“Yes. Sleeping is my third favorite thing.”
“What are the first two?”
Opening the door, he cast a look over his shoulder. “My second favorite thing to do is eat and I think you can guess what my first favorite thing is.”
I felt my cheeks redden. I had a good guess.
The motel room wasn’t bad. The bed linens on the queen-sized bed seemed clean and smelled fresh, not of disinfectant but a nice wildflower scent. There was one bed. No couch, only an uncomfortable-looking, burnt orange chair in the corner beside a small desk. Hunter placed our luggage by the desk.
Tired, I started to sit down, but Hunter suddenly appeared in front of me.
“I wish I could move as fast as you,” I said. “You never did explain how you move like that.”
Hunter arched a brow. “It’s actually easier for me to move this fast. It takes more energy to move slower, at a human pace. Don’t sit down. I want to get a good look at you.”
I was pretty sure he’d gotten a good and intimate look at me before the night went to shit. “I’m fine.”
“Humor me.”
Too tired to argue, I let him lead me into the brightly lit bathroom. Sitting down on the toilet, I winced. “I think I bruised my butt.”
“I can take a look at that, too.”
I grinned, ignoring the tender pull on my lower lip. “I’m sure you could.”
Disappearing back into the room, he reappeared with a bottle of peroxide and a bag of cotton balls. Now I knew what he had returned to the cabin for.
He placed them on the counter and then knelt. Reaching down, he started to roll up the leg of my jeans.
“What are you doing?” My gaze flickered over the faint red marks on his cheeks and jaw.
He raised his brows as he pushed both pants legs up above my knees. “Cleaning you up. You’re kind of a mess right now.”
I felt like a mess. “You don’t have to do this.”
Picking up the bottle, he shook it. “Don’t argue with me.”
“God, you’re bossy.”
He smiled tightly.
“I’d never seen anyone fight like that tonight. When you fought the Luxen in my apartment it was nothing like that.” I focused on the top of his bent head. “I think I forget what you really are.”
He tipped his head up, his eyes locking on mine. “You should never forget that, Serena.”
“It’s hard. You’re so much like a human.”
“We’re very different. So are the Luxen.” Chin lowered, he inspected my legs. “I don’t really need to breathe, but it’s become a habit.”
Jesus.
“Feels strange when I don’t do it,” he added. “I eat a lot—need to. Our metabolisms, like the Luxen, are extremely fast.”
“Must be nice,” I said, fascinated.
Hunter dabbed at the angry skid marks on my knees. My skin stung, bringing fresh tears to my eyes, but I didn’t let them fall. Done with my knees, he picked up my left hand. His hold was achingly gentle. My chest tightened.
“If I were a Luxen, I could just heal you,” he said, smoothing a clean cotton ball over my palm. “A lot easier than this. It’s one of the things the DOD studies about them. They can’t get sick. Think about what that would mean for all the human diseases.”
I tried to wrap my brain around that. No flus. No colds. No cancers. “What about your kind?”
“We don’t get sick, either, but we can’t heal like the Luxen. They try not to do it to humans. Apparently it can change the human DNA, depending on the severity of the injuries, or if it’s done multiple times.”
My gaze was latched onto his face. His brow was lowered in concentration. “What happens to the humans?”
“They mutate, take on some of the Luxen qualities.” Hunter lowered my hand to my lap and picked up the other one. “They’re called hybrids and some of them are stronger than the Luxen.”
“Jesus,” I whispered, reeling.
A small grin pulled at Hunter’s lips as he placed my other hand in my lap. His cool fingers found my chin next, tipping my head down. “This will probably sting more.”
I shivered at his touch, unable to reconcile how gentle he was being right now and how fierce and terrifying he’d been back in the woods. Those hands could kill in a heartbeat, but right now, they were carefully tilting my head to the light.
“How bad is it?” I asked.
His fingers slid away. “Not that bad. There’ll be some swelling. Ready?”
