by Rayna Vause
“Liked that, did you?”
Danny heard the smirk in Kier’s voice. The one that said he knew exactly what he’d done to Danny and it would keep getting better. Danny all but purred, then cried out when the amazing sensations stopped.
By the time Kier deemed him ready, he had him moaning, writhing, and this close to going off like a geyser.
“Fuck me, Kier. Now! Right fucking now.”
“I’m all yours, love.” Kier panted; the warm puffs of air wafted over Danny’s wet lips just before he kissed him hard. He placed his cock against Danny’s waiting entrance, then pressed forward, easing his way in. Kier waited a few moments to give Danny time to adjust. Danny clawed at him, needing the solid, grounding presence of Kier’s body under his hands.
“Move, Kier. Please, do something, anything. I’m going crazy.”
Kier set a hard driving pace designed to blow Danny’s mind.
“Yeah…. Oh yeah…,” Danny chanted as Kier fucked him to the verge of oblivion.
“Shit…. Kier… gonna….”
“Gonna come?”
“Yeah, yeah, God, yeah.”
Kier nipped Danny’s earlobe, then licked his neck over the pulse point before murmuring, “Next time.” He latched on to Danny’s neck, sucking up a mark of possession as he thrust into him, making sure to hit just the right spot to make Danny scream as his body erupted. He burned from the inside out until the inferno consumed him and the world went dark.
KIER LAY with Danny in his arms, struggling to catch his breath. He’d wanted this with Danny for so long and to finally get it…. He couldn’t find the words. They’d turned a corner with this moment, and it would live in his heart forever.
“Oh my God, Kier. That was…. Whatever the hell it was, it needs to happen more often.” He sucked in air between each word as though he’d just finished running a marathon.
Kier smiled and laughed as he rolled his head to the side to look at Danny. When he saw his lover’s face, his smile dropped. His beautiful man watched him with a look of sheer bliss on his face and a thin red line trailing toward the corner of his lip.
“Danny, love, your nose is bleeding.” Kier eased his arm from beneath Danny’s head, then rolled over to grab a handful of tissues.
“What?” Danny reached up to wipe at his nose with a finger. He pulled back his hand and stared at his finger coated in blood. “What the hell?” He pushed himself upright and took Kier’s offering, wiping blood from his finger, then dabbing at his nose. He looked at the bright red staining the stark white of the tissue, his expression blank.
“Kier?” The pitch of Danny’s voice rose as all the color drained from his face. He wavered, then collapsed back on the floor. Kier scrambled up, reaching for Danny, shaking him as he called Danny’s name.
He leaned in close to his face, checking Danny’s breathing, and he pressed his finger to his throat, looking for evidence of a pulse. Both were strong and steady.
“Danny? Come on, love. Wake up. You’re scaring me.” Kier’s heart thundered and he fought to keep panic at bay.
“Fuck. Fuck!” He leapt from the bed, snatched up his clothes, and scrambled into them. Then he went back to Danny and patted his cheek. “Come on, Dan. If you don’t wake up in the next three seconds, I’m dragging you to Sharon’s office.”
He rushed to the bathroom, grabbed an enormous wad of toilet paper, then rushed back into the parlor. He dropped down next to Danny and wiped at the blood that continued to stream from his nose. Come on. Wake up, dammit. Nothing.
He scooped up his phone, then wrapped Danny in a blanket and raced for the garage. He sat Danny in the passenger seat, letting his head tilt forward so he wouldn’t choke on blood, then rushed around to the driver’s seat. On the way, he punched in the speed dial for Sharon.
“Kier? What’s wrong? What’s happened now?”
“I have no freaking clue. We were in bed together, his nose started bleeding, and then he passed out. I haven’t been able to wake him. We’re already on our way to you.”
“Okay, I’m out. I was making a small house call. I’ll meet you back at the house. Come to the downstairs entrance. You know where it is, right?”
“Yeah, I’ll meet you—Shit!”
“What? Take a breath and tell me what’s going on now,” Sharon asked in a calm, soothing voice.
