Riley Jensen 03 - Tempting Evil Part 4

True. Once I'd invited him past the threshold of my home, there wasn't one d.a.m.n thing I could do to stop him entering anytime he pleased, as often as he pleased.

I crossed my arms and stared at his beautiful but emotionless face.

"What do you want?"

He studied me for a moment, then said, "Would you like to have breakfast with me?"

Surprise rippled through me. Of all the questions I'd been expecting, that wasn't one of them. "Why?"He raised an eyebrow. "You have to eat, don't you?"

"Yeah, but that's not what I mean."

He shrugged. "You told me two months ago that I needed to pamper you, romance you, to win your heart. Perhaps I've finally realized that was good advice."

"And perhaps tomorrow pigs might fly. Why are you really here, Quinn?"

He didn't react to my barb, and that was almost scary. Perhaps he really was trying to show me a different side of himself. And yet, instinct whispered all was not as it seemed, and I was never one to ignore instinct. It had saved my a.s.s far too many times.

"I'm merely here to see you, and to have breakfast with you. Nothing more, nothing less."

"And I'm not on your menu? A quick snack on the side?"

Amus.e.m.e.nt glimmered briefly in the dark depths of his eyes. "It would be a bonus, but no." He hesitated, and the glimmer disappeared, lost to the sudden flash of annoyance. "I have attended to my blood needs, in much the same manner as you've attended to your own needs."

"I didn't ask Kellen back. He came of his own accord, bearing roses and an apology." I paused. "Have you even noticed my bruises?"

"Only a blind man could not."

"And you didn't think to comment-not even a simple 'gee, they look bad'?"

"Would they have felt any better if I had?"

They wouldn't, but I might have. "You know, for a very old vampire, you're sometimes awfully obtuse."

He shrugged. "Will you come to breakfast?"

"No." I spun on my heel and walked into the kitchen to flick on the kettle.

"Why not?"

Though I'd heard no movement, he was suddenly standing in the doorway, his arms crossed as he leaned casually against the doorframe. His presence seemed to dominate the small kitchen in a way no bigger man could have. He was all dangerous energy and devastating masculinity, wrapped in an outer layer that was urbane and sophisticated. And I was as attracted to the power underneath as much as I was the gorgeous outer wrapping.

I just didn't quite know what to do with the package as a whole. Or that I was entirely wise being in any sort of relations.h.i.+p with him. Two months ago I'd discovered that, for the first time in my life, I was fertile. Currently protected against pregnancy, but fertile all the same. The doctors were certain it wouldn't last, that my vampire genes would eventually a.s.sert themselves and I would once again become the werewolf equivalent of a mule, but it was a revelation that had changed my whole perspective when it came to Quinn. Yes, I wanted him. Fiercely. But I couldn't and wouldn't risk going exclusive with him. Not only because that might mean missing the wolf who was my destined soul mate, but for the simple fact that if the drug that had made me fertile didn't actually cause any other chemistry changes within me, then this might be my one and only chance to conceive. I'd wanted a family of my own all my life-wanted that whole white picket fence and two kids ideal-and I had no intention of missing the opportunity it it came along. And if ever there was a certainty in my life, then it was this-Quinn might be able to give me the white picket fence, but he could never give me a child. Never, ever.

Of course, he knew all this, just as I knew he wanted something more than what I was willing to offer. What that something was he wouldn't say-I wasn't even sure if he knew himself.

But why would he state that he had no intention of going anywhere until we'd explored this thing between us, then basically stay away for two months? Why show up again so suddenly? It didn't make sense-and everything this vampire did, he did with a purpose in mind.

His gaze touched mine, and those luscious dark eyes were rich with awareness and hunger. Hunger that was both s.e.x and blood driven. Despite what he'd said about sating his needs earlier, his hunger was right here, burning between us, stronger, more alluring than ever before.

And it only intensified the feeling he was here for more than what he was saying.

"Answer the question, Riley," he said, voice soft yet holding a note that suggested it was almost a demand. "Why won't you have breakfast with me?"

"Because I have to leave for work very soon."

"Why?"

"Because I'm due to start at nine, and the G.o.dd.a.m.n train takes half an hour to get there on a Sat.u.r.day."

The fact that Rhoan and Liander were picking me up here at eight-thirty was something he had no need to know. Though it did mean I'd have to get him out of my apartment before then. The minute he saw Liander, he'd know the mission to infiltrate Starr's cartel was on.

And he'd want in.

