Demon Crossings (14 page)

“Excuse me?”

“Fen said a place named McGuire’s has the best tenderloin in the state. Cold beer on tap. And…frickles. Or was he kidding about the fried pickles? Sometimes with Fen it’s hard for me to tell.”

He didn’t like the way she said Fen’s name, as if she was talking about a friend she’d known all her life. When had the two of them been talking about going out to eat?

“Fried pickles,” he repeated. “That’s what you want?”

“They really do fry pickles then?” She laughed and the sound poured over him like sunshine.

“McGuire’s it is.”

Not the kind of place he would have chosen for a first date. A roadside bar. A few booths and tables in one room and a row of pool tables in the other. Lots of dark corners, and the floor was always sticky. Fen’s kind of place.

Aiden ignored another stab of jealousy. She talked to Fen so easily, yet was so cautious around him. He thought she sensed the trap in liking him too much. She was physically attracted to him and he thought that she respected him too. But she was right to be wary of wanting someone like him. There was nothing else for him except this life. But Grace, she had options. She could go anywhere, do anything, be with anyone. She was human enough for that. She’d survived for a long time away from the fault. Now that she knew the danger, she could watch for signs that she needed to come back and recharge. She wasn’t bound to this place like the rest of them. He was lucky she’d agreed to help him find Hallie, that she was still here after all the shit she’d seen. He shouldn’t push for more.

She burned her tongue on the fried pickle and he pushed his ice water across the scarred table. “So?”

“So what?” She was sucking on a piece of ice. Highly distracting.

“The pickle.”

She wrinkled her nose. “Not as great as I thought it might be.”

“Bea used to love those. When she was pregnant with Hallie, we…” He trailed off at the expression on Grace’s face.
Idiot.
Dead wives were not a good topic for conversation on a first date. Of course, he’d never really dated, not even with Bea. Theirs had been an arranged marriage they’d both been content to accept.

“You must have loved her.”

He didn’t want to say the wrong thing again, but he wouldn’t lie either so he simply nodded.

Grace fiddled with her napkin. “That wreath I saw—”

“No,” he interrupted before she could finish the thought. “That was Lois. Her way of saying again that it was time to lay Hallie to rest. She’s the florist and she sends one every month.”

Grace’s hand curled into a tight fist. “That witch.”

“Yep. She actually is a—”

“No, Aiden. That is so wrong. I’m going to wring her little neck.”

He worked his thumb into her palm to loosen her fist. “I appreciate the sentiment but it won’t change the way she is. My life isn’t really my own. It’s okay, Grace. I’ve known that from day one.”

“It should be.”

Her expression was fierce and he was shaken. As the leader of the hunt, he was the one responsible for the well-being of the clan. He knew they cared, but it wouldn’t occur to any of them to try to defend him. She pulled her hand away and pushed the half-eaten pickle to the side. The waitress came with their food orders and took the basket away. They shouldn’t have come here and he shouldn’t have opened his stupid mouth about Bea.

“I can take you somewhere nicer next time.”

She paused with the cup raised halfway to her mouth. Her gaze flickered to his then away and he winced. He wouldn’t trap her here. Despite what Jerry and the others thought, she’d survived until now away from the fault and she didn’t need to stay. Five more days and she’d leave or she’d die. Either way, she’d be gone. He shouldn’t get attached. Especially not when he was the one placing her in danger.

Then she shook her head, looked up and smiled almost shyly. “That would be nice.”

And he floated through the rest of the meal on the promise of that smile. He was used to eating fast and was done with his food before Grace had even started on her sandwich.

She took a dainty bite, looked surprised, then took a bigger one, chasing it down with beer. “’S good.”

He nodded and pulled his wallet out of his back pocket. They couldn’t be gone too long. Even as close as they were to home, he could feel the drain.

“Why do you let them treat you that way?”

What was she talking about? “Who? The hunt or the demons?”

She rolled her eyes. “The people in town. The ones Jerry said were too weak to ride with the hunt. I get that you’re responsible for guarding the portal but they don’t need to rely on you for everything.”

He leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest. “They’re family.”

She didn’t get it. He could see it on her face. The frown around her mouth and that guarded look in her eyes again. And he felt another surge of anger at the cowards who’d run from their duty to their clan, abandoned their daughter and made her this way.

“I heard that you’re the one giving Jerry’s daughter away at the wedding.”

“From Fen?”

She nodded and he forced himself to stay calm. He was really looking forward to seeing Fen on the training floor. “I’m the Odin,” he explained. “It’s always been that way.”

“Like the godfather. Do you make them kiss your ring too?”

“The sword,” he shot back and laughed when her eyes widened. “I’m kidding.”

She tossed the napkin on her plate and pushed it aside. “It’s too much for you. The hunt, the farm.”

“How about we keep our focus on getting Hallie back?”

He said it as much to remind himself as to block her line of conversation but she drew back and something wrenched in his gut. He hadn’t meant to sound so harsh. It was the first time she’d stretched out her hand to him and he bit it. He was an ass. Leaning across the table, he rubbed his thumb over the back of her knuckles. “I’m sorry. I want Hallie safe but I want to keep you safe too. Grace…”

She squeezed his fingers, her delicate hand curving around his. He could feel her bones through the soft skin. Too fragile. “That’s exactly what I’m talking about. You don’t have to worry about me. I don’t want that.”

He held his tongue even though he wanted to argue. As long as she rode with them, Grace was his responsibility. And she should have someone worrying about her. Whether she wanted it or not.

“Let’s talk about something else,” he said. “Tell me about your life in St. Louis.”
About Mike,
he wanted to add but didn’t.

She withdrew so fast he didn’t even have time to hold her hand when she tugged it back. Then she gave him a heartbreaking smile, wide, empty and hard as a concrete wall. “There’s nothing to tell. I work too much. This is almost like a vacation for me.”

“Sorry excuse for a vacation.”

Her smile faded but what stayed behind was genuine. “No, it’s not. We should be going shouldn’t we?”

“William will wait.”

But she was already standing so he followed her. She was running again. From their conversation and from him. She didn’t like talking about herself and he needed to figure out how to honor that. But he wanted her to trust him. Almost as much as he wanted to park the truck, pop her seat back and bury his face in her hot, wet pussy. Wanted to beg her to let him inside her.

His hands clenched on the wheel and they drove in silence the rest of the way into town. When they got to the store, William was with a customer and he pointed toward the back. Aiden led Grace through the door to the room where William kept his special collection.

Scabbards and body armor. All the various weapons and equipment you’d need to storm into hell. While they waited for William to finish with his customer, Grace looked around with a dazed expression on her face. She paused near a short sword, agile and elegant, the small hilt perfectly made to fit a child’s hand or a small woman’s. The blade was made of Skimstrok, gleaming white-blue like moonlight and subtly etched with runes of protection.

Before he could warn her not to, she touched the edge and yelped, drawing her hand back.

He grabbed a bandana from a rack and pressed it to her finger.

Her cheeks were flushed. “That was stupid.”

“It’s sharper than it looks.”

She glanced again at the blade. “I’ve never seen anything like it before. It’s almost like it glows.”

“Skimstrok. It’s a magic forged blade. You barely need to touch it for it to bite you back. Steel, iron won’t cross to the other side. We need to use this but it is rare and very dear.”

Her lips curved a little. “It’s beautiful.”

He stared at her, couldn’t have turned away if a demon had crashed into the store at that moment. “Yes.”

Grace’s tongue darted out to wet her lips. Her eyes were wide with a longing that drew him in. One kiss. What could just one more kiss hurt? She wasn’t a coward to run from a dare. She was brave, resilient, compassionate and not nearly as hard as she wanted everyone to believe.

What if he put it all on the line and she said yes?

He wanted to feel her body shatter in climax again. Wanted to see that hungry look in her eyes, as if she wanted him more than her next breath. He wanted her to stay.

