Changeling

Chase was an enigma to me. I couldn't say I loved him, not really. At least I didn't think so. But I was fond of him, more than just about anybody else in my life. He had earned my respect by his devotion to his work, and that was a hard thing to do.

He'd also surprised the hell out of me by dragging out an unexpected loyal streak that hid just beneath the surface. Now, that worried me. I wasn't really down with the concept of monogamy, though I wasn't as sexual as Camille, at least not overtly. I'd warned him that I wasn't looking for anything serious, and so far, there had been no problems.

The first time we'd slept together the sex had been so-so. I'd been mainly interested in finding out what all the sex-with-people hoopla was about. I'd already lost my virginity in my cat form to a gorgeous long-haired silver tabby named Tommy, but let's face it, male cats are pretty self-centered, and Tommy-boy wasn't a werecat, which meant that any hope of a relationship was highly limited. He mainly talked about chasing mice and butterflies, and the neighbor dogs that he wanted to take out but was too afraid to go near. I'd grown fond of him, but after a while, our different perspectives on the world wore thin.

After a few romps with Chase, however, something had shifted. Maybe my hormones kicked in, or the Fae blood. Whatever it was, sex had become so intense that it threatened to overwhelm me. It was like a hidden riptide, waiting to drag me out into deep water once it had gotten hold of me.

As I pulled into the driveway leading into his complex, the first flakes of snow came drifting down to kiss my eyelashes, flickering like diamonds floating on the breeze. I hauled ass up the stairs, shivering from the chill.

Chase was waiting for me, wearing nothing but his boxers, a chocolate-brown velvet smoking jacket, and a smile. He leaned against the wet bar, dark eyes smoldering, and I caught my breath. For an FBH, he washed up damn good.

"Hey, baby," he said, his voice as smooth as the skin on his face. "What's your pleasure?"

I wanted to talk to him about Trillian. I wanted to tell him about the case. I wanted to pour out my worries about the Degath Squad and the Hunters Moon Clan, but all of that faded away as he arched one eyebrow.

"Fuck me," I said, dropping my purse on the floor, along with my jacket. I began to tingle as he slowly walked to me, and then, in a single blur of motion, he wrapped one arm around my waist as his other hand tangled in my hair.

He propelled me to the bedroom, where he pushed me against the wall, his hands sliding under my cami to cup my breasts through my bra. He was my height, and our gazes met and locked. I loved matching my strength against his, and though I would win if it came to a fight, he was no slacker.

Picking me up, he tossed me on the bed and pulled off his smoking jacket and boxer shorts. I leaned back, leisurely brushing my hand across my stomach. He stared down at me, muscled and erect, rigid with desire. The gleam in his eye made my stomach lurch.

"Leg up," he commanded.

I lifted one leg, languorously allowing him to slide my boot off, and then the other. I held my breath as he leaned over me, tracing a circle around my belly button with his lips before slowly unzipping my jeans. The only sound in the room was that of the denim sliding down my thighs and then to the floor. I caught my breath as he grabbed my hand and pulled me up to sit on the edge of the bed, quickly sliding behind me, wrapping his legs around my hips as he snuggled his chest against my back.

I shuddered and raised my arms, and he lifted my cami over my head. As he unhooked my bra, I leaned against him, feeling the silken brush of his chest hair against my skin. He reached around, softly squeezing my breasts before he gave the nipples a sharp pinch. I let out a yelp, growing wet as his fingers traced their way down my stomach, as his hand trailed over my abs to gently play with the curly golden hair nestled between my legs.

"Oh, good gods, don't stop," I said, my voice low and throaty. "You're driving me crazy."

Chase laughed. "That's the idea, baby," he whispered in my ear. "Get you all hot and bothered and then take advantage of you."

"You, take advantage of me?" I whispered back, and quick as a cat, I whirled around, pressing him back on the bed. I straddled his pelvis, holding myself just above him, grinning as I brushed my fingers over my breasts, lingering over the nipples. "You want me, Detective? You want to play with the pussycat?"

He let out a snort and folded his arms under his head. "Baby, you know what I want."