I turned away from him and grabbed a mug, then picked up the jar of instant coffee and dumped several spoonfuls into the mug.

My preference ran to hazelnut espresso, but this was the best we had until payday. Rhoan had gone on one of his shopping sprees again, and left us with very little in the bank. I did have some very nice sweaters to show for it, though, which I suppose was something.

"Is Gautier the cause of those bruises?" Quinn asked.

"No."

"You lie, Riley."

I didn't say anything. There was no point.

"So you have pa.s.sed the final step to become a guardian?"

I looked over my shoulder at him. "I've pa.s.sed one test with him. The real fight with Gautier lays ahead."

Which was nothing but the truth, but he was staring like he knew something was up, that I wasn't telling him the entire truth.

Being a dhampire with strong psychic skills generally made me immune to the caress of a vampire's mind, but when it came to this vampire, there was no such protection. Not only had we shared blood, but we'd created a link that went far deeper than mere psychic touch. It was a link not affected by distance or the presence of psychic deadeners. A link that made him able to read my surface thoughts as easily as he drank blood.

Which was why my s.h.i.+elds were currently up high. Whether it helped or not I had no idea, because I certainly wasn't going to risk reading him."Is it not usual for those who fight Gautier to be given leave? Why are you going in today?"

"Why are you so d.a.m.n fixated on this?"

He shrugged. I wasn't for an instant believing the casualness behind the gesture. "I'm curious, that's all."

"Yes, it is unusual. But then, I'm not the usual guardian candidate, am I?"

"No, you are not."

I frowned at the edge in his voice, but the kettle chose that moment to whistle its readiness, and I turned away from him to pour my coffee.

Bad mistake.

Though my hormones quickly formed a differing opinion as his arms slid around my waist. "Why is it so hard to believe I am here to see you?" He lips brushed the side of my neck, sending a s.h.i.+mmer of delight right down to my toes.

But as much as my hormones had formed a cheer squad for some vampire loving, the itchy feeling he was here for more than just me wouldn't go away.

"Why did you suddenly show up on my doorstep after two months of no contact?"

"We had contact."

"One night in two months? Hardly enough loving to keep a gnat awake, let alone a werewolf."

"Running a multinational business sometimes takes more time than I would wish." He slid one of my top's shoestring straps off my shoulder. The brush of his lips against the flesh between my shoulder and neck felt like the touch of flame. "And our deal was you could be with others when I wasn't there. I'm sure you didn't go without."

"Oh, I didn't, trust me." I tried concentrating on making myself a coffee but it was d.a.m.nably hard when he was so close, so warm, and so very, very tempting. "And you're saying you had no time to even leave a message?"

"Why did I need to when we were sharing erotic dreams at night?" The second strap slid away with some help from his fingertips, then the top itself was being tugged down to expose my b.r.e.a.s.t.s. The warm air caressed my skin, as enticing as the man behind me.

"They were only dreams, Quinn. It would have been nice to have something with a little more substance."

"Which is what we now have."

His hand splayed across the flat of my stomach. Heat pooled under his fingertips, flared across my flesh like a flash fire. Lord, his touch was even more intense than I'd remembered.

His hands slid up to my b.r.e.a.s.t.s, pus.h.i.+ng them together as he began to tease and pinch my engorged nipples. I squirmed against him, wariness momentarily forgotten as every inch of me vibrated with the hunger now flowing through my veins.

As if sensing the fall of reluctance, he began to kiss me, caress me, tease me, until tiny beads of perspiration covered my skin.

Until every inch of me was trembling, and I was hovering on the edge of a climax, aching for the release he was keeping from me.

When his caress finally moved down, I groaned in relief. His fingers played around my thighs, close but not close enough to where I actually wanted them. Needed them. After a few more torturous moments, he hooked his thumbs under my panties and pushed them down my legs. I stepped free, then toed them to one side. He pushed up my skirt as I widened my stance, then his fingers were slipping through my slickness from behind, caressing and teasing until I was moaning from equal measures of pleasure and frustration. His soft chuckle whispered heat across the back of my neck, then his fingers were in me even as he pressed his thumb against my c.l.i.t. As he began to stroke, inside and out, I shuddered, writhed, until it felt as if I was going to tear apart from the sheer force of pleasure.

And then he was in me, claiming me for real and in the most basic way possible. I groaned again as he gripped my hips, his fingers bruising as he held me still for too many seconds.

