Hunting Moon (Decorah Security Series, Book #11): A Paranormal Romantic Suspense Novel (17 page)

Tory raised up a little, and Brand saw that she was wearing a lacy gown that came up high under her breasts.

He saw her watching his reaction.

“I found it in one of the drawers.”

“Good choice.”

He rolled to his side and covered her mouth with his. There was no pretense that he simply wanted to comfort or reassure her. Heat jolted between them the moment his lips touched hers. And when he sucked her bottom lip into his mouth, he heard her moan of approval.

When the kiss broke, she ran her hand over his shirt. “You need to get rid of this.” She laughed softly. “And your pants. That would be good, too.”

He climbed off the bed long enough to unbutton the shirt and throw it on the floor, then shuck off his pants and underwear in one smooth motion and slip under the covers, gathering her into his arms.

She sighed as he pressed her body to his.

In the back of his mind he was thinking he should tell her how much this meant to him. This was the first time he was going to make love with his lifemate.

“What?” she asked.

“What do you mean?”

“You’re worried about something. Do you think Raymond damaged me too badly for a normal relationship?”

A normal relationship? If she only knew.

“No. You’re a strong woman.”

“Then what?”

“I want this to be perfect for you.”

“That’s a pretty big demand you’re putting on yourself.”

He swallowed hard. “Yeah.”

“Don’t. And if you’re wondering, I’m nervous too.”

“Why, exactly?”

“This is our first time together. But it’s more than that. I think the two of us have . . . bonded on some level that I don’t understand. And I don’t want to screw that up.”

“Bonded?” he asked, marveling that she was the one who had used that word. For him it was so emotionally charged that it wiped out almost everything else. He couldn’t be sure what it meant to her.

“Yes. But I can’t explain it.”

He could, but he wasn’t capable of telling her the truth about the two of them. Not yet.

Did that make him a coward? He preferred to think of it as prudent. Long ago a werewolf had probably gathered up his lifemate and swept her off to his den. But he didn’t want to use caveman tactics. He wanted Tory to choose to be with him.

To that end, he brought his mouth back to hers, kissing her with passion that threatened to flair out of control.

It seemed to be the same for her as her hands moved over his back and down to his butt, pressing his erection against her middle.

The world dimmed around him. He could focus on nothing besides the woman who held him in her arms.

He slid his fingers under the thin straps of her gown, playing with the silky skin of her shoulders before easing the straps down her arms, trapping them while he lowered the bodice of her gown, uncovering her breasts.

They were small and perfect, and he leaned in, pressing his face between them before swirling his tongue around one hardened nipple, loving the way it stood up in response.

She made a moaning sound, then gasped as he took the nipple into his mouth, sucking while he gently bit the hard nub.

“Don’t trap my arms,” she whispered. “I want to touch you.”

When he’d pulled the gown over her head and tossed it away, her hands came up to clasp his head, holding him to her, stroking her fingers through his thick hair. Neither of them spoke, but words had become unnecessary. She lowered her head, her teeth digging into his naked shoulder, not hard enough to break the skin but hard enough to jolt him. Had other men brought out a streak of wildness in her, or was it only because she was with a wild creature now—even if she didn’t know it?

He lifted his head away from her, focusing on the breast that he had wet.

She slid one of her hands downward, over his ribs, then onto his stomach and downward.

He kept his gaze on her face as she wrapped her fist around his erection.

When she squeezed him, he sucked in a sharp breath.

“You feel so good,” she murmured

“What you’re doing feels wonderful, but I can’t take much of it now.”

She gave him one more small squeeze before taking her hand away. He rolled her to her back and pulled down the covers so that he could admire her body as he began to stroke his hand over her curves, playing with her breasts and the swell of her hip before sliding his fingers into the curly hair at the top of her legs.

She closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them as he slid one finger lower, into the folds of her sex, the joy of touching her there again almost taking his breath away. She had been hot and wet for him the last time. It was the same now.