I nodded.
Eyes narrowing, he pressed the fresh ball under my lip, and it did sting like holy hell, but I remained still as he swiped it along my lower lip. The liquid fizzled a little, tickling my chin.
“Your cheek is a little swollen, too.” He reached for another ball.
I closed my eyes as he cleaned up my face. “It could’ve been worse.”
“It could’ve been.”
He continued playing doctor, and unfortunately not the fun kind. When he was done with my face, he put the lid on the bottle. “Hurt anyplace else?”
I ached all over. “No.”
He looked like he didn’t believe me. He was damn observant for a man…and an alien.
I took a shallow breath. “Why did they come after us? Was it because of the DOD?”
“Remember the day you were at the gazebo? They followed you, and I stepped in before they got to you, putting Raz down in front of the others. Our kind has to dominate. And to do so, you have to be stronger than everyone else. So he needed to prove to his friends that he was the alpha.”
“He barked up the wrong tree.”
“Exactly.”
Hunter was still there, kneeling in front of me. He was checking out my knees again, frowning slightly.
“You broke your tracking device, didn’t you?” I asked. “That’s what you were doing outside of the car?”
All he did was nod.
“Why? I don’t understand why you’d do this for me.”
He was silent for forever. “I don’t know.”
“You still don’t?” I shook my head. “When you broke the device, does it notify them—the DOD?”
“Yes, but they won’t find me.”
“But that’s a lot to risk if you don’t know why.”
Hunter’s lashes lifted. “I don’t know, Serena.”
I let out a breath. He didn’t know hours ago and I doubted he’d know hours from now. Did it matter? Yes, whispered a tiny voice. It mattered to me. “Thank you,” I blurted out. “Thank you for helping me and not letting them…well, kill me.”
Hunter stood swiftly. “You should shower. Then rest. You’ll feel better.”
In a daze, I stared at him. Wasn’t expecting a big your-welcome, but damn, he didn’t take a thank-you well. He disappeared again from the bathroom and then returned with a shirt of his that was long enough for me to wear. Without saying a word, he left the bathroom, closing the door behind him.
A couple of minutes passed while I sat there, trying to process the additional stuff I’d learned. It felt like the wheels in my brain had broken, because nothing was happening between my ears.
Standing, I stripped off my ruined clothes and turned on the faucet. Stepping under the pelting hot water, I winced as the water sliced over numerous cuts and abrasions. I didn’t know what it was about those tiny licks of pain, but tears welled up and this time I couldn’t stop them. I wasn’t even sure why I was crying. Was it for Mel? Was it for me? Or was it just total overload?
I stayed in the shower until I got control of myself. Then I quickly dried off and slipped his shirt on. The sun had risen by then, flooding the room with soft light. Hunter was by the window, his back to me.
“I found a chocolate bar and soda in a vending machine outside. They’re beside the bed. You should eat that before you sleep.”
The covers were also pulled down. My gaze went back to Hunter. “What’s up with the chocolate? This is the second time you’re feeding me a choco
late bar.”
“Sugar. It helps after one of our kind has fed off you.”
Climbing into bed, I slipped my legs under the blanket. While I ate and drank my calorie-heavy goodies, Hunter took a shower. Finished, I wiggled down, folding my hands under my pillow, and waited.
Hunter came back out, his leather pants hanging low on his hips. Wet, tousled hair clung to his cheeks and neck. He went to the wide double windows, his movements stiffer than normal, and tugged the pea-green curtains closed. Darkness immediately descended in the small room.
Curled on my side, I watched Hunter make his way across the room. “Hunter?”
“Yes.”
“Are you sure you’re okay?”
He sat in the chair. “You shouldn’t worry about me.”
I frowned. That wasn’t much of an answer. Moments passed, and then Hunter tipped his head back against the wall. The position had to be uncomfortable and the bed was big enough for us both. Taking a deep breath, I rose onto my elbows. “Hunter?”
