But Mercury nodded and said nothing more. But he still watched her. His gaze stayed on her, and she swore the flush mounting beneath her clothing was sinking into her bones.
Damn, she was glad his sense of smell wasn't as good as most Breeds, but from the way his eyes were narrowing and his nostrils were flaring, she suspected he sensed the arousal she could feel building in her.
She was a woman. And damn if he wasn't a fine specimen of a man and a Breed. She wasn't mated, and she wasn't dead. She had all the instincts other women had, and all those instincts were rioting for a taste of tall, dangerous and delicious over there.
That didn't mean she had to act on them.
The window rose between the driver's section and the passenger's. Ria turned and gave Mercury a questioning look.
"Lawe likes to open his window. It might be too cold for you," he stated, but his eyes said something entirely different. Something that had her ducking her head and turning to stare out the window next to her.
Yes, she was aroused, and no doubt the Breed driving knew it.
She gave a mental shrug. Just as she didn't doubt in the least that they should be used to it. Women around the world, in blogs, Breed-sighting websites and a variety of other online communities, both reviled and lusted after the creations man had made and lost control of.
They were fascinated by the Breeds. They were frightened of them and aroused by them. In little more than a decade they had become the bogeyman in the night as well as the dark lovers that invaded women's dreams. Sometimes it was amusing. Most of the time it managed to remind her how fickle humans could be.
Because it would take very little to turn the tide against the Breeds, and if the rumors Dane had heard were correct, then that tide could be coming through much sooner than anyone expected. And it could be more cataclysmic than anyone guessed.
* * *
The animal opened tired eyes, not certain what had drawn it awake. The man. The man's emotions were slipping. The animal could feel the break in the man's defenses, the chance to stretch, to reach out. To sense freedom. Sweet freedom.
It stretched with all its senses, slowly, cautiously; it reveled in the chance.
Then it paused. Blinked. It stared through the man's eyes. It inhaled through the man's nostrils. It tasted the air against the man's tongue and it had to restrain its roar.
It crouched, staring, scenting, tasting. It had waited. It had been weak. Worn. So close to death. But it had fought. And it had waited.
For this.
Dark eyes peeked up at the man from beneath lowered lashes. It wasn't a coy look, it was a cautious look. Dark lashes, shades lighter than her eyes. Dark hair was restrained when it should be free.
And her scent.
This was what had awakened it. Her scent.
The animal felt something akin to joy race through it. Her scent was like mercy. It was like warmth in the middle of the cold. Her scent was like a place to belong.
It was careful. The man was still diligent. The animal let the smell of that sweet scent linger in its head, for only a moment. Just a taste, a tease of what true pleasure was, before pulling back.
The animal crouched now, awake, unblinking. The presence of the woman filled it with hope, renewed that last ounce of strength it needed just to survive.
The man's emotions, the animal could feel them straining, the chains that bound it growing weaker, because the man was distracted. The man was dealing with his emotions; he didn't have to be on guard for the animal that had nearly died long ago.
He was just a man. The animal could feel the thought as the man let himself ease his guard. He was just a man, no need to worry. He could watch this woman. He could want this woman.
And the animal watched. And it wanted. It crouched, waiting, growing hungry now where before there was no strength to even hunger.
The animal watched. It waited. Knowing freedom would soon arrive.
CHAPTER 2
"Hello, Mr. Wyatt. What a pleasure to finally meet you." Ria accepted Jonas Wyatt's handshake as she stepped into his office at Sanctuary and looked around the well-appointed office.
It wasn't fancy by any means, but it was large, open and airy. The walnut desk he used had been used by the Council scientists who had inhabited the estate before the Breeds took possession of it.
Dark, heavy file cabinets had been placed along the walls. He kept his files close to him. Hard copy was a bit antiquated, but at least he kept them secured. She knew his office in D.C. was completely electronic and unattached to any lines outside his office other than the PDA and laptop that often traveled with him.