Part 10 (2/2)

That got his attention. He rubbed his jaw, studied her with interest.

If she could read minds, she'd probably find him weighing how much he owed her. She had saved his life. Had fought beside him. He didn't need to know she'd loved every second of it, felt a rush of adrenaline while fleeing the Banoth, and really had no regard for her own safety. He didn't need to know she lived on the edge and didn't want to slow down long enough to think too hard about her life.

”Why me?”

”It's wolf-related.”

His eyes widened. The light from the street lamp above highlighted their azure appeal. He looked both surprised and curious by her admission.

”I can't help you.” He sounded resigned to the fact.

”Can't or won't? Come on. I think I've proven you can trust me.” She put her hand on his arm. ”I'm proposing a fair trade, so really it's not like either one of us is-”

”I'm not sure I...” Commotion swirled in his eyes now, like he couldn't decide between doing the sensible thing or taking a chance.

She took a deep breath. ”You're not sure what?”

”I'm not sure I can-”

”Hugh,” Dane called out, waving a cell phone in the air. ”We need to talk.”

Hugh s.h.i.+fted his stance and looked like he'd rather rewind the night and do everything differently. ”I'm not sure I can trust myself,” he said. ”Around you.” A moment of silence pa.s.sed before he added, ”Give me a minute with Dane.”

Wow. That wasn't what she'd expected to hear. Trust himself how? Tess wondered, watching him walk away.

Hugh wanted to kiss Tess again. And again. And again. He wanted to kiss down her neck to her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, take her nipples between his teeth and suck until they pebbled into tight, hard nubs. Then he wanted to lick down her stomach, spread her legs and taste her until her juices slid down his throat. Tess hadn't just saved his life tonight-she'd made him think for the first time ever there was someone made for him. Someone he didn't want anyone else having. Her kiss had gotten inside him. Made him feel better than anything he'd tried before. The notion scared the s.h.i.+t out of him.

He needed to keep walking and never look back. Get his a.s.s on his bike, and ride away like nothing else mattered but getting to the checkered flag. After the evening's events, Trey's life depended on him thinking intelligibly. Acting swiftly. Tending to the present situation with a clear head.

Tess put a crater-sized crack in accomplis.h.i.+ng all that.

She filled him with l.u.s.t.

And so much more he didn't want to think about it.

Talking to her was easy. Confiding in her easier. He wanted to find out everything about her. He wanted to help her. But he didn't know if bringing her into his world was the right thing to do.

She wasn't the first human to know about Veilers. But other humans treated their existence with a shrug, a Tooth Fairy mentality that meant they didn't truly believe. The world was full of monsters. Some saw them. Some didn't. Others pretended they didn't exist. Hugh worked d.a.m.n hard to blend in. He lived by his own code, did the right thing by his pack and humans. Tess hadn't s.h.i.+ed away from him when she found out what he was. She hadn't freaked or cried or screamed. She'd accepted.

Her acceptance was his undoing, and suddenly she mattered to him. Suddenly he understood how his brother could fall so helplessly for someone.

”What is it?” he snapped, wis.h.i.+ng the clatter in his head would shut the h.e.l.l up.

Dane didn't look pleased by his annoyed tone, which was tough s.h.i.+t. Friends one day, enemies the next-things hadn't changed since childhood. Nowadays, they merely tolerated each other for the sake of the pack.

”Word on the street is Trey's being held by the Wolf Seekers.”

”We figured that out already.”

”But the Wolf Seekers are denying it. They're saying they had nothing to do with it.”

Headlights coming down the street prompted them to move to the sidewalk. Hugh looked over his shoulder to be sure Tess was still there. She'd closed the car door and leaned against it. When he returned his attention to Dane, a cackle of voices came from the bar entrance.

They'd need to take extreme caution from here on out. If the Wolf Seekers were denying their involvement in Trey's disappearance, then perhaps there was a third party interested in the Night Runners. Or... ”They could be lying.”

”True. Especially given what else I just found out.” He looked up and down the dark street, took notice in Tess's direction, then fixed his eyes on Hugh.

”What's that?” Hugh's fingers drummed along the side of his leg. He wanted to get back to his conversation with Tess.

”There's a hit out on you.” He said it like he'd told Hugh the sky was blue.

Anger bubbled up inside Hugh. Every muscle strained against his clothing. Who the f.u.c.k had ordered a hit on him? ”Really?”

”I just got off the phone with a guy who's got his ear pretty close to the ground with all this Wolf Seeker business. He says the call went out yesterday. P.I.E. is handling it.”

Private Investigations and Elimination. He'd known about them for years. Knew their reputation. They thought they were helping the human population by eliminating Veilers. But really they were helping the Veiler population by getting rid of the criminals influencing the balance of power between Veilers and humans.

Hugh wasn't a criminal. Which meant only one thing: it was personal.

Eliminators for the top-secret organization were supposedly the best a.s.sa.s.sins in the business. Their ident.i.ties were virtually impossible to find out. Being human, they blended in with society, but had the unique talent of mixing in with Veilers as well.

They also killed with the knowledge their targets deserved it. Was someone supplying phony information on him? The idea made his jaw clench, his hands fist. It had to be all connected. Trey's disappearance, the hit, the Banoth.

”Was the Banoth a warm-up?” Hugh started to pace, casting glances in Tess's direction while he contemplated their next move.

She looked about ready to bolt, her head tilted to the right like she'd been waiting so long she couldn't keep it up. Her long, athletic legs were thrust out, putting her body at a relaxed yet fatigued angle against her car.

”Probably. But it's a possibility we're dealing with more than one opponent.” Dane paced opposite him.

Hugh was pleased Dane had said ”we” and not ”you.” Regardless of their differences, he had to believe he could count on Dane when things got tough. ”I agree.”

And that was when it hit him.

Like a bulldozer.

He looked over his shoulder at Tess. At the woman who was anything but ordinary. She gave a wave, a smile crossed her sensual lips. He blinked and her scent surrounded him.

She'd lurked around a dark alley in a seedy part of town unafraid and reacted unruffled to Dane's s.h.i.+fting. She'd thought the Banoth fun-his senses had picked up on her amus.e.m.e.nt more than anything else. Very few humans knew about Sentients, but she had. And when he'd told her his real name, she'd choked and doubled over, completely thrown off balance to discover he wasn't Trey.

His stomach lurched like he'd eaten bad fish. His chest tightened and burned. Tess was the P.I.E. eliminator. It made perfect sense. Her bravery, fighting skills, att.i.tude and knowledge of Veilers all pointed to the occupation. What didn't make sense was why she'd just saved his life if she planned to kill him.

”Head back to the main house and see what else you can dig up,” he told Dane. ”Put some calls out to the others for help. I'll be in touch.”

”What are you going to do?” Dane landed a hand on Hugh's arm, putting a stop to their pacing.

”I'm going to talk to Tess.”

<script>