“Go to sleep, Serena.”
I ignored his command. “You said that when you go into your true form, it heals you. Right?”
One eye opened. “Why are you asking this?”
“Because you have to be sore.” I took a deep breath. “And it doesn’t bother me when you’re in your true form.”
“It should.” Both eyes were open now. “Go to sleep.”
I sat up. “I’ll go to sleep if you take your true form and heal yourself.”
Hunter didn’t move for several moments, and then he laughed hoarsely. “You are something else, you know that?”
I wasn’t sure if that was a compliment or not, but then Hunter rose and, damn it, he was hurt, because he rose from that chair slowly, pushing himself up with his hands.
Hunter didn’t look away like he’d done the last time he’d changed in front of me. My hands tightened on the blankets and he walked over to my side of the bed, his bare chest chiseled and damp.
The edges of his body blurred out, clothing and all, and then faded into smoke—into a wispy, shadowy human form. My eyes widened and he took shape, gaining mass until he looked like a human male but different.
He turned to the side and muscles rippled smoothly. Before I could stop myself, I reached out and touched his arm. He stilled, and like last time, he didn’t move away. He remained there as I ran my fingers up his arm, and I marveled at the feel of him.
This time I pulled my hand back before I really started feeling him up. Hunter remained in his true form for a few more seconds, and then he blurred out and returned to his human form. No bruises. No hollow pull to his face. Amazing.
“You’re beautiful,” I murmured, and then flushed because it seemed like the wrong thing to say. Probably also stupid.
Hunter stared at me, eyes narrowed and nostrils flared. Our eyes locked, and I felt his stare in every part of me. The blanket slipped from my fingers as arousal swirled.
He let out a long breath. “Go to sleep.”
I glanced at the chair. “The bed is big enough for the both of us, you know.”
“I know.”
“You can sleep here, too.”
It didn’t seem like he’d respond at first. He stared at me like I was crazy. I didn’t get the look. Several hours ago, we’d shared the same bed. Everything and nothing had changed.
“Shit,” he said, prowling to the other side of the bed.
I lay back down on my side, facing the door. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”
“That’s not the issue.” The covers stirred and then the bed dipped under his weight. Had he taken off his leather pants? Probably a good thing if I didn’t know.
“Then what is the issue?” I asked.
There was a beat. “I want to.”
I made a face he couldn’t see. “I don’t see how that’s a problem.”
“You wouldn’t.”
Seconds turned into minutes and he didn’t offer up any more explanation. I didn’t think it was possible to fall asleep after everything, but I felt safe with him and, miraculously, when I closed my eyes, I fell asleep.
Chapter 20
I watched Serena sleep, still haunted by her question. Why are you helping me? Helping her wasn’t a huge risk. It was the nail in the universal coffin.
As much as I loathed being the go-to boy for the DOD, my life had been relatively comfortable and peaceful the last couple of years. I had thrown that away with finesse, and why?
I rose up on my elbow, careful not to disturb her. There were six freckles on her nose and cheeks, forming a constellation of sorts.
For the first time in my entire existence I found myself envying the Luxen. They had the one ability we could never absorb—healing. When I was in the bathroom, I would’ve given just about anything to have that talent, to heal Serena of her bruises and aches instead of patching her up.
Mine.
The whole way of thinking was faulty. Arum rarely settled down with one of their own kind and doing so with a human was even more rare for a shit-ton of obvious reasons, but my sister had and so had Dex.
I didn’t want to claim Serena as mine. It would be better for her if I didn’t, but I never did the denial shit before, so why start now?
I lay back, letting out a low groan. I had been without the opal for just a few hours, but I was already feeling the effects like a damn addict. And that’s what the Arum had become. An addict bred over centuries of feeding off Luxen.
I was restless, skin itchy and my throat was parched. My dick was hard, too, but that had more to do with the curvy body beside me than the lack of opal.
