The Heat (2 page)

And, it wasn’t exactly a fair thing to assume, either. After all, she herself wasn’t the most romantically committed individual in the world. To be honest, she had enough responsibility to deal with without the added pressures of family planning. At twenty-eight, she wasn’t yet hitched, and it wasn’t because she was ugly. And it wasn’t because she was gay.

“So, what will it be, cher? You got no words of congratulations for your new Police Chief?” Kane smiled down at her, his eyes twinkling mischievously, his smile on the verge of teasing.

“Congrats, Daniel. I’m happy for you.” She smiled back up at him, hating the fact that she blushed at the slightest provocation. But he was too close and his nearness was having a chaotic effect upon her body. She could almost feel his skin against hers, even though there was a good two feet of space between them. He’d filled that space somehow. With black magic, she was pretty sure.

Lily knew what she would be dreaming about that night.

“Why thank you, cher.” Something flashed in his eyes, there one instant and gone in the next. Lily blinked, unsure what it was she thought she’d seen.

“Danny, we were just having a drink. Join us?” Tabitha asked.

Kane gazed at Lily for several more long moments, and just before the silence would have stretched into discomfort, he pulled his gaze away and leveled it on the house a few yards away. “Why, I do believe I will. You ladies alone?”

“It’s ladies night, big brother. But we’ll make an exception for the commissioner. And, by the way, what the hell do you mean by ‘repeat offender’?” Tabitha grabbed her brother by his elbow and began to stride toward the house. Lily fell into step beside them.

“Tabby, I’m a cop. You don’t think I know about your need for speed?” He was still smiling, but now the smile had taken on a reproachful edge. Lily watched the exchange with interest. Daniel Kane was very much the older brother, and every bit a police officer. “If it weren’t for the fact that you have family in the House, you’d have lost that license of yours three tickets ago, little sis.”

Tabitha made another derisive noise and pulled open the screen door. Kane waited for the girls to enter before him and then shut the screen behind him.

The three of them moved to the couches in Tabitha’s living room and Tabitha handed her brother an ice-cold beer. He shook off the ice and twisted off the top, tossing the lid onto the coffee table, where the girls had placed the others. Then he sat back, took a long pull from the bottle, and laced his right arm over the back of the sofa. Lily sat facing him. Tabitha stood near the piano, which had been her mother’s many years ago.

Daniel eyed Lily. “What are you driving these days, cher?” He smiled and leaned forward, his elbows on his knees, both hands wrapped easily around the dark bottle. “Is that your little Dodge out there?”

“Yep, that would be mine.” Lily wasn’t rich. She owned a two-door, black ’98 Dodge Neon. It was a stick and it weighed next to nothing, so its 130 horse power engine was fast enough. More or less. Most days.

“It’s cute. And a stick.” His smile became reckless. “I like a girl who can handle a stick.”

Lily did not miss the entendre. But she refused to acknowledge it. She switched directions. “It’s nothing like the Night Train you’ve got out there. Nice bike.”

Daniel’s brows rose. He blinked. “You got a dark and dangerous side to you, cher? Nice girl like you knows her bikes?”

It was Lily’s turn to smile now, and she did, as she brought her bottle to her lips and took the swig she’d been wanting to take for the last ten minutes. Daniel watched her carefully as she drank. His sapphire eyes shimmered with secrets.

Then, in a low tone and a voice that made her nerve endings come deliciously alive, he asked, “Want a ride?”

Lily nearly spit out her beer. Did she want a ride? Like nothing else she could think of at the moment. The instant she’d heard – and felt – the engine, she’d longed to get on the bike. What girl didn’t want that kind of power between her legs?

She swallowed the beer and glanced at Tabitha. Tabitha’s eyes were narrowed. “You’re incorrigible, Danny. Leave the girl alone.”

“Yes, I want a ride.”

Tabitha’s eyes widened and Kane grinned. He put down his beer and stood, offering Lily his hand. She bit her lip, considering for a moment. And then she put down her beer as well and reached out for Daniel’s hand.

