Page 29 of Damien’s Mate

She rubbed herself in rhythm with him, recalling the taste of him, the scent, the feel of him. The feeling built in her belly and the base of her spine, rippling through her, her clit getting tight as waves of pleasure built in her core.

His breath came harder now, and she kept pace, so close, so close…

She heard a muffled groan, and imagined his hips jerking in involuntary pleasure, his release coursing through him, hot seed spilling out, and her own climax crashed over her in a wave, a small growl emanating from her throat as they came together.

Chapter 12

It was getting light out by the time Damien crawled back in bed with Lila, his hair wet from the shower.

It looked like she’d woken up and taken more morphine. He didn’t know if that was good or bad—good, hopefully, if it helped her sleep and heal.

He just hoped she hadn’t heard him jacking off in the shower.

He tried keeping to his own side of the bed, but it wasn’t long before Lila moved restlessly and reached out for him, so he gathered her in his arms.

He’d promised to be there for her tonight, and he would.

He’d have to let tomorrow take care of itself.

They ended up sleeping most of the day. It was late afternoon when they woke up, and Damien managed to persuade Lila to wait until the early darkness was falling before they went back to her safe house. They’d be harder to follow, and harder to see, if anyone was watching.

Lila seemed pretty sure Rostov didn’t know about the place, but Damien wouldn’t put down any bets on that. Anybody who could arrange for the theft of Vic Salzano’s ledger and plant a bomb in his house without getting caught was a formidable enemy.

After microwaved leftovers, they set out in the SUV. They had all their stuff with them, even though Damien had paid for two nights in the motel. He kept the keys in case they decided to come back, but it would be safer if they kept moving.

Separately or together.

Lila still looked like hell—her tawny skin was pale and there were bags under her eyes, though she was walking by herself and didn’t seem to be in nearly so much pain.

Damien had downed a couple more of James’s painkillers, wishing he had shifter healing too. His knee was stiff, and hurt even more than it had last night.

Lila’s safe house turned out to be a small apartment house in a lower-middle-class neighborhood—three floors with four apartments per floor, judging by the configuration of the balconies.

It was a good choice. Nondescript, not too many neighbors, and it was on a corner lot, so easy access to two different streets.

Plus, it had a small gated yard surrounded by a chest-high stone wall, filled with overgrown shrubs, most of which were taller than he was.

Lots of places to hide, if someone was coming for you.

Lila had him drive around to the back, where there was an alley and a service entrance with a keypad. They both kept an uneasy watch for Rostov’s men—or Salzano’s, though that was a lot less likely.

But assuming that the unlikely wouldn’t happen was what got you dead.

Damien was hyperaware of the black bag in the back seat of the SUV, with the ledger and Salzano’s cash. He had to find somewhere to stash the money, or it was going to drive him crazy with paranoia.

And the ledger—he couldn’t wait to see the last of that thing.

The other thing he was hyperaware of was Lila. She seemed completely focused on getting her stuff back—she barely spoke during the ride, just checked the mirrors repeatedly to make sure they weren’t being followed.

But all he could think about was her. The scent of her, the way the streetlights lit up her face, the way their bodies fit together perfectly and felt so right together, like no one else he’d ever been with.

He wondered for the millionth time what exactly this mission was—who she was supposed to be taking the dragon artifacts to, and what would happen when she got there.

He hoped she got everything she wanted—that it was worth everything she’d gone through to get them.

But he wished she wanted him. They’d be good together, at least for a while. He wouldn’t mind teaming up with her, doing jobs together. Or they could even go straight, with Salzano’s money.

But the thought of never seeing her again made his chest hurt until it was hard to breathe.