In the Dead of Cold (4 page)

As her fear eased, her aches and pains loudly made themselves known. Every bruise and scrape was suddenly alive and competing for attention. A hot, fresh wave of anger swept in despite the pain. How dare he not trust her when she had never given him reason not to? How dare he put his hands on her in any manner other than the loving way he put them on her while she dreamed?

She summoned what little energy she possessed and channeled it toward him. It hit him in the chest and knocked him away from her. He stumbled back a few steps, far enough to stun him and leave him off balance. Everything he felt, she felt. Like a tornado, he felt pain, thinking she’d betrayed him. It mixed with need to protect her and find the person who’d hurt her. She felt his desire to hold her and
kiss
her. In its shadow was an uncontrollable yearning to slip his dick into her right there as he pressed her against the wall. That need was topped off by excitement at discovering she was more than a dream, that he’d found her at last. All of it stopped slamming into her the instant she shoved him away and got his hands off her. Her nipples, however, still responded to the idea of being fucked hard and fast. Jane tried not to breathe, not to move in any way so as to keep them from being noticed as they attempted to push their way out of her blouse.

He glanced down, aware of her nipples.

She didn’t need to touch him to feel his unasked questions.

What the hell was
that?

How did you
do
that?

Milo must have thought she’d punched him in the gut. For two seconds, she didn’t see his chest rise or fall with a breath. His silent questions mixed with the confusion in his expression. His nose twitched.

Bart had told her he liked the way she smelled.

Could Milo smell her terror? Her anger? Or something more familiar? The woman of his dreams?

He stared at her. “What the fuck?”

Despite the space that separated them, Jane felt his need. She fought the pull she felt from him to move closer.

She shivered, and again all she wanted was to be in his arms where he could warm her using any and all means possible. She shook her head to avoid his distraction.

“Like that,” she got out, only having enough energy to whisper before dark spots danced before her eyes. How she stayed on her feet, she had no idea. It took everything she had to keep herself standing.

The room spun for a moment; then there was utter silence.

Just breathe.
Her single breath felt like a knife slicing into her chest. She had exerted more energy in the past hour than she would have had she run a marathon.

Do not think about how he makes me scream and groan and beg for more before he makes me come every time I sleep! Do not! Do not think about how much his deep, animalistic, gruff voice turns my legs to jelly and makes my insides search for his cock. And no matter what, do not fall at his feet!

“Milo, call Dr. Burns.”

She recognized Graham’s firm authority and looked up to meet his gaze.

“No… I…need…” Jane had to force each word. She wanted nothing more than to move, reach the door, and leave. But she knew she’d reach the door only by crawling. If she moved an inch, she’d fall. And she didn’t think her knees could handle it. They’d already been abused enough. Gentle hands gripped her arms. She recognized Milo’s touch, but she didn’t want it on her arms, not where Bart had assaulted her. She turned to look at him. “Let go of me. And no doctor,” she whispered through her painfully dry throat. “Please.”

Milo ignored her. His wonderful touch remained on her arms.

Graham left his desk and drew closer. “It’s obvious you’re in need of medical assistance.”

She forced her hand up and grasped Milo’s shirt. “Please. It—” Her breaths sounded loud. “Takes all…” Hell, she couldn’t even get out a complete sentence without pausing to breathe. “My energy. Just. Need. Rest.”

“You’re telekinetic too.” That was Graham again.

Jane forced a nod, and the movement left a headache in its wake. Another easy word for a very complicated ability.

“Get her a drink of water, James.”

One of the men left.

Graham continued. “And Drew, find my wife. I feel she’s still here at the resort and hasn’t headed into town yet because of the snow, but make sure. Then get the names of everyone who knew her itinerary for today, so we can figure out how Bart got the information.”

“Yes, sir.” Another man headed for the door.

A moment later, Milo held a glass of cool water to her lips.

“Swallow.”

She did. It was heaven on her tight throat. Her fatigue was overwhelming, but for now, feeling Milo’s warmth was wonderful. It helped her forget how dangerous he was, even though moments ago, his fangs had been mere inches from her throat. Besides, she was too tired to stand without holding on to him.

