my fingers undid a few more buttons without his notice. “Why should I make this easy for you? Why shouldn’t I fight for you, huh?” I found the last button, made quick work of it, and his shirt fell open.
His eyes, which had been closed, sprang open, meeting mine. He was struck mute and offered no answer.
“She doesn’t know you like I do, Jake.” I caressed his chest, my fingers marking a gentle path down the length of his smooth, right pec. “She can’t make you feel this way.” I brushed my lips over his heart and trailed kisses to his collarbone, soaking in his heat, inhaling his maddening musk.
The scent of his desire engulfed me suddenly, and he captured me in his arms. One of his hands slid under my hair and pulled me closer. Our lips met in a desperate kiss. He pressed me against him, his tongue caressing mine, his teeth biting my lower lip while his other hand grabbed my ass and pressed me against him.
I raked my fingernails down his back. He hissed and pressed his mouth to my neck, nibbling, sending shudders of pleasure down my body.
My heart swelled with passion and so much more.
“I love you, Jake,” I said, without thinking.
He went utterly still and pulled away, his eyes searching my face. He looked as if I’d slapped him. Turning away from me, he started buttoning his shirt.
“You can’t tell me that now,” he said.
I rubbed my swollen lips, aching for more of his kisses. “I love you,” I repeated. “You can’t pretend you didn’t know that.”
“I didn’t. You had never said it. I thought...”
“You thought what?”
“I thought it was all physical. Desire. Then when you told me you were a werewolf, I thought I’d been right all along, that it had been no more than cravedark.”
“What is that?”
“It happens sometimes when a male and a female instinctively know they will make strong offspring if they mate. The attraction doesn’t stop until she conceives, then it’s gone. But if you love me, then...”
“Then what?”
“Then I’m a dead man.”
JAKE HAD GROWN DEAD silent, refusing to explain what he’d meant by saying he was a dead man. We stood by the side of the road. There were four police cars next to my Camaro, their lights flashing blue and red, coloring the trees and the graveled shoulder.
Three cops were pushing Blake up the embankment toward the blacktop. He fought them as if he had any chance of escaping, handcuffed and collared as he was. There was no shifting with those dampening devices on him. They possessed strong magic.
The taste of Jake’s skin lingered on my lips, and for an instant, I closed my eyes and imagined my fingers sliding down his smooth chest.
Tom Freeman walked away from one of the police cars and headed in our direction. He wore a loose tie around his neck, and a long coat that flapped behind him.
“Sorry to have doubted you, kiddo. This one will rock the department, probably prompt an investigation in the coroner’s office. Only God knows how they got fooled into thinking Blake was a dead man.”
“Maybe he just bribed them,” Jake offered.
Tom huffed. “I know the men who conducted the autopsy, and they’re not the kind to take a bribe.”
“My mother will press charges,” I said. “Please make sure he doesn’t go free like Jenson. That asshole mage has already tried to kill me again.”
The detective’s eyes opened wide. “You didn’t mention that.”
I shrugged.
“We’ll get him, too,” Jake said.
“About that, you can’t go ‘round taking the law into your own hands. It’s not safe, and it’s not your job, so call us instead of barging into a dangerous situation like you’ve been doing.” He pulled out a small pad and poised a pen over it. “If you have any additional information that can help shed some light on what’s going on, spill it.”
“I told you everything I know,” I said. “I think Stephen is behind this. I hope this time you’ll believe me.”
I glanced in Blake’s direction, who was being stuffed into the back seat of one of the patrol cars. If Tom had believed me about Blake, maybe my mother wouldn’t have been attacked. I could see by the subtle shift in the detective’s expression that he got my meaning.
“Did you find anything in your case files?” I asked.
Tom shook his head. “Nothing concrete, just small loose ends that don’t prove anything.”
I huffed. “I’d better go, then. I have an appointment early tomorrow morning.”
Jake