“It didn’t happen,” he muttered. “Get it together.” He looked over his shoulder towards the trunk, dread twisting in his gut. He’d made it, this time. But if they didn’t find out what the hell these things were, how they’d come to be, there were going to be a lot of next-times and a lot of lives lost.
“She’s a werewolf—just not a right one.” The car slowed down and he looked back out the front, watching as Jess exited the expressway and took a smaller county highway. This late at night, it was empty, and from the looks of it, there was nothing much in the direction they were heading.
They were both silent for a while. The only noise came from the wind blowing through the open window. Their unwilling passenger was silent. Vax kept his ears tuned, and the only sound she made was an occasional growling little grunt. As Jess slowed down to make a left, he could just barely hear a faint, steady heartbeat.
“Where should we go?” Jess asked softly. “What do we do?”
Vax turned to look at her. Her eyes looked nearly black in the faint light and blood streaked from numerous little scrapes along her shoulders and arms. They needed someplace safe, someplace out of the way. “I don’t know, Jess. I just don’t know.” He let his head fall back against the headrest and closed his eyes. “Give me a minute, okay? Just drive.”
“What if she wakes up?”
“I’ll deal with that when it happens.”
CHAPTER 7
JESS climbed into the car, her entire body aching. In her right hand, she held something more precious than gold: coffee, piping hot, so damned strong that it would probably eat away her stomach lining. The one sip she’d taken in the store had burned her tongue and sent energy zinging through her veins.
Pure bliss.
She jammed the keys into the ignition and shifted into drive. As she pulled out of the parking lot, she looked at her unexpected partner. She was a little disgusted at what she saw.
On her way into the gas station, she’d caught a brief glimpse of herself. Hair a fricking mess, bags under her eyes, and wearing her pajamas. She looked awful.
Vax, on the other hand, looked refreshed, as wide-awake as if he had climbed from bed after eight solid hours of sleep. At some point during the night, they’d stopped at a rest area and he’d run into the bathroom and cleaned off the foam.
He hadn’t slept all night, and the black T-shirt had white streaks left over from the foam she’d sprayed him with, and he still looked good enough to eat. Jess had a passing thought—what would he do if she pulled onto the shoulder, crawled over the console, planted her butt in his lap, covered that mouth with hers, and rubbed her body against his?
A grin tugged at her lips. If she had the energy, she just might have tried it. Screw the fact that he was a hell of a lot more complication than she was ready to handle. After the night she’d had, she was ready to forget about everything for a while.
Maybe even a long while.
If it weren’t for Sleeping Beauty in her trunk, Jess would have seriously considered it. Almost as if thinking of her woke her up, Jess’s unwilling passenger started to stir. Jess stared into her rearview mirror. The lights of the gas station were growing fainter, but not faint enough. If the wolf-woman got free, she could reach the gas station in minutes. The protective steel-and-bulletproof-glass cage where the attendant worked might help against robbers, but Jess didn’t know if it would hold against the wolf-creature.
That thing could tear the woman apart.
Jess couldn’t deal with any more blood on her hands. Fear made her mouth go dry, and she looked towards Vax as fists pounded against the trunk lid. “What do I do now?”
His eyes were grim. A chill raced down her spine as she saw the little lightning-streaky things shooting across the stormcloud irises. “Just keep driving as long as we can. She can’t get much leverage back there, so it might take a few minutes to get out.”
“Oh, well, that’s a relief. We’re buying a few minutes.” Jess heard her biting, sarcastic tone and flinched. This was none of his fault. In a brusque tone, she said, “Sorry.”
He didn’t look at her, but a faint smile appeared on his lean, sexy face. It didn’t quite reach his eyes, though, and even that faint smile disappeared quickly enough as another flurry of pounding sounded from the trunk. There was a horrendous shrieking sound, the sound of metal scraping against metal. Her trunk went flying up with a crash, and Jess jumped. Fists banged on the roof. When a dark, hairy hand slammed down on the windshield, Jess screamed. She was going to hate that when she thought back, she knew she would, but she couldn’t stop it.
