Chapter 7
V alentin followed Amorette inside her ex’s apartment, acutely aware of both the fear coursing through her body and the rage pumping through his. That asshole had let someone point a gun at her, let them threaten her, bruise her, scare her. It was all he could do to keep the wrath contained beneath his skin. She was already terrified. He wouldn’t add to her stress.
“No one’s here,” Amorette said, trying not to stare at the bedroom, and Valentin couldn’t stop himself from reaching out and gripping her hip.
“I didn’t think they would be,” he answered.
“Then why come here?” She leaned into his touch, and he’d never wanted to kiss the emotions off a woman’s face so badly.
“I’m Fae.” Valentin forced his fingers to release her curves. No matter how his soul longed for her, no matter the heated desire radiating from her aura, the rules had not changed. She was forbidden. Not only for his job’s sake but for her future’s. As it was, he had already drastically altered her fate. The longer he involved himself, the more clouded her romantic future became. If he stayed too long, held onto her soft body that curved in all the most delicious places, she would lose every hope of finding a soulmate. He couldn’t do that to her. His selfishness would not destroy her happiness.
“My senses are heightened, and I can smell your ex’s blood on the carpet,” he continued, touring the apartment with clinical professionalism. “And the mildew in the bathroom, the dirt caked between his boot’s tread, the stale coffee in the cabinets, which is surprising considering your profession.” Valentin paused before the bedroom door. “I can scent your fear. It clings to your skin instead of the chocolate I’ve come to expect.” He avoided her gaze at his confession, clearing his throat uncomfortably as he changed the subject. “I’m now acquainted with Cavitto’s stench and can recognize every man who entered this building to threaten your life. Tracking them will be easy.”
He turned back to her, studying the surprise on her face. What he didn’t say was that while the scent of her skin on Doug’s sheets ignited his jealousy, he didn’t smell sex, and that pleased him immensely. Seemed Amorette had spent a passionless night here, and a dark part of him whispered if she ever slept in his bed, the intoxicating perfume of her orgasms would never leave the room, for he would make her come until she begged for a break.
“You can find them by scent?” Amorette asked.
“I was special forces.” Valentin shoved the image of his head trapped between her thighs out of his mind and extended a hand. “Only not with the United States Military.” She took it, and he led her from the apartment, following the trail Cavitto and his men so sloppily left behind. “There’s a lot I can do. Things you may not want to see. We’ll take care of the men watching your parent’s house, and then you can stay with them.”
“No.” She jerked his hand so hard, his torso twisted to face her. “This is my fight, my family, my life on the line. I’m going with you.”
“It will be dangerous. It will get bloody.”
She stepped closer, their toes touching as she stared defiantly up at him, and he clenched his fist to keep from gripping her hair and yanking her mouth to his.
“Good.” Amorette smiled a wicked grin, and his heart stopped beating in his chest. “I hate feeling helpless. I don’t like begging for my life on my knees. You make me feel safe, and I’m choosing to ignore all the rational thoughts warning me not to trust you. Help me be brave. Help me reclaim what was stolen from me this morning when a man who I thought cared sat silently by to watch me die.”
Valentin’s grip on her hand tightened reflexively at her words. “You’re already brave, but your wish is my command. I am powerless to refuse you.”
Heat flared in her eyes, and she shoved up onto her toes to kiss his cheek. It was an innocent display of thanks, but Valentin’s life changed in that moment. He knew what her lips felt like, and they would haunt him every day until his death. He had to deal with Cavitto quickly before he not only broke the rules but obliterated them into dust.