Fuck’s sake.
“My mark’s not yet filled,” she said, pointing to the stylised moon painted on her sternum, the bottom half darker than the top. “So your assignment’s still active.” She turned to face him, hand gripping the fabric. “But I don’t have long. I need to get into that office, see if there’s any paperwork I can –”
“We,” he emphasised, noting her earlier panic had settled. She was still rattled, but somehow more resigned, as if she’d already processed and accepted the knowledge, and now was working on ways to fix it. “We both need to get into that office. But first, how did they track us?”
Rae frowned, brows pinching together.
“My name isn’t connected to that apartment.”
“Well, we must have been followed.”
“I can assure you we weren’t.” He’d been hyperaware of the possibility of another assassin, made sure they weren’t trailed. “Which means they’re tracking us. Give me your phone.”
“What?” She took a step back. “No.”
“Rae.” He made her name sound like a curse. “If they’re tracking your phone, then they know where we fucking are.”
“How do we know they’re not tracking your phone?”
“Rae!” A warning.
He saw the defiance in her gaze, the need to defy. “Do you know what? Fuck you. Here.” Reaching into a pocket hidden in her skirt, she threw her phone over the short space. “And here’s your fucking shirt too.” She tossed the t-shirt onto the bed, storming into the bathroom and closing the flimsy door.
Titus closed his eyes, praying for patience before he scanned her phone, knowing without his computer he could never be confident that her software wasn’t compromised. Pulling out her sim card, he crushed the entire phone beneath his boot. If it was her phone that was being tracked, those that were hunting her already knew where they were hiding. Which meant they needed to move.
Reaching over for his crumpled t-shirt, he pulled it over his head. Peaches and cream filled his lungs, and he ignored the desire at just the simple scent, his cock responding uncomfortably beneath his jeans.
Surely none of his mated brothers ever had such vicious need dominate their thoughts? He eyed the bed, barely big enough to fit him, never mind the both of them. But that didn’t matter, because no way in hell was he going anywhere near it. Not when he’d never felt so out of control, his mind and body at war with one another.
Pressure consumed him, deep within his chest, tension wrapping around his lungs, locking them in cement until every breath was a chore. He was dangerous, his power unpredictable, and right then he felt it surge through his veins, looking for an outlet.
“Titus?”
He heard his name in the distance, muffled as if wading through water.
“Titus?” Fingers on his face, running along his jaw to scratch against the stubble. He knew it would be dark there, a shadow of a much darker blonde compared to his head. Something that was always pointed out growing up, blonde being an unusual colour for a child of his maternal heritage. His father’s genes were clearly more dominant than just his Breed.
Those fingers clenched, forcing his face up until Rae appeared, concern marring her face, washed free of makeup. It brought out the delicate freckles spotted across the bridge of her nose, and also the bruise blossoming on her cheek.
Titus clenched his shaking fist, surging to his feet from where he’d been on his knees. He had no memory of getting there, but he never did, his thoughts a spiral of distorted conversations and reminiscences.
Rae stepped back, dressed in a fresh vest and not much else. “They can’t touch us here, at least for tonight,” she reassured him. “Tomorrow we’ll deal with it. Or later today, technically.”
Titus barely managed a nod, his skin damp, hands clammy. The shaking had subsided, leaving nothing but a bitter taste on his tongue. “Take the bed,” he said, voice hoarse. “Get some rest.”
Rae pursed her lips, glancing down at the messy carpet, and then to her guns perched neatly in the corner. “I won’t be able to sleep with you here.”
“You did just fine back at mine.”
A frown. “That was different.”
“How so?” he challenged, using her biting frustration as a much-needed distraction. The power had settled, content inside him for now. He was going to need to purge it soon, before it started eating away at his chi. Then he would puke, his body rejecting the remaining effluence.
Something to look forward to.
“It just is,” she shot back. “It’s weird.”
“You’re a difficult woman,” Titus said, pressing himself against the wall. If anger were a physical manifestation, he was sure he would have been burning from the scowl she’d shot in his direction. “Why don’t you just stay on your side of the room, and I’ll stay here.”
