His hands fisted and a vase shattered to his left.
“ What? Jesus, Niol, what are you doing?” Holly ran back to his side and bent to pick up the shards of glass. “Nice. This was a gift from-”
He grabbed her hands, heedless of the glass. Niol pulled her to her feet, kept her close. His nostrils flared as her scent teased him.
If Holly had been the one in that morgue…
“Niol?” Her gaze searched his.
He swallowed back the rage. “You still want to team up on this thing?” Because she couldn’t hunt the killer on her own, not when she would be walking in both worlds.
Human and Other.
A grim nod. “You know I do. I don’t have your contacts.”
But she had some. For a human, she’d done a good job of slipping into the realm hidden by darkness.
Besides, if he was right, they didn’t really need to explore too much in the demon realm.
“You want in my world. I want in yours.”
“What are you proposing?”
Her skin felt so soft beneath his fingers. Delicate. He could hurt her, if he wasn’t careful.
But he’d be careful with Holly Storm. Very, very careful. He’d gain her confidence, and in time he’d get…her.
She’d been a fire in his blood for too long. Time to get rid of the gnawing hunger and past time to stop a killer.
Luckily, he had the perfect plan for meeting both goals.
He lowered his head. Brought his mouth inches away from hers. “Tell me, Holly, are you in the mood for a new lover?”
Her breath hissed out.
“I’ll take that as a yes. The cops already think we’re together.” They could keep thinking that. It would be the perfect cover. “You can talk to the demons this way, find out if any of them know anything about Sam or Carl.” No demon in Atlanta would dare to touch her once he’d staked his claim.
“And what do you get from the arrangement?” Husky. Dammit. Sexy.
He got more fantasies. More hard-ons. And maybe, just maybe, the fuck he’d been dreaming of for all these long months.
If he played the game right, he’d also catch a killer. “I get enough.” That was all he’d say, for now.
His eyes lingered on her mouth. She had a great mouth. He loved her bottom lip. Niol wanted to kiss her. To taste the lips so close to his.
And he was more than used to doing exactly as he wanted.
So he took her mouth.
A deep, long kiss. Lips and tongue. Craving. Hunger.
Her lips were warm and soft, and her response- fuck.
She kissed him with fury. With wild need.
Nothing tentative about her.
His cock, already semiaroused, swelled against the front of his jeans.
He wanted her naked. The bed was close. He could take her into the bedroom. Strip her, and make the fantasy he’d been suggesting into a reality.
It would be so easy.
Holly pushed against him, her nails biting into his chest.
Maybe not.
His head raised. He could still taste her sweetness on his tongue.
“What is it that you want from me, Niol?”
Everything.
“I want to stop the killer, same as you.” He forced his hands to free her and he stepped back. He’d been careful not to jar her. He didn’t want to hurt her.
She must have felt his cock straining against her when they’d kissed. The woman knew she’d gotten him turned on and ready.
But he’d pulled back.
For now. “So what’s it gonna be, love? Do you want to hunt with me?”
“Yes.” Instant. “But we do this together, you got me, demon? No more secrets, no more lies. Together. ”
He wasn’t going to make any promises. His life was all about secrets and lies.
“Then welcome to the wild side, Holly.” She’d better get ready for one rough ride.
Chapter 5
Breaking and entering generally wasn’t Holly’s idea of a good time. Sure, when she’d been eighteen, she’d once had a boyfriend who’d been fresh out of juvie and he’d taught her some lock tricks, but she hadn’t exactly planned on spending her grown-up nights breaking the law.
But it wasn’t like she had much choice right then.
“Tell me again,” Niol said softly, “just what the hell we’re doing here.”
Here was on the steps of a small brick house on the outskirts of Atlanta. A house Holly had visited once before, with Carl Bronx.
“Carl’s parents owned this place.” Her gaze swept the street. “They moved a few years back, left it to him. He had a place downtown, but he liked to stay here sometimes.”
She’d thought of the house on Sycamore right before her evening news broadcast and realized that while the police had undoubtedly already searched Carl’s studio apartment, they might not have had a chance to get into this place.
Or maybe they didn’t even know about it yet.
Holly drew in a deep breath. She felt better, her muscles not as stiff and sore. Already, many of her bruises and scratches had healed. Her wrist didn’t even hurt anymore. She was feeling pretty damn good.
Lucky for her, she’d always been a fast healer.
She’d slept most of the day away. Slept, and had nightmares about Sam. Yet every time she’d woken, a cry on her lips, the heavy weight of sleep had pulled her back into the dark world of blood and fear.
She couldn’t escape the dead, not even in her sleep.
After her broadcast, she’d called Niol and told him that she needed his help. Because if she was about to go snooping into a dead man’s house, well, with the crazy shit happening in this town, she wanted backup.
And what better backup could she get than her all-powerful demon?
He’d picked her up, followed her directions, and now stood with her on the stone steps of the house. Holly flipped up the welcome mat, hoping to find a spare key.
“Love, if you want inside, all you have to do is ask…” Soft.
She shivered. From the cold, had to be. The night air carried a definite chill.
Sure, it was the cold. And not because the guy’s voice was sexy.
Her hands rose to her hips. “I’m asking, demon.”
He glanced at the door. Narrowed his eyes. She felt that strange thickness in the air again. She’d felt it at the station and at the house, right before her mother’s vase had shattered.
A soft click sounded and the door swung open.
“Nice.” She said, and this time, meant it. Demons could be handy. Holly strode forward-
And Niol’s grip on her shoulder had her jerking to a halt.
She glanced at him, brows lowered.
“Powerful demon.” He pointed to his chest. “Human.” Hers.
Growling, she inched back, and let the big, bad demon stride inside first. If there was a nutjob in there with a really big, really sharp knife, she wasn’t going to argue with the merits of having a level-ten powerhouse take the first steps inside.
Her mother hadn’t raised a fool.
The house was tomb quiet and the air tasted a bit stale. Niol flipped on the lights, exposing the worn furniture, the old TV.
“So, are your spider senses doing a tingle?” She asked him, glancing at the shadowed rooms to the left and right.
He raised a brow and stared back at her.
Holly tried not to notice just how strong his jaw looked and just how dark his hair was.
His eyes-they didn’t disconcert her anymore. Midnight pools, swimming with secrets and emotions. Staring into those eyes-too tempting.
“My spider senses?” He repeated.
She motioned with one hand toward the rest of the house. “That super hearing and vision you’ve got.” Not shifter level, but so much better than her own. “Is this place safe?”
“Safe enough.”
That was good enough for her. Her shoulders relaxed. “Then let’s hurry. I want to search this house, fast, before that shifter cop or his good buddy pull up.” A clue. One small lead, that was all she’d need to find.
Searching Carl’s place in the city would be a waste of time. Anything important, Gyth would have already bagged and tagged it, and the shifter wasn’t the sharing sort.