Only it was going to end quite differently. He slid his finger through those swollen folds and into her while he bent to claim one of her nipples with his mouth again.

“Now. Please now,” she gasped out.

His gaze burned into her as he covered her body with his. Reaching for his cock, she guided him into her.

The reality of being inside her was overwhelming. He went very still, looking down at her, feeling the impact of the moment.

She kept her gaze on him, and when he began to move, she matched his rhythm. Every instinct urged him to let himself go, but he held back, waiting for her to catch up with him. He felt her moving faster, pushing for climax. And he knew the moment she reached it as her inner muscles contracted around him.

He drove for his own satisfaction, feeling a burst of sensation that burned through every cell of his body before he gathered her to him, breathing hard.

She was his now. He knew that in every fiber of his being. And all he wanted to do was love her and keep her safe.

“I love you.”

“Oh Brand, you don’t know how much I wanted to hear that. I knew I loved you when you left me on that cliff edge and went off to fight an army of Raymond’s men.”

“Not an army.”

“But it was just you against a bunch of armed guys.”

“And that’s in our past.”

“And our future?” she asked.

Deep down, he knew they had to deal with reality—at least the normal part of reality. “You were a dancer in New York.”

“And I told you I was getting ready to quit and go back to Pittsburgh.”

“To teach at a dance studio and go back to college.”

“I imagine there are dance studios and colleges in Maryland,” she answered.

Relief flooded through him. “You don’t mind making the switch?”

“I want to be with you.” She swallowed hard. “But what about Denato? I was in his condo when he was murdered. Aren’t I a suspect?”

“No. After you left, someone swept in and took him away and cleaned up the mess. There never was any evidence of a murder.”

“Oh my God,” she breathed. “And the men who killed him never saw me there.”

“But we still have to find out what happened.”

He gathered her to him, glad that he’d been able to reassure her that she was in the clear, as far as the law was concerned.

He felt her relief as she began to reevaluate her situation and start to think about the future.

“Where do you live, exactly?” she asked.

“Actually, not far from here. I have a house I got at a foreclosure. My cousin, Ross, helped me fix it up. It’s got plenty of land around it. And it’s on the edge of a big park.”

“Like the Refuge,” she murmured.

“Yeah, but I’m not holding anyone captive there. I’m just used to the countryside. Remember, I grew up on a farm.”

“Are your parents still there?”

“After Dad died in a tractor accident, my mom moved to Florida.” He laughed. “I guess she decided she deserved a relaxing retirement. My brother and I bought her a condo on the beach.”

“And your brother?”

“He kept the farm. Ross financed my college education. I was shopping for a job when I met Frank.”

“And you hit it off.”

“Right. After that I looked for a place to live.” He laughed. “But I’m no decorator. You’ll probably want to get some prettier furniture.”

“I want to see it.”

“I’d like to stay here until Decorah and I can check out the Denato/Freemont situation. Something about it doesn’t add up.”

“Like how?”

“The timeline for example.”

She nodded.

“We should get something to eat,” he said.

“Like what?”

“This place is pretty well stocked. We can have anything from pizza to Asian vegetable dumplings.”

“What do you want?”

He paused for a moment, thinking that a werewolf’s diet was something else he hadn’t talked about. “I eat a lot of meat,” he said. “I’ll bet there’s steak in the freezer.”

“Okay. Let’s go see. Cooking is something normal I can do while we’re here.”

They both got dressed, and he stopped in his room to get the laptop. He watched her investigate the pantry, the refrigerator and the freezer.

“How does steak, mashed potatoes, and salad sound?” she asked.

“Good,” he answered, thinking he should tell her he didn’t eat much salad.

She took out a couple of strip steaks and thawed them in the microwave while he sat at the table, still looking through Raymond’s computer.

When his phone buzzed, he saw that it was a text from Teddy Granada at Decorah. It said, “Someone’s still holding onto Denato’s apartment. The condo fee for the rest of the year was just paid.”