She swerved, trying to throw the wolf-woman off. “You got any ideas over there, hotshot?”
He had both hands planted against the dashboard, and his mouth was set in a hard, tight line. “Yeah, pull over before you kill us both.”
Considering that her life was pretty much in his hands, Jess managed to keep her mouth closed. Just barely. She slammed on the brakes and spun the wheel. The car went into a controlled turn, slamming her against her door. If she hadn’t been wearing her seat belt, she probably would have whacked her head on the glass.
The desperate, reckless move worked, though. She watched, a little dazed, as the wolf-woman went flying through the air. The car hadn’t even stopped completely when Vax threw open the door. Jess saw silver glint as he went after the were. His knife.
Jess could hardly see a thing—it was so dark, just the thin sliver of a moon shining down on them. It didn’t seem to affect the two fighting. She heard masculine grunts, animalistic growls, muffled cussing—then a sharp, yelping sort of cry. That weird magickal tension spiked in the air, and then Vax’s voice: “Oh, no, you don’t—” Vax’s words carried across the night. Squinting her eyes, she could just barely make out the silver flash as Vax’s knife cut through the night.
Part of her didn’t want to leave the car, but Jess had to know what had happened. After she climbed out the door, she rubbed her sweaty palms against her legs. Walking over the dew-slick grass, she muttered, “What in the hell have you gotten mixed up in?”
A soft, warm chuckle came from her left, practically in her ear. She jumped and then reached out, slamming the heel of her hand against his chest. “Damn it, don’t do that,” she hissed.
“I’m pretty sure I tried to tell you before that you didn’t want to get messed up in this.” He cupped a hand around her arm. “Go back to the car.”
Shaking her head, Jess tugged against his hand. “Is she…dead?”
He sighed. She felt the warm brush of his breath against her cheek. “Go back to the car, Jessica. Please.”
Jerking her arm away, she said, “Don’t call me Jessica.” Turning her back to him, she started carefully making her way across the wet grass. She had to see. Maybe it was the reporter in her, or maybe it was just sheer nosiness. But she had to see.
“Don’t get so close,” Vax growled in her ear. He grabbed her arm again, guiding her to the left. Just then, the moon passed out from behind some clouds and she could just barely see the ground. A big, clawed hand was inches away. As Jess drew back, the hand lifted, slashing at the spot where she would have stepped.
“Ah…yeah. Good advice.” Her breath wheezed out of her lungs, and she felt a little sick to her stomach. Those long, wicked claws, so close…one more step and the were could have grabbed her. It would take just a few seconds. If that thing got her on the ground, got her pinned, no amount of magick would save her.
“Can you make her change back to human?”
“I could. But I won’t.”
“Wouldn’t it be safer?” At least in human form, the woman wouldn’t have nails two or three inches long and sharp as razors. And those teeth—she could see the moonlight glinting off the wet, gleaming incisors. Jess narrowed her eyes. “Damn it, is she contagious?”
“Possibly.” Now he sighed. A warm hand reached up, rubbing the back of her neck. “I really don’t know, since I don’t know what she is. But it would have t
o come from the bite. It’s spread through the saliva. HIV is easier to catch than the were genes.”
But that didn’t make her feel any better. She’d seen the teeth in that thing’s mouth. The wolf started thrashing around on the ground, and Jess jumped, moving back even farther. “What did you do to her?”
“Silver nitrate,” he said quietly. She could feel the soft caress of his breath on the back of her neck. She couldn’t quite stop the shiver that ran through her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw his hand, and she cocked her head, studying the small vial he was holding. He tossed it up and then caught it before he slid it inside his jacket, out of sight. “She’s not a powerful were. The nitrate will keep her from shifting.”
“That won’t keep her from running away.”
“No. But being hamstringed will.” There was no emotion in his voice as he said it. She wasn’t going to ask for any more details on that one, Jess decided. “With the silver in her system, she can’t shift. She’ll need a healer to get it out of her bloodstream before she can change. The silver will also slow down her healing process.” His voice was level, but she sensed a tension inside him, felt it in the undercurrents. He didn’t like what he’d done.