“What did you do to Bart?” Milo asked.

With her words still slow and divided by the panting breaths while she shifted her weight from one cramping leg to the other, she said, “He grabbed me as I unlocked the door to my SUV. The fob didn’t work. I slammed him pretty hard against the building. It stunned him, but not for long.”

“Yet you managed to escape him.” The man who spoke was the one Graham called James. “How?”

“There was a cart, held together by metal rods. After I shoved him against the bricks, I skewered him to the building. I didn’t kill him, though.”

“Then what?” Milo’s expression held a combination of concern, disbelief, awe, and fear.

And even if she hadn’t seen those emotions on his face or his eyes, they were undeniable in his touch. And with all the emotions in him, there was something deeper, something more terrifying than all the others. He was possessed by a wild, uncontrolled urge to
kill
. But it wasn’t directed at her. Which was good. She didn’t have the strength or the desire to move away from him.

Over and above all his emotions, she felt some kind of pull. It compelled her to move closer to him.

“Then…” Jane couldn’t finish. She closed her eyes for a moment and forced away the terror in the memory. “I managed to get into my SUV and lock the doors. I didn’t stop driving until I got here to warn you. The drive took forever with the snow. And I was so afraid. I kept looking in my rearview mirror, certain I’d see him behind me.” Jane remembered thinking to herself that the danger Bart exuded was worse than the danger of the vampires at the Moonlight Resort. Her gaze went from Milo to Graham. Milo left her uncertain, but there was no doubt with the way Graham’s dark eyes hardened and his brows knit closer together that he knew she either lied or she’d left something unsaid. Besides, her ripped clothes and evident abrasions told a different story.

Yet, Graham said nothing to accuse her.

“James, take a team to the bookstore. See what you can find. And be on the alert; no one is to be anywhere alone. If what she says is true, then it’s possible Bart’s injured. He’ll be desperate and more dangerous than ever as he needs nourishment to heal.”

“Yes, sir.”

A moment later, James was gone.

“And August, hunt for any activity,” came the next order.

“Yes, sir.” A mountain of a man left the room.

Jane didn’t want to question what activity there might be. She’d seen enough activity for one day.

Graham met her gaze again.

Jane looked away, her eyelids heavy. “I think I’m feeling better.” Another lie. She couldn’t meet Graham’s intense gaze, or Milo’s. They weren’t stupid. They had to know she wasn’t telling the complete truth. She leaned away from Milo but didn’t have the strength to move far. “Is it possible for me to get a room here?”

Graham’s hard expression never changed. “I’m afraid not.”

“What?” She’d come there to warn them, to save Graham Masterson’s life and his wife, and she was being turned out where Bart could get to her?

Jane now had no trouble looking at Graham. Her gaze shifted from his to Milo’s. For a long moment, she was stunned speechless. At least Milo’s teeth now appeared normal. Except for the hard look of worry that filled his expression, he was back to the man who had licked her clit relentlessly in her dreams the night before. That should make her feel better. It didn’t.

She wished she had more energy. She’d slam them against the wall and show them how it felt.

It was Milo who answered her question. “There aren’t any available rooms.”

“You’re kidding,” she got out.

“We don’t kid when it involves monsters like Bart.” Graham turned away for the first time and moved back toward his desk.

“So I should head to my sister’s cabin as I planned?”

“No. It’s obvious Bart touched you. He may have been able to read your thoughts as easily as you read his. And even if he didn’t, he no doubt saw what you drove. He can track you by your scent alone, even with the snow.”

Graham paused and studied her, letting her know he knew there was more to her confrontation with Bart than she’d told them.

“Milo, see that she’s made comfortable and has everything she needs.”

Milo didn’t hesitate. “Yes, sir.”

“But—”

“No buts about it, Jane,” Graham interrupted. “If Bart wants you, you wouldn’t last the night outside my gates. Besides, with the snow, you wouldn’t get far.”

“But you said there weren’t any rooms.”

“There aren’t. You’ll go with Milo.”

“With Milo?” Her heart pounded at the idea of being close enough to feel more of his body heat.