But oh, it was so glorious, just standing there, my body throbbing with need, his body deep inside mine, heavy and hot with the same sort of need. I loved the way he seemed to complete me. It had nothing to do with his size or his shape or anything physical, because I'd certainly been with men who outstripped him in all those areas.

This was far more-was almost as if when our flesh was joined, our spirits combined and danced as intimately as our bodies.

He began move, not gently, but fiercely, urgently, and I was right there with him, wanting everything he could give me. The deep down ache blossomed, spreading like wildfire across my skin, becoming a kaleidoscope of sensations that washed through every corner of my mind. I gasped, grabbing the bench for support as his movement grew faster, more urgent. Then everything broke, and I was unraveling, groaning with the intensity of the o.r.g.a.s.m. He came with me, but it wasn't just his juices that flowed into me. So, too, did his mind.

And he was raiding my thoughts and my memories as fast as any thief fearing discovery.

Anger unlike anything I'd felt before surged through me, and without even thinking about it, I lowered my s.h.i.+elds and let him have it with every ounce of psychic strength I had.

He made a gargled sound, then the force of my psychic punch wrenched his body from mine and he was flying through the door, out into the living room, where he landed with a thump on his back.

I re-s.h.i.+elded fast. Pain hit, but it might as well have been a leaf tossed on the wind, my anger was so strong. I grabbed my knickers and marched into the other room.

"You b.a.s.t.a.r.d!" I flung the panties at him, though why I had no real idea. It wasn't like it was a knife or a stake or anything that useful.

Which is probably just as well, because right then, I would have used either one of them.

He rubbed a hand across his eyes, then slowly raised himself up on his elbows. "How the h.e.l.l did you do that?"

"What the f.u.c.k does it matter, given what you just did?"

"If you'd tell me the truth for a change, I wouldn't have to resort to such measures!"

His voice was as loud and as angry as mine, but there was a tremor in his tones that suggested I had hurt him. Part of me was fiercely glad. Part of me hated it.

"I have a right to privacy. In my life, and in my thoughts."

"This is different."

"Why? Because you're a twelve-hundred-year-old vampire who no longer has to obey the rules?"

"And yet, for all my age, and for all my psychic skills and knowledge, you just ripped through my s.h.i.+elds as if they were paper.

And then you sent me flying. You couldn't have done that a few months ago."A cold hard knot formed deep in the pit of my stomach. He was right. G.o.d help me, he was right. Even though Jack had been training me in the fine art of breaking through psychic s.h.i.+elds over the last few months, I'd never managed to break through all his s.h.i.+elds, no matter how hard I'd tried. And Quinn was far more powerful than Jack.

I licked my lips, and pushed the thoughts away. Now was not the time to think about the implications of his statement, or what it might mean to the future I so desperately wanted.

"Don't try changing the f.u.c.king subject."

He sighed, climbed a little unsteadily to his feet, and redressed himself. "I admitted to you months ago that I was, in part, using you. You were my quickest way of finding information about my missing friend-information that the Directorate, and my friends.h.i.+p with Director Hunter, wasn't providing. That hasn't changed-though the reason certainly has."

"So that's why you're back now?"

"Partially. Something changed yesterday afternoon. Something is happening. I can feel it."

He could feel it? How? We hadn't shared dreams in any way yesterday, so he couldn't have leeched information that way. And, usually, he could only catch my thoughts if he was physically near.

But maybe he had been. Maybe he'd been here in Melbourne all along, and just hadn't contacted me.

b.a.s.t.a.r.d.

"So the real reason you came to my apartment last night was for a little extra information gathering? I bet it sucked having your grand plans foiled by Kellen's presence."

"It wasn't the only reason I was here last night. I did want to see you."

Yeah. Believing that big time. "How in the h.e.l.l could you supposedly feel anything when we're supposedly only sharing erotic dreams and nothing more?"

He didn't answer. No surprise there. The b.a.s.t.a.r.d never answered questions that really mattered.

He walked toward me and held out my panties. I s.n.a.t.c.hed them from his hand and threw them to the floor. And some childish part of me wanted to stomp all over them-or maybe its just that I wanted to stomp all over Quinn, and with no hope of achieving that, they were the next best option.

"Was I ever anything more than just a convenient source of information?" I asked bitterly.

He reached out, his fingers briefly caressing my check with heat until I jerked away from his touch. His hand dropped back to his side, but the determination in his eyes said he was far from defeated.

"There has always been something more between us."

"Yeah, great s.e.x."