Chapter 11
Chapter Eleven
The flames crackled around him, flaring high, golden and red, seeming to strike out like snakes as he followed the broken screams.
Keenan kept his head down, moving quickly, jumping and darting through the fire. Nicole was safe, he’d seen to it. Now he just had to?—
There.
He saw her through the flames. The woman who’d pulled the gun on Sam. She was behind the bar. Trapped by the fire. Her hand was over her mouth, and she was coughing.
Behind the bar. Great. Right next to the wall with the alcohol. The last place you wanted to be when flames were so close.
Her head turned. Her wild eyes met his. The flames swarmed higher, and he knew time was running out.
Then the bar ignited.
Damning the flames, he ran through the fire.
Nicole sucked in a deep gulp of air. One. Two. Her starving lungs filled greedily, and her fingers began to move.
Damn that Sam. He wasn’t helping them.
Breaking us.
She pushed up slowly as her chest heaved. The air was bitter with smoke, and it stung her throat, but she wasn’t about to be choosy then. She’d take what she could get.
Her gaze flew around the area. Cops were on the scene now, swarming in their patrol cars. They were holding a crowd back. A fire truck roared up the street.
No sign of Sam.
Or Keenan.
Still in there.
She stared at the gaping hole in the wall. Smoke billowed. The crackle of flames taunted her.
If Keenan had come out, he wouldn’t have just left her on the ground. She was sure of it. Her knees shook a bit when she stood. Whatever Sam had hit her with, it had been strong.
Thirst had her throat drying up. Or maybe that was the smoke. Or the fear.
“Hey! Hey, lady!”
Her head whipped around at the call. A uniformed cop waved at her, his round face tense.
“Get away from there, lady! The fire crew’s coming! Get back!”
Could a fire kill a Fallen? Fire killed nearly everything—everyone—else. Witches. Vampires.
“Sorry,” she muttered to the cop and dove for that opening in the wall, “but he needs me.”
She wouldn’t let Keenan break. Sam could go screw himself.
Keenan won’t break.
The vampire went into the flames.
Unexpected.
She should have run. Covered her own ass. Not gone back for her lover.
But Sam smiled as she disappeared. He’d hoped she’d risk her safety for the Fallen. Hoped, but hope was such a weak thing.
Fleeting.
Human.
The fire could fry her skin off in moments. Vamps burned just as quickly as witches.
The light scent of flowers teased his nose, and his smile vanished.
Someone would be dying that night.
Keenan. His vampire. Or the helpless humans inside.
The scent grew stronger. The wind pressed against his body.
Someone would die.
Someone always did.
The ceiling was collapsing. The groans and creaks of the wood and beams above Keenan blended with the crackles of the flames. He hoisted his burden, being careful to keep her limbs from the fire. The woman—Seline—had screamed when he jumped through the flames. She’d tried to stumble back, but had smacked her head into one of the glass shelves behind the bar.
He’d barely caught her before she fell into the fire.
He glanced around and held her tight. The fire had caught him on his arms and his legs. The pain throbbed and made his gut churn.
Nicole had taught him of pleasure.
Now pleasure’s evil bitch of a sister was back, and he didn’t like her much.
The fire closed in.
Keenan lifted his right hand. He’d conjured fire before, so that meant that he should be able to control the flames. He’d already tried, over and over, but so far, no luck.
“Keenan!”
Now the flames seemed to be calling his name. Taunting him to walk through that hot kiss once more.
“Keenan! This way!”
No, that wasn’t the fire calling. Nicole. She was inside. Surrounded by that burning hell when she should be safe, outside, protected.
No.
He wasn’t aware he’d shouted the word, not until he heard the echo of his voice. Then the flames before him—the fire that separated him from Nicole—began to flicker.
The fire would destroy her. Boil the skin off her body.
“ No! ” The building shook and the fire between them sputtered out in a blink. The rage stirred in his gut as he ran to Nicole.
She grabbed his hand and he barely felt the pain as she clutched the burned skin, such was the pleasure of her touch.
