She’d met someone who pumped life back into her deflated heart.
Hugh.
Even though it scared her to death to love someone again and risk losing him, maybe companionship was the biggest gamble of all. The biggest thrill that led to the biggest reward.
Was she ready for that? Her body shivered before she noticed a pair of unbearably keen eyes trained on her from around the doorframe.
“Hey, you okay? You’ve been in here a while and when I called your name, you didn’t answer.” Hugh’s head moved farther into the room.
“Worried about me?” When was the last time someone had done that?
His entire frame came into view and more shivers ran down her arms. “I’m not sure how I should answer that.”
“You could al—”
“I’ll always tell you the truth, Tess.” His eyes held hers in the mirror as he stepped behind her.
Warm hands rubbed her upper arms and just like that, she melted. Her head lolled back against his chest.
“You’re shivering,” he said, moving his hands up and down a little faster. “Are you okay?”
Tess couldn’t speak. She couldn’t find her voice. Words ran through her mind in incoherent sentences. All she could do was shake her head no.
He moved even closer and her eyes fluttered shut as she enjoyed the feel of being cocooned in his arms. When his lips brushed the side of her temple, she lifted her lids. The song Hungry Like the Wolf played in her head when she noticed the blue of his irises spotted with gold. And not for the first time, she guessed the animal in him wanted to claim her as much as the man did. All the tension vanished from her body.
“I think I’m suffering from the same thing,” he whispered.
The decision to love him or leave him warred inside her. She’d lost most of her faith after Jason had died, but right now she wanted to choose faith over common sense and see where it led her.
“And I think I know the cure,” he said. “I want you.”
At that moment, there was nothing she wanted more than him. “Okay.”
Chapter Sixteen
“What are you doing?”
“Warming up the room.” Hugh finished turning the knob on the shower and returned to her backside. “You still feel cold.”
“I thought you were going to warm me up.” She remained where she was, hands on the countertop, speaking to the Hugh in the mirror.
When his chest met her back, every muscle in her body tingled. She leaned against him, unable to stay steady. His mouth dotted the side of her neck with kisses that turned her into a submissive sack of softness.
“Oh, I am.” His husky voice annihilated any last hope of composure.
His hands slid down her sides before finding their way to the front of her shirt. He cupped her breasts, pushed them up, massaged them, rolled his thumbs over her pert nipples. A quiet moan escaped her lips.
She wiggled her ass, made contact with his erection and wiggled some more.
He growled and danced his fingers down her stomach, slid them under her shirt and started back up again.
Steam filled the room, removing the chill that had settled around her earlier. With a slow, deliberate lift of his arms, he pulled her shirt over her head and let it fall to the floor. His lips slid to her shoulders and collarbone while those magic fingers of his undid the clasp of her bra.
She watched him in the mirror. His eyes were hooded and he seemed to be enjoying every taste, every feel. His fingertips drew circles around her breasts, then her nipples. He pinched the tight, hard points. A jolt of pleasure rolled through her.
Reaching back, she found the snap on his jeans, undid it and followed with a tug on his zipper. His erection sprang free. He let out a ragged sigh.
“You have no idea what you do to me,” he whispered, catching her gaze in the mirror before the fog completely took away their view of each other.
“Tell me.”
“I crave you. Need you. More than I ever imagined I would need anyone.” He kissed her earlobe, the nape of her neck.
“Your scent drives me wild.” He breathed in her hair as his hands moved down to the zipper on her jeans. “Your skin begs me to taste it.” His tongue swirled around her shoulder.
Her entire body alighted with sensations she didn’t want to end. The tips of her fingers tingled, the pit of her stomach did cartwheels, her legs shook with crazy need.
He winked at her just before the last bit of clear mirror fogged up. Then he spun her around and pressed her against the sink. “You make my days better. And you cause me so much pain that for the first time in my life I’m feeling. Really feeling.”
The sincerity on his face when he spoke scared the shit out of her. She felt the pain too. Felt it in her bones.
“I know what you mean,” she whispered.
“Do you?” He kissed her and didn’t stop until he’d shoved her pants down her legs, shucked his pants and boxer briefs, and roamed his hands over every inch of her body.
Then he cupped her mound and massaged his thumb across her most sensitive spot. Even through the thin material of her G-string, he stoked a fire inside her she wanted to burn all night. He dipped one, then two fingers underneath and traced her wet folds with exquisite pressure. All the while, he never stopped kissing her.
“Hugh,” she moaned. She gripped his wrist.
He got the message and they separated. She pulled his shirt over his head. He slid her panties off. Then he lifted her up onto the counter and angled himself between her legs. Sweat trickled down the side of his face, his chest glistened from the moisture in the room. Perspiration tickled her own skin, moving down between her breasts.
His mouth took hers again while she wrapped her arms around his neck. The feel of him made her forget all of her troubles, all the decisions weighing on her. She wanted to trade every sky dive, every bungee jump, every outdoor risk, for the thrill of being with him. A willingness to risk it all overwhelmed her.