His fingers wrapped around hers, warm and secure. Her blush was back, but she ducked her head, hiding it as she maneuvered her way around the low coffee table to his side of the living room.

“Um, Lily…”

“Now, now, little sister. The lady’s made up her mind.”

“Shut up, Danny.” Tabitha brushed past them as they exited through the kitchen and the screen door slammed shut behind them. The Night Train sat waiting, its polished chrome flashing invitingly beneath the tall street lamps. “Lily, you want some pants? I got some jeans.”

Lily looked down at her dress. She wondered whether it was worth it to take the time to change right now, knowing that if she waited for very long, she would lose the nerve to get on the saddle behind Baton Rouge’s newest Chief of Police. She looked up at Daniel, who was watching her with interest, his expression ever so slightly amused, his eyes flashing mischievous intent.

Was he a safe driver? He was a cop. Did that make him a safe driver? No telling. Though, he’d said he had been riding for a long time.

And if they had to lay the bike down, would jeans be important? Save her from a little more road rash than the dress would, for sure. At the moment, though, she was more concerned with her lack of a helmet. Daniel only had one.

“You’ll be fine, cher,” he said softly. His tone was low, reassuring, and held an authoritative note that he must have acquired on the job. “Take the helmet.” He handed her his helmet and mounted the bike, the movement smooth and practiced. Lily just stood there watching him as he started up the engine and it roared to life.

“Lily, you be back within the hour, you hear?” Tabitha came to stand between them, suddenly blocking Lily’s view of Kane. Lily looked her friend in the eyes. There was something in the depth of Tabitha’s expression that struck Lily as… alarming. Warning bells went off in Lily’s head.

Tabitha leaned in close and whispered, “Girl, you don’t take any guff from that man, okay?”

Lily didn’t have a chance to answer before Tabitha whirled and fixed her brother with a hard stare. “You behave yourself, big brother.
I mean it
.”

Daniel smiled, but that something strange flashed once more behind his blue eyes. He raised his fingers in a lazy salute, cocking his head to one side as he revved the engine into a deafening roar. “Yes ma’am.”

And then Tabitha moved aside and Daniel’s gaze fell on Lily once more. Without allowing herself to consider her actions any further, she put the helmet on. Then she slid her arm around Daniel’s neck and mounted the bike, hiking her dress up to her mid-thigh as she did so. She was glad she favored closed-toed flats to sandals. A dress was bad enough, but the idea of riding a motorcycle with bare toes just gave her the willies.

She settled onto the leather as Daniel took both of her hands and pulled them tight around his iron-hard mid-section. “Hold tight, cher. And don’t go leanin’ to either side.”

She knew that. It wasn’t her first time on a bike. But she nodded, knowing he could feel the movement against his back.

Tabitha stepped back, her hands on her hips, shaking her head. Daniel nodded one last time at his wary sister and pulled the bike out of the driveway.

Chapter Two: Where You Goin’ in Such a Hurry?

Daniel knew that Lily would never guess it, but he could hear her heartbeat. He had very good hearing.

But his sense of smell was even better. Despite the speed with which they were traveling, and despite the fact that the wind blew her scent behind her, he could smell the shampoo in her hair. The very light scented perfume she’d placed on the insides of her wrists. The blood she’d shed that morning, most likely shaving her legs – or maybe slicing an apple… and something else. Something that rode beneath her surface, deep and taunting.

He’d scented it on her when he’d first met her in high school. She didn’t smell like the other girls. This was different. It was
promising
, for lack of a better word. He’d found her attractive as it was, but that special scent made her all the more appealing.

Daniel stayed away from her, though. Under strict orders from little sis. Tabitha had told him, in no uncertain terms, that he could have anyone else – but to leave her best friend the hell alone. And though he wasn’t one to take orders from many people, the truth was, he could tell that Tabitha had truly meant it. He didn’t want her to hate him for god only knew how long just because he couldn’t keep his dick in his pants. Tabitha could really hold a grudge. So, he’d kept his distance.

