Page 53

Neri nodded and soon after he blinked, he stood in the sterile, hated room at Standard.

What do I smell like?

He leaned closer to Neri strapped to the table, he inhaled and the familiar lilac and earthy tones hit his senses and sent a relieved shiver over his body.

The same as you do now. We’re done here, angel.

Neri turned her gaze to him as soon as they left her mind. There was relief painted on her face.

“I’m not like them. Thank the gods. So, if I know shifter venom injected transitioned me from human to failed shifter and then to half vampire, it must have been something different from what they are using now. I remember Jade mentioning Noah’s friend had died because the transition overwhelmed his body. She said a lot of humans died during the transition. Do you think, like me, they inject venom into humans, but somehow the venom became tainted, and that’s why they aren’t human any longer?”

Hunter pulled Neri close and kissed the top of her head. “I don’t know, but until we have a sample of their blood or bring a body to Liv for dissection, there’s no use worrying about it. Until then, let’s head home, get food and some sleep before we report into Ghost and see what everyone else found.”

Neri nodded against his chest. “Let’s go.”

Not used to teleportation, he braced himself in time to land in Neri’s bedroom. They stripped out of their clothes and burrowed under the covers. He pulled Neri close and when she sighed, her breath washing over his chest, then he allowed himself to close his eyes and drift off to sleep.

“Love, breakfast,” Neri called from downstairs.

He jolted awake, lost in his thoughts and warm from the blankets covering him, he’d almost fallen asleep again. With reluctance, he rolled out of bed and searched for a pair of sweats and a tee, happy to find them hanging on the arm of a chair in the corner.

His stomach grumbled as he walked into the kitchen, but as he spotted Neri leaning against the counter in a long-sleeved tee and loose yoga pants grasping a cup of coffee in both hands, he made a beeline to her and kissed her forehead.

“What are you thinking about?”

She shook her head. “I hoped we could report back we found the sniveling little bitch and killed her.”

“It’s like a puzzle. We get pieces, see where they fit, and hope the entire picture emerges. We’ll never understand her motivations, but with one more piece of the puzzle, we’ll recognize her objectives and for the first time in four years, get ahead of her and take her and her crew out. Until then, we wait.”

Neri’s shoulders relaxed, and she turned toward the stove to plate up breakfast. He grabbed the plates from her and set them on the table. She poured him a cup of coffee and along with her own, joined him at the table.

“I’ll give Xander the information about the building and see if it connects with Zahava somehow.”

With that, she picked up her fork and ate. Hunter, following suit, taking a bite and moaning over fluffy scrambled eggs and spicy potatoes.

“If you do that again, we’ll forget about breakfast and head upstairs.” She choked out, her breathing uneven.

Without answering, they both ate in silence. Hunter’s eyes never left Neri’s face and bit back a groan when her eyes kept dropping to his mouth before licking her lips and taking another bite. Breakfast had never been so torturous in all his existence. By the time they finished eating, his cock was as hard as a rock. Driven by her scent arousal and the pink tinge of a blush on her cheeks, neck, and chest.

“Dishes later?” She asked.

“Oh, thank fuck,” Hunter growled.

He reached for her and spanned his hands around her waist and lifted her into his arms. “Bed, now.”

Her hands cupped his face and when she leaned down to touch their lips together, she teleported them and they landed on the bed with Hunter on his back.

“That’s handy. I don’t suppose you can get rid of our clothes as fast?”

“Hmm.”

Neri’s hands gripped his clothing and within a millisecond, he stood there naked. He glanced around and smiled when he found them in the exact spot they were in when he woke. Before Neri could do the same to her own clothing, Hunter shook his head.

“Let me. I need to taste you again, all over.”

He flipped her onto her back and captured both of her hands in one of his lifting her arms above her head and trapping them there. He licked a swath over his mark and sucked in a breath when she bucked up, caressing his cock with a light touch.

“I need you, love. Need you inside me.”