But he’d take what he could get.

This time she didn’t pull away. He brushed his mouth over hers and drank down her sigh, tracing his tongue over her plump lower lip. He wanted to suck it into his mouth. To bite it while she came. Her hand touched his shoulder, drawing him in closer, and he tried to recall if William had a lock on the storeroom door.
Don’t push. Take what she gave. Let it be enough.

He was careful. It was the most innocent kiss he’d ever shared. A questioning press of flesh and tongue. Just two people saying hello. He held himself back. Grace deserved gentleness. Hell, she deserved to be worshipped.

William swung open the door. “Well now…” He broke off and then cleared his throat.

Grace jumped away from Aiden and he watched her go, not turning around to face William until she’d met his gaze.

William’s face was ruddy but he was smiling. “Sorry about that. I could come back later.”

“No,” Aiden said, looking at her again, at that lovely blush spreading over the tops of her breasts. He wondered if she’d blush like that all over. “You’ve heard about Grace? We need to get her outfitted for the ride. Do you think you have anything in her size?”

The jacket was easy, well, it was really too big on her. In order for it to close around her chest, they had to go a few sizes too big but they could cuff the arms and it would work. The pants though were a different story.

William came out and shook his head, holding another pair that Grace had thrown over the dressing room door. “They’ll have to be made custom.”

“We don’t have time for that.”

William sighed heavily. “She’s not very tall, her waist is narrow but her, um—”

“I know what she looks like,” Aiden cut him off.

William rolled his eyes. “Is that how it is?”

Aiden ignored the question. “Jeans will have to do. Or…maybe Carhartts will work.”

William nodded. “I’ll see what we’ve got up front. Should I measure her for a pair of leathers?”

Aiden hesitated but then shook his head. She’d be gone before William got them done. Grace found a sturdy pair of work jeans that fit with a belt and set those on the counter then started looking through her purse.

“What are you doing?”

She opened her wallet. “Paying for my purchase. I know Ragnarok is a backward little town, Aiden, but—”

“You’re not paying for this.” When he saw the mutinous look in her eyes, he said, “Not for anything you might need for the hunt. You see anything else you want for a souvenir or whatever and you can pay for that. This is business.”

She nodded and turned around while he settled with William. Aiden glanced over at Grace, because apparently his eyes couldn’t go more than twenty seconds without needing to find her, and she was looking at the Skimstrok blade again.

Not touching this time, just admiring it. It truly was a work of art. Just like her.

“Do you want it?”

Her hand paused halfway to the hilt and then dropped to her side. “No. I don’t really need it.”

“We’ll take the blade too.” She frowned. And he thought she was going to argue so he added, “You’ll need something in case you’re thrown or separated, even for a moment. You can’t bring your gun and I won’t have you defenseless. That’s a good size for you but you can try another if you want.”

Her eyes narrowed but she nodded when William fetched it down from the stand.

Aiden ignored the weight of her eyes on him. If he looked at her, she’d know. William clearly did. Aiden gave him a warning look that made the smirk fade from his uncle’s face.

“Pleasure doing business with you.” William glanced at Grace then said, “How about I put it on your tab?”

Aiden was grateful for that. No reason for her to know the knife cost more than his truck.

His phone rang.

“Aiden.” It was Christian. “We need you. There was a breech in the fault. I’m heading over there now and Fen’s on his way too. How soon can you be back?”

He grabbed the bags from the counter and headed for the back door, leaving Grace to follow behind. “I have to drop Grace off at the house first. Thirty, forty minutes at least.”

“Hurry.”

He hung up the phone and glanced at Grace. There was a little frown on her forehead he wanted to kiss away. No time. This was another thing Bea had hated.

“I’m sorry. We have to go.”

Her head was aching by the time she got off the phone with the grandmother. She’d had to stand in the entryway because it was still the only place she’d been able to get a strong enough signal in the house to make the call. Aiden had offered up his phone but Grace thought it best not to make it too easy for anyone to track her here. She’d thought about ditching her own to get rid of the GPS chip in case she never came back and Mike got curious. But despite his call the other day, she couldn’t imagine him putting too much effort into a search.

