"Who is in the SUV following him?" Dani asked.
"I don't know," Decker admitted. "Lucian didn't tell me who else he was able to call in at such short notice."
They both watched silently as the gray dot caught up to the other two and all three dots came to a halt, almost overlapping one another.
"They're stopped," Dani said anxiously.
"They probably have him then," Justin said with certainty.
"Do you think so?" she asked, hope trembling in her voice.
"If not him, then they probably at least have your sister," Justin said, and then pointed out, "She's mortal. She'd slow him down. He'll either have to let her go or try to run for the airport to get lost in the crowd with her, and there's no way he could outrun our guys on foot dragging her along. Besides, it's late, the airport can't be that crowded at this hour. When we get there they'll either have both of them, or one will have her and the other will be chasing down the rogue in the airport."
Dani seemed to fold into herself with relief at those words, and Decker let his hand drop to rub her back soothingly, his head instinctively ducking to inhale her scent again.
"Hold on, some idiot just-" Justin didn't finish the sentence; he was too busy braking hard and swerving to avoid whatever "idiot" had interrupted his speedy pass up the highway. The action threw Decker forward, and he instinctively caught Dani as he went, crushing her to his chest and holding her there as they were then thrown to the side and into the passenger seat. He turned them so that he would take the brunt of the blow as they hit the chair, and then Decker was falling backward, taking Dani with him as Justin accelerated and swerved back, presumably to miss another obstacle.
"Sorry about that. Everyone all right?" Justin glanced around, squinting as he tried to pierce the darkness now cloaking them where they lay on the floor of the vehicle.
"We're fine. Eyes on the road," Decker reminded, worried that another vehicle might cruise into their path. He then glanced to Dani. She had ended up splayed on his chest in the cramped space between the front seats and the bench seat they'd been sitting on. "Are you all right?"
Dani raised her head. Even with his exceptional sight, Decker could barely make her out in the darkness. From what he could tell, she was more dazed than anything, though. He relaxed and closed his eyes with relief, planning only to take a moment to calm down, but found himself slowly becoming aware of the smell and feel of her. The image of her wide eyes and bemused expression was imprinted on his mind. She was soft and warm in his arms, and she thought he was cute, he remembered. Dani also smelled good enough to eat. She was a feast to his senses that Decker couldn't resist, and without even thinking about it, he caught her upper arms and pulled her up his body until her face was above his. His head then rose of its own accord; he claimed her lips and was lost.
Decker was vaguely aware of her initial stiffening, but she didn't struggle, and when she opened her mouth, probably to protest, he took full advantage and slid his tongue inside her, tasting the sweetness that was Dani.
Still shaken by being tossed around the vehicle, Dani was so startled when Decker kissed her that she didn't at first react. By the time she regained enough of her good sense to think of pushing him away, it was too late. She was already enveloped in his warm, strong arms, his body hard beneath her, his mouth covering hers, his tongue filling her and his scent assaulting her.
Decker smelled good. Dani had noticed that earlier while removing the bullet from his shoulder, but that had been only a teaser, a faint whiff compared to the full-on assault she was getting at this moment. It was overwhelming now that she was in his arms, and that, combined with the taste and feel of him, was enough to keep her quiescent in his arms. But when his hands began to move over her body, smoothing over her back and then moving down to cup her behind to urge her more snuggly against him, she gave up that quiescence and began to kiss him back. The moment Dani did, a storm of desire poured through her. It was incredibly strong and felt slightly foreign, but was overwhelming, carrying her along on its crest as it beat against the shore of her brain. It then receded, only to strike again, this time joined by another wave of the raw emotion. The assault left Dani breathless and filled with a mindless need.
Decker groaned into her mouth, the vibration of sound making her moan in response, and then they both completely lost any sense of who or where they were. At least, Dani did. She forgot that they were lying cramped in the back of an SUV with Justin inches away. She forgot that this was not just a stranger who had told her several lies, but someone who claimed and truly seemed to be a vampire. She forgot her anger with him, her worry for her sister... and pretty much her own name. Dani forgot everything and threw herself into the moment, clutching at his shoulders and shifting excitedly against the hardness she could feel pressing against the apex of her thighs as one of his hands pushed down on her bottom, urging her closer.
She was vaguely aware that his other hand was moving up her side, but wasn't prepared for the excitement that jolted through her when it brushed lightly along the side of her breast. Dani sucked in a surprised breath and found her upper body instinctively twisting and arching to press her breast invitingly into his palm. He accepted the invitation, hand closing over the mound and kneading it briefly before slipping away to move under the hampering cloth of her T-shirt. She felt him tug the delicate material of her bra aside and froze briefly, then turned her head and pressed her mouth to his shoulder, biting into it to smother her moan as his warm hand closed over her eager flesh.
His own mouth now free, Decker immediately began trailing kisses to her ear, making her shudder with surprised pleasure as he briefly nibbled there. Dani bore the combined assault as long as she could, but hunger was beating at her brain, and she finally turned her face back to find his lips once more. The kiss this time was almost vicious with their mounting need, and then Decker began to shift beneath her, his hands stopping what they were doing to grasp her hips and lift her.
Dani didn't, at first, understand what he was doing, and then his knee slid between her legs and he let her settle back against his thigh. She was now riding his leg, her body farther up his. It forced her to bend her head at an awkward angle to maintain their kiss, but she managed it. When his upper leg pressed more firmly against her where all the strings of her desire were culminating, Dani began to suck at his tongue. She then shifted one hand to the carpeted floor beside his head and pressed herself back into the caress, grinding herself against his thigh, at the same time rubbing her own upper thigh across the hard proof of his excitement.
Decker's response was to release a low growl and squeeze her breast almost painfully, and then he eased his hold to pay special attention to her nipple. It was too much for Dani; she felt like she was drowning in the pleasure assaulting her and she tore her mouth away, throwing back her head to gasp for air. But Decker was relentless; he simply continued to rub his leg against her and caress her breast, and then raised his head to press his mouth to the neck she'd unthinkingly offered him. He ran his lips and tongue along the vulnerable skin, pausing to suck and nip and suck again. Dani never felt any pain, nothing to tell her that his teeth had sunk into her flesh; pleasure had filled her up and left her completely oblivious. It wasn't until her vision began to blur that she realized something was wrong.
It was only when Dani went limp in his arms that Decker realized what he was doing. Cursing himself, he retracted his teeth and caught her as she slumped against him.
"Is she all right?"
Decker turned a fierce glare to Justin just as he turned back to watch the road ahead. "Why the hell didn't you stop me?"
"I didn't know you were biting her until I heard your curse and looked just now," Justin said quickly, and then added, "I thought you were just... you know... groping each other."
Decker's mouth tightened at the crude description of what had been-until a moment ago-a beautiful, passionate moment, but Justin wasn't done.
"I figured after eighty years without, you probably needed to let off a little steam so I just kept my eyes on the road... and tried not to hear all the grunting and groans back there."
"Thanks," Decker said dryly, easing to a sitting position and raising Dani as he went. Decker then tilted her head back to peer at her face. She looked a little pale, but her breathing and heartbeat seemed normal. Hopefully it was just a faint.
"No problem," Justin said. "Though you do owe me one; it was hard to resist peeking. It sounded pretty H and S."
"H and S?" Decker glanced to him with confusion.
"Hot and steamy," he explained, and then added almost enviously, "It sounded like you two were really tearing it up back there."