A Dark Kiss of Rapture (9 page)

Vash pushed her hair back from her face and
looked grim. “I hate to say it, but your Kim is going to be a
problem for you, unless you’re planning on Changing her and taking
the risk that she won’t lose herself in the process. You’ve made a
lot of enemies over the years.”

Everything inside him recoiled at the
thought of losing Kim in any way, by his actions or someone else’s.
“That hasn’t escaped me. But I wasn’t their only target. They had
rudimentary plans to lure you and Salem out, too, using one of
Salem’s old hunts—like they did with me—and data on Charron’s
killers for you.”

“Well, fuckin’ A.” Her amber eyes were hard
and cold. “They’re lucky they went with you first. They wouldn’t
have liked dealing with me.”

“I thought the same thing,” he said wryly.
“In a related matter, Adrian called me today. He’s ordered me and
the team out of Chicago by Tuesday. To say he’s not happy about
armed minions in the city would be an understatement.”

“Fuck him and the high horse he rides,” she
snapped.

He smiled. “You’re just pissed because he’s
got us by the balls with this one.”

“Whatever. The fucker shouldn’t always be
right.” She took a deep breath. “Listen, I don’t want to distract
you from what you’re doing, especially while you’ve got Adrian
breathing down your neck, but... Nikki’s gone missing.”

Raze froze. Torque’s wife. “What do you mean
by ‘missing’?”

“She was supposed to pick up Torque in
Shreveport last night but she never made it.”

“You’ll need me.” It wasn’t a question.

“Yeah. But take care of what’s on your plate
there first. We need to put a lid on that mess and I need your head
in the game when you get back here.”

“Keep me posted.”

“Of course.”

He signed off and stood, methodically
packing up his things. There wasn’t much.

“The room is yours,” he told Crash. “I’ll
call you when I get out in the field. I have something to take care
of.”

Crash waved absently, his attention riveted
to the data on Baron’s laptop.

* * *

Raze had barely knocked on Kim’s door when
it was yanked open and she threw herself into his arms.

“Is everything all right?” she asked,
pressing her face into his chest.

With one arm around her waist, he lifted her
feet from the floor and carried her into the apartment, closing
them inside by leaning back against the door. “For now.”

What a lie, he thought. Everything was far
from all right. No matter what he decided, it was going to be
painful for both of them.

She searched his face for answers. “Talk to
me.”

He dropped his bag on the ground and wrapped
his arms around her, engulfing her in the strength and heat of his
body. “I brought my crap to your door, Kim. And then I came back
anyway.”

“Damn right you came back.” She had the same
look of determination on her face that she’d had when she picked
him up in the club. “I would’ve hunted you down if you hadn’t.”

“You wouldn’t find me.” And god, it killed
him to think of her trying to. Because he understood the drive, the
need and hunger to be near each other. It’s what brought him back
to her even when he knew the best thing for both of them would be
for him to walk away completely.

“Try me,” she challenged grimly. “If you
want to go because you don’t feel anything for me, that’s fine. I
won’t make it difficult for you. But as long as I think you’re
taking the same ride I am, I’m not letting you get off easy.”

He pressed his cheek to hers, swamped with
wanting her, with wanting
this
—the sense of being right
where he should be. He carried her to the couch and sat, arranging
her so that she straddled him. She draped her arms over his
shoulders and leaned back, affording him the opportunity to drink
in the sight of her. She wore blue jeans and a loose V-neck
T-shirt, looking soft and sexy and beautiful.

“Am I in danger?” she asked. “Is that what
the roses were about? Is that what you’re kicking yourself
over?”

“Not immediate.” Raze’s fingers shifted into
her hair, pushing it back from her face. “But as long as I’m with
you, it’s always going to be hovering in the background. You don’t
need any more traumas, Kim. You’ve had more than your share
already.”

“I come from a family of cops. I’ll be
okay.” She cupped the back of his head, making sure his gaze stayed
locked with hers. “It’s good you came back, Raze. Whatever else you
may think, whatever else is going on, it’s important that you came
back. It was the right thing to do.”

He hugged her again, running his hands up
her spine to mold her into him. “I’ve got work to do today and I
didn’t ask you first, but I gave up my room and brought my stuff
here.”

