles’s arms. She locked her arm around his neck, her broken shoe forgotten.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
He gave her a droll look. “What does it look like?”
“You can’t carry me all the way to the bar?”
“Wanna bet?”
She had seen his muscles through his clothing, but there was nothing like feeling the hard sinew under her hands. There was no doubt he could carry her. It wasn’t that she minded being there, quite the opposite in fact, but it was embarrassing. Or it should be.
Her body heated from more than just the August sun.
“See?” he asked with a wink. “It isn’t so bad.”
She licked her lips, pulling her mind away from his close proximity. “How did you know I was followed?”
His mood darkened as a frown formed. “I didn’t. At least not until I began to realize how easily they could snatch you off the street.”
“I’ve never felt unsafe before. I don’t like this.” When he didn’t respond, she asked, “How do you know about Delphine?”
“Everyone knows of her.”
“Including the vampires?”
His gaze jerked to hers, but there was no shock or surprise reflected at her words. “Everyone.”
“I didn’t.”
Myles looked away. “You do now.”
“What aren’t you telling me? Why didn’t you freak at my mention of vampires?”
A muscle in his jaw jumped. She was so close to his face that she wanted to touch his cheek and feel the scrape of his shadow beard beneath her fingers. Addison gave in to the urge to touch him and smoothed her fingers along the blond hair at his temples. The strands were warm from the sun, and soft.
“Riley knew of them, which means you do, too. You also know what happened to me last night. Were you looking for me today?”
He sighed loudly and stopped. “Yes, I was looking for you, but not only because of last night.” He released her legs and slowly lowered her until her feet touched concrete. “I know of the vampires. I know a lot of things you’re better off not knowing.”
She stared into his bright blue eyes. Despite everything he’d said, she focused on the one thing that made her heart pound. “Why else were you looking for me?”
“For this,” he said as he slid a hand around her neck and pulled her against him as his mouth descended upon hers.
Addison rose up on her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around him. The fire, the uncontrollable need in his kiss sent her spiraling into an abyss of desire so deep she knew she never wanted to climb out.
His moan, so full of yearning, made her knees weak. He then tilted her head to the side as his tongue slipped past her lips. The world melted away, vanished. She was unprepared for the intensity of the kiss, the force of the passion that flared between them.
He deepened the kiss and she tightened her arms. She had to be closer to him, to feel his skin. Once she found the hem of his shirt, she skimmed her hand beneath and connected to his rock hard abs.
Myles pulled back, ending the kiss to stare down at her with eyes blazing with desire. “I’ve wanted to do that for awhile.”
“What took you so long?” she teased.
Except he didn’t smile in return. In fact, he looked sad.
Myles threaded his fingers with hers and turned her around. Addison saw then that they were at the bar. Had she been so wrapped up in him that she hadn’t realized where she was? He led her inside, and it took her a minute to adjust to the dim light of the bar after the bright sunlight.
“What the hell happened?” Riley said as she hurried around the bar.
“Delphine sent some men,” Myles answered.
Addison shifted her gaze to a table where the other three LaRue brothers sat. Solomon looked at their joined hands before lifting his eyes to her. She waited to see what he would do, and when Solomon sent her a small smile, she was able to breathe again. Because, somehow, she knew her best chance to survive was with the brothers.
CHAPTER NINE
Myles didn’t want to release Addison, even to Riley. He watched the pair disappear into the back where Riley had some shoes for Addison.
“So what happened?” Solomon bade.
Myles swiveled his head to his brothers. He walked to the small, round table and pulled out a chair, turning it backwards before he sat between Kane and Solomon. “I went to see the witch who told Addison she was in danger.”
Court whistled. “You’re a brave man. You wouldn’t catch me dead talking to them.”
Myles tried to smile at Court’s jest, but he couldn’t manage it. “It took some doing, but I learned why Delphine wants Addison.”
“The fact the bitch wants her at all is enough to kill Delphine in my book,” Kane said through clenched teeth.
Solomon glanced at Kane before he looked at Myles. “Well?”
“Delphine wants to increase her power. To do that, she needs two things - a witch, and a mortal pure of spirit.”