Leaning against the wall, she wondered again if she was doing the right thing. She’d gone back to Dan’s house the day before to try to convince him to go through the legal system so she wouldn’t have to lie to the grandmother. He was the biological parent. The only reason the grandmother had retained custody was because no one knew how to find him.

But Dan was scared they’d take Maia and she hadn’t been able to change his mind. The grandmother had been understanding, stoic almost, but Grace could hear the catch in her voice, her urgency to get off the phone as soon as she’d accepted the news that Grace wouldn’t be able to help her. Grace scrubbed at her face with the heel of her hand. It could have been worse. On the last case, the boy had died before they managed to get to him. She’d been there when Mike told the parents. It was the first time she’d failed and she never,
never
wanted to go through that again. Normally, she only took the cases she knew she could win. But here she was again, playing God with Maia’s life, praying she was doing the right thing and taking another risk. A big one.

She heaved a sigh and opened her eyes, starting when she realized she was standing in the exact spot Aiden had pinned her to the wall that night that seemed like forever ago. She straightened, blushing, just as the back door opened. Christian had been in the kitchen when she woke up that morning, standing at the stove and scrambling eggs.

She hadn’t bothered to change out of her shorts and tank top because…well, she wanted Aiden to look at her the way Christian did then. He’d pulled away from her again, closing himself off, almost as if he was avoiding her. After their date and that kiss at the store, she couldn’t keep lying to herself that this was just about business. And, clearly, Aiden was every bit as affected by her physically as she was by him.

She’d been worried about getting too involved. Sometimes seeing people so clearly sucked. She cared too much, too quickly, too deeply and it always ripped her up when they walked away. So she’d tried to keep her distance with Aiden, knowing she’d have to leave when they found Hallie but this…living with him but not touching him was worse. All of the pain and none of the joy.

It put a strain on Aiden too. He’d come down this morning with his sword in hand. He’d glanced once at her, his hot gaze fixing on her breasts, and then he’d growled at Christian that breakfast was over. That had been over two hours ago.

The back door closed and Aiden passed from the kitchen to the stairs without seeing her. His sword was strapped to his back again. His hair was damp with sweat. He wore those faded jeans and unbuttoned his shirt as he walked. As she watched him, she heard Christian’s truck in the driveway, leaving.

She stood there for a moment, frozen with indecision and then she followed Aiden up the stairs.

His door was open. He’d dropped his shirt to the floor and was hanging his sword, sheath and all on a hook beside his bed. Her foot hit a creaking floorboard and he froze, hand closing reflexively on the hilt before releasing it and letting his arms drop slowly to his sides.

A trail of sweat trickled down the slopes of muscle that pillowed his spine. She took one hesitant step and then another, until she could reach up and touch the indentation below his shoulder blade, a sweet dimple she wanted so badly to press her mouth to. Would he let her?

His head bowed. “Be sure, Grace.” His voice was a low rumble that came up from his chest. “You deserve more than what I can offer you right now.”

Is that why he’d been holding back? She closed her eyes. Maybe. Aiden wanted her, she knew that, knew too that he was an honorable man who wouldn’t offer more than he was willing to give.

“What if I decide it’s enough?”

The muscle under her hand tightened. “Be sure it’s what you want. I…I don’t want to tie you here. Do you understand?”

“Yes.”

He didn’t want her to think this meant he wanted her to stay when it was all over. She could accept that. Maybe she wanted more but she could accept less. She wanted him. Even though she didn’t like to be touched, she couldn’t stop thinking about his hands on her body, his mouth. He saw her clearly, her gift and her vulnerabilities, and he wasn’t scared. A good man who didn’t let down the people he loved. He didn’t need to know that this was about anything more than simple lust. He didn’t need to know she was falling for him. Pressing her lips to his back, she touched her tongue to his skin and tasted sweat. She found that indentation with her mouth and hummed with pleasure when she nuzzled her lips to fill the little hollow.