Tory turned from washing potatoes and looked at him, probably noting his thoughtful expression. “What?”

“Nothing we have to worry about right now.”

She kept her gaze fixed on him. “You look worried.”

“Not exactly.”

She dragged in a breath and let it out. “If this relationship is going to work, we can’t keep secrets from each other. Is that something I should know?”

“It’s about Denato’s condo. Someone is still paying the upkeep.”

“Which means what?”

“I don’t know.”

“But you think?” she asked, and he knew she was working hard to pull the information out of him.

“Freemont thought Denato’s money is hidden there, but apparently there’s someone else involved. I’d better check it out.”

She put down a potato with a thump on the counter. “If you’re going up there, I’m going with you.”

“No!” he answered immediately.

“Why not?”

“It could be dangerous.”

“Then I’m not letting you go there alone. You already put yourself in enough danger for me.”

Protective instincts raged inside Brand. No werewolf would deliberately put his mate in danger. That’s why they were at this safe house now.

Yet what Tory said made sense. She’d been to the condo, and even if she didn’t know what she was looking for, being there would jog her memory.

He dragged in a breath and let it out. “We’ll talk to Frank about it in the morning. Right now, we should eat.”

She nodded and went back to food preparation, but the relaxed mood was broken, although she tried to bring it back with questions about his life and Decorah Security.

Still, the conversation inevitably turned back to Denato.

“It might not be just about money,” Tory blurted as she cut a piece of steak. “I meant there may be papers there—or some information that’s worth more than money.”

“I was thinking that too,” Brand agreed.

After dinner, he found an e-mail from Decorah Security with the floor plan of Denato’s condo.

Brand called it up on his tablet, and they both sat in front of the screen, looking at the rooms.

“Did you know how big the place was?” he asked.

Tory shook her head as she examined the schematic. In addition to the foyer and the living room, which she’d seen, there was a powder room off a hallway and a well-appointed kitchen at the front with an adjoining maid’s room. Farther down the hall was a small bedroom that Denato probably used as a den or office and a large master bedroom with a huge bathroom. Off the bedroom was a good-sized terrace that overlooked the park.

“A place that big in New York City must have cost a fortune,” Tory mused.

“You didn’t see much of it, so your going along isn’t going to help a lot.”

She gave Brand a hard look. “Don’t think you have a chance of leaving me here.”

He sighed. “Okay.”

He should be thinking about business, but as she cleaned the kitchen, simply watching the graceful way she moved turned him on.

She bent to put the last of the dishes in the dishwasher, then turned to rinse out the sink. Brand stood up and silently walked behind her, trapping her between the cabinets and his body as he reached to cup her breasts.

She caught her breath, leaning back against him as his hands moved over her.

“Let’s go upstairs,” he said, hearing the husky quality of his voice.

“And do what?” she asked in a teasing voice.

“Hum, well I was thinking we should continue this in front of a mirror.”

“Just like this?”

“Well, I was picturing both of us naked. And we wouldn’t be standing. You’d be sitting in my lap. You’d have your legs spread so I could have complete access to your body—and watch exactly what I was doing.”

Her breath quickened as he described the things he wanted to do.

“Then we’d better go up, while I can still walk.”

“I’ll be right in back of you, making sure you don’t fall down the stairs,” he said.

True to his word, he stayed at her back, his hands still exploring her body as they climbed the stairs.

When they reached the mirror in the bedroom, he kept his position.

“Let me watch you undress.”

“Lord, Brand. I can barely stand up.”

“I’ll be right here,” he promised, meeting her gaze in the mirror.

He loved the game they were playing, but even as he teased her, he couldn’t shake off a feeling of desperation.

If something went wrong at Denato’s condo, this could be the last time he made love to her.

Only nothing was going to go wrong, he told himself as he bent to nibble along the side of her neck.

