Chapter 23
Luc sauntered to the desk and hopped up on it, propping his chin on his fist. The opal on his leather cuff glittered in the light. I was half tempted to knock him over and take it, but Luc…
Yeah, Luc wasn’t normal.
Not even in the world of Luxen, Arum, and hybrids. He was something else entirely and knocking him over wouldn’t be like kicking a kid on a playground, because this
kid
could knock just about anyone and anything into another galaxy. Sometimes it was hard to remember that when talking to the little punk.
Luc smiled broadly. “What brings you here? I hear this ‘little fuck’ owes you.”
“You know you owe me. And if you need a reminder, all I need to say is Sharpe.”
“Ah, yes. That does remind me of a lot of things.”
“Sharpe?” Serena murmured, her eyes bouncing back and forth.
I let go of her hand and found myself stepping in front of her. Luc noted this with a mischievous glint. “I need my money.”
Luc leaned slightly to the side, as if he was trying to see Serena. Man, this kid loved to push buttons. “You can have your money whenever you need it. Paris could’ve gotten that for you. So I doubt that’s the only thing you need.”
“I also need a piece of opal.”
His brows rose as he leaned onto his side completely, supporting himself on one arm. He smiled at Serena. “And why would you, an Arum who works for the lovely DOD
,
be in need of a piece of opal? Don’t they hand that out with their ‘I was bought out by the man’ badges? Oh! Wait…wait a second, Hunter.” Luc’s wide eyes blinked innocently, and I had a strong urge to knock those eyes into the back of his head. “Are you no longer playing with the DOD?”
“What do you think?” I stepped to the side, blocking Serena.
“Interesting.” He sat up, putting him right back in front of Serena. “And who’s this?”
“None of your business,” I growled.
Luc slid me a sideways glance. “She’s in my office, in my club, therefore she is my business.”
“This is your club?” Serena asked. “How
old
are you?”
“Old enough to appreciate a good
-
looking woman.” Luc winked.
Serena’s mouth dropped open.
“Are you trying to get yourself killed?” I asked, my hands curling into fists.
Paris stepped forward, the perpetual bodyguard, but Luc just laughed. “Oh, simmer down, Hunter. You’re too testy. How many times have I’ve told you that you need to chill out, take a vacay. Disney World is really fun this time of year. You should check it out.”
I drew in a long, deep breath. “Luc.”
He was focused on Serena. “So how did you get mixed up with this lump of joyful personality?”
Serena glanced at me
,
questioning, and I shook my head. The less Luc knew, the better.
Luc tapped his fingers on the desk. “Al’ right, kiddies, you don’t want to play, then I don’t want to play. Paris will get your money and you can get the hell out.”
“Whoa. Wait a sec. You owe me, Luc. I need a piece of opal—”
“And I’m assuming you’ll also need a Luxen or a hybrid to feed off, too. And you’re right. I do owe you. You took care of a problem for me and I’ll be forever grateful for that. I can help you, but I want to know who she is and how she ended up with you.”
Son of a rat bastard.
Serena stepped forward. “My name is Serena Cross. My best friend was killed by a Luxen after she witnessed them take their, um, true form. I saw it happen and Hunter was brought in by the DOD to keep me safe.”
I turned to her slowly.
“What?” She raised her hands. “We weren’t getting anywhere.”
Anger flashed through me, but I stamped it down. Serena didn’t know Luc, didn’t understand what the kid was capable of. Hell, there was a lot I didn’t know about him, but I knew enough.
Luc’s gaze traveled to a very interested
-
looking Paris. “Keep you safe from the Luxen?”
She nodded as she worried her lower lip.
“All because your friend witnessed a Luxen do their shiny thing? They killed her for that?” A calculating look appeared in his amethyst eyes. “That sounds drastic.”
“This sounds familiar,” Paris interjected. “This wouldn’t happen to have anything to do with Senator Vanderson, would it?”
“Ah…” Luc murmured.
Serena became very still and the aura around her turned a deeper shade of blue. “How do you know about that?”
“Good question,” I said.
Paris shrugged one shoulder. “I keep my ear to the ground. The senator flipped his shit because the DOD hauled in one of his boys and then the other. The Luxen are in a tizzy over it. Getting re-assimilated is like walking the green mile, baby.”
My eyes narrowed.
Paris grinned as his gaze slid back to Luc. “But that doesn’t explain why they would come after you, now does it? I mean, you’re not the first to see us in our true form. You won’t be the last. You seem like a smart lady. You know to keep quiet. So…”
“So there has to be more,” Luc finished. He clapped his hands together. “And there is always more to a story. Spill it.”
