She had been already aroused.
He couldn't miss her reference to that brief moment when he'd held her earlier. Especially not while holding her just as closely now. Her heat burned his hand at the small of her back; her scent rose all around him and there was a slight increase in the tempo of her breathing. The same as earlier, only this time they were in public, her date and his co-worker watching them. It was enough of a reminder to force him back into the rhythm of the dance.
“You're definitely blunt,” he said gruffly. “I'm going to have to get used to that. Women usually have an art to their speech that makes conversation with them like trying to find your way through a maze.”
“I prefer to make myself undeniably clear,” she said. “I don't likeâ”
She stopped so suddenly to whip her head around that Liam was instantly on guard. He swung her behind himself, placing her nearest the least occupied corner of the room, tracking the direction she'd been looking in.
“Explain,” he demanded shortly, quickly scanning eyes around the room for trouble.
“I . . . I heard something,” she lied awkwardly. “I thought someone said my name and . . .”
“Got it,” he said grimly. He glanced at Inez, who swiftly rose to her feet and joined his visual scan. He touched that little pink spot beneath his ear again. “Let's get her out of here,” he instructed Inez. She nodded, moving quickly to them.
“I've given your regrets to your companion,” she told Devon gently.
They each took one of her arms and led her to the back of the restaurant.
“Colin's meeting us in back.”
Liam didn't draw his weapon until they were in the kitchen. Devon was relieved that he did because she knew there was another Morphate in the area. She could smell whoever it was, unfamiliar and feminine. She found herself in the awkward position of having information she couldn't share with her protectors without giving herself away, and she simply couldn't risk disclosure. Would he suspect a woman as quickly as he would a man? The Morphate was close. Very close. Devon's heart pounded, adrenaline and defensive instincts roaring to the surface. She pressed her lips together as her fangs began to lengthen in reflex, and curled her hands to hide the growth of her nails.
Liam felt tension and resistance in his principal. It wasn't good. If she didn't cooperate, it could make things difficult. He pushed open the outside door, checking all corners quickly and looking for Colin. He ducked back inside.
“It's clear,” he told Inez. Inez knew he wouldn't expose Devon to the exterior until he heard Colin pulling up.
Liam looked down at Devon and her wide eyes, realizing he could see the pounding of her heart against the silk covering her chest. “You'll be safe in a minute,” he assured her softly against her ear.
“No,” she breathed, panting in quick bursts. “No.”
He thought she was having an anxiety attack for about two seconds. Then he realized that she just didn't seem the type. His hackles rose instantly and he turned his back to her and scanned the kitchen. He felt her hands grip his jacket for just a moment, but she let go quickly before he could warn her not to entangle him. He could've kissed her for being so bright even though they'd had no time to train her on the rules.
Liam heard the limo pull up and he moved to the door again, checking all directions quickly along the sight of his automatic pistol. Then all three of them, Colin, Liam, and Inez, surrounded Devon and drew her, huddled, down to the rear of the car. Suddenly Devon snapped upright and spun around, shouting, “Liam!”
The female came at them like living darkness, starting nowhere, ending nowhere, but everywhere at once. Inez was struck with blinding speed, her body thrown back into the side of the limousine. As she whiplashed from the force of it, her impact sending fractures through the tinted glass, Devon could see the front of her gown had been torn away, revealing her armor and four distinctive furrows in the outer fabric of the protection.
Liam took the opportunity to grab Devon. He caught mostly fabric, but it was enough to propel her back into the rear of the limousine, where she would be safe. He ignored the tearing of the silk, his eyes hunting for his enemy. Colin had time to arm himself even as he reached to lay a hand over Inez's chest to steady her and keep her from falling.
“Nez! You okay?”
It shook Inez out of her shock and she shrugged him off viciously as she grabbed for the weapon strapped underneath her skirt.
“Fucking
puta
!” Inez spat, whirling around to find her target.
“A woman?”
“Brunette, my size, strong as hell,” Inez barked. Liam wanted to smile that Inez had caught sight of something that fast. Then again, she'd gotten quite a close-up.