“Yes, with Milo.”

And stay with him in his room?

It wasn’t a good idea. Even if her body cried out for that very thing and the thought of it made her heart pound. She was caught in Milo’s gaze.

“But,” she started again.

Graham turned away from her, picked up his cell, touched the screen, and put it to his ear. The dismissal couldn’t be any clearer.

Chapter Two

Milo placed his hand on her arm. “Can you walk?”

His touch confused Jane more. She understood the threat in him. He was one of
them
. A moment ago, she’d seen firsthand that he was a monster made of myth and mystery.

Yet, she still had to keep reminding herself he was dangerous. After two years of sharing her nights with him, it was hard to believe he was anything more than a man who set her on fire with passion and kept her safe in his arms. Then she suddenly felt more in the emotions his fingers transmitted to her arm. Besides concern for her, she felt…

Desire. Pure and simple. Want, need, yearning.

It wasn’t too different from the want she’d felt in Bart. It frightened her too. One, because it was there like it was in Bart. Two, because unlike with Bart, Jane was drawn to it.

“I think so.” Why did she feel the need to keep hiding the truth? Her legs shook. And she knew if she tried to take a step, she’d fall flat on her face. The wild urge to laugh bubbled through her. In another moment, she was bound to be at eye level with the carpet, or at least struck by lightning for all the lies and half-truths she’d told.

“I don’t think so.” Milo’s words dripped with sarcasm. As if she weighed nothing, Milo lifted her into his arms. She was pressed against him completely. The intensity of his need, his concern, and every other emotion tripled as it entered her body through every inch that touched him. There was also still his indirect anger, standing out like a sunburned nose. He wanted to break something. A lot of somethings. In fact, she couldn’t deny the need to kill she felt in him. But the negative emotions she felt in him were like beacons shining away from her.

What did burn in her direction was his desire. He wanted her. He wanted what he enjoyed in his dreams with her. He fought the urge to kiss her and
taste
her as he did night after night. He licked his lips. Maybe in anticipation of kissing her?

He smelled of the woods she so often walked with him in their dream time together. Earthy, clean, and rich. The cotton of his shirt was soft against her face.

How could she compare this to the cold evil she’d felt when Bart touched her? How could Milo’s touch even resemble Bart’s?

Jane didn’t know. She only felt a similarity. It was like a darkness the two of them shared. And yet, she no longer cared.

All that mattered was she felt safe, tucked in his arms.

“Let me know if you need anything.”

Graham’s voice came to her as if through a fog.

“Zack, find out if any police reports have been filed on missing persons.”

His voice drifted away as Milo carried her to the elevator.

NOW THAT MILO had her close enough to smell her, his heart and every part of his being recognized the clean lavender scent he knew from his dreams with her. He wanted her with renewed craving. It didn’t matter that just a short time before, he’d thought he needed to eliminate her because she was a threat to his boss. It was, after all, his job to protect Mr. M. All that mattered now, though, was that Jane was in his arms. Safe.

Where she belonged.

He had known as he’d stared into Jane’s eyes that he could never eliminate her. Even while thinking she was a danger to his boss and his colleagues and himself, he had wanted nothing more than to protect her, hold her close, and save her from Bart.

While Bart was his greatest enemy, Milo had never wanted to kill him more than he did after learning Bart had grabbed Jane behind the bookstore.

Milo thought about when he’d held her pressed against the wall. Her heat had melted into him and started a fire in his core that made his cock harder than ever. His lips tingled with the need to kiss her. He didn’t care that his team of security experts or his boss were watching. He’d wanted to fuck her harder and faster, with an urgency even stronger than when he’d wanted her in the elevator. He’d had to clench his fist—the one that wasn’t pressing her against the wall—to keep from reaching for his fly. It was impossible to pull away from her soft scent. The skin of her throat had felt like silk beneath his fingers.

His hands had actually ached with the need to roam over her body. His dick almost shot off in his jeans and might have done so if she hadn’t used whatever ability she possessed to shove him away. He didn’t like that she could push him away without touching him, but at least she had saved him some embarrassment.