Page 48 of The Huntress

“Want me to take you home?” Mike rose as well, curling his jacket off the back of his chair.

“I’ll take a taxi. I need you to distribute the stuff in the van, pretty please. Widows, orphans, lonely women in payroll.” She nudged him in the ribs.

He sighed. “Is he still here?” Mike scanned the open plan area looking for Gabe.

“See you in the morning.” She strolled out with a wave, loping down the steps to the curb to call a taxi. Gabe’s presence followed her, and she held the taxi’s door open just long enough for him to slide in. As soon as her backside touched the seat, he draped his arm across her shoulders, pulling her into the curve of his invisible body.

“Ready for dinner?” His breath across her cheek sent shivers down her neck.

“Let’s head to your place. I’m tired and don’t feel like dining out.” She raised her gaze to where his should be. “I have the one couch so my place isn’t ideal for entertaining.”

“Are you talking to me, lady?” The taxi driver peered at her in his rearview mirror.

She laughed. “Just muttering to myself.”

Chapter Seventeen

BEYOND TEMPTATION

HavingCallieinhisarms was promising. Gabriel hadn’t known she could see him shrouded. When she leaned against the wall and whispered to him, he’d gaped. He hadn’t been horrified by this, no, pride had puffed out his chest.

Then Antoine had squeezed her throat, and fury tore through Gabriel. The man was a rebel, stirring up discontent, and Syl had yet to deal with him. Wanting Callie to realize the severity of the situation, Gabriel had waited. Each second had passed like a decade until he couldn’t stand back anymore.

Endangering her went against every fiber in his being, and if she didn’t hurry up, then he’d have to endure this for as long as a week. The way she nestled into him gave him hope that tonight she would choose instead of making him wait days.

Her suggestion to dine at his home had him shifting on the taxi’s backseat, trying to ease the ever-present arousal he sported. Anywhere with a bed nearby suited him.

She paid the taxi driver and climbed out.

Gabriel paused on the sidewalk outside her apartment, scanning the sky and the shadows forming in the setting sun. He sniffed the air. No vamps lingered and watched. The sight of his motorcycle, a matte black Ducati, taking up prominence in a parking bay, summoned a grin. As soon as Callie suggested dinner at his place, he’d asked Leo to send over transport. The bike was a nice touch, forcing her to wrap her arms around him. With a wave, two helmets formed on the seat.

Leo was a true romantic, and though Gabe had known this, he hadn’t appreciated it as much as he did now. As advised, he’d ordered the flowers in the silence between attacks. She had glowed when she read his cards, proving Leo right again.

She climbed the stairs with more enthusiasm than she had last night, despite the bruises around her neck confirming she’d had a bad day. He hated seeing them, and if he could, he would heal them as he had her head wound.

Releasing a breath on a rush, he shut the apartment door behind them. She’d disappeared into her room, the shower coming on.

“I’ll just freshen up then we can leave.” She returned, hovering in the doorway with peach staining her cheeks. “You saw me naked this morning, didn’t you?” She gasped. “And last night?”

“I won’t lie to you, so yes.”

Pursing her lips, she nodded. “Do you mind waiting?”

“No.” He wished they’d finished the Rite so he could read her thoughts. Was she pissed with him for seeing her naked? What did her nod mean? He sank into her chair, settling in the same spot his backside had occupied for hours last night.

The bathroom door closed, and he gripped the arms, his groin aching, demanding he storm in, and watch her or better, join her. Growling, he pressed the back of his head against the chair. His torturous mind replayed memories of her in his shower, the way the soap clung to her curves, the length of her hair brushing her back as she shampooed it.

Sooner than expected, she saved him from the lust-filled mire, popping her head through her door. His gaze snagged on her pink towel wrapped around her.

“Jeans okay?”

He nodded, not willing to trust his voice. Another few minutes passed with him straining his hearing, guessing what she was doing and wishing he could watch her instead.

“Ready.” Jeans hugged her figure, and an off-the-shoulder cream sweater tested his control. “Do that thing with your eyes.”

Gesturing to her hair, she gave him her back.

He rose, released a shuddering breath, looped his arm around her waist, and tugged her against his chest. He ran his fingers through her damp hair, vibrating air particles to heat and dry each lock. She’d given him the opportunity to touch her. He could’ve done it with one glance, but tonight was for seduction.

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