She let her hands wander, slipping around his waist and over the ridges of his abdomen, trailing her thumb over the bottom edge of his ribcage before going lower, only stopping when she hit the waistband of his jeans.

“Are you sure, Aiden?”

He barked out a sharp laugh that turned into a hiss when she closed her hand over his cock, still encased by cotton and denim, but hard, hot and thick all the same.

“I’ve wanted you from the minute I found you covered in blood and lying in my ditch.”

She flicked open the button and unzipped his jeans, tucking her hand in the gap and sliding her fingers under the band of his boxers. Skin, hot and damp. His breath was shallow and he held himself very still as if, despite his words, he still hadn’t quite made up his mind.

Her hand closed around his cock and it swelled as she tugged it up and free of his jeans. His skin here was so soft and fine, it surprised her almost. Everywhere else, he was leathery, calloused and tough. But here…she slid her hand toward the tip with a light, loose grip…here he was smooth as silk. His head tipped back and he groaned while she traced the flared edge, her thumb smearing through the moisture that beaded the slit. She pushed his jeans down farther, skimming them over his narrow hips until they caught on his thighs. She left them there for now and splayed one hand across tight, smooth slope of his lower abdomen. Her other hand closed around his shaft and he blew out a sharp breath like a winded horse. This was right and good. She’d been stupid to keep her distance. Pressing her cheek to the taut muscles above his shoulder blade, she pumped her fist, once slowly then again with increasing pressure. When she squeezed him harder, he bucked into her hand.

“Grace,” he gasped. “Wait. I need you to slow down.”

She wasn’t waiting and he wasn’t changing his mind. She cupped the fragile weight of his balls, smiling when he cursed under his breath. She wanted him as desperate as she was, aching and needy.

He turned around, breaking her hold, and the hunger on his face made her body weep. He did want her. No mistaking it. And he didn’t look as if he was getting ready to back out either. If some small part of him still thought this was a bad idea, that part was bound, gagged and locked away.
Thank God.

Grabbing the hem of her tank top before she lost her nerve, she hauled it over her head, tossing it to the ground and reaching for the waistband of her shorts. Aiden’s gaze fixed on her breasts. They were nice breasts, she’d been told so anyway. Sometimes, when she was on the treadmill or jogging downstairs she wished they were smaller, but the look on Aiden’s face as she bent forward to push her shorts down her legs said he appreciated them anyway and they were the first thing he reached for when she straightened.

He slipped his hands beneath their weight, cupping both and brushing his thumbs over her already rigid nipples, raising goose bumps all over her skin.

“Gorgeous,” he murmured and then said it again, against her skin. He hadn’t shaved that morning. Sunlight streamed in from the window and glinted on his stubble. Whiskers scraped her skin when he turned his head to catch her nipple between his lips. Damp mouth, warm tongue. A gentle tug pulled a broken moan from her lips. He made an answering sound and plumped her breasts between his hands, running the tip of his tongue along the crevice between them before pressing his face to her skin and inhaling deeply. He scattered open-mouthed kisses across her collarbone, working his way up her throat to her mouth.

No more tenderness. This time, he devoured her like he couldn’t get enough, like he was starving. She leaned closer, threading her fingers through his hair and opening herself to him, her mouth, her heart, her body. When he lifted his head, the harsh set of his face made her breath catch.

“It’s been a long time for me. Five years, almost since Bea died.” There was a tremor in the hand cradling her breast. “And I’ve been walking around with a hard-on for days. All I want is to spread you out on my bed and take you hard and fast and deep.” He closed his eyes. “You deserve better.”

She touched his cheek, felt his whiskers scrape against her palm.

“Come here.”

She covered the hand that still lay on her breast and squeezed it hard, placed her other hand behind his neck to pull him down for a fierce kiss, hard and demanding. She didn’t need gentleness, didn’t want a choreographed seduction. She wanted him to want her so badly there was no question of restraint. To feel that desire she kept seeing in his eyes, on her skin, inside her, pounding through her blood. She wanted him.