But she was coughing and tears streaked from her eyes. “We’ve… got to…get out!”
So much fire still burned. The blaze was deliberate, he knew it. Someone had set this trap.
His fist slammed into the wall. The bricks cracked. They didn’t break, not like when Sam had hit them. Dammit!
The bricks suddenly exploded. Thick chunks flew out into the air. And Sam was there. He shoved his way inside and reached for the woman Keenan carried. “Give her to me!”
For an instant, Keenan wondered if Sam would throw the woman back into the fire. She barely seemed to breathe and blood matted her hair.
But Sam pulled her close and tucked her head against his chest. “ Weak human .”
All humans were weak. It was just how they’d been designed.
Sam spun away with the woman, and Keenan grabbed Nicole. “You shouldn’t have?—”
The flames snapped and snarled around them.
“—come after me!”
Her fingers locked with his. “Later! Let’s get out of here!”
No time. The ceiling collapsed with a shriek of boards and metal. Nicole slammed into him and pushed Keenan through that broken wall. She tumbled out right after him.
The whoosh of fire filled his ears, then he hit the concrete. The flesh scraped from his arms and hands. He rolled and caught Nicole when she landed on top of him. Ash stained her right cheek, and her eyes were wide and dark. Her breath eased out on a sigh. The fire still raged behind her.
He kissed her. Keenan grabbed the back of her head, tangled his fingers in the thickness of her hair, and crashed his mouth down onto hers.
Too close. That fire had been too close to her.
Death comes.
The scent of flowers fought with the ash, choking him.
Death comes.
His tongue drove into her mouth. Her nipples pushed against his chest.
Not right now, you don’t! You’re not taking her.
He wouldn’t let Az win. He hadn’t fallen just to lose her. He’d do whatever it took to face off against his ex-boss.
Even slipping into the dark.
“ Get them out of there! ” A voice thundered, and then hands were grabbing at him, her, and yanking them apart. Keenan growled, ready to rip and tear and?—
And he was staring at a firefighter. A young female with red cheeks who glared at him through a clear face mask.
“ Get them to the EMTs! ” she yelled, and her men pulled them clear of the building and the chaos.
EMTs. He glanced down and saw the blisters on his skin. The fire had tasted him. His gaze darted to Nicole. No sign of any injuries, but she looked even paler than normal.
They loaded Nicole into the back of the ambulance. An EMT shoved an oxygen mask over her face.
Then they turned to him. A heavyset male and a petite brunette cut off Keenan’s shirt, and he saw the brunette wince at his wounds.
He could barely feel them now.
He glanced back at Nicole and saw that her fangs were peeking out. A sure sign of her desperate thirst.
“ Oh, my God. ” The loud exclamation came from the brunette at his side. His gaze whipped back to her. He found her staring at him, her eyes saucer-like in her elfin face.
The guy stared at him, too, only his face was quickly bleaching of color. “What the hell?”
Keenan felt the tightening of his skin. One quick look down showed him that the wounds were healing. They were shrinking and disappearing right before his eyes— their eyes.
“I don’t need that!” Nicole snapped. “I don’t—Keenan! Oh, crap!” She’d gotten a look at his chest. She lunged up and grabbed his arm. “ Let’s go! ”
But she needed help. The EMTs could take her to the hospital. Get her some blood.
“ Come on. ” She jumped from the ambulance.
The little brunette lifted her hand toward him. “What are you?” she whispered.
He shook his head and leapt after Nicole.
“ Stop! ” A shout from the male. “You can’t leave! We need?—”
But he and Nicole were already running through the night, pushing through the crowd, and Keenan knew he’d made a fatal mistake.
He’d let the humans see what he really was.
By the time they stopped running, Nicole hurt. The thirst shook her body and her teeth burned. Whatever Sam had done to her, it had knocked out her reserve energy and she needed blood. Badly.
“ Nicole .”