Serena had wisely gone quiet, but it was a little late for that. I folded my arms. “Her friend overheard the brothers talking about something called Project Eagle and children in Pennsylvania. Whatever it is, it seems like it’s worth killing to keep a lid on it.”
Luc blinked slowly. “And does the DOD know about this?”
“Yes,” Serena answered, and cleared her throat. “I told them what my friend had said, but…”
“But you two are here and Hunter is without his opal, which means he’s without his nifty tracking device. How did that happen?” Luc asked. “Don’t be shy, Serena. I’m not the bad guy here.”
I snorted. “Yeah, and I’m fucking Santa Claus.”
“Okay.” Luc flashed a winning smile. “All things considered, I’m the least of your worries at this point, eh? There are three things in life that I just cannot stand and
,
in no particular order, they are: the DOD, the Arum, and the Luxen. Humans are pretty damn okay in my book.”
Serena glanced back in shock at a grinning Paris, and I rubbed my temple. I was starting to get a headache.
“The DOD decided that what Mel overheard isn’t important,” I said.
Luc cocked his head to the side. “And do you believe that?”
I barked out a short laugh. “Hell no. I’m sure they’ve been trying to dig up everything on this Project Eagle bullshit, but they don’t know about Pennsylvania. Serena remembered that after she’d spoken to the officers.” The letter in the PO box was staying a secret. “The senator and the community of Luxen raised all kinds of shit about the exposure risk and pushed for Serena’s death. The DOD caved.”
“Exposure risk?” Paris headed to the desk and sat in the chair behind Luc. “Does the senator honestly believe that the DOD will release his sons if Serena is gone?”
“I don’t think so,” I admitted. “I think that whatever Mel overheard and may or may not have said to Serena is worth them killing to keep it quiet. Even if Serena doesn’t know anything, they don’t want to take that risk. The DOD came to take her out and
,
well, I didn’t agree with that.”
“I wish you guys would stop talking about people wanting to kill me,” Serena said, but she was staring at me in a way that said we’d be talking later. “It’s really starting to freak me out.”
“True,” Luc said, shaking his head. “So you stopped the DOD? Protected a human even knowing that they’d put price on your head that even I couldn’t afford?”
I shifted my weight from one foot to the next. “Yeah.”
“Interesting,” Luc murmured.
“He doesn’t know why he did it, so don’t even ask him.” Serena sent me a tight smile, and I couldn’t even find it in me to be measurably annoyed. She turned back to the kid. “Do you know anything about Project Eagle?”
Luc met her stare. “I know a lot of things, Serena. I also have a lot of suspicions. Some people think I’m paranoid, but I like to say I’m realistically prepared for when the shit hits the fan.”
Serena frowned. “That really didn’t tell me anything.”
“I don’t know about Project Eagle,” he said, “but I’d be curious to learn more.”
“Okay, well now that we’ve done the whole caring and sharing routine,” I interrupted
,
“you owe me.”
“I do.” Luc hopped off the desk. “Come back tomorrow and I’ll have something for you.” He glanced at Serena and winked. “And make sure you’re in a more pleasant mood. You’re killing my happy vibe.”
“Tomorrow?” I moved my neck to the side, trying to ease out the tension. “I wasn’t planning on this trip to be an overnight one.”
“But I’m sure you’ll find a way to pass the time.” Luc wiggled his brows suggestively, and even I was a bit disturbed by that. He walked around his desk and opened a drawer. Pulling out a key, he tossed it to me. “You can stay at Paris’ place for the night. He won’t be there and it will be safe.”
Paris’ face screwed up. “What the hell, Luc?”
He smiled sheepishly. “What? He’s not staying at my place.”
I pocketed the key, pleased by the anger creeping across the Luxen’s face. “Address.”
Luc scribbled it down on a pad of paper and handed it over. “Be back here tomorrow, a little before noon.”
I gathered up Serena and headed for the door, but Luc stopped us. “And Hunter?”
I turned, already not liking the odd look on the kid’s face. I prepared myself for whatever fuckery that was about to come out of his mouth. “Yes?”
Luc’s smile was mysterious. “Humans aren’t as frail as you think they are.”
Chapter 24
I’d expressed my concern about trusting Luc the moment we got in the Porsche, but Hunter didn’t seem to think we had anything to worry about. Apparently, the strange kid was the least of our problems.
We stopped and got fast food on the way to wherever Paris lived
,
and I ended up eating my food before we pulled into the secluded house in The Woods resort. Even at night, I could see the glitter in the driveway and corners of the two-story structure.
“Beta quartz,” Hunter explained, snickering. “Very smart. There are no natural deposits around here, so he brought it in. It blocks us from seeing them, disrupts their wavelengths.”