Kier took a short steadying breath but stomped down on the accelerator, his knuckles going white as he gripped the steering wheel. “He’s bleeding from the ear now. What do I do, Sharon? I don’t know what’s happening to him.” He clenched his jaw. He hated that he didn’t know what to do, didn’t have the answers. If he lost Danny now…. No. He couldn’t let that happen. Not when they were finding their way back to each other again.
“Kier? Are you still with me?”
Sharon’s barked question pulled him out of his head. “I’m here. I’m a minute from your office. Get here now. He needs you. We need you.” He pulled to a stop in the alley behind Sharon’s office, shoved the car into park, and climbed out and raced around it at a pace faster than the eye could track. He checked Danny’s pulse. Still breathing. Thank God. He gathered Danny into his arms, pressed a kiss to his temple, then rushed him inside, praying that Sharon had learned enough to be able to help.
THE NEXT morning Rogan walked into the Purity offices with a mission. He’d arrived early hoping to avoid as many people as possible and made his way up to Lydecker’s lab. He rolled his shoulders, trying to keep calm, but his pulse and breathing picked up a little speed despite his efforts. He slipped through the hall, making every effort to look like a man going about his morning routine. He’d left all the security cameras recording. Shutting them down would have looked more suspicious than leaving them on to record him going places that he could access on the average day.
Slipping into the lab, he found the lights and all the machinery up and running but the room empty. Okay, he’s here somewhere. Get a move on, Rogan. He skirted workbenches and various scientific machinery and made for the computer in the back of the room. He smiled when he saw no password protection on it. Thank God for pseudo luddites. Lydecker used technology in his experiments, but when it came to a simple desktop computer, he tended to grumble about useless machines. Which could mean that Rogan would find nothing. The man did like his pencils and notebooks, after all. He just prayed someone had impressed upon Lydecker the benefit of an electronic backup system.
He sat, flicked his gaze to the door and back at the unsecured computer, and started to dig. Christ, hadn’t anyone ever taught the man how to make folders? Lydecker’s hard drive contained hundreds of numbered documents with no identifying information.
“Seriously?” Rogan muttered as he pulled out the flash drive he’d brought with him and started copying. For all he knew, these files contained a whole lot of nothing, but there was no time to sort it out now. He started the download and checked the door every few seconds.
“Come on, come on. Slow frigging machine.”
He’d gotten the better part of five hundred documents copied when the door opened a crack and someone called out a greeting. “Good morning, Dr. Lydecker.”
Fuck. He clicked to close any open windows and yanked the drive out of the USB port, praying he hadn’t corrupted what information he’d copied, and shoved out of the chair just as Lydecker entered the lab.
“Rogan?” Lydecker furrowed his brow. “What are you doing in here?” His gaze flicked to his computer, then back to Rogan.
“Morning, sir. I was looking for some paper to leave you a note. I wanted you to contact me when you got in.”
“You could have left me a voicemail.”
“You know how you are with voicemails. I thought you’d like my news sooner than two days from now.”
Lydecker gave him a hint of a smile as a gleam of hope slipped into his eyes. “Oh? Does that mean you’ve got news for me about the subject?”
Rogan pressed his lips together. He hated that. They
were talking about a man, a person, and fuck, he really had stopped looking at this as just a job when word choice set him off. He shoved his hands into his pockets to keep them from balling into fists.
“I do, sir.” Forgive me, Danny. He swallowed down the sickness that rose in his throat “We have located Reynolds. We hope to have him in custody very soon.”
“Excellent. We have a lot of work to do, and we can’t do it until we can bring him in and help the poor man.”
Help my ass. Rogan nodded, then excused himself and exited the lab. Fuck! He needed to get in touch with Kier and let him know to keep an even closer watch on Danny.
DANNY AWOKE alone, and definitely not in Kier’s bed. The light in the room was dim, but not so much that he couldn’t see the details surrounding him. Earth-toned walls and carpeting, light wood furniture, a red and gold spread on the bed, and a red ceramic pot that held some green leafy plant sat atop the dresser. Where was he, and what the hell had happened?
