Chapter 1 #2
My nape tingled, and not just because that babe sounded especially hot in his deep rumble.
“I don’t know about that,” I mumbled, resting my hands on his hips and tucking my thumbs into the waistband of his navy joggers. “So far, my gift seems like a one-shot deal.”
Jesse shook his head, his dark eyes serious. “I know what I saw in that chamber. You’re young. A gift like yours takes time to mature. And seers aren’t one-size-fits-all. The fact that you saw into both the future and the past proves that. Nin said you have the potential to be extraordinary.”
I pulled back. “Nin said that about me?” The head of the Council of Elders looked like a supermodel and specialized in pulling people’s worst fears from their heads. I had no idea how old she was, but some instinct told me she was ancient. As in, mummies in a museum ancient.
“Yes,” Jesse said. “She wants you trained, but the Council is having a hard time locating another seer.”
A devil landed on my shoulder. “Can’t say I’m mad about that. I’ve been enjoying my hiatus from learning.”
Jesse smiled as he slid a hand to my butt and squeezed. “Don’t get too comfortable. Once this assignment is over, we need you focused on learning how to tap your gift.”
The devil poofed out of sight, the word “assignment” reminding me why there was an open suitcase on the bed. Last night, Stefanos Tasakis had appeared on Jesse’s doorstep with photos of Ulfrik Haraldsson, the rogue werewolf who’d attacked me and turned me.
Except Ulfrik was very much dead. Jesse had ripped his head from his shoulders and then disintegrated his body with chemicals. There was no rational or scientific explanation for Ulfrik showing up in a doorway in Rome.
But he had, and now Stefanos and the rest of the Council had tasked Jesse and me with finding out why.
I knew my irritation showed on my face. “I’m a seer. You’re one of just four wolfseekers in the world. We’re precious resources, right? So it seems pretty dumb for the Council to send us after Ulfrik.”
Jesse’s frown returned.
I stepped from his arms. “But we both know why they’re doing it.”
“Caleb—”
“So I can serve as bait.”
Jesse stilled, a hint of disapproval coloring his frown. And a sudden thought landed in my head like an arrow finding a bullseye.
He looked like he was fresh off rushing a frat.
Slap a backward ball cap on him, and he could blend into any college campus.
But Jesse was old. Not as old as Nin and Stefanos, but he’d clocked a century and change.
He’d also fought in World War I. Maybe it was military service or just being born in a different time, but Jesse was a rule follower.
He did things by the book. Respected the chain of command.
I specialized in the opposite. I’d spent twenty-three years breaking rules and pissing people off, and my track record as a werewolf wasn’t much better.
I’d attacked my dean. Beat the hell out of a teammate.
Exposed myself to two humans in Jesse’s backyard.
Mouthed off to Nin and Stefanos and somehow kept all my limbs.
Jesse upheld werewolf law for a living. My very existence defied it. Maybe that said something about why we worked as a couple.
“I know why they’re sending us,” I said.
“And I can’t even really fault their logic.
Ulfrik turned me. If he’s alive and in Rome, my connection to him is the best lead the Council has.
Using me as bait makes sense.” I shrugged.
“I just want us going into this with our eyes open. We might be special, but we’re not expendable.
The Council wants us, but it wants Ulfrik taken care of more. ”
For a moment, Jesse was silent. He stared at me, and I could almost see him meticulously arranging his thoughts the same way he arranged his socks.
Finally, he nodded. “You’re right.”
Surprise shot through me. “I am?”
One corner of his mouth quirked up. He stepped into me and grasped my jaw, his hold gentle but possessive as hell. And, as always, that combination lit me up like a Christmas tree, colors blinking and burning inside me.
“Yeah,” he said softly. “Stop doubting yourself. The mission is straightforward enough. Rogues are beyond speech. Whatever is left of Ulfrik’s mind is gone.
We can’t question him. Stefanos wants him dead and the body preserved for the Council to study.
So we find him, we put him down, and we hand him over. ”
“And then what?” I asked.
“Then the Council figures out how he survived. That’s not our problem.
Our job ends when he does.” Something hard and possessive moved through Jesse’s eyes.
“But I promise you this. The second this mission puts you in danger, I’m done.
Finished. I’ll die before I let anyone even think of hurting you. Understand?”
The Christmas lights inside me got a couple plastic Santas and an inflatable snow globe the size of a parking lot. “Yeah,” I said.
“Good,” he murmured. Slowly, he leaned in, giving me plenty of time to pull away.
I didn’t, of course, and he kissed me, licking into my mouth and pulling a low, desperate-sounding moan from my throat.
His scent wrapped around me, the blend of evergreen and aftershave burrowing under my skin and sinking into my bones.
I returned the kiss, pushing my tongue against his. Getting us both a little messy. My hands found their way into his hair, and then I was rocking my hips against his, my dick eager to trade packing for something better. Like a ride in Jesse’s lap.
He trailed his lips down my jawline to my neck. He lingered there, his breath hot against my skin, and his voice was like gravel as he said, “It’s supposed to rain. We need to get across town before the storm hits.”
A groan of protest filled my throat. “We’re in England. Rain is the national export.”
His chuckle vibrated my neck. “I don’t think that’s how exports work.”
My groan broke free. “Whatever, Professor van der Meer. Didn’t you teach history, anyway?”
The question was rhetorical. I knew damn well Jesse had taught history before his immortality forced him to retire. Most people clung to youth as long as they could. But looking eternally twenty-five came with its own set of problems, career longevity being one of them.
He nipped my neck before pulling back, his eyes gone burnished gold. “More like I need to teach you how to behave.”
I licked my lips, tasting him. “I’m a slow learner. You might have to spank me if you really want to get your point across.”
Lust flared in his eyes. He cursed softly, his attention on my mouth. Then he planted a firm hand on my chest and eased me away like he needed the distance to keep a clear head.
“We really do have to make this meeting,” he said. “Sterling is expecting us.”
I didn’t even attempt to stifle my sigh. Giving Jesse a look, I stepped back and adjusted my erection. “I’d say rain check but I’m feeling less than favorable toward weather puns right now.”
He smiled. Then he sobered, a careful look entering his eyes. “Do you have any odd feelings about meeting with Sterling tonight?”
I dragged a hand through my hair. “You mean like a premonition?” I’d gotten bad feelings long before I discovered I was a seer.
Back in Albany, I’d flipped out when Jesse had raised the issue of driving to Hale Valley without me.
My guts had twisted, and a sense of doom had settled over me like a max squat, the weight threatening to buckle my knees.
“Yes,” Jesse said, watching me. “Does anything feel off?”
I held my breath, waiting for that sickly, heavy feeling to return. But it didn’t come. Like every day since the trial, whatever magical senses I possessed remained dormant. No flashes of insight. No cool visions. Not even a tingle down my spine.
Just silence, the faint sound of rain outside, and the low hum of the television, where the screen had switched to a man and a woman reading the news.
“No odd feelings,” I said, “just the usual pissiness I get whenever Stefanos orders us to do something.”
Jesse huffed. He looked around, his gaze falling on my open suitcase. His own luggage sat on the floor next to the closet, packed and zipped since breakfast. His backpack nestled next to it, and his hooded sweatshirt was folded on top like something out of a sporting goods store display.
“Do you need any help?” he asked, craning his neck as he peered into my bag. “You’ve never been to Rome—”
“I’m good,” I said.
He wandered closer, a fresh frown appearing between his brows. “Your shirts will fit better if you roll them.”
“Uh-huh.”