He struggled not to let his fear show as she threw her head back to give him better access. He’d claimed her for his mate, and now the idea of existing without her was unimaginable.

oOo

A car pulling up outside the safe house woke Brand, and he was immediately out of bed, naked, but with a weapon in his hand.

Tory gave him an alarmed look. “What?”

“Somebody’s here. You stay in bed.”

It turned out to be his car, driven by Cole, who had bought new tires and driven down from New York.

Quickly Brand pulled on a pair of jeans and went downstairs.

“Thanks, buddy,” he said as he walked around the vehicle. It would need a paint touch-up, but the new tires definitely put it in driving condition.

Cole was about to say something as Tory came down the stairs. Brand suspected it was a question about whether they’d had “the talk.”

He gave a quick shake of his head as she stopped to look at the two werewolves.

“You want coffee?” she asked.

“Neither one of us drinks coffee,” Brand answered.

“It’s a family thing,” Cole added.

“Then what?”

“Herbal tea.”

She raised an eyebrow but continued into the kitchen where she filled the kettle and put it on a burner.

“The tea’s in the right-hand cabinet,” Brand said.

He took mint, and Cole took cranberry. Neither one of them told her that a werewolf couldn’t deal with caffeine, or cigarette smoke, for that matter.

“And what do you eat for breakfast?” she asked, looking from one to the other.

“There’s more steak. That would be good,” Brand answered.

She rolled her eyes. “You want that with toast and jelly?”

“I can fix the steak,” Brand said, walking toward the freezer. “You can have eggs or oatmeal, or whatever you want.”

“Sure.”

“My wife’s used to it,” Cole said.

“You’re married?” she asked looking at his left hand.

He paused for a moment. “In our line of work, a ring is in the way.”

“Okay,” she murmured.

Brand was thinking that it would be difficult for a werewolf to change shape wearing a metal circle on his finger.

She watched him take out a couple of strip steaks and put them in the microwave to thaw.

“All of your family has strange eating habits?” she asked.

“Just the guys,” he answered, then picked up his phone. While the steaks thawed, he had a quick conversation with Frank, who had already gotten the news from Teddy and talked to Cole while he drove down.

When the steaks were thawed, Brand put them in a pan and cooked them briefly on both sides, before serving himself and Cole.

Tory had fixed herself instant oatmeal, which she topped with canned fruit. When she offered Brand and Cole some, they both declined.

As they ate, the three of them discussed plans to check out Denato’s condo.

“No point in making a career of driving back and forth to New York,” Cole said.

“Then what?” Tory asked.

“Frank’s letting us use the helo again.”

Tory’s eyes widened.

“It’s faster,” Brand said. “And Frank’s made arrangements to land on the helipad at a building near Denato’s place.”

“And we’re leaving when?” Tory asked.

“In an hour.”

She pushed back her chair. “I’d better go wash my hair.”

“For Denato’s empty apartment?”

“For a trip into the city,” she answered, then stopped short, her gaze swinging from one man to the other. “Will you put the dishes in the dishwasher?”

“Yeah, we’re civilized,” Brand answered.

When she had left the room, Cole looked at his cousin. “I think you need to tell her.”

“You don’t have to keep bugging me about it. I know I’m overdue to fess up.”

“But you’re afraid she’ll run?”

“Or be revolted.”

“A woman isn’t revolted by her lifemate.”

“That’s reassuring.”

“At least we don’t have to tell them that half their children will likely die,” Cole said.

“Yeah, lucky Ross found a lifemate with the skills to solve that problem,” Brand agreed.

He also left to shower and change.

oOo

By the time Tory came down, dressed in jeans, a dark tee shirt, and running shoes, they were ready to drive in Brand’s car to the Decorah building in Beltsville for the trip to New York.

“Cole’s going with us,” Brand told her. “Also Ben and Nick Cassidy, who’s up from the Florida office.”

When they arrived at Decorah headquarters, she saw that the other agents were dressed in brown uniforms that had the logo of a delivery company on the pocket.

