Bad Mouth(41)

“Val,” he whispered. She whimpered, her eyes fluttered, and he came back to life. He lifted her carefully onto his lap and cradled her head. “Wake up, baby. Wake up for me. Did he hurt you?”

She shook the groggy look from her eyes. “Kade? I saw…Where’s Will?”

He grabbed her shoulders and shook her. Hard. “You scared the f*ck out of me!” Tears pooled in her eyes. “Ah, f*ck. I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”

He folded her into his arms and buried his fingers into her gorgeous golden curls. He kissed her temple and then her forehead, each eyelid, each cheek, and ended up on her lips. He kissed her over and over, not stopping even when she tried to speak. Finally, she pushed him away. Her electric eyes sucked him into their depths like a whirlpool. He could live there forever. Except they didn’t have forever, not even one measly century.

“What happened?” she asked.

“Will’s dead.”

She didn’t cry like he’d thought she would. Regret was all he saw in her expression.

“Better him than you,” she whispered.

“Or you.” He kissed her again. He could have lost her. Drawing her against his chest, he stroked his hands along the curve of her spine. How he loved the satin of her hands against his skin. That pretty floral scent of her filled his senses, making him crazy. “I love you. I love you. I love you.”

“And I love you. I’m all right, Kade. I’m okay.” She brushed against his stubble and then back down along his face. Pleasure lit her expression, and his breath seized. He rasped his cheek along her throat, and she shivered. Hell, he’d rub his face all over her body now that he knew how much it turned her on. The thought of leaving marks on her breasts thickened his erection. She squirmed in his lap.

“Let’s get out of here,” he whispered against the shell of her ear. He nuzzled the sensitive spot behind it. Her shiver was more pronounced this time.

“I have to see him.”

“Val, it’s not a pretty sight in here.”

Uncertainty flickered in her gaze, but then she did that damned sexy-gunslinger thing again. “It’s not a request.”

“Fuck me,” he said. “You’re one tough woman.”

“If that was a request, it’ll have to wait a few more hours until we get home.”

His cock flexed like a muscle. She likely wouldn’t feel like sex after seeing the carnage behind him, but he’d take what he could get. With a silent nod, he stood, bringing her with him, and then stepped aside and watched her face.

When her eyes settled on Will’s remains, she didn’t even tear up, but her sorrow ate him alive. She’d loved that guy once, whoever he used to be. Kade probably should have felt jealous, but instead only pity filled him. The man could have kept her for a lifetime.

Kade would give up vampirism in a heartbeat for her, if he’d had the choice. He would have given up his heritage. Hell, he’d give up his last breath for her. For a human.

His old self would be rolling in his grave right about now, and that would be appropriate because that old self was dead and gone.

The object of his love turned into his chest, sliding her slender arms around his waist. If only he could wear her like this every day.

“Okay,” she mumbled against his shirt. “We can go.”

He laced his hand with hers and led her to the door just as Alice ran in.

“Okay, whew. I’m done dealing with the subjugates.” She brushed her hands together as if she’d been doing dirty work. “Val, I thought you left already. What’s holding you guys anyway? I mean, don’t you have to avoid the sun or something?”

He laughed. “Ran into some trouble. He’s in a heap in the foyer, if the SWAT would like to claim the body.”

Alice’s pretty gray eyes went wide as dinner plates. “You found Will?”

“The report should say the Rex legally executed him,” Kade said. “That should wrap up your cases adequately.” He caught her before she could go in. “It’s messy.”

“S’alright.” The woman shrugged, her expression bland. “I missed dinner.”

“Uh, okay.” Crazy woman.

Alice turned to Val, who still looked pale. “I’m so sorry, Val. I know you didn’t want it to end up like this.”

“No, I didn’t, but I knew it would. I’ll be fine.” Val gave Alice a shaky smile, but it was the look in her eyes that told Kade she really would be fine, a look that said she could take on anything and anyone if she had to.

Alice gave Val a hug before disappearing into the mansion, and Kade was grateful for her presence. It would take hours to clear the scene. He had no intention of spending the rest of the night dealing with that mess.

He led Val down the wide stone steps toward his car and then he stopped her. It was hard to look her in the eye, but he had to get this demon out. “I’m sorry, Val.”

“Sorry for what?” She looked at him with confusion.

“I killed him.”

She took his hands in hers and took a deep breath. “You had to. I know that. I’ve known for a long time now what would happen to him, especially after seeing him in the warehouse. That thing wasn’t even Will anymore.”

Her strength and understanding amazed him. He kissed her again. Seemed he couldn’t get enough. “I want to flash you home.”

“I’m game.”

“Can’t,” he said with regret. “Unless you can close your eyes and hold your breath for ten minutes.”

“You could kiss me the whole time.”

“You’ll be the death of me,” he muttered.

The trip by car back to Seattle was pure, unadulterated torture, and he wished he’d called for a driver. He could have been in the backseat fondling his tiny bundle of hotness in the hours left before dawn. By the time they got to the city, sunrise would bite at their heels, and he’d be sucked into the pull of sleep.

Val was too quiet, her face turned toward the window. Maybe she needed some private time as much as he did. He took her slack hand in his, and the squeeze of her grip eased his worry. She never let go until they pulled to the curb at the Towers. When she looked toward him, her expression was pensive.

“Are you taking over the Immortalis?”

“I can’t.” He dragged his hand through his hair and sighed. “I’m…at a loss. I’m too young to take it, but it’s too dangerous not to. There could be an uprising. Things were bad already between the Dominorum and the Legion. The Ancients didn’t want you to know this, but the number of rogues has increased so sharply, the Legion Trackers can’t keep up with them. I tried to warn them about that.”

“There’ll be a civil war.” Dread laced her words, and he couldn’t reassure her.

“Yes,” he said. “Even after all we’ve done to stop it, there’ll be a war.”





Chapter Thirty-one


Val wanted to crawl out of her skin. She’d awoken ages ago and had spent the daylight hours typing up a million and one reports on the laptop she’d had Alice send her. When that had been done, she’d filled even more time making phone calls. Hopefully it was enough to waylay the legislation she’d ignorantly written.

She’d spoken to all the right people, ones she thought would modify the bill. She’d even enlisted her parents to use their influence. It made sense that instead of eliminating all transformations, the bill should specify vampire delegates to judge whether the subjugates had assimilated adequately for transformation and should limit the time allotted to assimilate. That would save people like Ezra from themselves and take the choice away from them.

After that, she’d paced on the balcony waiting for Kade to awaken. Last night, she hadn’t had time to talk much with him before sunrise took him from her. He’d fought it like a champ, but couldn’t stop his muscles from going lax and his words from slurring. Eventually, he’d stopped making any sense, and she’d ushered him to bed, half carrying him again.

Things could have gone very differently last night. He could have died, which made her rethink her position on transformation. Would it be so terrible to live almost forever if she had him at her side? The image of his despair when he’d thought he’d lost her haunted her all day. She would force that on him with her death. He’d lived nearly five centuries without love. He might never find it again after she passed on. And did she really want him to when she could be with him instead?

She jumped when Kade’s hard, muscled arms came around her. He squeezed lightly, pressing his unshaven face into her neck to kiss her. The shock of rough and soft made her skin tingle.

“I could wake up to this forever,” he said. He turned her in his arms and tucked her against his chest. She felt his chin rub against the top of her head, and then he burrowed his nose into her hair. “I love the way you smell.”