She spun to face Keenan. They were in an alley. A too-thin slice between buildings that would give them a bit of protection from prying eyes. “Did you know that would happen?”
He blinked at her, looking sexy and strong, and charmingly confused.
Her breath rasped out. “They saw you heal, Keenan.”
His gaze held hers. “I didn’t realize I’d heal that fast. I hadn’t been hurt before.”
He hadn’t been—“What? Run that by me again.” Nice and slow.
His shoulders rolled. “Angels don’t feel pain. Not death angels. We collect souls.”
She knew that bit about soul collection.
“Only the dying can even see us. And if you’re dying, there’s no need to fight back. No need to suffer.”
Uh, right. “So you didn’t even know what pain was until you fell?” Unlike him, she knew all about pain. About how it ripped you apart and tormented your mind.
She’d never forget the lick of flames.
“Didn’t know about pain or pleasure.” His gaze caressed her face. “Until you.”
That was sweet. No, no, it wasn’t. She’d taught him about pain? Pain wasn’t some nice Hallmark card. Pain was a nightmare. “Keenan…”
His fingers skimmed down her face. A sensual touch so at odds with the aches churning within her. He crept closer and caged her against the wall with the strength of his body. “Do you need blood, sweet?”
“Yes.” It was all she could do not to sink her teeth into his throat. He was just in a fire. Hold back. Hold back!
His lips brushed her jaw. “You shouldn’t have come into that building after me.”
Her laugh was weak. “Did you really think I’d let you face the fire alone?” She shook her head, and he leaned in close. His lips slid down and pressed right over her pulse. She shivered. “We’re a team.” Us against the angels .
Hopefully, they wouldn’t be the losing team.
“If Sam hadn’t frozen me,” she said, “I’d have been there sooner.” Damn Sam.
His head whipped up. “What?”
She licked her lips. When he touched her, she didn’t hurt as much and his fingers were currently sliding down her side and curving over her hip. “He got me as soon as you left. One touch, and I couldn’t move.” Helpless.
“Bastard.” His fingers were under the edge of her shirt. Pushing up and caressing her skin. In an alley. For someone still new to the whole earthly temptation bit, he learned fast.
“I don’t, ah, think we can count on him,” she managed as her heart thudded hard in her chest. Her growing lust merged with the blood hunger and she wanted to bite. But she kept her teeth up and away from him as she added, “N-no matter what he said, we can’t trust him. He wanted you to break.”
Keenan’s gaze searched hers. His lips parted, but before he could speak, the roar of motorcycles shook the night. Her head turned just as bright headlights flashed out of the darkness and filled her sight.
A booming voice called out, “Well, well, look what we have here!”
A familiar voice.
That biker jerk from the bar.
Keenan didn’t move. He kept his hands on her, but his gaze was on the men closing in.
The biker. Shit. Nicole recognized the big, burly, bald biker from the club. About thirty years old, muscled, with both arms tattooed. And he was heading right for them.
“Knew our fire would smoke you out.” He smiled. “Vamps can never handle fire worth a shit.”
Did everyone but her know the paranormal score in this world?
He pointed one leather-clad hand at Keenan. “I don’t got a fight with you. Take my advice, buddy. Go find another screw tonight.”
Her eyes narrowed with fury. She needed blood badly right then, and that ass was begging for a bite.
“ Watch what you say,” Keenan ordered, voice flat.
“Fuck you.”
She guessed the biker wasn’t into watching his mouth.
Now the jerk pointed at her. “I know what you are, bitch, and I know who you are.”
The more she stared at him, the more familiar he appeared to her. Something about the line of his jaw. The bulge of his nose.
“Knew as soon as you walked into that club.” The biker’s hands dropped, only to rise up half a second later gripping a stake. Definitely prepared. “I been carrying this in my pack since I buried Jeff.”
Oh, hell.
An image flashed in her mind. A big, burly guy with fists that had been thick and hard as he drove them into her face.
Then that body had fallen. Sagged so quickly. When his head hit the cement, Jeff Quint’s eyes had been wide open, and so had his throat.