Everything she thought she knew about love was wrong. Her time with Jason had merely been a precursor for true love because the feelings he’d given her paled in comparison to how she felt now. Hugh made her want to survive, to put more stock in her own worth. She wanted to live to see another day. Another day with him in it.
His hands cupped her bottom and moved her to the edge of the marble. His cock touched her center, and she couldn’t wait to have him buried deep inside her.
“No one else, Tess,” he said, lifting his head and holding her chin in his hand. “No one else ever touches you again. I’m the only one who gets to kiss that sexy mouth of yours. The only one who gets to suck on your tits. The only one who gets to taste between your legs. And I’m the only one who gets to bury himself inside your sweet pussy and make you come. You’re mine to keep.”
Tess shivered. The naughty words turned her on so much she almost came. But that last declaration? Her heart stopped. “Do you mean…”
The different colors swirling in his irises kept her riveted. “I mean this cosmic pull between us isn’t normal. Not a second goes by that you’re not in my head. And if you have to kill me in order to save yourself, I’ll happily oblige.” He sucked in a sharp breath. “I mean you’re my mate.”
Those words sounded better than anything she’d ever heard before. Better than Jason’s marriage proposal. Better than hearing the word love. Because she knew a mate meant for life.
But even though she felt the same way about him, how could she be his mate when she had no clue what her future held?
I can’t be.
No matter how much his words made her want to believe the two of them had a chance, she reminded herself her first commitment was still to P.I.E. and her roommates.
“Hugh…”
He pressed a finger to her lips. “Don’t say anything.” The head of his cock nudged her opening. “I don’t want to hear how it’s impossible.” He slid inside her. Slowly, oh so slowly. “So stay quiet and let me show you tonight ho
w much you mean to me.” He pressed all the way in.
One more night with Hugh might be all she had.
She took it.
“What did Trey say?” Tess asked.
“Six o’clock.” Hugh hit end on his phone and swiveled the desk chair to look at her. He neglected to mention that Trey told him Dane was in San Diego too. Something wasn’t right about that, and he wanted to think before filling her in. He remembered Dane had a relative in the area, but he didn’t know he’d scheduled a visit.
“That’s two hours from now.” She remained clear on the other side of the room, sitting on the bed and looking through her bag.
For the gun with a mercury-tipped bullet perhaps?
Time ticked away, and he knew from the silent treatment she’d given him since lunch, she was trying to figure out what the hell to do.
After getting only a couple hours of sleep last night because they’d been too busy ravaging each other, he couldn’t imagine she’d be able to follow through with her elimination assignment. Especially after he’d told her she was his mate. But there was something she wasn’t telling him, and he didn’t know whether it had to do with him, the job or finally meeting Dobson. He’d let his human-sentient side come to the surface briefly and sensed a mixture of worry and affection. Fear, too. But not because she was scared. It was more like dread.
His phone rang again. Tess lifted her head and he divided his attention between her and the caller’s number.
Even from across the room, he made out the sprinkling of freckles across her nose, smelled the scent of hotel soap mixed with her own unique fragrance. He’d never get it out of his system. He forced his eyes away.
“Dane. Where are you?”
“I’m in San Diego. Trey told me to get in touch with you. Where are you?”
Hugh hesitated. “San Diego as well.”
Silence lasted several seconds before Dane spoke up. “Is there something going on I should know about? Do you need my help with something?”
Dane’s tone suggested the offer was out of obligation, not commitment. Hugh should be used to that by now, but given the tenuous situation before him, he’d hoped to gain some confidence in his pack mate. Instead, doubt and suspicion plagued him.
“What are you doing in San Diego?” he asked.
“Visiting family. It came up last minute.” Dane cleared his throat and Hugh could just make out the sound of someone else breathing over the phone line. “How about I come meet you for a drink? Where you staying?”
In all the years they’d known each other, Dane had never asked for such a cordial encounter.
Hugh zeroed in on Tess’s black pupils surrounded by a brilliant blue-green, and took the strength and alliance he saw there to help him make his decision.
“How about five o’clock? The lobby bar of the US Grant Hotel.” He had no reason to suspect Dane was in town for anything other than family, but hairs standing on the back of his neck put him on alert.
“I’ll be there.”
Hugh hung up and closed the distance to Tess. He sat at the foot of the bed, leaving some space between them. She kept her eyes trained on him with one hand in her bag.
Could she do it? Could she eliminate him?
“Care to share what’s going on in that beautiful head of yours?”
“If I do, I might have to kill you.” The muscles in her face barely moved as she spoke.
“Try me.”
She pulled her arm from her bag. “It’s complicated and up to me to figure out. I’m the one in charge here, remember?”
Hugh let go of the breath he held. Her hand was empty. “Yeah, I remember. I’m waiting for you to get bossy.”
He had every intention of playing along with her plans, but had spent most of the day thinking about his own plan of action.
She narrowed her eyes and straightened her back, which only drew his attention to the beautiful mounds beneath her T-shirt.
“Hugh! Can you keep your attention up here, please?” She made a motion with her hand to indicate above the neck.
At least he’d finally gotten a reaction out of her, which was much better than the monotone voice and minimal body mechanics of the last four hours. “Sure. Start talking.”