Stepping out of the car, I frowned at the tiny flecks glittering in the moonlight. How many times could I have seen something like this and disregarded it? I turned, eyeing the thick trees crowding the driveway
,
as Hunter pulled our luggage out of the trunk.
Once inside, I realized Paris’ flavor could easily be seen. Gold paint on the foyer walls. A golden chandelier hung from the ceiling
,
and all the doorknobs were painted a golden color; even the grand staircase had golden treads.
“Gah,” I said, shaking my head.
Hunter’s lip curled as he looked around. “Wow.”
I cracked a smile. Hunter relatively speechless
,
and all it took was really gaudy interior design. We did a little investigation of the downstairs and then we headed up. It was obvious which room was the main bedroom.
Hunter headed right for it.
“I’m sure there are extra bedrooms.” I nodded down the hall. “Maybe we should take one of them.”
He glanced over his shoulder, grinning. “What fun is that?”
I laughed softly. “You’re terrible.”
But I followed him into the lavish master bedroom. It was huge and in the middle was a four-poster canopy bed. Hunter dropped our luggage on a settee as I checked out the bathroom.
“Holy garden tub,” I murmured. “This thing is huge.”
“That’s not the only thing that’s huge.” Hunter wrapped his arms around me from behind and tugged me back
.
I flushed as I felt him against my lower back. Need swelled in me, warming my body. “That’s pretty low
-
grade.”
Hunter chuckled as he brushed his lips over my cheek. “It was.”
Then he backed off, and I leaned against the large sink—painted in gold, of course—and watched him. I was breathless already
,
and all I had felt was his erection. Ridiculous.
His lips curved up like he knew what I was thinking. I ignored the warmth flooding through my veins and between my thighs.
“Are you tired?”
It was late and we hadn’t gotten much sleep last night, but I shook my head. Hunter’s gaze turned knowing. “I know you want it.”
My belly tightened as desire swirled through me. “You do?”
He nodded, but then he did the unexpected. He stepped
out
of the bathroom. “You want to enjoy that tub. Go ahead. I’m going to check out the place, make sure it really is secure.”
I gaped at him as he shut the door. His deep chuckle from the other side of the door made me want to find a blunt object and throw it.
Bastard.
Sighing, I turned to the tub. The thing was glorious, round and deep with several faucets at the front. I turned them on, cranking up the hot water as I searched the bathroom for something to add to it. There were a ton of products in the linen cabinet and I settled on something that smelled like peaches. Adding that to the tub, I was quickly in a frothy heaven.
I stripped off my clothes and slipped into the water. The scrapes still stung a bit, but I stretched out, resting my head on the back of the tub as the bubbles grew around me, covering my chest.
“This is the absolutely most beautiful thing I’ve seen.”
Squeaking, my eyes popped open as I jerked up. Water and bubbles sloshed over the sides. “Oh my God…”
Hunter stood by the tub, completely nude. All the chiseled, rippled goodness on display, and he was hard. Really hard. I followed his gaze. He was staring at my breasts. “You’re such a guy.”
He shrugged. “I think you need help bathing
,
and I’m in a real generous mood.”
“I am feeling a little dirty.” I wanted to stick my head under the water, but the way Hunter’s eyes flared, I knew I had no reason to be embarrassed.
He liked it.
I scooted up as he climbed in behind me. Steam rose from the tub and the water stirred, causing bubbles to tickle my sides as he slid his legs on either side of my hips, his skin wet and smooth against mine.
Hunter brushed my hair over my shoulder
,
and then I felt his lips against the space between my shoulders. The kiss…I don’t know what it was about it, but it turned my insides to mush.
It was official. No denying it. I wasn’t falling in love with Hunter.
I was already in love with him.
Knots filled my tummy as the realization shuttled through me. Loving Hunter was absolutely insane, but the heat blossoming in my chest wrapped around the knots, unraveling them. My life was in absolute ruins. The government and another alien race were after us, but none of that mattered to my heart. Loving him was wrong in all the right ways.
His arm snaked around my waist and he pulled me back between his legs. I turned my head toward him. “Did you check out the house?” I asked.
He pressed a kiss to my cheek, and I melted even more. “The place is like Fort Knox.” He lowered his head and nipped at my jaw as he reached around me, picking up a bar of soap. “Let me wash you.”
That was as much of a request as I’d ever heard from him. He lathered his hands up and then curved one down my arm, to the very tips of my fingers and in between them.
“You’re very thorough,” I said.
Hunter chuckled as he slid his hands back up, bringing water along with him. “That’s my middle name.”
I laughed. “I just realized I don’t even know your middle or last name.”
His cheek rose against mine in a smile. “I don’t have one.”
“None?”
“None.” He moved on to my other hand
,
and his knuckles brushed the swell of my breasts. I jerked at the contact and he did it again as he washed away the soap. “You like that?”