“Good.”

“You say that now, but you don’t know what I
am and I can’t tell you until I’m given permission to.”

“You tried warning me off the night I met
you, remember? And it didn’t work, even when you were just a
seriously prime piece of beefcake.” Kim squeezed him hard. “It’s
not going to work now that I’m invested.”

“You don’t know what I do. You’ll need to
know. I’ll need to tell you when I can, but I have to leave soon.
No later than Tuesday. And I don’t know when I’ll be back. It could
be weeks. Months.”

“Just so long as you come back. Promise me
that. That’s where we’ll begin. We have the phone and internet. We
can video conference. It won’t be the same as touching you, but at
least we’re not giving up.”

His head fell back onto the sofa cushion,
his eyes trained on the ceiling but not seeing it. “I’m going to be
honest and tell you what’s running through my head. Dropping this
now would be the best thing for both of us. We’ve had a couple days
together. A week from now it won’t seem as intense. A few months
down the road, it’ll be a fond memory. That’s the easy way to
go.”

“You’re absolutely right.” She took a deep
breath. “I was thinking the same thing while you were gone. I was
rehearsing what I’d say to you, how to put across that I’d had a
great time but the weekend was enough for me. There’s something
here, we both know that, but it’s just a spark right now. With a
little time and a little distance, it’ll burn out.”

He exhaled harshly. “Yeah.”

“But then I realized I’m not okay with
that.” She was staring at him when he lifted his head to look at
her. “Because I don’t know if I’ll find that spark again. I don’t
if it would be the same if I did find it later. What if this is it?
What if you’re the best thing that ever happened to me? Am I going
to spend the rest of my life wondering what could have happened if
I’d been strong enough to try? I don’t want to live with those
questions haunting me.”

“I’m pretty sure I’m the worse thing that’s
ever happened to you,” he muttered. “Let’s clear that up now.”

“And I’m pretty sure you could turn into a
werewolf during full moons and I wouldn’t care.”

“What?”

“Or maybe a troll on Wednesdays? Maybe
you’re a vampire, and that’s why I haven’t seen you eat.”

“Christ.” He couldn’t help it; his lips
twitched with the urge to laugh. Which was just part of her magic.
He was a different person with her. And he liked being that guy.
Liked being
her
guy.

“Ha!” Kim’s eyes sparkled with mischief. “I
spend most days examining bodily fluids, which a lot of people
think is gross. We all have our blemishes. And we’re not talking
about marriage here. We’re talking about taking a chance. Making a
few phone calls. Sending a few emails.”

She nuzzled his nose with hers, a playful
gesture that no one else would dare to make with him. His lungs
seized with a terrible yearning. Tilting his head, he kissed her,
drinking her in. Her lips were soft and sweet beneath his; her
returning kiss was deep and slow. Savoring.

“What do ya say, rough guy?” she murmured
against his mouth. “Wanna take a chance on me?”

“Yes.” Raze took her mouth again. “Yes.
Fuck. But I have to go now. I have to work.”

“But you’ll be back.”

He fisted his hand in her hair and nodded.
“I’ll be back.”

# # #

Don’t miss Adrian’s story,

A TOUCH OF CRIMSON

Available now from Signet Eclipse!

* * * * *

Can a love that transcends death survive a
war between angels, vampires, and lycans?

An angel with immense power and insatiable
desire, Adrian Mitchell leads an elite Special Ops unit of the
seraphim. His task is to punish the Fallen—angels who have become
vampires—and command a restless pack of indentured lycans.

But Adrian has suffered his own punishment
for becoming involved with mortals—losing the woman he loves again
and again. Now, after nearly two hundred years, he has found her:
Shadoe, her soul once more inhabiting a new body that doesn't
remember him. This time he won't let her go.

With no memory of her past as Shadoe, Lindsay
Gibson knows only that she can't help being fiercely attracted to
the smoldering, seductive male who crosses her path. Swept into a
dangerous world of tumultuous passion and preternatural conflict,
Lindsay is soon caught between her angel lover, her vampire father,
and a full-blown lycan revolt. There's more at stake than her love
and her life—she could lose her very soul...

* * * * *

Signet (October 4, 2011)

ISBN-13: 978-0451234995