Then he was drawn fully to focus on a second attack, this time singling out Liam. It was a big mistake. Liam remembered the feel of Morphate claws all too well, but he knew as soon as he heard the fabric of his jacket rend that he would be feeling a painful reminder in a second or two. The claws were so sharp the wounds were like paper cuts that he wouldn't feel for the better part of a minute. He used his minute to discharge his weapon. Colin and Inez followed the beam of his laser sight to react as well. Three and then six mercury-filled bullets flew into the target. Liam heard the ricochet of at least two misses. That was the darkness and the target's speed working against them. The assailant dropped down right on top of them, and Liam saw a red sight point appear on Colin's forehead. Liam grabbed for hair and jerked the deadly bitch back into the impact of his rising knee in the center of her back. Her shot went wild. Inez leapt right in and fired her gun point blank into the woman's chest. The impact drove her down to the pavement, her vicious fangs flashing dangerously close to Inez's arm.
“Shit! She's wearing Kevlar!”
They barely registered that before the assassin was whirling back up to her feet, grabbing Inez by the throat. Deadly claws folded over Inez's carotid artery in the time it took Liam to aim.
Nash fired once.
The assassin whipped back, an expression of shock in her eyes as her hand slipped uselessly from Inez's throat. “No Kevlar there,” he noted as blood oozed from the hole in her forehead.
The female adversary dropped like a stone. Colin and Liam stepped up and emptied four more rounds into her. When the spasms started, they stepped away and watched as the body dissolved into streams of gas, finally ending in an explosive puff before dissipating, leaving empty clothing and a pile of personal items behind.
“Cool,” Colin murmured. Inez nodded in agreement. It was the first time they had actually killed a Morphate and seen the end result.
“Colin, drive. Inez, shotgun. Keep your eyes peeled. Let's get the hell out of here before someone calls the cops.”
Liam bent to scoop up the Kevlar vest and clothing left behind, gritting his teeth as his shoulder pulled the wrong way against the slices through his skin. Quickly he tossed the telltale remnants of the deadly encounter onto the floor of the limo as he jumped in. It wouldn't do for the local cops to come across the empty outfit and start asking questions that could invite a world of trouble.
The car screeched out of the alley, tossing Nash back hard against the seat next to Devon. Gun in hand and at the ready, he shoved himself up and watched the windows as they tore away from the restaurant. When they were speeding along the highway at last, he finally relaxed back with a mighty exhalation.
“First thing, we're putting bulletproof glass on this limousine,” he said with disgust. “That was too damn close. Inez is lucky her head is still attached.” Liam holstered his weapon and winced with a sharp intake of breath as the movement pulled open the rents left in his shoulder by the assailant.
“You're injured!” Devon exclaimed, noticing his reaction right away. She reached across his lap to his opposite shoulder, a cloud of thick hair swishing over his nose and lips as she tried to pull his jacket back.
“Ow! Shit!” Liam shouted as she pulled the skin. He felt blood rolling down his arm, chest, and back.
“Sit up,” she commanded. “Take that jacket off.”
“Stop worrying about me. I'm fine. Are you okay?”
She gave him a dirty look for his attempt to divert her attention from his injury. Her nose was inches away from his, her vivid eyes flashing cold green fire so fierce, it was just about the most beautiful thing Liam had ever seen. He instantly became pliant to her wishes, not even thinking to be curious about the atypical response. She slid his jacket down his arms, being much gentler this time. She found herself faced with a shoulder holster that kept her from stripping him of his shirt as well.
“Don't even ask it. The gun stays,” he grumbled darkly when she looked at him askance.
“Of course. I was going to ask if you have a knife.”
Without hesitation, Liam pulled one from his jacket pocket and handed it to her. She expertly sprang the switchblade and he raised a questioning brow at her skill. “I told you I know how to take care of myself,” she reminded him with a mischievous smile when she caught the look.
“So you did,” he mused.
