Addict (Hunter #2)(38)

Gray looked a little savage. His hand went to my throat, his thumb sliding down to my collarbone. And yes, I should have smacked that hand away, but it felt so good to connect with him. “Yeah, I bet he is. Tell me something, Kelsey. How long did he wait? How long were you out of my bed before he pulled you into his? Don’t try to lie. I can smell the f*cker all over you. He’s been feeding off you.”

“He’s my lover,” I returned just as savagely. “He’s a vampire. Do you believe I would allow him to feed from anyone else? And Gray, I was in his bed the night I left you.”

I was feeling mean. He’d been pushing me all night. It was time to get a little of my own back. I didn’t mention I hadn’t had sex with Marcus that first night. He’d held me while I cried over Grayson Sloane.

“Do you know what they’ve done to you?” Gray asked, his voice a low growl. “They’ve made you completely disappear. Any trace of you as a human being has been erased. You no longer show up on any computer system. You’re a ghost, Kelsey. According to official records, Kelsey Atwood was never born.”

“They don’t want anyone to be able to trace me.” Marcus had explained that the king would be taking me off the grid, so to speak. I had a fake license and passport under the name Kelsey Owens, but even she could disappear at the drop of a hat.

“There’s a wedding planner in your old office. They closed your bank accounts, and now your house is under a holding company’s name,” Gray explained.

“I have a new account. It has plenty of money in it.”

“And it’s at Quinn’s bank,” Gray pointed out. “Quinn giveth, and Quinn can take it all away. Face it, Kelsey. They own you. You have a Council appointed lover and a Council approved life. If you deviate from the script they will take it all away, and you’ll be left with nothing. I sit up at night and worry about it. I worry that one day you’ll simply disappear because you won’t be convenient anymore. You’ve gotten involved with people who can get rid of you in a heartbeat.”

I didn’t like the sound of that. I hadn’t considered the fact that Quinn had control of my money, my property, my everything. I didn’t even exist anymore. I wasn’t about to let Sloane know that scared me so I did what I do best, I shoved right back at him. “And you’re getting chummy with your father. I’m sure you know what you’re doing. You’re not in over your head or anything. Maybe you’re happy in the family business. Tell me something. You planning on dragging some other idiot female to Hell with you now?”

Sloane gripped my arm and pulled me close. I could see his fangs gleaming in the low light of the room. They only came out when he was emotional or horny, and they definitely made an appearance when he was both.

“No, sweetheart, the only woman I intend to drag with me is you.” He slapped at the marble again and growled as he rested his head against the shower wall. “How do you do this to me? I am not f*cking like this. I know you’ll never believe me but I’ve never been a possessive * with anyone except you.” He turned to look at me, weariness stamped on his face. How many sleepless nights had he suffered since we’d parted? “Kelsey, I’m sorry. I had no right to make decisions like the ones I made. I thought I was doing what was best for us. I never intended to take you with me. I would never have allowed that to happen. Things got…crazy. I know you were under some powerful magic, but I wasn’t. I’ve had to deal with the fact that I lost you every day.”

He stared pointedly at me, and I knew he couldn’t say it. He loved me, but he’d given up the right to say it. He’d given up the right to have me say it back.

He shook his head as if to clear it. “You’re like a f*cking drug, Kelsey mine. I can’t work with you.”

I pulled the towel off the rack because I was cold and sat on the bench. “Too bad. I told you before I’m on a case. Liv’s boyfriend is missing, and this is the last place anyone saw him. He works here. I have to talk to him.”

“No.” Gray ran a hand through his wet hair to get it out of his eyes. “If you go into the bar, I doubt you’ll walk out again. Someone will recognize you in there. Tell Liv I’ll handle Scott. I have no idea how, but I’ll handle him. Can’t you see we have much bigger problems than that idiot getting addicted to Brimstone?”

“He’s on the drug, too?” A pit opened in my stomach. I’d seen what it did to Alan. Scott wasn’t my favorite person, but Liv would be devastated.

“They’re all on the drug,” Gray said sadly. “Julius’s been testing it on his staff.”

“What’s in it?”

“I don’t know,” he said, frustrated. “Why do you think I’ve been trying to set myself up as a supplier? He’ll let me use it, but I haven’t gotten close to being able to take a testable amount off site. I would go ahead and use…”

“Don’t you dare.” I was shocked he would even offer to try. I didn’t want him using something like that. We had no idea how it would affect him.

He smiled slightly. “It would likely have no effect on me at all, sweetheart. I’m a demon. My blood is strong enough that something like this won’t harm me. Winter is trying to get supes hooked. I’ll know more once I can get my CTU techs to test it.”