I bit down on my lip. “What do you think?”
“I think you do.” He ran his hand down my back and over the flare of my hip. “My real name isn’t pronounceable
,
and when we came here my family never adopted a last name.”
“Coming here had to be overwhelming.” Words left me as his soapy hand slid over my stomach. “Right?”
“It was at first.” His hand smoothed up my stomach, brushing my breasts once again, and I found it hard to concentrate. “I was with my own kind—a pretty large group. We landed in the Baltic Region.”
“Landed?” Then I laughed. “Sorry. Picturing spaceships and stuff.”
He chuckled again and cupped water in his hand, rinsing away the soap. I held my breath as he moved a soapy hand over my right breast and then the left. My nipples tightened into aching points and I bit down on my lip.
“My family eventually came to America. I was still young.” Both of his hands were involved in the cleaning process now and his thumbs moved over my tips. I guessed he was being extra sure about my nipples being cleaned. “We’re very adaptive creatures
,
and it’s also in our nature to wander. So I traveled a lot.”
“What about schooling?”
He plucked at my nipples before his hands left them and dipped into the water. “I never went to school
,
and knowledge isn’t always gained from a classroom. Besides, our adaptability allows us to pick up things quickly.” Water cascaded over my breasts, causing my muscles to flutter. “The assimilated Luxen went to human schools, but our process was never like that.”
I wondered how many more old classmates were actually ETs. “So the DOD released the Luxen and they live like humans, but you all…?”
“Not so much.” His arms circled me. “We weren’t treated the same. I think they saw us as something lower than the Luxen, than them. When they find us, we aren’t given the option of playing human.”
“That’s not fair,” I whispered.
“Life’s rarely fair, sweetheart.” He slid his hands over my thighs as his lips brushed the curve of my jaw once more. “We’ve always been seen as a weapon. That’s what we are.”
“No.” Heat unfurled inside me, spreading sizzling shivers. “You’re more than a weapon, Hunter. So much more.”
“With you?” His voice was thick. “I am more, but not with anyone else.”
I didn’t have a chance to process that because his hand slipped between my thighs. Pleasure thrummed in a heady dance as his fingers brushed my sex.
“I’m still being thorough,” he said.
My head fell back against his chest. “I see that.”
“I don’t want you to think I’m not taking this seriously,” he continued. His fingers moved slowly. “Because this is the most fucking serious thing I’ve ever done.”
“I believe you.” My hips jerked as the pressure of his touch increased. I wiggled, trying to get him where I wanted him. “Hunter…”
His other hand rose, cupping the back of my neck. He guided my head back and to the side. His lips hovered over mine. “I love hearing you say my name.”
The exact moment his lips closed over mine, he thrust his finger, capturing the moan as my hips rocked forward and then back against his erection. I reached up behind me, wrapping my arm around his neck. The kiss deepened and I was restless, wanting so much more. The steady pumping of his finger drove me crazy and close to the edge, but it wasn’t enough.
He knew it.
He was teasing me.
His mouth left mine and then his lips moved against my throat. The wet flicks of his tongue as he tasted my skin followed and I groaned. “Hunter.”
A low sound of approval hummed through his chest and in the next second, he grasped my hips, lifted me up
,
and turned me. Water splashed everywhere, but I was centered on him and not all the potential water damage
.
Hunter lowered me, my knees sliding on either side of his hips. His thick manhood waited as he captured my mouth in a deep, searing kiss. I held on to his shoulders, soaking in the taste and feel of him. God, I couldn’t get enough of him.
“I need you,” he growled. “Now.”
My blood was on fire as I reached down, wrapping my fingers around his thick base. I lowered myself onto him, gasping as his thickness spread me. I placed my hands on his chest, running my thumbs over his nipples as his fingers dug into my hips.
He stared into my eyes
,
and his gaze was a heady mix of lust, yearning
,
and something far deeper as he thrust up and I cried out. He took me fully, sealing us together. The distinct pulse in my core hammered. I rolled my hips, moaning as I found a rhythm that reached every spot of me. He cupped my ass, pulling me down as he pushed up.
Quickly, the slow rolls and thrusts weren’t enough for either of us. He was panting and I was gasping. Our lips mashed together. My hands were on his cheeks, holding him there as our bodies moved together in a fast, almost frantic pace. A luscious wave of intense pleasure rolled over me. I was completely overwhelmed by him, but I had been since the beginning.
This was just more, so much more.
“You feel perfect,” Hunter grunted, slamming up and wringing a strangled moan from me. “You are perfect for me, only me.”
Those words sent me over the edge, tumbling into a release that shattered every part of my being. He was right, so damn right. I was perfect for him, only him.