As Lily’s high school years progressed, he’d pretended not to notice. But he watched Lily grow into a breathtaking young woman. She was tall and lithe, with golden hair that fell in waves down her back and almond eyes with gold specks that shimmered in the sun. Hell, he’d noticed, all right. He hadn’t known it at the time, but his frustration over not being able to have Lily had sent him down a dark path.

As soon as each of them had come of age, he’d bedded
all
of Tabitha’s other friends. He’d gone through them like matches in a book, burning them up one by one. He’d done it as if he
had
to. As if a demon was riding him and wouldn’t let up. For any normal man, it would have been bad enough. But he wasn’t normal. And his hunger was a little bit… stronger.

Getting them into bed was almost too easy. He was well aware of what they said about him when they didn’t think he was listening, when they didn’t think he could hear. Oh, he could hear. They wanted him far worse than he wanted them. So he gave them what they wanted. All of them, that is - except Lily St.Claire.

Even if she hadn’t been off limits, the truth was, he had no idea what Lily wanted. While her friends were quick to share their longings with her, to giggle over their naughty dreams, Lily was a little quieter about her own. She kept secrets behind those gold-flecked eyes. Those secrets would have driven Daniel mad if she hadn’t graduated and moved away when she had.

Ten years of separation had been just what he needed to get her out from under his skin. Daniel had moved on. Figuratively speaking, that is. He’d had a lot of women in that time. He’d achieved a career. He’d made some good investments. He’d grown up.

But though he laughed easily and turned a quick joke, he often felt himself growing empty inside. A touch cold. A bit anxious. Time moved slower for him than for most men. But it moved, nonetheless. And a part of him had grown restless.

He knew what it was. The urge was growing. The need was taking over. His kind had been driven by it for thousands of years. He’d had no choice but to try his best to ignore it, but it was like his shadow. It couldn’t be outrun. It followed in his footsteps, a vigilant reminder of who he was –
what
he was – and what his blood wanted him to do.

Lily…. He twisted the bike’s throttle and the hog rocketed down another long stretch. Lily hugged closer and Daniel grinned, flashing predatory whites. She was even more beautiful than he remembered.

Tabitha, of course, had kept in touch with her best friend for the last decade and though Lily had been out of state, Tabitha had gone to visit a few times. Every once in a while, if Daniel was lucky, Tabitha would mention Lily to him. More often than not, it was when his little sister had been drinking or forgot herself. In those times, she told him where her best friend was living and what she was up to. She told him that Lily had become a and sometimes worked herself ragged with horribly depressing cases. She admitted that Lily often didn’t sleep at night.

Daniel had listened with interest, but with resignation. It was like someone checking up on an old crush. Fun, but pointless. Lily St.Claire had always been a kind soul; the first to stand up to bullies, the one who rooted for the underdog. She was beautiful on the inside as well as on the outside. There was nothing about Lily St.Claire that was not to be admired. Still, he had more important things to concentrate on than an impossible relationship with someone from his past who didn’t even live within his proximity.

He really hadn’t expected to see her again.

But when he pulled up on his bike and watched her step out onto that lamp lit porch in that gauzy white sundress, her golden hair cascading like sunshine around her shoulders to her small waist, he was completely thrown. In a word, stunned.

Oh, little Lily…. She had no idea what she’d done. She’d come wandering innocently back into his world – like Little Red Riding Hood.

Promise to his sister or no promise, there was no hope for Lily now. Not now that he’d caught her scent again. And this time recognized it for what it was.

He smells good
, Lily thought to herself as Daniel pulled out of the lot and headed for the road. Even through the helmet, she could scent the leather he wore and the faint remnants of aftershave.
He feels good, too
. She remembered how, in high school, she and her friends would talk about Daniel Kane behind his back. They all had their own dreams or wishes concerning him. Alexis, the little she-devil who pretended to know squat about Wicca craft, dreamed of one day tying him to a bed in some dark room and having her merry way with him. Meagan wanted to take him to prom and see if he could dance as well as he moved in everything else he did. Sherry, the athlete of the group, was very impressed with how fast Daniel could run; he’d set every record in their high school track team. And he’d done it without breaking a sweat. Sherry dreamed of beating him one day and having him congratulate her with a kiss.