She grabbed Keenan’s arm and tried to shove him away. “I-I’ve got this. You go, I’ll meet you back at—” Our place. Had she really almost said that? She swallowed and forced a smile. “I’ll see you soon.”
But Keenan wasn’t moving. Not even an inch. “No way, sweet. I’m not leaving you alone to face?—”
Laughter cut him off.
“You really think somebody like her needs protecting?” That stake rose. “What she needs is a good killing.” Mutters of agreement came from the men behind him. “Hell, even death’s too damn good for her. She needs to suffer. ”
One of his buddies called out, “Tell the bitch, Mike!” And, of course, the buddy had a stake, too.
Not my night.
But then, she’d known this night would come for some time. A night of reckoning. They wanted her blood. It seemed only fair, considering she’d taken all of Jeff’s.
“I didn’t want to kill him,” Nicole said the words without looking at Keenan. She couldn’t look at him then. Time he found out the truth. She stepped away from him and the alley wall and faced the vengeance that was coming.
“Right. You just tripped.” Mike closed in on her. “And your teeth landed in his throat.” A snarl burst from his fat lips. “Jeff was my brother, the only fucking family I had. I knew vamps were after us, but I never expected a fresh-faced piece of ass like you to come hunting. Guess he didn’t either.”
No.
She could feel Keenan’s stare on her. She glanced his way, just for an instant. “He doesn’t have anything to do with this.”
“Then he can damn well leave.” Mike grabbed her shoulder. His fingers dug in deep. “But you’re only getting out of this alley in pieces.”
The alley seemed to tremble. “ Get your hand off her. ” Keenan’s too-lethal voice.
But Mike only had eyes and bloodlust for her. “Jeff and me—you know how many vamps we killed?”
No, but all the vamp slaying would explain why she’d been sent after Jeff Quint. He preys on us. Now we prey on him. Rip out his throat. Make him bleed. Make him beg. How long had those words played through her mind? Over and over, until her will was gone and all she could do when Jeff came at her that night was attack.
He hadn’t even had the chance to get out his stake.
Not like his big brother.
Mike didn’t take his hand off her. Those thick fingers just dug deeper as they seemed to squeeze right to the bone. Behind him, the other men—five of them, all big, leather-clad and with go-to-hell grins—began to close in.
“I gave you a chance to run,” Mike snapped at Keenan. “Last call, dumbass. You stand with the vamp bitch or you save your own ass and get the hell out of here.”
“Get out of here, Keenan,” she urged. She was going to fight, but this wasn’t his fight. In case things didn’t go her way—the odds were a bit heavy in old Mike’s favor—she didn’t want Keenan paying for her crimes. She darted a quick glance at Keenan.
“I’m not going anywhere.” His gaze burned into Mike. “Get the hand off her, human, or lose it. ”
She had the feeling he really, really meant those words. “Keenan...”
But Mike didn’t drop his hold. He did bring up his stake, getting it too close to her heart for comfort.
Then Keenan moved crazy fast and shoved his hand against Mike’s chest. Mike flew back into the air and slammed into two of his biker buddies.
“You had your chance,” Keenan bit out. “ Dumbass, you should have backed off while you could.”
Mike sprang back to his feet and attacked, with all his men running right behind him. Six against two. Not horrific odds. Actually kind of good considering the bikers were human and she and Keenan weren’t.
Keenan jumped in front of her, swinging out with his fist and sending two guys flying back. The men hit the walls of the alley. They didn’t get up.
Okay, four against two. Even better.
Keenan caught the next attacker around the throat. The stake dropped from the blond’s hand as he clawed at Keenan’s hold, struggling to get free. His pale face began to purple.
She grabbed for Keenan’s arm, afraid the human was about to die right there. “Keenan, no. ”
“Calling back your dog?” Mike was there, charging by Keenan and coming for her. “Nothing can save you, bitch, nothing!”