He propped himself up on his elbows and racked his brain, trying to recall the events of the night. Then it all flooded back. Watching Kier feed. He clenched his jaw at the memory of Kier’s hands and mouth on that woman. Then he closed his eyes and took a deep, settling breath at the memory of what had followed. He smiled. Memories were fine, but he wanted Kier lying next to him. Then it came back to him. The less than stellar ending to what was shaping up to be an excellent night. He’d had a nosebleed. One look at the blood on his fingers, and then the world went black. He hadn’t even had time to react at all; a wave of sickness crashed through him, and lights out. Pushing all the way up in bed, he reached to feel around his nose. No blood. He flopped back on the pillow. Thank God. But now a whole new crop of questions sprang to mind, and a need to be with Kier flooded through him.
Climbing out of bed, he rose a bit unsteadily on his feet, not quite feeling like himself. First stop, bathroom; next stop, get some answers.
“What do you think you’re doing? Get back in bed.”
Danny jolted at the sound of Kier’s voice, and he slapped a hand to his chest. “Are you trying to give me a heart attack? Where did you come from?”
Kier crossed to him, pulled him in close. “I was in the other room. I heard you moving around and came to check on you. Now get back in bed.”
“I have to pee. Then I’ll get back in bed. But only if you join me.” He leaned up and pressed a kiss to Kier’s jawline. Instead of the warm response he hoped for, Kier remained stiff and unyielding.
“What is it? What’s wrong?”
Kier shook his head and cupped Danny’s elbow. His touch was gentle despite the stiffness of his body. “Hurry up, then get vertical again. You need to rest. Sharon, she’s just finishing up something in the lab, and then she’ll be over to check on you.”
Danny nodded in acknowledgment, then entered the small, brightly lit room and closed the door behind him. When he emerged, Kier was sitting on the bed, worried and lost deep in thought.
Danny crossed to him, standing between his spread thighs. He cupped Kier’s chin and urged him to look up at him.
“What is it?”
Kier opened his mouth to speak, then closed it again. Danny took his face between his hands. “Honesty, remember? We promised we’d talk and be open with each other from here on out.”
Kier nodded. He rested his hands on Danny’s hips. “I’m really not liking these episodes of yours.”
“They’re not much fun for me either.” Danny slid his hand over Kier’s, interlaced their fingers. “We’ll figure this out.”
“We have to, one way or the other.”
Waiting much longer didn’t seem to be an option for him anymore. He thought about what he’d witnessed tonight. How surprised he was that he didn’t find it cringeworthy. Instead, he found it sexy, intimate, and something he just might like to share with Kier for a long time to come. Maybe. Still, the thought of going through life so hated and feared that people wanted to kill you didn’t appeal, but then again neither did death or life without Kier.
Kier squeezed his fingers gently, pulling him from his thoughts. He met Kier’s eyes, who watched him with a mix of curiosity and wariness. He hated that he’d done that to the man who meant everything to him. Kier did it, lived his life each day despite everything. Maybe with Kier by his side, he could be strong enough. Maybe they could find happiness together. Kier’s tugged him closer. He kissed him softly and gently. Passion had no place in this moment. He injected all that he couldn’t find the words to express in that kiss, that one point of connection.
“Look who’s awake,” Sharon said, sweeping into the room. “How are you feeling?”
Danny groaned at the interruption. “I’m okay. Maybe a tad off, but that seems to be going away.”
Sharon gave him a small smile; then her face became unreadable. “Well, I have news.” Sharon tugged a high-back chair from the corner of the room and sat facing Kier and Danny.
“Good or bad?”
“I suppose that depends on your perspective. I took a fresh blood sample tonight.” She shook her head, her expression bleak. Bile rose up Danny’s throat, leaving a sour taste in his mouth. He didn’t want to hear her news, but he couldn’t hide from it either.
“Your body is changing faster then I realized, but the changes aren’t normal. I don’t know how to describe it, but because of the mutation in the blood of the vampire that attacked you, your turning is abnormal, if you can even fully turn at all on your own. You will, however, keep having these attacks until you’re finally turned or….”