Five years
. She could feel his urgency in the thrust of his tongue, his ungentle hands, the erection poking against the curve of her belly. And she answered him back, rising into the kiss and using her tongue and lips and teeth to tell him she was ready for him now. When he finally lifted his head, it was only to move them to the bed.

He picked her up and sat her on the edge, using his thighs to nudge hers wider. Running his hands down her legs, he caught her calves and raised them too, setting her feet on the side rails. One hand covered her belly as if staking a claim and his other shoved at his jeans. He kicked them aside and stretched over her, forcing her to lie back. His hands planted on either side of her head, all those thick muscles in his arms flexing to support him. The weight of his lower body settled between her thighs. And any concern she’d had that he wasn’t really into this, that she was using his sense of obligation to manipulate him vanished when he adjusted the angle of his hips and the rounded head of his cock began to press inside her.

“Condom,” she said breathlessly, starting to sit. He pulled back, leaning across her body to jerk the drawer of his nightstand open. His face was set, almost grim. She wanted to kiss every crease. Soften the hard line of his mouth. But he looked like he was barely hanging on as it was.
She
did this to him when even demons couldn’t crack his composure. He rolled on the condom, looked down between her thighs and if anything his expression got even harder.

“Hold on.”

And she did, grabbing onto the side rails of his antique bed as he pushed himself inside of her. All the way in a single hard shove. Her back arched off the bed and his hands caught her hips, forcing them down to the mattress and holding her there as he rocked into her, again and again, steady and relentless. He was staring at the bounce of her breasts and every thrust seemed more determined. His jaw was locked tight and the thought crossed her mind that he approached every job the same way, with raw strength and brutal efficiency. She wasn’t another job.

Then that thought was gone. He stretched himself out on top of her, pushing her onto the bed and pinning her there with the weight of his body. His hand smoothed back the hair from her face. He was close, so close but fighting to hold himself back. She could feel it in the tension under her fingertips when she slid her hands over the muscles in his back.

His arms slid beneath her shoulders, cradling her, hugging her body to his, caging her in warmth. “I can’t get deep enough.” But he tried, plunging deep and withdrawing slow. Pulling back her head, so he could see her face, he whispered her name. “Grace.” A question. A promise. Regret. All of the confused helpless attraction she felt for him echoing in that one word.

She swallowed hard and touched his cheek. There was already a shadow in his eyes, as if he’d crossed some invisible boundary he’d set for himself. She hated seeing that, especially now. She wanted him to forget about his job, his responsibilities and the impossible mission they faced. For now, she wanted it to be only them—Aiden and Grace. So she arched up, dragging her nipples against his sweat-slick chest and digging her heels into the mattress for leverage to grind her clit against his pelvis. “Right there. Harder.”

He growled low in his throat and finally let go of whatever piece of himself he’d been holding back. She could feel the shift inside him, the moment all the careful ties he bound himself with began to loosen. His strength and need breaking through all that careful restraint. He rammed into her, clamping a hard hand over her hip and pushing it down so he could drive even deeper.

And that was all she needed to let go too. She’d been riding the edge of her orgasm for too long. Knowing he was lost threw her over the cliff, screaming, her body clamping around his cock even as it jerked inside of her. His entire body tightened, his arms banded around her and he emptied himself. Massive shudders turning to fainter pulses, until finally, he went still.

Her body was still shaking when he pulled out. It took him a moment to realize she was crying. Or not crying. Her eyes were squeezed closed and every time a sob bubbled up, she forced it back down, sending a tremor through her body. Silent. And if that wasn’t one of the most horrible things he’d ever seen in his life, he didn’t know what was. “Grace.”

She covered her face with her arm and shook her head. Tugging up his pants, he climbed onto the bed. His hand covered her shoulder and when she didn’t pull away, he pulled her close. Lord knew why she’d wanted him then, after sparring with Christian, he had to smell like an animal.