He ran at her with the stake up. His buddies took Keenan, swarming him. Her teeth burned, her claws lengthened, and when Mike lunged at her with that stake, she just ripped it out of his hands, broke it, and tossed the pieces behind her.
That didn’t stop Mike. No, he swung at her and slammed his fist right into her face.
Definitely remember that. Mike and his brother both hit with brutal force.
The bloodlust rose but she stumbled back.
“That’s right, run. And get ready to bleed. ”
Um, no. She wouldn’t be bleeding for him. His fist came at her again. She caught it in her left hand. Then her fist went at him, plowing into his cheek. Not the light hit of her pre-vamp days. Nicole swung with a blow strong enough to break Mike’s jaw. When the bones crunched, she knew the punch had broken his jaw.
He kicked out, his booted heel aiming for her stomach, but she twisted and he missed her. Mike fell to the ground.
“I’m sorry about your brother,” she said the words between pants. “If I had it all to do again...” But there’d been no choice at the end. He’d fought her and if she hadn’t killed him, he would have taken her head.
“ Fucking bitch !” Mike shoved up and yanked a knife out of his boot. “He should’ve killed you. ” He leapt off the ground and sliced with his knife.
The blade never touched her skin. Keenan grabbed Mike’s hand, twisted, broke the jerk’s wrist, and the knife clattered to the ground.
“I said you’d lose this hand,” Keenan reminded him.
Veins bulged along Mike’s neck.
Behind them, she saw the scattered remains of Mike’s crew. Still alive—she could see their chests moving—but out of commission. No backup for Mike.
Nicole stalked closer to Mike. She didn’t touch him. Wouldn’t.
“Gonna bite me now?” Blood dripped from his lips.
Oh, she wanted to. Even more, she needed that blood.
Keenan’s shove had Mike sinking to his knees and staring up at her with his throat bared.
“Gonna kill me like you did Jeff?”
Her gaze swept to the unconscious men once more, and she held onto her control with all the strength she possessed. “Do you always hunt in a pack?” Wolves weren’t the only ones smart enough to do that. Mike hunted vampires, but he was human. Humans against vamps—that equaled a serious disadvantage. One he’d tried to make up for with the numbers tonight.
“Not telling you a damn thing about how I hunt.” Deep lines bracketed his mouth. Keenan still had a grip on Mike’s hand and she could see the sweat that beaded Mike’s upper lip. “Not talking so you might as well rip me open.”
She shook her head. “I’m sorry about your brother.” She could understand Mike wanting her blood. The other vamps he’d killed—maybe they’d deserved to be put down. But maybe they hadn’t. We’re not all evil. Not when we have a choice.
“Bullshit. You’re…just a damn bloodsucker.”
Right. She was. And he could see her fangs.
But she wasn’t under the control of the Born Master anymore. Her gaze slipped to Keenan because what she had to say was for him as much as Mike. “You know—you know when vampires are Taken ...” Taken, the term for vampires who were made through the blood exchange. Made, not Born. Only a very few were actually born as vampires. The Born Masters were the strongest, baddest, and hardest to kill vamps out there.
She took a breath and glanced back at Mike. “When they’re Taken, they’re linked to the vamps that changed them.” Only the vamp who changed her had been dead. So she hadn’t been told anything about vamp rules and powers. She’d had to find everything out the hard way.
“I don’t give a shit about?—”
“Vamps are linked, through the blood, back to the Born Master that started their line.” She’d talk, and he’d listen. Not like Mike had much of a choice. “We’re linked, and the Born Master—he can control us. He can force his thoughts into our minds.”
“No fucking Born killed my brother! It was you!”
Her shoulders sagged. He was right. The Born had been in her head, whispering, ordering, breaking her will, but in the end, she’d been the one to make the kill. Her teeth. His throat.
“Kill me, kill me and get this damn mess over!”
Nicole shook her head. “I’m not killing you.” The voice in her head was long gone. The Born—Grim—was dead, courtesy of a female bounty hunter named Dee Daniels. There were no more whispers in her mind these days. No more hell.