I was still mind-blown by the fact Serena had asked me to take my true form to heal after seeing our kind at our worst. I wanted to say that it was shock that had propelled me to do something so stupid like taking my true form without the opal. Doing so required energy, and energy required that I feed.
But I had done it like a jackass, not because I was surprised by her request, but because Serena had asked me to do it, and I had wanted to please her.
Fucking please her.
And I really wanted to please her into oblivion.
The smart thing would’ve been to go straight for the opal, but I should be able to maintain for a couple of hours. I’d need to feed, though, no matter what. To see this shit through I had to be at top power.
See this shit through exactly how?
Another good question, I thought, grimacing. Man, I really didn’t think this shit through.
Shutting down took longer than normal. I slept. For how long, I really didn’t know, but when I woke up, I was in the same position as I’d been the night prior. My body curved against hers and my arm around her waist.
Fuck.
In her sleep, Serena wiggled her bottom as she got comfortable against me, making my veins run hot.
Double fuck.
Opening my eyes into thin slits, I glanced over my shoulder. Thin streaks of bright sunlight slipped through the gap in the curtains. We’d have to get up soon and get on the road. There were at least five more hours to get where we needed to go.
I was harder than I was a minute ago.
Triple fuck.
I inhaled and all I got was Serena’s scent. It should’ve suffocated me, but it didn’t. It ended up having the opposite effect, relaxing me. It struck me then that I could’ve lost Serena in the woods.
A cold ache drilled a hole the size of my fists through my stomach. Her life was not safe now, not with me and not without me, which brought along a deep sense of helplessness—a feeling I wasn’t accustomed to. That pissed me off. Anger racked my insides until she made a soft, mewling sound in her sleep.
I closed my eyes and counted to ten. Pull it together. When I reopened my eyes, I focused on the flare of her hip. Serena was alive. She was strong—stronger than she probably even realized. Most humans wouldn’t have lasted as long as she had against one of my kind. Hell. And she survived an attack from a
Luxen, but…
But I was catching motherfucking feelings for her.
Feelings were not something the Arum inherently had. Dex had, but that Arum had taken a sharp turn into offhisfuckingrockerville.
I was right behind him.
In her sleep, she shifted until her back was against my chest. I froze when her ass pressed more firmly against my groin. I wasn’t going to be falling back to sleep anytime soon.
Pushing further up, I peered down at her. She felt so small against me, and that brought out another strange feeling. One that made me want to stash her away where no one could touch or look at her. Sounded like a really messed-up protective vibe.
Really messed-up.
I ran my thumb over her smooth cheek, tracing the fine bone. My touch was featherlight, but she stirred sleepily, pressing that rump back once more. Lust pricked my skin and my gut wrenched. I moved my fingertips down her throat, over her shoulder. I liked that she was in my shirt again.
A small sigh escaped her, and she rolled onto her back, looking up at me with those wide brown eyes. I couldn’t gain crap from her expression, but I knew she had to have felt my hardness pressing against her. When she didn’t launch from the bed like a projectile, my curiosity knew no limits.
Slowly, I moved my hand to the neckline of the borrowed shirt, my palm pressing against the swell of her breasts. A familiar flush had crept across her cheeks. I wondered just how much more of her body flushed like that.
Serena placed her hand on my side, moving it toward my back, kneading the cords of bunched muscles. The sensation of her touch rippled through me, shocking the hell out of me. Lust blasted, making my head swim.
Enough with the thinking about this—I was a creature of action not thought. I needed to touch more of her and I needed it now. I dropped my hand to her hip and tugged her down below the mound of pillows. Then I rose above her, using one arm to support my weight. My erection fit against her core, like it was made to, and when I moved against her like I had the night I’d tasted her, she gasped my name.
Hell to the yeah.
I rocked my hips again, loving the way her lips parted. “We probably shouldn’t be doing this.”
“I know.” But her body betrayed her words as her hips tipped up.
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