“So this bought us a little more than a few minutes, then, right?” she asked, shifting on her feet so that she could see him but still keep an eye on the wolf lady.
He nodded. He cupped her cheek. “A day or two. Enough time for me to figure something out.” He rubbed his thumb over her lower lip and gazed at her. For a second, she thought he was going to kiss her. Hot little ribbons of excitement wrapped around her belly, but then the moment passed, and he pulled away.
“Come on—we need to get out of here. Can you open the trunk?”
Jess stood off to the side and watched as Vax threw the wolf’s huge, bulky body into the trunk. “Wow. So just how much can you lift?” Although the wolf was female, there was nothing delicate or soft about her. She looked damn heavy.
Vax slanted a look at Jess. “Beats the hell out of me,” he responded. “I got better things to do than go to a gym.” He touched a hand to the wolf’s chest, resting it between the fur-covered breasts. He held it there a moment and then pulled his hand back. He rubbed it down the outside of his jeans, as if he was trying to wipe away something digusting. He forced the trunk door down, and it closed with a thunk.
“Yeah, I guess running around and saving the world is pretty good exercise.” Apparently very good exercise. Unconsciously, her eyes traveled down over his body, lingering on the long, hard muscles of his legs. “You don’t work out at all, huh?”
That faint half smile appeared on his face, and he reached up, toying with the ends of her hair. “I don’t have time for that. And I don’t run around saving the world. I stopped Hunting a long time ago. This is just…a thing.”
“You don’t run around Hunting. But you’re a Hunter.”
Lashes drooped low over his eyes. She felt his grip tighten on her hair, and he lowered his head, brushing his lips across her brow. “I am no longer a Hunter. Left it behind years ago.”
“You’re so damned confusing. If you left it behind years ago, then what are you doing here now?”
“Now?” He grinned. His teeth were a white flash in the darkness of his face. His other hand came up and curved over the back of her neck. “Right now I’m getting ready to kiss you.”
And he did.
His lips felt warm, almost gentle as he pressed them against hers. He lifted his head, and she wondered if maybe he was going to let it go at that, with that one, almost chaste kiss. She swallowed and lifted her lashes, staring up at him.
Nope. He wasn’t stopping there, not with that look in his eyes. His eyes were a deep, smoky gray, and he held her gaze as he reached up and threaded his hands through her hair. “You’ve got this thing about playing with my hair,” she said.
He smiled, a slow, teasing curve of his mouth. Lowering his head, he pressed his lips to hers and murmured, “I can think of some other things I’d like to play with.” Then he pushed his tongue inside her mouth, using his grip on her hair to bring her closer.
Jess hadn’t ever been one for waxing poetically about anything. Although she enjoyed the idea of romance, it wasn’t something she’d had much time for in life. She hadn’t met too many people who’d been likely to change that, either. Hadn’t ever felt the earth move just because somebody touched her.
At least not until now. It seemed as though the earth had opened up under her feet, but instead of falling, she went flying. Her hands came up, clutching at the front of his jacket. The strength went out of her legs and she sagged against him. If he hadn’t wrapped an arm around her waist, she was pretty sure she would have collapsed to the ground in a hot, boneless puddle.
Jess hadn’t ever felt so seduced by a simple kiss. Even though it didn’t feel at all simple. He kept his hands where they were, one fisted in her hair, one curving over her waist. But every inch of her skin buzzed. She felt hot, her heart slamming away inside her chest, and deep inside, she ached. Throbbed. Damn it, she felt empty.
Vax pulled back, nipping at her lower lip. Jess leaned against him, sliding her arms up his chest and wrapping them around his neck. She couldn’t get close enough. She could feel the thick, hard length of his cock against her belly, and she rubbed herself against him.