Control. “I’m not a killer.” Not any longer She drank to survive and that was all. Not to kill.
Because if she crossed the line and started killing, she knew that Dee would come after her, too. Dee had warned all those Taken by Grim… If you’re twisted like Grim and you get off on hurting humans, then, yeah, I’ll come after you. It’s what I do.
Nicole wasn’t particularly in the mood to face off against Dee or the Night Watch Bounty Hunting Agency.
“Let him go, Keenan,” she said quietly.
Keenan dropped his hold.
Mike fell forward. His hands slapped against the concrete.
“Don’t cross my path, and I won’t cross yours.” They’d both just keep living. She eased back. Her shoulder brushed Keenan’s. “Let’s get out of here.”
They’d taken five steps when she heard the rustle of sound. Clothing. A scrape of wood.
She spun back around. Mike was on his feet, a stake in his left hand, and he was barreling for her again.
Crossing her path.
Keenan tried to shove her back. No way. She shoved him. Keenan went down. Her arm came up, and she blocked the blow. The stake hovered in the air. Mike strained, trying to shove down and impale her heart.
“I’m not a killer,” she told him as the bloodlust burned and called her a liar. “But if you keep coming at me, I will fight back.”
“Good,” he spat. “Cause I’m not stopping! That was my brother, my flesh, mine! I’m not stopping ’til you are rotting in the ground!”
Unfortunate. She really didn’t want to kill him because she’d promised herself she wouldn’t take another life. But she wasn’t in the mood to die, either. No matter what death angel might be circling her.
“Come at me again,” her last warning to him, “and I’ll drain you dry.”
“Just like you did Jeff?”
Through gritted teeth, she managed, “Yes.” She yanked the stake from him and drove it into his shoulder. He howled as his blood flew into the air.
Keenan drove his fist into Mike’s face. That stopped the yelling and Mike joined his unconscious men on the ground.
Keenan met her stare, his eyes shadowed with fury. “If you leave him alive, he’ll just come after you again.”
“Maybe.” Probably. “But I have to give him the chance.” To walk away. Just walk away.
Yet with blood involved, would the man walk? This wasn’t about pride. It was about family.
Vengeance.
He’ll come after me again.
And she’d have to kill him. But not now. Not tonight. The scent of flowers that thickened the air—the angel that was close—he’d have to wait on her prey.
“Maybe he’ll wake up smarter.” I could have killed you. I gave you a chance.
Give me one.
“We’ve got to get out of here,” she told Keenan. Before the guys on the ground woke up and before those sirens she heard got any closer.
Coming home again—bad mistake. There too many dangers to her in New Orleans. But then, these days, it seemed like someone was always after her.
Because I’m marked for death?
Time was running out.
“Come on.” Keenan snagged her hand with his. She heard the crack of anger in his voice and hesitated. He knows. He knew about the darkness in her now. He’d realized she wasn’t the woman he’d watched so long ago. While he’d been away, her bad side had most definitely come out to play.
“Hurry, Nicole, come on! ” Then they were running, streaking down the streets and darting through the alleys. Bourbon Street came and went, the crowd a blur around her. Voices, laughter. Bodies brushing. Faster, faster they went as they pushed into bars, darted outside, and cut through the city.
Then...
Silence.
They’d stopped outside a voodoo shop. The place was closed for the night. The windows and doors were covered with thick bars. The street was empty. Everyone was busy partying a few blocks away. Nicole sagged, her breath heaving. Safe. For now.
“You killed.” The anger was back in Keenan’s voice. More reckoning time.
She brushed her hands against her thighs, sucked in more air, and managed a jerky nod.
“After what that vamp did to you in the alley...” He shook his head and stared at her with confusion clear in his gaze. “ You killed someone else? ”
More than one “someone else.” She cleared her throat. “You know about the Borns.” She’d fought, for as long and as hard as she could. But he’d broken her. “They take away your will.” She’d been linked to Grim from the moment she took her first breath. She’d heard his whisper in her mind, taunting her, and as the days passed and she became weaker, that whisper had turned into a scream.