As Tory eyed the outfits, Ben said, “It’s less conspicuous for you and Brand to go into Denato’s apartment alone. The rest of us will be deliverymen elsewhere in the building.”

While Cole changed, Ben explained the plan in more detail, and she nodded in agreement. The other agents would be in and out of the building pretending to deliver boxes to another condo from a van in the alley.

They made the short trip to the city and landed on the roof of an apartment about two blocks away. The van was waiting for the group, and they drove to the alley that ran parallel to Central Park South.

When they’d pulled up, everyone except Brand and Tory put on visor caps to go with their coveralls. They also donned various facial disguises. Ben and Cole had mustaches. Nick had sideburns and glasses.

When they were ready, Ben called the front desk to say that they had a delivery for number 4C, which was two floors below Denato’s unit.

The super unlocked the backdoor and watched while they unloaded a couple of boxes. But when it appeared that the delivery was going to take some time, the man went back to the basement.

“What are the people in 4C going to do with a ton of gourmet popcorn and Belgian chocolates?” Tory asked.

Ben laughed. “Hopefully, they’ll like it. Or they can give it away.”

“But what happens when you knock on the door?”

“We don’t knock. We just slowly pile it up in the hallway. We keep our heads down, so any surveillance cameras can’t get a shot of our faces. And we’ll stay in touch with you by phone. You should check in every twenty minutes,” Cole said to Brand.

“Got it.”

oOo

Tory had tried not to focus on their next moves, but finally she knew it was time for her and Brand to go into the scene of the crime. She’d hated the idea of sending him into danger alone. But now that she was here, the reality of being here made her feel like she was stepping into her own grave.

They rode up with the other men as far as the 4
th
floor, then stayed on for the trip to the sixth. Once outside the elevator, they stopped to check their communications equipment.

“Brand here,” he said into the phone when he reached Cole.

“I hear you loud and clear. Try Ben and have him call you back.”

Tory suffered through the delay. She wanted to get this over with, and at the same time, she was glad for every second that kept her in the hallway and out of the place where she’d hidden from murderers.

Finally they had established the link, and she led Brand down the hall to Denato’s door. She was thinking it should have had yellow crime-scene tape blocking it off, until she remembered that nobody had found a body in the apartment. She was the only one who had seen it.

They both pulled on thin latex gloves, and Brand turned toward the door with the set of lock picks that he’d brought along.

Tory’s stomach knotted as she watched him working. Like many New York City residences, the door had three locks. He started on the upper one and worked his way down.

Finally the door opened, and the apartment of horror yawned before them.

There were no lights on inside. And when Brand closed the door behind them, Tory felt the breath solidify in her lungs. .

When she started to gasp, Brand turned to her with concern. “Are you all right? Are you choking or something.”

“Just a flashback reaction. I’ll be better when I get out of here,” she answered, trying not to look toward the spot on the floor where Denato’s body had been lying. She couldn’t stop herself from dragging in a breath and took in the strong smell of bleach.

She wanted to keep her gaze straight ahead, but finally she turned toward the place where she’d last seen the gangster lying.

The body was long gone, and the floor had been scrubbed clean. Thus the bleach smell. But she imagined bloodstains in the grout separating the marble squares.

Brand touched her arm, and she jumped.

“Sorry.”

“I’m nervous,” she answered, unable to speak above a whisper as she listened for any sounds in the apartment. It was still as a tomb—another death image.

Brand slung his arm around her shoulder, pulling her against his side as he rubbed her chilled flesh. “I understand. I’m not so happy myself. The sooner we can finish here, the better. So where would Denato stash money and papers?”

“I was thinking about it on the ride up from Maryland.” She glanced toward the living room where she’d hidden behind the drapes while the men had been going about their nasty business. With a shudder, she turned away. So far, this place was full of unpleasant memories, but soon she’d be in territory she hadn’t seen before.