Noise intruded. A semi came roaring down the highway, and there was a thumping from within her trunk. Jess barely heard it, but Vax did. He eased back and she tried to follow him, her hands tangling in his hair. She felt him laugh, then heard him swear. “That’s just my luck. Now you seem interested in listening to something other than your head.”
Hands closed around her arms, moving her back, and Jess felt blood rush to her face as she sucked in a deep breath of cool night air. It cleared her head like a bucket of icy water, and she jerked her hands away from him as if she’d been scalded. Shit. She’d wrapped herself around him like a vine. She would have been perfectly happy if he had stripped them both naked and they had gone at it on the trunk of the car like a couple of teenagers.
Hell—she hadn’t done this sort of thing even when she had been a teenager. Hadn’t ever done this sort of thing. Sex wasn’t a burning need for her, and she liked it that way. Burning was out of control. Jess hated anything that took away her control.
Vax wouldn’t just take away her control. He would shatter it, destroy it completely and totally, and Jess didn’t know whether she’d ever get it back. Careful not to look at him, Jess stepped back and ran her hands through her hair. Her voice was stilted as she said, “Shouldn’t we get going?”
He opened his mouth to say something, but Jess turned away, walking around to her side of the car. As she climbed in, she sensed him moving towards the passenger side. She started the car and slammed it into drive. She pulled out onto the road, gravel flying behind her as she accelerated.
“Do you want me to say I’m sorry?”
Jess stared straight ahead. She was afraid that if she looked at him again, she just might pull back over and crawl into his lap. So what if they were on a public road? It was night. So what if there was a werewolf-thing in the trunk of her BMW? It wasn’t too much of a threat this very second.
“Do you?”
Through gritted teeth, she growled out, “No.”
His hand came up, cupping the back of her neck. She tensed up, mostly to keep from leaning into him. “You sure about that?”
She hunched her shoulders and tried to shrug his hand away. “Apologize for what?”
“For kissing you, maybe?” Then he leaned over the console and brushed her hair back. Vax pressed his lips to her ear and asked, “Or maybe it’s because I stopped?”
I’m not answering that question on the grounds that I might embarrass myself. By stopping the car and demanding that he pick back up where he’d left off. Her common sense finally started to kick in, and a quiet voice in her head reminded her of why she hadn’t let him kiss her bef
ore. He was too damned complicated, and Jess had a bad feeling she could fall for him.
Really fall—like the fall-in-love kind of fall.
Even if this wasn’t the completely wrong time for it, even if she wasn’t trying to track down Randi’s killer, he was the completely wrong kind of man. He was a witch, for crying out loud. A Hunter. They didn’t stay in one place, and they led lives that would make the life of a Navy SEAL seem dull.
She tried once more to pull away from his touch, and this time he let her, moving his hand away with one last, lingering caress. “You don’t have to apologize,” she said.
His tone was wry as he said, “But you’d rather I not do it again.”
She finally dared to look at him, and saw that he was watching her with that faint, aggravating, sexy little smile. The kind of smile that told her he was going to do pretty much whatever the hell he wanted—and if he decided he wanted to kiss her again, he knew she wouldn’t stop him.
“You’re impossible,” she mumbled.
“So I’ve been told.”
THANK God for gym bags.
Jess always kept hers in the backseat in case she felt like hitting the gym. The billboard they had seen on the side of the highway had been like a message straight out of heaven.
Not because of the hot food, or the hot coffee, although the promise of caffeine had her nearly drooling.
Nope, the sign for the truck stop had been glorious because it had in big, bold yellow letters: CLEAN SHOWERS. As she climbed from the car, she was all but itching. Jess paused only long enough to reach under the backseat and grab something.
She slid it inside her gym bag, watching the back of Vax’s head. He never looked her way as she slid the bag’s strap over her shoulder. “I won’t take too long,” she promised.
Vax sat in the passenger seat with his eyes closed and his arms folded over his chest. He didn’t respond, just lifted his lashes and glanced at her before closing his eyes once more. Covered with grime and sweat, she was so anxious to get clean, she practically started stripping in the middle of the very public hallway.
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