She paced away from Keenan. The heat of the night wrapped around her. The scent of the river teased her nose. “I didn’t want to kill.” A stark truth. “Do you really think I could ever want that?”
She’d viciously fought the vamp who attacked her, but that had been self-defense. No choice. And the others?—
How long are you going to keep justifying?
She exhaled on a ragged sigh “He put the compulsion to attack in my head. The men he sent me after—they’d been killing vamps.” Right, like that was such a bad thing. Most of the vamps she’d met had lived to torture and slaughter.
Grim had made sure that his Taken were just like him.
“You’d never killed. Not until that night.” Now Keenan sounded sad, and his voice made her heart ache. “I knew—the first time I saw you in Mexico, I knew you looked different.”
Fangs. Claws. Seduction. Blood. Yes, she’d gotten some new features. Not exactly upgrades. “I had to change in order to survive.” She wouldn’t apologize for all that she’d done. The killings—yes, she regretted them and had vowed not to take another life, but the other things... Seduction, blood drinking— I had to survive.
His gaze raked her.
What did he see?
A monster? Or a woman?
“Wishing you’d touched me and let me die that night?” The question slipped from her lips, and, oh, damn, she hadn’t meant to say that. She’d been thinking it—for days now—but she hadn’t meant to say it.
His eyes narrowed into chips of blue ice.
She spun around and began marching, um, running, down the street. She didn’t want to hear his answer. Didn’t want to know that the man who’d had her back these last few days actually wished that she was dead.
Enough people were already wishing that.
Hard hands caught her and hauled her back against a muscled chest. “ Never say that. ” He whirled her around. His eyes didn’t look like ice anymore. Black now, not blue, and burning.
“Keenan, I?—”
His mouth took hers. Not soft. Not gentle. No hesitant lover. Hard. Rough. The kiss was wild with need.
The fear in her heart pushed her to be wild, too. She grabbed his arms and pulled him closer. They stumbled back and her shoulders rapped into the wood of the nearby building.
She opened her mouth wider, sucking on his tongue, and taking everything she could get from him. His taste filled her mouth. Had her arching against him.
He still wanted her. He knew what she’d become, and he wasn’t turning away. He was touching her, his hands greedy and possessive, stroking and caressing, and her angel wasn’t running.
Neither was she. Not now.
Even through their clothes, the hard length of his cock pushed against her. Aroused. Thick and strong. She wanted him in her. Nicole didn’t care where they were. Didn’t care about anything right then—but him.
Need him. Want him.
His body. His blood. Oh, a taste of his blood would be heaven right then.
His hand shoved under her shirt. His fingers pushed under her bra. His thumb scraped across her nipple.
Yes.
“The building’s deserted.”
He was right. She didn’t hear any sounds from inside.
Keenan stepped back, but kept a hold on her arm. “ I need you. ”
She was on fire for him.
He kicked open the door. One kick, and the wood flew inward. Then he pulled her inside. An empty space. No furniture, but there were sturdy walls. Privacy.
He pushed her against the nearest wall. Keenan drove his tongue in her mouth and took. His hands went to her ass and he jerked her up, pressing her hard to the thick bulge of his cock.
She held him tight. Nicole pushed the worries and fears from her mind and just held him.
His fingers were at the waist of her jeans, yanking at the snap, and then shoving down the zipper.
Her inexperienced Fallen had her jeans down around her ankles in about two seconds, then her jeans and her panties were completely gone and his fingers were pushing between her legs. Pushing up, rubbing, stroking her.
Nicole rose onto her toes as her body tightened. Yes. She loved the way he touched her. He already knew her body. Knew just what she liked. How she needed to be touched.
He dropped to his knees before her.
“Keenan?”
He spread her thighs. His breath blew over her sex, and she shivered.
Then his hands were pushing between her legs. His long, broad fingers slid into her sex.