"Say please, then," I taunted him, circling my hips above his rock-hard shaft. He looked so luscious it was all I could do to hold back.

He gave me a coy grin, just enough for me to know that I had him. "Come on, give it to me, girl. I'm so hard I'm going to explode."

I slid down the length of him, slowly, wet with anticipation as he thrust up to meet me, driving him deep inside my waiting body. I arched back as we matched thrust for thrust. Chase reached down between us, one finger gliding over my clit, massaging me as I rode him. With the other hand, he reached up to caress my breast.

"Oh, Great Mother, don't stop," I whispered as wave after wave of dizzying need swept through me. "Harder, please, fuck me harder."

He rolled me over then, bearing down on me as his hips ground against mine, driving himself so deep that I wanted to scream. I opened my mouth to beg for sweet, merciful release.

And then I blinked and found myself staring at Zachary Lyonnesse, his golden-boy good looks gazing down at me as if he'd just woken from a wonderful dream. I could hear him panting as he furiously pumped away, his thick staff driving itself farther and farther into my core with each thrust.

"What the hell?" I shouted, but then I blinked again and found myself staring up at a very startled Chase. But we were both too far along to say anything else and, teetering on the edge, ready to drop over the chasm into the realm of darkness and fire, I shook off my confusion and pulled him down to part his lips with my tongue, staving off any doubts. We kissed, connecting again in our rhythm until everything faded but one single moment of ecstasy.

As we sprawled on his bed, cheese, crackers, and peanut butter on a tray, I stared pensively at the bedspread. Chase tapped me on the shoulder. "Something wrong?" he asked. "Do you want more?"

I gave him a quick smile. "I'm fine. It was wonderful. I'm just a little worried." That was the truth. Whether my flash to Zachary had been fantasy or a psychic connection, I didn't know. We were both Weres, so there was a possibility that we'd somehow homed in on each other's energy.

Whatever the case, I felt vaguely guilty, because I knew that it was the sight of Zach that had propelled me to a climax more intense than I'd ever felt before. It had been feral. Primal, even.

The thought came to mind that this must be what it was like to make love to one of the Fae, and I suddenly understood their reluctance to involve themselves with humans. But how could I possibly tell Chase what I was feeling?

I signed and pushed my hair out of my eyes, putting the incident on hold for now. We had serious matters to discuss. No more procrastinating. I told Chase about Zachary's visit—omitting any hint of the attraction I'd felt—and my subsequent talk with Siobhan.

"So, first I need you to run Zach's name through the computer and see what you come up with, along with the names of the victims. Ten to one at least three victims won't show. I don't think there's a record of their births. And then, could you scour your informants for any mention of the Hunters Moon Clan?"

He jotted down the information, then leaned back, pulling a long sip of sparkling water. As he raised his arm, I spotted the fresh nicotine patch on his shoulder. Cigarette smoke—almost all smoke, really—was hard for both Camille and me to be around. It caused our senses to run amok. Menolly didn't care. She was a vampire, and Chase could have smoked like a chimney around her without any complaints. But he'd given it up for me and hadn't had a cigarette or cigar since the first night we slept together. He went through a lot of chewing gum and patches, but he'd been true to his word. Just another reason I didn't want to say anything that might hurt him.

"Not a problem, baby. Anything else?"

"Yeah. Would you mind asking the OIA medics if they'll examine Siobhan? She really needs to find out what's going on with her infertility problems. And she was so helpful, even though it was obvious she was scared out of her mind."

"Sure thing. Hey, I've got something for you," he said, his eyes excited.

"What?" Chase was forever buying me little trinkets. Not once had it felt like a bribe or a plea.

"Here—open it." He handed me a small box with a red rose attached to the top.

Curious, I carefully opened it, setting the flower to one side after inhaling a long whiff of its rich scent. I popped the top on the box and peeked inside. "No, you didn't!" I started to laugh.

"Hey, nobody knows my girlfriend like I know her," he said, grinning.

I pulled out the bag of catnip mice and snorted. "Have I told you lately how great you are?" I said. And sitting there naked in his bed, staring at the plastic bag that contained four overstuffed toys, I meant every word. Anybody could buy me diamonds. It took a real sweetheart to think about what I might really like to play with.