“Fine.” She stayed erect. Probably to torture him. “Since we’ve narrowed it down to one of the top floor suites for the meeting—”
“That’s not the kind of talking I meant.” He scooted a little closer without any intention of touching her. He just wanted to include her on the ledge he stood on.
She hopped off the bed. “That’s the only kind you’re going to get right now,” she said, making a beeline for the window across the room.
If she thought her backside would keep his focus off her body, she was mistaken. He watched her move and couldn’t help but think about how he’d navigated every inch of her last night. She made him vulnerable—made the human side of him want to fight to the death to protect her while the wolf side of him wanted her to tame his savage soul.
“I’m going to show up as a room service attendant and knock on the doors until I find the right one,” she continued.
“That’s original.”
She turned with the kind of perturbed posture a disgruntled teenager might wear. One shoulder was higher than the other, one leg was bent, the other straight. Her head slanted to the side and her arms were crossed.
“Do you have a better idea?” she asked with a sassy tone that shouldn’t turn him on when they needed to focus on business, but did anyway.
“Of course I do.”
But before he could share it with her, there was a knock.
He used his superhuman speed to get to the door before her. He had no idea who stood on the other side, but his skin prickled, his muscles tensed and instincts told him to be cautious.
Tess stood behind him a few seconds later, her warm breath on his neck. “Let me answer it.”
“No.”
She tried to get around him. He countered her every move with one of his own, keeping his back to her attempts. Didn’t she realize he had seventy-five pounds on her and several inches in every direction?
“Dammit, Hugh. Let me get it.”
Another knock sounded. He ignored her and opened the door.
Dane stood in the hallway, looking rather amused in a relaxed stance. “Am I interrupting something?”
“What—” he and Tess said simultaneously before she backed away.
“What are you doing here?” Hugh continued, opening the door wide enough for Dane to enter.
The Night Runner strolled past Hugh and stopped in the middle of the room to look around. Hugh noticed his attention linger on the computer and desk area before settling on Tess. She leaned against the side of the couch, her hands bracing on the arm as if she were waiting for the right moment to launch off.
“The hotel was closer than I thought, and the young woman at the front desk was kind enough to give me your room number so I could come get you.” He stood with his arms at his side, his fingers twitching.
Tension filled the room.
“Bull—”
“Tess,” Hugh interrupted, “can I see you over here for a minute?”
She pushed off the couch, took a detour by the bed to retrieve her bag, and met him near the bathroom door.
“I want you to stay in the bathroom for a few minutes while I talk to Dane,” he whispered.
“The hell I will. He’s lying and I want to know why.”
“I’ll find out what’s going on, not you.” No way was Dane’s being in San Diego a coincidence and Hugh needed to interrogate him alone.
Her eyebrows furrowed. “It sounds like you don’t trust me.”
“You are the one with the mercury bullet.”
She blinked long enough for him to see the corner of her eye spasm. When her lids lifted he saw pain in the blue-green depths, but he refused to acknowledge it. He was protecting her, goddammit. Reminding her if push came to shove, she had
a job to do.
“This isn’t your deal, it’s ours. Dane’s arrival means something, and knowing the history between the two of you, I might be able to get more information out of him than you,” Tess said.
“Get in the bathroom, Tess.”
“You can’t force me in there.”
He darted his gaze to Dane. His pack mate wasn’t hiding his interest in their conversation. Hell, he’d most likely heard every word. Hugh readied himself to end the show. “Watch me.”
Faster than he’d give her credit for, Tess moved out of his reach. With her arms in the air, a twirl in her stride and a voice to rival Mary Poppins, she said, “Oh Hugh, don’t be silly. Dane would love for me to join you in a drink. Wouldn’t you, Dane?”
“Actually—”
“I don’t think he would.” Hugh’s swift stride carried him to Tess’s side before she had time to lower her arms. He took her wrist with a firm hold. “We’ve got pack business to discuss.”
“I can speak for myself, Hugh.” Dane remained in statuesque form a step away from Tess’s flailing free arm. “And I was about to say I do have business to discuss that needs to be done in private.”
“Come on boys. I promise I won’t tell.” She brought a hand to her chest and drew an X across her shirt. “Cross my heart and hope to die.”
Her words cut into Hugh deeper than if she’d held a knife to his skin. Even though it was a common saying, he didn’t like hearing the word die come from her lips. Because reality was, someone might. Tonight.
Tess’s pulse raced under his hand. She might appear calm but she was anything but. He knew she was angry, but more than anger made her heart beat faster.
He gently laid her arm at her side and wished he didn’t have to let go. “Stay here. I’ll be back in forty-five minutes.”
“You’re kidding, right?”
Dane chuckled. “Does Hugh know how to kid?”
Hugh ignored the comment and brought his mouth to her ear. “Don’t go anywhere without me.”
“Where would I go?” she asked, disdain in her tone. “I’ve got nothing better to do than sit here and wait for you. I’ll just clean out my purse. It’s full of useless crap.”
Veiled Target (A Veilers Novel) Page 24