“Or I die, right?” The words came out in a whisper.
“I can’t be positive, but that’s what I suspect. All I know for sure is that the progression of this mutated change won’t stop. This isn’t a natural turning. I don’t believe you’ll survive it. I wish I had better news for you, Danny, but the fact is you’re an anomaly. You shouldn’t exist. Something was off about the vampire that bit you, something unnatural. I’m researching this as fast as I can, but this is so foreign, so unique, it could take me years to understand what’s happening.”
“And a cure is nowhere in sight, right?”
“Not unless this Rogan that Kier told me about comes through with more information, and even then….” She paused and reached out a hand to pat Danny’s arm. “I’m really sorry, Danny. I can’t tell you how much. I’ll give you guys some time to talk and figure out your next steps. Kier, I want to take a blood sample from you, but that can wait until later. I’ll be in the lab if you need me.” She rose and left the room, closing the door behind her with a quiet click.
“Thanks,” Kier murmured. Then he tugged Danny to him and wrapped him in his arms. Danny returned the embrace, pressing his face into Kier’s hair and breathing in the clean scent. “We’ll get your healthy again. I promise.”
“I know we will.” Danny shifted so he could place a soft yet reassuring kiss on Kier’s lips. “Come lie down with me. I think we both could use the rest.”
Kier nodded, toed off his shoes, and climbed in next to Danny. He pulled him into the crook of his arm. Danny curled in close, resting his head on Kier’s broad chest. He let the warmth of his lover seep into him, and his body relaxed. Despite his cozy resting place, he couldn’t sleep; too much whirled through his mind. He lay wrapped in Kier’s arms and began working out a plan to do what needed to be done.
Chapter 11
FROM THE moment he walked out of Purity headquarters with the flash drive in hand, Rogan’s senses went on high alert. Tension coursed through him, keeping his muscles all but quivering all day long. Once the sun set, he’d stopped twitching like a cat hopped up on catnip. He calmed a bit because, within the hour, the drive in his pocket wouldn’t be his problem anymore. Once he placed it in Kieran’s hands, he’d breathe easy again. Well, easier. Until he assured his brother’s safety, he’d stay vigilant.
He didn’t kid himself into thinking he’d gotten away clean. That sneaky bitch probably had his
ass LoJacked and knew his exact location, maybe even what he’d taken from the lab. Getting the data, getting to the bar, it all seemed too easy to Rogan. He didn’t understand Melissa’s game. He didn’t know why she hadn’t come after him yet.
When he’d spoken to his brother earlier, his uneasiness had freaked his little brother out some. He regretted that, but if it made Brian more cautious, he could live with it. Rogan had done this. He’d brought this group into their lives. Time to cut ties. No easy task, not while he knew two innocent lives were at stake.
He waited until well after dark before reaching out to Kier again. This time he parked a block away, then made the call.
“McCade.” The deep voice rumbled out of the phone.
“It’s Rogan. Are you in the bar?”
“No. Why?”
“I’ve got something for you. Can you meet me?”
“This isn’t the best time.”
“I’ve got your data. If you want it, you need to come get it now.” Silence stretched between them.
“How do I know this is on the level?”
“I’ve got no reason to lie to you. My ass is just as much on the line, maybe more so. I don’t think Purity knows about you or your connection to Reynolds. If they did, they’d have already come after you hard. But they know about my family, and if they discover what I’ve done….”
Again, silence.
“All right. I’ll be there in fifteen.”
“Thanks. See you then.” Rogan disconnected the call and scanned the area. Nothing. Everything looked… normal. He exited his SUV and started toward the bar. He’d be safer sitting inside the building full of vampires than he’d be waiting in his vehicle. As he walked, his breathing and heart rate picked up, and he kept checking all around him. No one approached. People passed him on the sidewalk going about their business, not even acknowledging his presence. He still felt like everyone was looking at him and they all knew what he carried in his pocket. He nodded a greeting at Alex as he entered the bar and headed straight for an empty table on the far wall. He sat and continued to scan, his whole body ready to jump into action at the least provocation.