She jolted at the first touch. Her body felt so sensitive that she almost climaxed.
“Not yet.” Keenan’s growled order.
His fingers stroked her, plunging harder and deeper. His thumb brushed over her clit and sent a pulse of electricity right through her body.
“ Beautiful. ”
Her hands clamped down on his shoulders. “ Keenan .” They shouldn’t be there—where was there? She’d never had sex in public, before vamp life or after, and this still counted as public to her.
His mouth was on her sex. His tongue drove inside and her knees would have buckled if he hadn’t held her up with his tight grip.
She came quickly. A hard wave of release that whipped through her. The aftershocks still trembled through her body when he rose up and lifted her. His pants were open now. Oh, he moved fast. He caught her hips, lifted her against the wall, and drove his cock into her.
The pleasure pulsed.
His eyes were on hers as he thrust. Deep, driving thrusts. She licked her lips and clamped her inner muscles around him—the better to feel that slow, slick glide.
Her heart thudded in her chest, her breath heaved, and the tension rose again. Higher, higher, as her body tightened.
Her hands were still on his shoulders, curling fiercely around him, and she leaned forward to swipe her tongue over his throat. Her teeth scraped his neck, not breaking the skin, just?—
He plunged deeper.
Her teeth pierced his throat and the sweet drops of his blood spilled onto her tongue. Her control shattered. Nicole climaxed again, drinking, taking his blood as she gulped that sweetness down greedily. He choked out her name and he drove into her faster. Harder. Even wilder .
This time, the climax wasn’t a snap. Or a pop. It was a full-on eruption that had her whole body trembling as the pleasure lashed her.
He stiffened against her. Nicole’s head lifted. His taste filled her mouth. His eyes—blacker than night—met hers. She felt the jet of his release inside her, the hot splash, and as she watched, she saw the shadow of black wings stretch behind him.
The air seemed to rustle around her as the wings moved. Her gasps filled the air, his fingers still cut into her hips, but as the pleasure faded, she could only stare at those wings.
Then she had to touch them.
Slowly, her right hand eased down his shoulder. Her hand drifted down his back, and her fingertips stretched out.
She felt the lightest, softest silk. Just a whisper. Just?—
Keenan shuddered against her. His head was bent now, and his mouth pressed to her throat. “What are you doing?” Keenan rumbled, then his lips opened wider over her throat. His tongue licked over her skin, and his cock began to thicken. “ Feels good. ”
It did feel good. Her fingers were tingling. “I’m touching your wings.”
He tore away from her, pulling that thickening cock from her and lowering Nicole until her feet hit the floor.
No. She wanted more of him.
Keenan stared at her with stunned eyes. “What did you say?”
She could still see them—big, dark wings. They seemed to come right from his back. She tried to step forward but her knees were doing a jiggle. “Your wings, I’m touching your wings.”
“I don’t have wings.”
She hadn’t thought so either, but she nodded.
He spun, showing her his back. “They were burned off when I fell.”
She could see the angry red scars on his otherwise perfect back, but she could also see those dark shadows, rising up, covering him like a cloud. “I can see them.”
He whirled back to face her. “No, they’re gone. ”
The scent of flowers hit her. Light, sweet. Such a strange smell to mark someone who could destroy her so easily. Nicole grabbed her underwear and jeans and hauled them back up even as Keenan cocked his head to the side and stared hard at the broken front door. A breeze blew into the room, and then?—
Wings. Black wings. Not shadows, but real, honest-to-God wings appeared as the angel approached. Angel. His face seemed carved from stone but made of beauty. He wore a white T-shirt, dark jeans. Strange, she’d expected something less modern. More magical for clothing.
Nicole swallowed. Forget the clothing. I shouldn’t be seeing him. This was wrong. Something was wrong. You didn’t see an angel of death unless you were dying. That was what Keenan had said. “I see your wings,” she told Keenan. “And I see him. ”
If she saw an angel of death, that meant her time had come.