Devon sliced through the silk shirt until his shoulder was fully exposed. Blood was seeping from the furrows freely now and she cut away the entire sleeve of his shirt to use for a pressure bandage. She folded it quickly, pressing it against him hard to stop the bleeding. When she leaned her weight forward, Liam sucked his breath in through his teeth. Her position over his lap brought her cheek brushing against his. She could feel his whiskers against her skin, her hair clinging to them as she pulled back in order to make herself look at the pain on his face. She was responsible for this, she thought, and she must face it. She needed to face it. It kept her grounded deeply in the grave reality of her world.
She watched Liam's initial pain fade, and she bit her lower lip hard when his amber eyes finally opened and focused on her nearby face. He searched her expression for a long moment. “It's not your fault,” he said, his voice soft in the quiet of the limousine's rear seat. The tinted, soundproof partition between driver and passenger compartments created an intimate privacy.
“Then whose?” she demanded. “Never once absolve me of blame in this, Liam Nash. I accept your role and the fact that you may die saving my life, but I won't accept lack of blame. Do you understand?”
Liam thought he did. She was too proud for false assurances, and too brave for her own good. He saw the hard courage she was hanging on to and he admired her for it. Few people could accept these circumstances, and accept reasonable responsibility for them while they were at it. She was truly a remarkable woman.
He reached up to brush back her hair, tucking it behind her ear for a moment while he ran his thumb along a baby-soft cheek. She wore no base, no powder, only those wicked accents of darkness lining the edges of her eyes, making their exotic slant even more pronounced and her irises more intensely green.
“I won't make the mistake again,” he assured her, dragging his thumb down to her lush lips and passing over the lower one slowly. “Now please answer my question. Are you okay?”
“I'm fine,” she rasped out, not sounding too convincing. “I would be lying if I claimed to be unafraid, though,” she added, turning her attention to his shoulder so she wouldn't have to look him in the eye as she tried to cope with her volatile feelings. Her emotional reaction was a symptom of mild shock. She was normally so composed that Liam was a little bemused by this vulnerability. As if she'd read his mind, she said, “I don't think I'm quite recovered from the last encounter I had with a Morphate assassin.”
Of course not. She still had a healing bullet wound in her leg. One he'd uncharacteristically forgotten about as they'd danced, he realized belatedly.
“We were lucky tonight,” he said roughly. Perhaps he should be more reassuring, but she wasn't that type of woman. “The assassin wasn't expecting a bodyguard contingent, and she wasn't expecting us to be armed with mercury. Next time they will be more prepared for us, if not the mercury. I assume that they'll anticipate that too since they seem to know you've created weapons against them.”
“Oh, they know. But to them it's still worth a try. If they get me, they get vengeance. The one thing Morphates truly excel in is revenge.”
“Yeah, I know,” he said with a deep sigh of regret. “There's no logic to this, you know. It isn't as though you hand developed these things on your own. You have an R&D department that does it, just like NHK does.”
“That's only partially true,” she corrected him, her cheeks turning rosy in the shifting light as she lowered her eyes a moment. “I did hand develop them. I personally designed each one, drew up the schematics and built the prototypes in my labs. My team helped with molding the prototype casings, but I wasn't willing to risk any of them with the responsibility of creating the designs. Specifically for this reason. Besides, for confidentiality reasons it was best to minimize exposure.”
Liam was fascinated and stunned all at once. She was another Roni. A brilliant mind wrapped up in a gorgeous personality and beautiful package. She was perhaps less volatile than Roni could be, he thought with an inner smile, but no less ingenious. An inventor. A weapons inventor at that. “Do you know how they found out about the project?” he asked her.
“The usual espionage, I'm guessing. I was so very cautious, but in the end it was all for nothing.”
“Not for nothing,” he assured her, tilting up her lowered chin with his thumb. “Those weapons will change the balance of power in the world. Mainly for our unfortunately overrun and outgunned law enforcement. I know a lot of cops who will worship the ground you walk on for this.”