Court grunted and looped one arm on the back of his chair. “I don’t have to guess which category Addison falls in.”
“Exactly.” Myles ran a hand down his face, deciding he would keep what the witch foretold about his death to himself. No need to worry his brothers.
Solomon studied him carefully. “What are you leaving out?”
“Nothing,” Myles lied. “The witch said the other factions know of Delphine’s plan and don’t want her to get more power, so they decided to eliminate Addison.”
Kane drummed his fingers on the table. “So others will be coming after Addison?”
“Possibly. If Delphine doesn’t get to her first.”
Court made a face. “She sent a clear message by going after Addison in the middle of the day. My guess is she heard about the vampire last night. Delphine isn’t going to want to take another chance.”
“It’s not like Addison is the only one pure in spirit,” Solomon said.
Myles shrugged. “According to the witch, she is in New Orleans.”
“How many of Delphine’s men were after Addison?” Kane asked.
“Three. Only two attacked. The other watched from a distance.”
“You should’ve gone after him,” Court said as he leaned one forearm on the table.
“And leave Addison alone for a fourth I might not have seen?” Myles pointed out.
Solomon held up a hand when Court started to argue. “Myles did the right thing. If Delphine wants Addison bad enough that she’s willing to snatch her in the middle of the day, then it could have been a trap.”
“Y’all could’ve killed Delphine,” Kane said as he stared at the table, both of his fists clenched tightly atop the surface. “Had I not messed around and gotten cursed, you could’ve killed her. You should have anyway.”
Myles reached over and placed his hand on Kane’s shoulder. “If we’d done that, you would’ve remained in wolf form forever.”
“Only until one of our cousins killed me,” Kane said as he looked at Myles. “Each of you would be free of Delphine now, and Addison wouldn’t be in danger.”
Solomon rested one of his fists atop Kane’s. “Then we wouldn’t have you. We made the right call.”
“We sure as shit did,” Court stated loudly.
Myles dropped his hand from Kane’s shoulder when Addison and Riley returned. He couldn’t stop staring at Addison’s mouth. The kiss had been everything he knew it would be and so much more. He forgot everything, including where he was, when she was in his arms. Why did she have to be so damn alluring? Why did he crave her as if she were life itself?
He didn’t care that there were no answers
. He didn’t need them. All he needed was Addison. What a fool he had been to push her away, to keep his distance. Now, he feared he wouldn’t have even a day with her.
A blush stained her cheeks, causing him to smile because he knew she was thinking of their kiss, just as he was. He loved the way her hazel eyes looked at him, as if she wanted to devour him.
“I don’t think it’s a good idea for Addison to work today,” Riley said.
Myles wanted to hug his cousin for her quick thinking. His smile grew, even as Addison began to argue that she needed to work.
“Riley is right. We can’t watch everyone Addison comes into contact with if she’s working,” Myles said. “She needs to be somewhere safe.”
Like his place.
Addison glanced away. “I have to work. Not only do I need the money, but I took a shift.”
“That I can easily take over,” Riley said. She nudged Addison. “I’m sorry, but I think it’s for the best. Delphine can’t get her hands on you if she doesn’t know where you are.”
Solomon got to his feet. “Then it’s settled. Myles, I gather you’ll take Addison to your place?”
“It’s warded,” Myles said and stood, his cock already swelling with the idea of being alone with Addison.
Kane pulled out his cell phone. “As much as I appreciate the warding, I think it might be prudent to bring in reinforcements.”
Myles looked from Kane to Court to Solomon and shrugged. “Your call,” he told Solomon.
For long seconds, Solomon mulled over Kane’s proposal. He inhaled deeply and gave a rueful shake of his head. “I’m going to regret this, but all right.”
As Kane made the call to the Moonstone pack, Myles waited for Addison to walk to him. Once she was beside him, it was everything he could do not to pull her into his arms and kiss her again.
She had no idea how tempting her dark pink lips were, how irresistible her taste. Or perhaps she did. Maybe she knew the way she tantalized and seduced him with her soft touch and big eyes.
“Your place?” she asked, a hint of siren in her voice.