Deadly Pursuit (A Blood Hunter Novel, #2) (66 page)

Amusement
glinted
in
the
vampire’s
face.
“Is
that
wise,
right
now?”

“Probably
not.”
He
let
go
of
the
seat
to
see
if
he
could
stay
upright.
“But
a
man’s
got
to
do
what
a
man’s
got
to
do.”

“Yeah,
but
you’re
a
dog.”

“Ha-ha.
So?”

“Well,
the
same
rules
hardly
apply.”

Jon
tried
to
think
that
one
through,
but
his
brain
had
turned
to
treacle.
He
nodded
to
the
flask.
“I
like
it.
We
must
do
this
again
sometime.”

“Next
time
I
save
your
life,”
Rico
said.

“Or
I
save
yours.”

Rico
grinned.
“Never
going
to
happen.”

No,
probably
not,
considering
they
were
all
about
to
die.
He
took
a
tentative
step
and
found
he
could
walk
after
all.
Rico
spoke
again
as
Jon
reached
the
door.
“Good
luck.”

…

Jon
had
never
been
in
Alex’s
cabin,
though
he
knew
where
it
was.
He
leaned
on
the
door
buzzer,
half
expecting
her
to
ignore
him,
but
a
second
later,
the
door
slid
open.

He
looked
around.
“Christ,
this
place
is
a
mess.”

Alex
sat
up
in
the
narrow
bed,
a
scowl
on
her
face.
“I
like
it
like
this.”

A
sheet
was
pulled
up
to
her
breasts,
her
fingers
knotted
in
the
material,
holding
it
tightly
against
her
chest.
Above
it,
her
slender
shoulders
were
bare.
Oh
yes,
he
reckoned
she
was
naked
under
there.

He
lurched
into
the
room,
holding
onto
the
wall
for
support.

Her
gaze
shot
to
his
face,
alarm
flashing
in
her
eyes.
“Are
you
all
right?”

He
shook
his
head,
and
the
room
shifted
under
his
feet.
He
waited
until
it
stopped
moving.
“I
have
been
drinking
whiskey
with
a
vampire.
Lots
of
whiskey.
So
I
doubt
‘all
right’
describes
how
I
am
right
now.”

Her
arched
brows
drew
together
and
her
huge
eyes
narrowed.
They
were
gorgeous
eyes.

“You
have
the
most
beautiful
eyes,”
he
mumbled.

“What
do
you
want,
Jon?”

“I’ve
come
to
tell
you
all
the
reasons
we
shouldn’t
be
doing
this.”

“What
are
we
doing?”
Her
eyes
narrowed
further.
“And
why
shouldn’t
we
be
doing
it?”

He
shook
his
head
again,
taking
care
to
hold
onto
the
wall
first.
“I
cannot
remember.
But
it
will
come
back
to
me.
I
just
need
to
lie
down
for
a
little
while.”

After
fumbling
with
the
buttons
for
an
age,
he
finally
managed
to
unfasten
his
shirt,
then
shrugged
out
of
it
and
dropped
it
on
the
floor
on
top
of
the
pink
jumpsuit
she’d
been
wearing.

As
he
stepped
closer,
he
heard
a
hiss,
and
a
small,
black
furry
animal
disappeared
beneath
the
bed.
He
ignored
it;
he
wasn’t
interested
in
anything
under
the
bed.
Holding
her
gaze,
he
unfastened
his
pants
and
kicked
them
off.
For
once
in
her
presence,
he
didn’t
have
a
raging
hard-on.
He
gestured
at
it.
“Sorry,
it’s
been
a
long
day.”

She
didn’t
speak,
just
drew
back
the
sheet
that
covered
her
and
he
saw
that
he’d
been
right;
beneath
the
thin
covering,
she
was
naked.
Small
and
perfectly
formed
and
so
sweet.
He
needed
to
hold
her,
so
he
lowered
himself
down
beside
her.
The
bed
was
narrow,
and
he
shifted
onto
his
back,
put
his
arms
around
her,
and
pulled
her
tight
against
his
side.
She
didn’t
move,
but
then
her
arms
wrapped
around
him,
held
him
tight.

With
her
head
resting
on
his
chest,
close
to
his
heart,
Jon
closed
his
eyes,
feeling
safe
and
protected
for
the
first
time
in
as
long
as
he
could
remember.

…

“I
love
you,”
Alex
murmured
the
words
against
his
skin.

He
was
asleep,
his
breathing
slow
and
steady,
but
at
her
words,
his
arms
tightened
around
her.
She
breathed
in,
loving
his
smell,
musky
and
salty,
and
now
with
an
added
sweetness
of
the
whiskey
he
had
drunk.

The
heavy
weight
of
one
muscular
leg
lay
partly
across
hers,
but
she
didn’t
try
to
move
him.
She
wanted
to
hold
him,
keep
him
safe.
Who
knew
how
much
time
they
would
have
before
the
Collective
found
them?
While
she
had
great
faith
in
the
crew
of
El
Cazador
,
she
had
no
illusions
that
they
could
take
on
the
Collective
and
win.
But
this
would
be
enough.

Well,
maybe
she
wanted
something
more.
She
shifted
a
little
so
her
nipples
rubbed
against
his
hair-roughened
chest,
and
a
delicious
ripple
of
sensation
quivered
through
her.
He
needed
to
sleep,
but
soon
he
would
awaken.

When
they
didn’t
move
the
lights
dimmed,
and
they
lay
in
semidarkness.
Beneath
the
bed,
she
could
hear
Mogg’s
deep
rumbling
purr.
She
didn’t
want
to
sleep,
she
wanted
to
savor
every
moment
of
closeness,
but
her
eyes
eventually
drifted
closed.

She
awoke
to
a
sensation
of
pure
bliss.
Jon’s
mouth
was
at
her
breast,
his
hot,
wet
tongue
lapping
at
the
distended
nipple.
His
lips
tugged,
his
teeth
bit
down
gently
so
the
sensation
burned
right
down
through
her
belly.
She
was
melting
from
the
inside.

The
length
of
his
erection
pressed
hot
and
hard
against
her
thigh,
and
he
thrust
it
against
her
and
groaned.
Her
hips
arched
against
his,
and
he
went
still
for
a
second.

He
pushed
himself
up
onto
his
elbows
and
stared
down
into
her
face.
“You’re
awake.”

She
nodded.

“Good.”

“Good?”

“I’ve
been
lying
here,
thinking
how
to
wake
you.
Sorry.”

“Sorry?”

He
slipped
one
of
his
knees
between
hers
to
part
her
thighs.
“I
can’t
wait.
Who
knows
what
the
hell
will
interrupt
us
this
time.”

She
raised
one
hand
and
curved
it
around
his
face,
staring
into
his
golden
eyes
with
their
thick,
dark
lashes,
his
beautiful,
passionate
mouth.
She
needed
to
tell
him
she
loved
him
but
was
unsure
how
he
would
take
her
words
right
now,
and
she
wanted
nothing
to
spoil
this
moment.
Later,
if
there
was
a
later,
he
would
have
to
come
to
terms
with
her
love.
“I
don’t
want
you
to
wait.”