Seduce the Darkness (Alien Huntress #4)(56)
Author: Gena Showalter

Their eyes met, and she gradually lost her grin. Her gaze slid to his penis. She gulped. Shivered.

"Ready for round two already, Bradley?" Her ni**les beaded, and the pulse at the base of her neck fluttered.

"Been ready. I’ve just been waiting for you to catch up." She gave another of those delicious laughs.

His c**k jerked in reaction. "Have you ever had sex in water?”

“No. So let’s change that, shall we?"

A few blissful hours later, Bride found herself standing in front of her—old?—apartment door, Devyn at her side. He’d made love to her inside the shower, slowly, tenderly, but with an air of urgency she hadn’t understood but had felt herself. She couldn’t seem to get enough of him. How foolish was that? Soon her supply would be cut off, whether by Devyn or herself, and she’d have to do without him. Wanting more was dumb.

To be honest, she just couldn’t see them lasting much longer. They liked each other now, sure, and the sex was amazing. Soon, though, someone else would come along and catch his notice. When that happened, she would leave. Bride absolutely refused to hang where she wasn’t wanted. That feeling of inadequacy … she shuddered.

She’d experienced it only briefly, but that had been enough to assure her she never wanted to feel that way again. Ugh. Just ugh.

She would have to keep an emotional distance between them for when the inevitable break came, and yet somehow still allow herself to touch and taste him and experience the heaven that was his body. Might be difficult. The man definitely knew how to steal female hearts.

He rasped his knuckles against the metal.

"I don’t understand why we have to knock," she grumbled. "It’s my apartment.”

“Actually, it’s ours. I get fifty percent of your assets."

"Touch my books, and I’ll cut off your hands.”

“Ha! You need my hands more than I do."

A dark-haired, dark-skinned man opened the door, saving her from replying. She’d seen the gorgeous agent before, knew who he was, but had never spoken to him.

He flashed her a bright, white smile as he leaned against the frame. His ice-blue eyes glowed merrily. "Don’t think we’ve met officially. I’m Dallas, the big guy’s best friend."

"Bride …" What was Devyn’s last name? Bride suddenly wondered. Did he even have one? And would he want her to use it? Stop. You aren’t really married to him. "McKells. Bride McKells."

"Just Bride," Devyn said with a growl.

Dallas’s grin widened. "Come in, come in. Macy’s waiting."

Macy was here? Bride pushed past the agent without another word and sailed inside. It was her place, anyway, and she could do what she wanted. Sure enough, Macy was inside the kitchen, fixing dinner. Sandwiches. Someone must have gone shopping.

When her friend spotted her, she stopped what she was doing and rushed forward, features dark with concern. "Thank God. I’ve been so worried about you."

Bride hugged her tight. "I’m fine, I promise. How are you?”

“Fine." Macy pulled back and studied her. "I hear you’re married. Is that true?"

"No," she said with a determined shake of her head. "We’re still hammering out the details," Devyn said from behind her. She almost stomped her foot. "There aren’t any details to hammer out."

"So anyway, it’s our lucky day," she heard Dallas tell Devyn, who subsequently ignored her. "Nolan finally gave up his queen’s landing point."

She and Macy shared a look of understanding, then quieted, listening to the men while pretending they were cleaning the kitchen.

"Yeah, but do we trust him?" Devyn asked.

There was a rustle of clothing. Dallas must have shrugged. "Mia’s got a crew staking out the place now, ready to stun her. Nolan was stunnable that first time, too, remember? Anyway, you didn’t let me finish. I went ahead and interrogated the human slavers."

Bride spun around, no longer content to pretend not to listen. The human slavers. She’d forgotten about them. "What did they say?"

Macy moved to her side and gripped her hand. One of them was trembling, but she couldn’t tell which. Perhaps they both were.

Devyn jabbed a finger into Dallas’s wide chest, again ignoring her. "I told you I would handle them."

Far from intimidated, Dallas grinned. "And Mia told everyone in the building to keep you out of their cells. She didn’t want their heads on the evening news. Anyway, I interrogated them in a manner you would have approved of and got the date and time of their next auction. A week from tomorrow. Bride’s potential buyer is going to be there, because two other vampires have been caught."

Other vampires had been caught? They were to be sold? Enslaved? Bile rose in her throat. Macy’s arm wound around her, offering comfort.

"You know something else. Tell me," Devyn commanded.

Dallas paused, his expression hardening. "Here’s the thing. Remember the vision I had?" A clipped nod from Devyn.

"Moment I heard about the auction, something dark clicked inside me, and I knew, knew. If you go, you’ll start a chain of unstoppable events that will not end well for you." Another pause, mouth grim. "Maybe they’ll even lead to the pier."

CHAPTER 18

Bride wondered about Dallas’s comment while soaking in Devyn’s tub later that evening. What chain of events? What was supposed to happen at the pier? She’d asked Devyn, but he’d distracted her with sex, the slut, and she’d gotten no answers.

When Dallas had spoken in that grim tone, his baby blues solemn, she’d experienced an overpowering flood of dread. Both men were certain something bad was going to happen to Devyn at the pier. She was sure of it. But what?

After a while, she gave up trying to figure it out on her own. Her brain seemed to be on hiatus, anyway, steam wafting around her, soft music playing in the background. A girl could get used to this.

Devyn strode into the bathroom, spotted her, and grinned slowly, wickedly. "What do we have here?"

Bubbles fluffed the surface, hiding the sudden hardening of her ni**les. "Get that look off your face. We are not going for round four." Or would it be round five? "I’m relaxing." And God, it was divine. The water was warm, soothing, lapping fantastically at her skin.

Rather than leave, he perched at the edge of the porcelain. "I should join you. It’s still our honeymoon, you know."

"We’re not married, but I am going to enjoy this while I can." She sank deeper into the liquid paradise. Her hair was anchored in a knot on top of her head, so she didn’t have to worry about soaking it. "Actually, I just changed my mind. We are married. I’ll take this house, and therefore this tub, in the divorce settlement. What are you worth, anyway?"