As I was getting dressed, I remembered my other promise. I let out a long sigh. "Listen, Chase, Trillian was over at our place this morning. He said you won't let him stay here alone, and he's pissed." I slid my cami over my head and shimmied into my jeans, holding my breath as I zipped them up. As I ran my hands through my hair and checked my makeup, Chase raised his eyebrows and sat down beside me on the bed.

He had carefully pulled on his creased trousers and was buttoning up his shirt. I still couldn't believe that he preferred suits to jeans, but that was Chase, Armani on the outside, muscle shirts on the inside.

He snorted. "You actually think I'd trust Trillian here alone? I don't even know what possessed me to invite him to stay with me. I must have been out of my mind." He adjusted his tie and brushed his wavy hair back.

I bit my tongue. I could have told him why he let Trillian stay here, but that would just drive another wedge between the two men, and right now we needed both of them to cooperate. And if Trillian found out I had spilled the beans, quite possibly he'd find it a delight to tell Chase that I'd charmed him, too. And I knew that finding out he'd been duped by both of us wouldn't make Chase a happy man.

"He'll find a place soon, I'm sure of it. I think he wants to be able to bring Camille here—to get her out of our house now and then." As soon as the words came out, I knew I'd said the wrong thing, but there was no going back.

Chase blanched. "You mean he wants to bring her over here to fuck her? I… I think I'd feel weird knowing Camille had been… I mean Trillian and Camille—"

I raised an eyebrow. Just what I thought. Chase was still attracted to my sister. "You can talk about her if you want," I said, slowly, realizing that I meant what I said. "I don't mind that you're attracted to her. But seriously, don't even think about suggesting a three-way, because it's not going to happen."

Chase stared at me, an unreadable look on his face. "Have I ever asked you to consider a ménage à trois? No. And would I ever ask you? No. After all," he said, giving me a faint grin, "you two could probably tear me apart if you were pissed. Tell me, what does she see in him, anyway? He's a creep, as far as I'm concerned."

I frowned, trying to think of how to best explain the complicated workings of my sister's love life. "Trillian is Svartan. Isn't that enough? Fae and Svartan sexual ethics are complicated at best, murky and cruel at worst. The dwarves and elves are far more human in their approach to sex than we are."

"What makes Svartans so special, and is it just their men?" Leading me out into the kitchen, Chase retrieved two bottles of mineral water from the refrigerator and twisted the cap off of one and handed it to me, then opened the other for himself. "I asked Camille once, but she brushed me off. I got the distinct impression she thought I was trying to compete with Mr. Suave, there."

I leaned against the counter, sipping the San Pellegrino. The bubbles tickled my nose, and I sneezed. "It's not just the men. The entire Svartan race possesses an innate sexual magnetism. When you actually have sex with one of them, the bond forged is harder to break than any contract humans could ever think up. Camille belongs to Trillian—they're bound by magic so strong that I doubt if anything except death could break it."

"You mean, they're linked on a magical level that also happens to be sexual," Chase said.

"Precisely. When she ran from him, the separation drove him crazy, and it almost tore her apart. Normally, Trillian should be able to break the bond and walk away."

"Then why doesn't he? Does he love her?"

I shrugged. "Hard to tell. But I don't think he can leave. I think that there's something about her—maybe the combination of her Moon magic and her blood turned the tables. Trillian's as hooked on her as she is on him. I can just about guarantee that he'll never let her go again." I could tell that Chase was trying to wrap his head around the whole mess, but it was a struggle. "Why do you care so much?"

"Because I want to know, so just tell me."

"Why? What could it possibly matter to you how Trillian looks at Camille?" The thought that I was playing substitute crossed my mind, and I didn't like it.

But Chase put that worry to rest. "Because she's your sister, Delilah, and she matters to you, so she matters to me. The same with Menolly, though I don't even pretend to be comfortable with the fact that she's a vampire. But I'm trying. I'm trying to understand your world, and that includes everything that touches it. I'm doing my best to fit into your life."